8:1-8
Wisdom brightens the face. For all his, what we might call cynicism, the Teacher is convinced that wisdom is a good thing. He also advocates respect for the king. “Since a king’s word is supreme, who can say to him “What are you doing?” The same can be said about God. The attitude the teachers advocates that we have toward the king, is much the same as should have towards God. We should live life knowing that God has everything in hand. “Be still and know that I am God” (Ps 46:10).
8:9,10
These instructions are the result of the Teacher having applied his mind, having thought about things.”Everything under the sun” means everything in this life. It might seem as if it will never happen, but there comes a time when the wicked are called to account. “Meaningless” here seems to have the sense of fleeting. It can seem as if the wicked will rule forever, but this is not so.
8:11-13
Justice needs to be done quickly. “Justice delayed is justice denied”. When justice is slow people are tempted to take the Law into their own hands. They should not do this, but at least part of the blame lies with those responsible for an inadequate justice system. The Teacher is convinced that it is better to fear God, than to not fear Him.
8:14,15
We are now back to his cynicism, or realism if you prefer. There are times when it seems that things are upside down, the righteous getting what the wicked deserve and vice versa. The Teacher’s advice is just to get on with life.
8:16,17
The Teachers thinks that no one can work out everything that God does. We should use wisdom, but do so accepting the limits of our wisdom.
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