Ecclesiastes 3:16-4:16

1. Read Ecclesiastes 3:16–22. Surveying this whole passage, what does Qoheleth mean in Ecclesiastes 3:18? What do men and beasts share in common, and why might we be so slow to accept that truth about ourselves?
2. When people use the word “injustice,” it can sometimes mean different things to different people. What do you think it means from a biblical perspective? What makes something just or unjust? According to what standard?
3. Read Ecclesiastes 4:1–6. Multiple evils are named in this passage. Which of them are you more prone to see in others and not in yourself? Why do you think that is the case?
4. Qoheleth contemplates four areas of life that reinforce his view that everything “under the sun” and absent the fear of God is all ultimately vanity. He surveys themes of oppression (4:1–3), rivalry (4:4–6), materialism (4:7–12), and power (4:13–16). As you consider your own life and character, how do these four themes manifest in your own life?
5. The evil of the world is so multifaceted that the hope for this world cannot come from this world. So, the God who created the world stepped into the world He created. Whenever we look in the mirror or at the world around us and see the evils named in Ecclesiastes 4:1–16, we must remember that Jesus willingly threw Himself into inequality, oppression, rivalry, materialism, and the hands of corrupt leaders. Meditate on the person and work of Jesus. How does the gospel address each of the evils you outlined in question #4?