Ecclesiastes 1

There’s only one son of David who was both king and famous for his wisdom: Solomon. The Hebrew word describing him and what he’s doing in this short, philosophical book is Koheleth, spelled and translated several ways. It’s often translated “Teacher” or “Preacher” because the word refers to someone who calls together a class or another group and then presents insights. But he’s also a scholar who explores different points of view and personally tests his raw discoveries in the real world.

It’s unclear what “time before ours” the writer was talking about. It sounds like an era before humanity, which seems unusual for a writer 3,000 years ago. But perhaps the writer was talking about a generation long forgotten in an advanced culture lost to history.

The Hebrew language more literally says “the crooked can’t be straightened.” The word for crooked can refer to a person corrupt and spiritually warped. Or it could refer to a man with a twisted back. It can also work both layers at once, especially in a proverb that may have been ancient even in Solomon’s day. The same is true about “the short and half empty.” It can mean spiritually lacking. And it can refer to a short person. That image creates the kind of word picture that makes the proverb easier to see and remember.

Well, Solomon might have been richer and wiser than the three kings before him—Saul, Ishbosheth (Saul’s son), and David—but his humility may seem to belong in kindergarten. Yet historians who helped write the history of Israel confirm that Solomon was the wisest person in the world (1 Kings 4:31) and the richest (2 Chronicles 9:22).