Saturday, December 7, 2024

Ecclesiastes 2:2



And I said of frivolous fun, “They are only senseless ideas”; and regarding selfish pleasure, “What purpose is this?”
Ecclesiastes 2:2 Modern English Version (MEV)
 
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I said of laughter, it is mad,.... The risible faculty in man is given him for some usefulness; and when used in a moderate way, and kept within due bounds, is of service to him, and conduces to the health of his body, and the pleasure of his mind; but when used on every trivial occasion, and at every foolish thing that is said or done, and indulged to excess, it is mere madness, and makes a man look more like a madman and a fool than a wise man; it lasts but for a while, and the end of it is heaviness, Ecc_7:6. Or, "I said to laughter, thou art mad" (x); and therefore will have nothing to do with thee in the excessive and criminal way, but shun thee, as one would do a mad man: this therefore is not to be reckoned into the pleasure he bid his soul go to and enjoy;
 
and of mirth, what doth it? what good does do? of what profit and advantage is it to man? If the question is concerning innocent mirth, the answer may be given out of Pro_15:13; but if of carnal sinful mirth, there is no good arises from that to the body or mind; or any kind of happiness to be enjoyed that way, and therefore no trial is to be made of it. What the wise man proposed to make trial of, and did, follows in the next verses.
 
(x) לשחוק אמרתי מהולל "risui dixi, insanis", Mercerus, Drusius, Amama; "vel insanus es", Piscator, Schmidt, Rambachius.
 
John Gill’s Exposition of the Bible
 
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Let’s be clear, there’s nothing wrong with having fun. A little bit of downtime, recreation and relaxation is good for us. It becomes an issue when it turns into an obsession for us. A stark example of that would be the world of computer and online gaming. Lives are being consumed by it. Playing games is fun. Forgetting to eat, sleep, and even ignoring basic bodily functions is not.
 

2 comments:

  1. Anything can become an obsession. Just depends on our personal weakness, and the Lord's willingness to keep us away from it.

    ReplyDelete

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