Time and Chance

Ecclesiastes 9:11-18

11 I returned and saw under the sun that—

The race is not to the swift,
Nor the battle to the strong,
Nor bread to the wise,
Nor riches to men of understanding,
Nor favor to men of skill;
But time and chance happen to them all.

12 For man also does not know his time:

Like fish taken in a cruel net,
Like birds caught in a snare,
So the sons of men are snared in an evil time,
When it falls suddenly upon them.

13 This wisdom I have also seen under the sun, and it seemed great to me: 14 There was a little city with few men in it; and a great king came against it, besieged it, and built great snares around it. 15 Now there was found in it a poor wise man, and he by his wisdom delivered the city. Yet no one remembered that same poor man.

16 Then I said:

"Wisdom is better than strength.
Nevertheless the poor man's wisdom is despised,
And his words are not heard.

17 Words of the wise, spoken quietly, should be heard
Rather than the shout of a ruler of fools.
18 Wisdom is better than weapons of war;
But one sinner destroys much good."

There are effects of the wise are often unseen but have more lasting results than those of the foolish who rule them.  The fastest runner and strongest warrior do not always win, the wisest philosopher does not possess all the daily bread he needs, nor does the skilled person have ally the good favor seemingly due him or her.  They all run into time and happenstance in their pursuits for glory and success, no matter their lot in life.  This is due to God’s providence in His sovereign grace which allots to each as He commands in ways higher than our own (Isaiah 55:8-9).  We cannot know our times of what will happen when nor the outcome of the circumstances we encounter.  Sometimes we are as the man mentioned here who is like a fish entrapped suddenly in a net or a bird in a snare without warning because they are not seen until it is too late.  Evil times can overtake us suddenly, without any warning that is obvious to us, though some things can be avoided by avoiding what God’s word tells us and doing rightly according to His word.  The example is given of the influence of a humble and wise man who in seeming poverty exercises God-given wisdom to repel invaders as a directional sign for us on our life’s journey.  We may not be remembered for doing well for others and God’s glory, but it is noted in heaven and should give us hope that it is He who is to be credited for all we do and give it meaning.  There but by the grace of God we go and make eternal impact, even if never recognized by others.  That is the lesson here.  Such wisdom is immensely more valuable than brute strength to overpower and rule others, even if it is ignored and hated by those living in pride and self seeking power.  Our words should reflect God’s wisdom in all humility and we do well to listen to such ourselves, not hearing and heeding brash shouts popular among the worldly.  Still, though wisdom is better than weapons for battle, just one sinner can leverage their evil to destroy much good, like a dictator or bad president out for their own glory instead of the Lord’s.  May we listen to the still small voice of godly wisdom (Hebrews 5:14) instead of overpowering and charismatic speeches of such evil in this wicked time (Galatians 1:4).  The wisdom of God's people is not always heeded, even within the church; most often the rich and famous with a following are followed by bleating sheep who ignore sincere words of wisdom from Christ followers.  The battles are won with humility to demonstrate it is God who fights and not men, but we look for a Saul over David, needing someone with a TV show, books, seminars, or other "accomplishments" instead of looking to see if Christ and His Spirit are there.  Is this wise?  Time and chance are ruled by God’s sovereign providence and answered by godly wisdom in humility and faith in the realm of God’s providence, provision, and grace.