ECCLESIASTES OUTLINE

A Ralph Johnson

Title "The preacher" (7 times). By Solomon.

Theme:  All things under the sun are vanity (empty, without ultimate value). 

Conclusion: Fear God and keep His commandments.

“Vanity” is found 37 times,  “Under the Sun” 29 times,  “Under heaven,” once.

CHAPTERS & KEY WORDS	Outline 12ch(6)
1:	INTRODUCTION:
	1.    Writer:  The “Preacher,” Solomon, son of David, king of Jerusalem. 1:1
	2.    Theme:   All under the sun is vanity (1:2).
Nothing new	I.    VANITY OF ALL THINGS UNDER THE SUN.  (1:2--4:26)
	A.    What profit do we see from labors? (1:2-11)
	Everything just endlessly repeats itself.
	-Generation follows generation but the earth remains.(1:4)
	-The sun keeps coming up and going down.(1:5)
	-The wind circles continually.(1:6)
	-The rivers run into the sea and then return where they came from.(1:7)
	-All things are a weariness. (1:8)
	-There is no new thing under the sun. (1:9,10)
	-One generation soon forgets the last. (1:11)
	B. Personal experience of the preacher.  (1:12--2:26)
	1.    His search for wisdom and knowledge only increased dissatisfaction. (1:12-18)
2: Vanity	2.    Nothing under the sun really profits. (2:1-26)
	a.    Laughter and fun (2:1-2)
	b.    Wine to cheer (2:3)
	c.    Great works (2:4-6)
	d.    Possessions (2:7-8)
	e.    Greatness  (2:9)
	f.    Having everything he wanted (2:10)
	3.    He examined wisdom, madness and folly (2:12-26)
	a.    Wisdom is better than folly but the death is same end for all.  We will all be forgotten (2:12-17)
	b.    Everything we accomplish may be left to a fool to destroy. (2:18-23)
	c. The man who follows God can enjoy things most, yet this also is vanity. (2:24-26)
3: A time	C.    The world is full of examples of vanity. (3:1—4:16)
	1.    Everything has a time but all comes to an end.
	-Man is given time to learn to fear God. (3:1-15)
	-God allows both the wicked and the righteous to dwell together so man can see he is as dependent as the beast.(3:16-22)
4: Problems	2.    Problems continue.
	-Oppression. (4:1-3)
	-Hard work   (4:4-6)
	-Loneliness  (4:7-12)
	-Self-willed rulers. (4:13-16)
5: Values	II.    THE ONLY SOUND BASIS OF VALUES IS GOD (5:1—6:6)
	A.    Be right with God
	-Control your actions and words. (5:1-7)
	-God sees, even when the king does not.(5:8,9)
	B.    Wealth without God cannot fully satisfy (5:10-6:12)
	-Goods increases those using them.(5:10-12)
	-Wealth often hurts the owner and ends at the grave anyway. (5:13-17)
	-Wealth depends upon God. (5:18-20)
6:	-Unless God gives the ability to enjoy it, wealth is a mockery no matter how long one lives. (6:1-6)
Wisdom	III. IMPORTANCE OF WISDOM (6:7--10:20)
	A. Wisdom teaches contentment (6:7-9)
	B. Wisdom teaches humility. (6:10-12)
7: Better	C.    Wisdom teaches better values. (7:1-10)
	-A Good name is better than fine oil. (7:1)
	-Better the day of death than the day of birth. (7:1)
	-Mourning is better than feasting. (7:2)
	-Sorrow is better than laughter. (7:3,4)
	-Better wise rebuke than the song of fools. (7:5-7)
	-Better the end than the beginning. (7:8)
	-Better patience than pride. (7:8,9)
	-Better live in the present than the past. (7:10)
	D.    Wisdom is a good inheritance.
	-It is a protection. (7:11-14)
	-It avoids excess. (7:15-18)
	-It restrains impulsive response. (7:19-22)
	E.    What have I learned about wisdom?
	-It is hard to find (7:23,24)
	-A woman who is a snare is more bitter than death (7:24-26)
	-There is only one [wise?] man in a thousand. A woman I could not find. (7:27,28)
	-God made man upright but they have turned aside to many schemes. (7:29)
8: Wise	F.    How can we know a wise man? (8:1)
	1.    Wisdom makes a man’s face soften and shine (8:2)
	2.    A wise man respects the law. (8:3-5)
	3.    A wise man respects time
	a.    He makes decisions for good while he is able. (8:5-8)
	b.    The foolish use it to gain power and do evil to their own injury. (8:9-13)
	IV.  WITHOUT GOD, WISDOM IS VAIN
	A.   The reward of the righteous and the wicked often seems reversed. (8:14-17)
9: Death	B.   Only God has the answers to why. (8:16--9:1)
	C.   Both righteous and wicked have the same end. (9:2-10)
	D.   Time and chance happen to all. (9:11-12)
	E.   Wisdom is great but often it is despised. (9:13-16)
	F.   Foolishness often outweighs wisdom and honor. (9:17--10:7)
10: Vindication	V.   WISDOM WILL BE VINDICATED. (10:5-20)
	A.    Poor judgment results in bad consequences (10:5-11)
	B.    Your words will reap a result. (10:12-15)
	C.    Irresponsible behavior will not escape (10:16-20)
11: Youth	VI. USE YOUTH WISELY
	A.   Do not put off doing good (11:1-8)
	B.    Enjoy being young, but remember that in the end you must give account to God. (11:9-10)
12: Old age	C.    Remember God before old age and death robs you of the opportunity to know and serve Him. (12:1-8)
	CONCLUSION:
	A.    Solomon’s objective in writing (12:9-10)
	B.    Importance of the words of the wise.
	They provide valuable security. (12:11)
	But books are endless and study can be wearisome. (12:12)
	C.    Conclusion: (12:13-14)
	Fear God and obey Him. This is the highest duty of man. (12:13)
	God will bring every work into Judgment. (12:14)