Ecclesiastes 9:11-12 – Don’t be surprised by unexpected events

In life, we always think that the best, the smartest, the brightest, the strongest will always beat people who are less endowed, hands down. This happens to whatever arena of life, whether in sport, career or battle. Ordinarily, we are impressed with a person who has a sharp mind and concludes that he has the capacity to make lots of money. Or when watching a sporting event and see a person physically endowed, we will conclude that he is a good athlete and can easily win a race. But to our surprise often it is not the case. It is wise to know that not everything that glitters is gold. Ecclesiastes 9:11, says that “…the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor favor to those with knowledge, but time and chance happen to them all.” We should wise up and adopt the advice of the English proverb that says that we should never judge a book by its cover.

Human ability alone does not guarantee success in life. We are all equally exposed to the circumstances or opportunities of life. One cannot predict what will happen to him or her for we are all equally susceptible to the varying circumstances of life at any given time. Solomon asserted that “time and chance” happen to us all. Even though we have established that every one of us is subjected to God’s sovereignty, the fact remains that we are all susceptible to the unpredictability of life. No one knows when his time will come just as Solomon has said, “Man does not know his time.” To help clarify what he says here, he illustrates with two imageries from the world of nature - the fish and the bird. He said, “Like fish that are taken in an evil net, and like birds that are caught in a snare, so the children of man are snared at an evil time when it suddenly falls upon them.” Had the fish or the bird been aware of the nets or the traps ahead of them, they would not be caught. They are often caught before they knew it. By the time they become aware they were already caught, and it would be too late to escape.

Like the fish or the bird, the same thing can happen to us humans. We are exposed to the different seasons and opportunities in life. But we cannot predict when they will happen. In these verses, it is clear that Solomon was not talking about the good times but the negative happenings in life. The imageries he uses are nets and traps. They are things that happen without one’s knowledge. Know it or not, negative things are happening day in and day out in our world. If it is not about the volcanic eruption in the Philippines, it will be an earthquake in China or tsunami in Japan or economic downturn in the world. This world we live in is subjected to all sorts of catastrophic or cataclysmic calamities.

As Christians, we must take the counsel of Paul wisely. We should never live life carelessly or flippantly. We should see and understand the signs of the time. Life is unpredictable. Hardship and misfortune can knock at our doors anytime. When they happen, they are often unannounced. They will leave us with no time to plan an escape route. We must live in anticipation of the unexpected. We should not be taken by surprise when hardship comes beckoning at our door. The Lord already tells us that in this world we will have tribulations. Meanwhile, we must never take the good time of life for granted. We should never think a good time is the believer’s entitlement and that they will last forever. No one is immune from the calamity of this world. Our hope rest in the promise of Jesus that we should cheer up for He has overcome the world. We learn to hold on to life with a gentle grasp and not be too overtaken by despair when negative experiences come beckoning at our door. The peace of God, which He has promised, will garrison our heart and our mind and keep us in the knowledge of Christ Jesus when we commit all to Him.