Useful Bible Studies > Ecclesiastes Commentary > chapter 9

The right reaction to trouble

Ecclesiastes 9:12

Trouble happens suddenly. If we were ready for trouble, then we would try to avoid it. But often, there was nothing that we could have done to protect ourselves. And then we feel like a fish in the net or a bird in a trap. We are desperate, but we cannot escape.

Often, we complain that we did not deserve our troubles. Usually, that is true. Trouble is often not the result of bad behaviour, even as success is often not a reward for good behaviour. These things seem to happen by chance. Such events do not happen in a fair manner.

In the Bible, we find a clear example of this experience in the Book of Job. Job was a rich man who suddenly lost both his wealth and his family. Soon afterwards, he became ill.

Job did not deserve his troubles. He was a good man who served God (Job chapter 31). But even Job’s friends thought that Job had done something terribly wrong to deserve those troubles (Job 22:4-15).

In fact, Job’s troubles did not happen by chance. They were the result of an evil plan that the devil made on purpose (Job 1:6-12; Job 2:1-7). God allowed it because Job’s loyal and sincere reaction would bring honour to God.

Our troubles may happen for various reasons, but our reaction should always be to trust God. It is God’s desire to forgive us when we confess our wrong deeds to him (Exodus 34:7). It is God’s desire to save us when we humbly request his help (Jonah 2:9; Jonah 4:10-11). That was David’s experience, as he described in Psalm 124:7-8.

Next part: How one man’s wisdom saved his city (Ecclesiastes 9:13-15)

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© 2019, Keith Simons.