(Eccl 8:5 KJV) Whoso keepeth the commandment shall feel no evil thing:
and a wise man's heart discerneth both time and judgment.
Ecclesiastes 8:1-5
{1}Who is as the wise man? and who knoweth the
interpretation of a thing? a man's wisdom maketh his face to shine, and the
boldness of his face shall be changed.
(Eccl 7:25 KJV) I applied mine heart to know, and to search, and to seek
out wisdom, and the reason of things, and to know the wickedness of
folly, even of foolishness and madness: In
Ecclesiastes 7:25. Solomon had set out to search out both foolishness and
wisdom. In Chapter 8, he begins his search of the wise man by asking the
question, “Who is as the wise man?” Then he asks “who knoweth the
interpretation of a thing?” The Hebrew word for “interpretation” is “pêsher”
which means “explanation.” It is from the Hebrew word “peshar” which means
“to interpret.” It is found only in Daniel in reference to the dreams which
he interpreted for the king. The setting for this verse is in the king’s
court where there would always be wise men to aid in the decisions of the
king.
(Exo 34:29 KJV) And it came to pass, when Moses came down from mount
Sinai with the two tables of testimony in Moses' hand, when he came down
from the mount, that Moses wist not that the skin of his face shone while he
talked with him. When Moses descended Mount Sinai after
being in the presence of the Lord, his face had shined because of the glory
of the Lord. As believers, we are indwelled by the Holy Spirit and our faces
do not shine as the face of Moses, but we are endowed with wisdom and our
shining comes from the inside and not from the outside. God has implanted
His wisdom in us so we will be able to make proper interpretations. If a
man’s face shines, then he can easily be picked out of a group of people
because of the change of face. Those who have been given wisdom and use it
properly will also be noticed by many. This we were able to see in Daniel.
(Dan 1:17 KJV) As for these four children, God gave them knowledge
and skill in all learning and wisdom: and Daniel had understanding in all
visions and dreams. This verse is speaking about Daniel,
Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah whom the Lord gave much wisdom to.
{2}
I counsel thee to keep the king's commandment, and
that in regard of the oath of God.
(Titus 3:1 KJV) Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and
powers, to obey magistrates, to be ready to every good work,
One of the principles of Christian obedience is loyalty.
We are to be loyal to the earthly monarchs but we are not to obey them if
they are in defiance of the law of God. Going back to Hananiah, Mishael, and
Azariah, they would not bow down to the idol and they were subjected to the
furnace as punishment for not obeying the king’s command and God saved them
in the fire because they were obedient to God’s law against idolatry, even
though they were in disobedience to the earthly king. God’s law will always
supersede the law of man. If the king’s commandment aligns itself with law
of God, then there would be no problem in keeping that commandment of the
king.
{3}
Be not hasty to go out of his sight: stand not in an evil thing;
for he doeth whatsoever pleaseth him.
In the courts of kings, there were those who stood around all day such
as the counselors. When the Queen of Sheba came to Solomon, she called those
who stood in his court happy because they were able to hear the wisdom of
Solomon all day.
(1 Ki 10:8 KJV) Happy are thy men, happy
are these thy servants, which stand continually before thee, and
that hear thy wisdom. Standing was also a sign of
readiness to come to the aid of the king. Just as the courtiers stood before
the earthly king, the true believer is always standing in the presence of
the Lord Jesus Christ who is the King of Kings. If we continually stay in
the presence of the Lord, we will be able to increase in wisdom and
obedience but if we tend to go out into the world, then it is like we are
leaving the presence of the Lord and going to stand before the presence of
Satan which means we will become involved in the evil ways of the world. If
we do this then the Lord has the right to chastise us to bring us back to
obedience. Just like the earthly king who has the authority to deal any way
he wants with his disobedient staff, the Lord deals with His children in any
way He sees fit to bring them back into line.
{4}
Where the word of a king is, there is power: and who may
say unto him, What doest thou?
The king has sovereign authority to rule his kingdom any way he sees
fit, even if opposed to what his counselors may say. Questioning the king
may result in the death penalty or it may result in removal from the court.
(Isa 55:8-9 KJV) For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. {9} For as
the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your
ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. In the same
manner, God’s ways are not our ways and God’s thoughts are not our thoughts
and therefore the Christian must never question the ways of God but we are
to be obedient to whatever His will is for us, even if we do not understand
it at the time or ever.
{5}
Whoso keepeth the commandment shall feel no evil thing: and a
wise man's heart discerneth both time and judgment.
Discerneth - Understand - It is something the subject is aware of
without question.
Time - A point of time or a period of time
Judgment - Justice, Judgment, or ordinance (manner)
Now up to this point, is the context of these passages date setting or
is it obedience unto the Lord? Now verse 5, relates directly back to verse
2.
(Eccl 8:2 KJV) I counsel thee to keep the king's
commandment, and that in regard of the oath of God.
Those who are obedient to the King’s commandment will
feel no evil thing, that is, they will not become involved in anything
sinful nor will they suffer any consequences of an evil act if they remain
obedient. The second half of this verse does not speak about date setting
but it builds upon the first part of the verse which deals with keeping the
king’s commandment. Now looking at the word “discerneth” it carries with it
the understanding a person has without question. The true believer knows
that they are to believe and obey God without question. They do not need to
be told that they should be obedient. It is something which is inherent
because of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
Now following a person’s discernment which comes without question, does
not date setting cause one to question? The answer is yes and that means
something else other than date setting is in view in the second half of this
verse. When we read the Scriptures, we have specific commands and situations
which must be understood and obeyed. It is called the King’s commandment
both here in verse 5 and in verse 2. The King’s commandments for the
believer are found in the Scriptures. We study the Scriptures for the
purpose of being obedient and to fulfill our part in the Great commission.
First of all we must discern the time.
(Psa 90:12 KJV) So teach
us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto
wisdom. In Psalm 90:12, we are told to number our days so
we may apply our hearts to wisdom. That is, we are to realize that we have
only a certain number of days on earth and if they are spent in frivolity,
then we will have wasted our life but if we understand the time we have and
the times we live in, then we apply ourselves to wisdom, that is, serving
the Lord with all our strength. The principle in discerning the times we
live in is found in Acts 13:36. (Acts 13:36 KJV) For David, after he
had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was
laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption: David had
served his own generation and we are all placed in certain periods of time
in history for the purpose of serving our generation.
Martin Luther served his generation with the start of the Reformation.
The Apostle Paul served his generation by starting many churches and
bringing the Gospel to the Roman Empire which eventually spread throughout
the entire empire. William Tyndale served his generation by making an
English translation of the Bible which was the forerunner of the King James
Bible. There could be many others we could name but we must discern the
times that we live in and realize that people in this generation need to
hear the true Gospel and it is our responsibility to get the Gospel out as
we serve our generation by understanding the times and that the time being
short.
(Eccl 12:1 KJV) Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy
youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou
shalt say, I have no pleasure in them; Ecclesiastes 12:1
states that we are to remember our Creator in the days of our youth and that
is to prevent us from getting involved in sin as we get older. It is called
training the next generation which is part of discerning the times and as we
train them in the ways of the Lord, then when temptation comes, they will
know how to avoid it.
Secondly, we must discern judgment. Now in this verse, it is not
speaking of the final judgment but in making of a proper decision. The idea
that we are never to judge is foreign to the Bible. Christians must make
judgments all the time concerning life itself but judgments are also made
concerning obedience to the Lord. When a situation confronts us in which one
path is sinful and the other is obedience to God, the Christian should make
the right decision in obedience to God. Remember what meaning the word
“discerneth” carries and that is the subject being aware of something
without question. As Christians, obedience should be the normal lifestyle
without question. We must never ponder whether it is proper to sin or not,
for it is always wrong to sin. If we continue to keep the king’s
commandment, we will never feel evil or a sense of guilt which can stop a
Christian in their tracks. So basically we are seeing in this verse that as
Christians we must discern the times we live in, the time we have, and the
proper ways to engage in ministry so we may serve our generation.
Summary
Where does date setting fit into this verse or even the whole string of
verses from 1-5? These five verses are dealing with the Christian who
understands the time they are living in and the time they are given on earth
by God to properly serve their generation for Christ. Verse 5 has nothing
whatsoever to do with date setting or even judgment day, even though
judgment day is always in view. Here is a prime example of a wise man’s
heart discerning judgment by recognizing false teachings. That is what God
is attempting to teach us that in our time we must discern the times,
especially since it is the times of apostasy and we must make judgment and
reject the apostate teachers.