Click For Audio Version
Now all has been heard;
here is the conclusion of the matter:
Fear God and keep his commandments,
for this is the duty of all mankind.
14 For God will bring every deed into judgment,
including every hidden thing,
whether it is good or evil. Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 NIV
Thoughts of King Solomon
King Solomon, the writer of Ecclesiastes, has drawn his book to a conclusion with these last two verses.
They are the final realization of all of the previous thoughts he has considered.
Though many of his musings were about the frustrations and meaninglessness of many things in his life, he ends with this profound thought.
Loving God and Keeping His Commands Are The Answer
Fearing or loving God and keeping His commandments are the answer to life.
It is the duty of mankind and the purpose of our lives.
We are here to glorify and love God and to do His Will.
We do that Will by obeying His commandments and statutes and ordinances out of our enormous love and adoration of our Heavenly Father.
Summed Up Further By Jesus
All of the commands are summed up by Jesus generations later when He says to love God and to love each other. Nothing could be simpler or more profound. Everything falls into two categories. If we truly love God we will want to do all that pleases Him and certainly, that would include caring for the people that He has created in His image.
Good vs. Evil
This brings us back to the final verse Solomon gives us in this passage.
He tells us that God will bring every deed we do and every hidden thing in our lives out into the open and will judge them all, for good or evil.
The evil will be punished and the good rewarded.
Loving God and Each Other
Loving God and each other will bring us to living a life that is pleasing to God and one that brings purpose to our existence.
We might sometimes feel like we are going nowhere. We feel that we barely make ends meet to get food on the table and the rent paid to keep us a month until it is time to stretch it all over again. Sometimes, we might feel that the brevity of life is filled with things that bring no lasting satisfaction. These feelings are due to seeking the things that are only material and not the things of God.
Living Our Lives for God
However, as we serve God and love others we find that we are doing as Jesus bid us.
In so doing, we are carrying out those very things that are eternal and are of true value.
When done in love and awe and praise, they bring God the joy that we so desire to bring to Him.
In return, it brings the true purposefulness, joy, and meaning that our own lives are meant to hold.
May our loving and glorious God be praised by the living of our lives for Him.