Title | Ecclesiastes 

Length | 12 chapters; 222 verses. 

Genre | Ecclesiastes is one of the books of Poetry in the Old Testament (along with Job, Psalms, Proverbs, and Song of Solomon), which are also called the Writings. 

Author | King Solomon wrote Ecclesiastes, even though some question his authorship. Solomon does not identify himself by name (as he does in Proverbs 1:1 and Song of Solomon 1:1), but all evidence points to Solomon being “The Preacher” (Qoheleth, in Hebrew) who takes credit for writing Ecclesiastes (Eccl. 1:1, 1:12). 

Intended Audience | Solomon writes to his citizens of Israel, the assembly of God’s people, and all who will read his wise counsel. 

Place of Writing | Solomon wrote Ecclesiastes from Jerusalem, where he reigned as king of Israel (Eccl. 1:2). 

Date of Writing | Solomon reigned as King of Israel between. Ecclesiastes was written during the later years of Solomon’s life and reign – probably around 935 B.C. 

Mega-Themes | The mega-themes of Ecclesiastes are revealed through key words and phrases that are repeated throughout the book: 

• Vanity of Vanities | Life is meaningless without God. 

• Under the Sun | The sphere and scope of fallen humanity. 

• Chasing the Wind | Human experience is empty and elusive. 

• A Time for Everything | God is sovereign over our times and seasons. 

• Fear God | Fear God and keep his commandments. 

Occasion | As an older man, Solomon looks back over his life and reflects on the vanity of his pursuit of meaning and satisfaction without God. 

Purpose | Solomon wrote Ecclesiastes so that his readers would learn from his mistakes, avoid life’s vain pursuits, and fear God and keep his commandments. 

Key Verses | 

Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher, vanity of vanities! All is vanity. – Ecclesiastes 1:1

What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun. – Ecclesiastes 1:9 

Again I saw that under the sun 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. – Ecclesiastes 9:11

The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil. – Ecclesiastes 12:13-14

Key People | 

• The Preacher 

• Man 

• God

• The Wise 

• The Foolish 

• The Rich 

• The Poor 

Outline | 

I. Introduction (1:1-11)

II. The Preacher’s Argument (1:12-6:12)

A. The Meaning of Life (1:12-2:26)

B. The Unfairness of LIfe (3:1-6:12)

III. The Preacher’s Application (7:1:12:8)

A. Practical Counsel (7:11-11:6)

B. Youth and Old Age (11:7-12:8)

IV. Conclusion (12:9-14)

Literary Features | 

• Ecclesiastes is the sad sequel to Proverbs, as Solomon looks back over his foolish mistakes and laments that he did not take his own wise advice about life. 

• Ecclesiastes is a book of poetry filled with images and figures of speech that must be interpreted to understand the plain meaning. 

• Ecclesiastes is a unique book of the Bible in that it is divine revelation (2 Tim. 3:16) written from a human point of view (“under the sun” – 1:3). 

• The keyword of Ecclesiastes – “vanity” (which literally means “breath” or “vapor”) – can be translated in various ways, and its meaning must be determined by the context of each occurrence. 

• Ecclesiastes is not a pessimistic book filled with doom and gloom. It is a realistic analysis of the meaninglessness of a life lived without God.