Ecclesiastes 2:2Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

He evaluates delightful experiences as mere futility. For he confesses, “I said in my heart, ‘I will test you with joy and enjoy good things; but this is vanity!’” He did not immediately surrender to this trial, having first adhered to a disciplined and righteous life before engaging in pleasures. After initially subjecting himself to enjoyment and mastering his temperament, he confronts the temptation of indulgence, not drawn by desire but rather with the intention of discovering whether sensory enjoyment aids in understanding the genuinely good. In the beginning, he positions laughter as an adversary, deeming passion as ‘error.’ This conveys a meaning akin to labeling scarcity as madness; for how else can one accurately define laughter in its true essence? It is neither a meaningful word nor a purposeful action but rather an undignified expression of the physical...

"Who will provide water for my head and a spring of tears for my eyes," and a countenance joyful to those I do not know, "and I weep" for my transgressions "day and night" (Jer. 9:1). "To laughter shall I respond." "Be gone from me"; yet with tears, "Come unto me"; for my iniquity is immense before the Lord, and I cannot count the multitude of my sins.

I remarked to laughter, “You are madness,” and to mirth, “What prompts your actions?” In the place where ‘madness’ is mentioned, the Hebrew term is molal, which Aquila rendered as πλάνησιν, meaning delusion, and Simmachus interpreted as θόροβον, or noise. Yet the Seventy and Theodotion translated it, as they often do, as περιφοράν, which we may literally describe as renewal. In Ephesians 4:14, those swayed by every change in doctrine are unstable, shifting in all directions. Likewise, those who erupt into laughter, concerning whom the Lord declared in the Gospel that their mirth would turn to mourning (Luke 6:25), are ensnared in the delusion and chaos of this age, failing to recognize the severity of their sins or to lament their past wrongdoings. They mistakenly believe that temporary delights are everlasting and rejoice in matters that truly deserve sorrow. This perspective can also apply to heretics who, satisfied with erroneous teachings, envision themselves in joy and prosperity.

I held back the careless laughter, compelling the joy to be measured through firm admonition.

The state of bliss or childhood is marked by a life of pleasure. This blissful existence is free from evil, hence devoid of suffering and pain, resulting in no sorrow or tears. The state of childhood is characterized by an inability to engage in significant endeavors and a lack of awareness of life's higher purpose, leading the child to naturally gravitate towards sensory experiences to evade discomfort and embrace what is pleasing, focusing on play and joy. However, since we have all been removed from this state of bliss due to sin, and each individual eventually moves beyond the innocence of childhood through nature and upbringing, we find ourselves unable to return to that paradisiacal existence, despite our longing for it.

The preacher reflects on whether life's pleasures can truly grant peace and fulfill human longings. Solomon crafted for himself an earthly paradise, filled with pleasure and joy, yet he still found no tranquility. After recognizing the futility of material existence, he dedicated himself to the pursuit of wisdom. Through this journey, he discovered the benefit of knowledge: that it grants an understanding of one’s deeds. However, he soon realized the futility of such endeavors, as the same destiny awaits both the wise and the foolish—death, forgetfulness, and the passing on of possessions to an heir who may lack wisdom. This pursuit, too, is accompanied by continual anxiety and concern.