Ecclesiastes Chapter Two, Acquisition

Ecclesiastes 2:4 I made my works great, I built myself houses, and planted myself vineyards. [5] I made myself gardens, and orchards, and I planted all kinds of fruit trees in them. [6] I made myself water pools from which to water the growing trees of the grove. [7] I acquired male and female servants, and had servants born in my house. Yes, I had greater flocks than all who were in Jerusalem before me.

The first item to note in this passage is the plural. Everything the preacher makes mention of is in plural. His works are plural. His houses and vineyards, gardens, orchards and fruit trees, servants and flocks are plural. The man did nothing half way and denied himself nothing, see Ecclesiastes 2:10.

The NASB says of verse 4, “I enlarged my works.” The HCSB says, “I increased my achievements.” The preacher’s works were grandiose and plentiful. The king of Jerusalem built himself multiple houses. It is written that Solomon built his Egyptian wife, daughter of Pharaoh, a house outside of Jerusalem, for the sake of the ark and where it had come to, 2 Chronicles 8:11. We know that he would have the revenue for such an outing, since the gold from Ophir was worth nearly (translated to modern currency) $1,000,000,000.

More than that, he had multiple vineyards, gardens and orchards. All of them were for unique purposes: the vineyard was for the fruit of the vine, the garden for its beauty, and the orchard for the fruit bearing trees. In the Torah it was written that fruit bearing trees were to be spared when waging war because of the value of the fruit they bore, Deuteronomy 20:19, 20. The orchards, gardens and vineyards were for the preacher’s personal pleasure, of course, but something wrought in perpetuity for the generations following him and the future kings that he supposed would reside on his throne, ruling Israel. The preacher was crafting pleasing, enduring things as a monument to his greatness. His achievements were mute witnesses to his greatness.

The elaborate building projects he committed to were his legacy, handed first and foremost to his son and heir, and then (he would hope, I imagine) to his descendants after him. And though great, the preacher’s father David was cautioned that if his lineage did not obey God, He would chasten him, 2 Samuel 7:14. By the hands of men, as Solomon was vexed in his latter years after departing from the Lord, God would punish the king for his infidelity. He was further punished when Rehoboam in his foolishness antagonized Israel with threats, so that they deserted him and followed Jeroboam. Despite that, God’s mercy toward David and the title Solomon held was respected, and God informed David, “And your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall be established forever,” 2 Samuel 7:16.

Only God can create something truly enduring. In this instance, Yahweh promised David that his progeny, in the person of Jesus Christ the Lord, would reside on the throne of united Israel. God promised an enduring kingdom, and since that kingdom was terminated in Rehoboam’s day, yet to be reestablished, one may safely assert that in future time we shall see this fulfillment in all of its glory.

The preacher had pools made for his groves, to water the fruit trees he had planted, creating an irrigation system in the numerous places he commanded these building projects to take place. Furthermore, he had many servants, both male and female. Of these servants, the queen of Sheba observed, “the seating of his officials, and the attendance of his servants, and their clothing, his cupbearers, and their clothing,” so that, “there was no more breath in her,” 2 Chronicles 9:4, ESV. In short, even the servants looked resplendent in their array, like the king they served. Jesus informed His audience that Solomon was arrayed gloriously; it stands to reason that the servants of his household would be finely clothed to accentuate their master’s image, see Matthew 11:8.

One more time the preacher boasts about being greater than all who were in Jerusalem before him. In this instance, in regards to his herds and flocks. Recall that Solomon the king came from a shepherding people. David and his father Jesse were shepherds before Samuel anointed David king.  Herds and flocks were (and remain today) vital resources for food and clothing. There was a utilitarian purpose to the acquisition of greater herds and flocks than all before him, since he boasted a flourishing people that prospered mightily during his reign. The fullness of this picture demonstrated the reality of God’s blessing on the house of David: told first to David and reiterated to Solomon, 1 Kings 3:11-14. In everything the preacher had primacy; nothing, materially speaking lay beyond his reach. He had drink aplenty because he had vineyards of his own. He had marvels of architecture, agriculture, music and faithful servitude from his servants. His goods increased to a degree unheard of then, and unheard of since. The great flocks and herds could be seen symbolically of the preacher’s reign and his responsibility to rightly shepherd God’s people Israel from the throne of Jerusalem. As a shepherd’s purpose is to watch over and preserve the flock, so too would it be the preacher’s duty to attend to his flock, the nation of Israel. God willing, the preacher himself will speak further about shepherding later in the book.