Dr Paul Allen

… give to Your servant an understanding heart ( 1 Kings 3 :9). Some scholars maintain that Solomon did not write Ecclesiastes. They base their hypothesis on such things as differences in style from Solomon’s other writings, and vocabulary of a supposed later origin. Bridges disagreed and considered the evidence against Solomon’s authorship to be shallow and inconsistent with the claims of Scripture: “The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem .” Bridges did not believe that some writer of a later era had passed off his own words under the name of “son of David.” Most expositors agree that Solomon wrote Ecclesiastes in his later years. Unlike prophecies and revelation that come in an instant, through a dream or vision, wisdom is gained through experience. God taught Solomon wisdom in the school of life, and Ecclesiastes is a summary of that instruction. Through the hardships and pleasures of life, Solomon learned that true happiness does not consist in the kno...

“For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” ( Hebrews 4:12 ) The Word of God (both the written Word and the living Word, Jesus Christ) is “living and energizing” and is the double-edged sword of the Spirit, piercing into the deepest recesses of body, soul, and spirit, where it “discerns” even the very thoughts and intents of our hearts. This discernment, however, is more than just understanding or insight. The Greek word for “discerner” is kritikos and is used only this one time in the Bible. Our word “critic” is derived from it, and this is an important dimension of its meaning. Its discernment is a critical, judging discernment—one which convicts and corrects, as well as one which understands. It is paradoxical that men today presume to become critics of the Bible when it should really be the o...