The Superlative Prospect of Joy in Toil

There is nothing better for a person than that he should eat and drink and find enjoyment in his toil. v.24 Martha doesn’t begin to grasp the “good thing” here in Ecclesiastes 2:24-26. In fact, the prospect here isn’t just good, there is nothing better. The Preacher reveals the absolute best available under the sun, and it is superlative in that this is the best. There is nothing better. This is the genuine high life.

And note who this applies to: for a person. Here is a universal and timeless statement. Joy is not just for the king or for nobility. The possibility of happiness in work is not limited to a particular personality type or to a special class of society. The prospect of joy is no respecter of persons.

A number of things came to mind as I was marinating on this passage, most of them related to what the Preacher doesn’t say. Solomon omits almost everything we depend on for joy while embracing exactly what we would exclude.

First, the joy comes in TOIL. In other words, joy comes in the regular process of life, not in stepping out of our normal day-to-day responsibilities. To eat and drink…and work are fundamental things of life. So contentment and enjoyment come from the simple things we have and the simple things we do every day, especially in our labor.

I've thought often about the gift of industry that God gives us. What must it have been like in the Garden to have been appointed its steward? When I think of the Garden of Eden I don't get a whole lot of specific visuals, but I get this sense of a blissful lack of commotion and rumore (that's the Italian word for noise or racket). It's interesting that it has the same root as rumor, which, according to Miriam Webster, is akin to the Old English word reon (to lament) and the Greek word oryesthai (to howl).

For some reason, this post brought to mind the Amish Communites in the U.S. There used to be a couple of Amish families in Albion who owned a bit of farm land. They seemed so remote, but their presence was comforting.

They are a really important witness because they harken back to our Agrarian beginnings, and to the Garden in my mind.

I'm not a pacifist, but I respect true pacifists because it is a courageous stand to take, and in my mind it can't be divorced from Our Lord as He stood before Pilate and surrendered all to gain all. Their pacifism does not seek to undermine but to testify, much like St. Paul. I like the Amish, quite a bit.

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