3:1To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: 2A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; 3A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; 4A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; 5A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; 6A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; 7A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; 8A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace. Eccles. 3:1-8 (KJV)
1.To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
Introduction
This introductory statement in verse one in the above passage provides for a succinct statement for all the specific applications listed bellow it, so we will delve into its implications more deeply before looking at the other verses. Verse one in the above passage posits for us a gem of an idea. It’s a beautiful idea that is not always apparent to us who live down here on earth. The seeming randomness of life, its cumbersomeness, its repetitiveness make us sometimes to believe that there is no plan or propose to life and the events that are happening in our world. But according to this statement by Solomon events are not haphazardly taking place and they are not random but they happen according to the predetermined plan and purpose that God has for them. This is not to say that all things are robotically pre planned before in eternity with no leeway for human will or impetus having a role in shaping a destiny. Both the sovereignty of God and the will of man are taught in the Bible even if we can’t always reconcile them intellectually. The latter mentioned is obviously smaller by comparison but does play some role.
God’s sovereignty and time
Time comes from the one who spun our globe(earth) on her axis and causes her to complete a single rotation amounting to a day. The idea of timeliness fits snugly into one of the great themes of the scriptures, that of the sovereignty of God in all of human life and activity. Stated precisely, The Lord by His infinite wisdom has established the times and purposes for all things that take place under heaven. He controls them and wields them according to His will. Time, like all things created by God, falls under the category of things upon which The Lord sovereignly reigns over. One recalls for example the great general Joshua, who prayed for and was granted more daylight-time to conclude his battles (Joshua 10:120).
The wise Solomon was aware of and sensitive to this aspect of wisdom, which we call today as timeliness. Solomon had said concerning love, presumably in his younger days, “do not awaken love before its time”(Song. 2:7; 8:4). In chapter three of ecclesiastics, which he must have written in the latter days of his life, he again echoes timeliness as being important to all aspects of life. In its simplest rendering the gist of this section in Ecclesiastes is to show the importance of good timing. Stated another way, it exhorts us that there is a right time to do certain things. It seems also to imply that we need to have enough wisdom to know the proper time to do certain things.
Today we say things like “Time is of the essence” or “Comedy is all about timing.” In a profound sense this idea of timeliness can transcends a mundane understanding and can be applied towards spiritual things the way Jesus and Paul had done. We can say then that synchronicity with heaven is of ‘the outmost essence’. Today, we need to discern the Lord’s will for our lives along with the right timing to execute them. Paul for example had spent a season of preparation after his conversion before he set out to go on his world changing missions. He said that before setting out to go to Jerusalem that he had spent some time in Arabia. One can imagine that he was in deep prayer and study in preparation for the work God had ordained for him. We also are doing the same thing when we come to seminary to study.
Spiritual Timing
The Lord thought us to pray “thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven” Since messiah broke into our world and put on humanity in order to save us, the purposes of God and heaven also have come down to us and we are to work with them in synchronicity.
35Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest. John 4:35 (KJV)
2He answered and said unto them, When it is evening, ye say, It will be fair weather: for the sky is red. 3And in the morning, It will be foul weather to day: for the sky is red and lowring. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times? Matthew 16:2-3 (KJV)
We are to have the spiritual insight to know that the harvest is indeed ready for reaping.We need to be able to see spiritual realities and not be blind to a lost and dying world the way the Pharisees must have been. Jesus told his disciples (and spoke to us by proxy) to work while it is still light because the darkness can come anytime when no one can work. Paul, for example says to us, “Be ready in season and out of season (i.e. preach)" These are all scriptural examples that speak of time and timeliness and of being synchronized with heaven’s plan and purposes.
The Lord’s Timing and prayer
The word time is mentioned 72 times in the gospels (76 if you include ‘times’) counting from the KJV version of the bible. In His time of ministry the Lord used to say, ‘I do what my father shows me". Every word, miracle was synchronized with The Father and that synchronicity happened during His prayer time. It can safely be said that, we ought to spend sufficient time in prayer so that we will know what the Lord would have us to do, as well as, where and when He wants us to do it. So the key to understanding and applying the timeliness that Solomon so eloquently talks about is to spend time with The Lord who fashioned time and still controls it.
Application: There are two ways we can practically look at and apply the above scriptures that Solomon presented to us. Negatively, We should be careful not to forgo the opportunities that present themselves to us especially those that are spiritual in nature. For example, when one senses a tug by the Holy Spirit to pray, it is essential to do so. On the other side of the coin, we should be careful not to do something too soon and we should wait for God’s perfect timing when making an important move, action or decision.
A time to be born refers to our birthday and can also be seen parallel with the day for us to be born spiritually from above that Jesus talked about in John CH 3. That time is always now because “Today is the day of salvation” We can always ask God to save us and allow us to start a new life in him, if we have not done so already.
‘A time to die’ can refer to the time we are finished in this world and are ready to depart to the next one. David had gotten so old they had given him a young woman to keep him warm. Paul was acutely aware of his own passing and anticipated his reward while he also got the satisfaction of a work that was accomplished well and was pleasing to his master. He had also said, “I die daily” referring to the dying that should happen everyday to our own self and our selfish desires.
‘A time to plant’ Jesus was referring to himself when he related the parable of the sower and we are ever to be the farmers and plant God’s word into people’s hearts, “whether they hear or they forbear.”
“A time to pluck up that which is planted” this would seem like a negative activity but its like firing an employee that steals and is sometimes needed. Perhaps the greatest illustration for this is Jeremiah, who was told he would, root out, and to pull down, and to destroy. John the Baptist also spoke about, “The ax being led at the root” the Lord will only tolerate evil for a time before he uproots it completely.
5Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations. Jeremiah 1:5 (KJV)
9Then the Lord put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the Lord said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth. 10See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant. Jeremiah 1:9-10 (KJV)
3A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up
A time to kill This can refer to capital punishment where the bible talks about executing someone who has committed a heinous crime of murdering the innocent. It can also referrer to the killing that happens in war.
a time to heal can refer to the times of healing that come from the Lord. Jesus heals a demoniac and another man crippled for over thirty years so Jesus coming can be seen as the time for healing and thankfully is still going on. We can be healed spirit, soul and body by crying out and asking the Lord to save us and heal us.
a time to break down, and a time to build up Abraham was told to leave his fathers land and Go to the land where God would show him. We also need to know we are sojourners in this world. We need to know when to set up camp and we need to know when to remove our stakes from the ground for the next thing that God would have us to do. We should never have our stakes dug in too deep into the ground that we cannot move when the Lord calls us to go somewhere.
This can have other applications like for example in marriage. No man should separate what God has put together for God hates divorce and we should always seek to build up families. However, in the midst of unrepentant marital infidelity or abuse one might perhaps need to look into divorce as a sad but necessary action as a final resort.
A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn
The shortest verse in the bible says, Jesus wept. This he did because his friend Lazarus had passed and he had identified with his sisters in their great sorrow. That showed his humanity and so we also weep in times of loss and bereavement. The Lord feels our sorrow and He cares and does not leave us alone but is with us. We are to weep with those who weep and rejoice with those who rejoice. A merry heart does us good like medicine as proverbs tell us so we should rejoice in The Lord always as Paul also reminds us. Are you saying rejoice in the midst of trouble? The answer is “yes”. The joy of The Lord is our strength and so we need it the most at our ‘low’ times. We need to remind ourselves of the wonderful promises that He has given us especially at these low times in our lives. Paul said the above statement while he was in prison. He, like the apostles had found it a great joy to be able to suffer for the lord’s sake. He knew that to such was promised the kingdom of God.
A time to dance, The cripple at the gate who was healed by John and Peter leapt for joy and so he can be said to have danced for joy that he had been set free. Its very possible that Jesus had also danced as he had attended a wedding in Canna since that was the tradition not only in Israel but in nearly all cultures including our times. In Psalms 149, we are exhorted to praise the Lord in the dance. This psalm paints a picture of praise and worship that a lot of people in certain churches won’t feel comfortable with; nevertheless, The Word gives us the freedom and blessing to do so. David also danced before the Lord.
5A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together this seems to speak of judgment and acquittal, as that was how Israel meted out judgment to transgressors. Jesus had said, “He who is without sin to cast the first stone” as a reminder of this grim period in the dispensation of The Law. Stoning is still practiced in some places in the Moslem world by groups like the infamous Taliban.
a time to embrace This is speaking of the embrace of matrimony whose bed is undefiled. This physical love between a husband and a wife is the only Bible sanctioned act of sexual nature. Perhaps it can also speak of the embrace or hug that happens between brethren of like mind, heart and faith.
a time to refrain from embracing; this is speaking of responsibility to things other than our spouses. For example a newly married soldier need not go to war but is to keep his wife company but others had to fight in ancient Israel.
This might also perhaps speak of offense that happens between people causing a rift. We are to always try to reconcile with our brother and exhaust all possible avenues before we break fellowship with them as a last resort due to their un-repentance.
6A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away
A time to get, and a time to lose This is akin to the thought in the book of Job. Job said after suffering immense loss, “ The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away, blessed be the name of the Lord” Both gain and loss are part of the reality of life but why they happen might not be an easy mystery to unravel.” The Lord makes the sun to shine and the rain to come down on both the just and the unjust alike” So we should accept both gain and loss as the realty of life in order to be mature balanced people because both are inevitable.
A time to keep, and a time to cast away;
This phrase can have many secular as well as spiritual applications. One good example of this phrase might be when the Lord comes at the end of the age and separates the wheat from the tares. The parable of the sheep and the goats also speaks of a time when the just will be separated from the wicked to inherit eternal life. Another example is the hardening of Israel that took place because of their rejection of messiah and the ushering in of the gentiles into the kingdom. They were cast away for a time and we grafted in.
7A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak
A time to rend, rend your hearts and not you garments says the prophet beaconing a wayward society to repent. We should always have an attitude of repentance.
and a time to sew; means a time for reconciliationa and put things together that were apart. Its not always good to reconcile individuals or groups of people without dealing with the hraet of the issue that separated them. But there comes a time that we also need to reconcile the broken and separated parts of what ought to be a unit.
a time to keep silence and a time to speak we are to be quick to listen and slow to speak. A lot of time the temptation is to say what’s on our mind. In retrospect however we realize that lots of times we do more harm by saying something rather than being silent. On the opposite end there are times we absolutely need to speak up so evil cam be thwarted and not take root in our lives or other’s lives as well as in our churches.
A time to love, and a time to hate
We are to always love God and also our neighbor and hate sin always. But we are to forgive those who trespass against us and love them and pray for them.
a time of war, and a time of peace Solomon had obviously enjoyed a tremendous time of peace and prosperity during His reign, David however was a man of war. The business of war is always dirty even when its commanded by the Lord. The church today should always be on war footing in fighting and exposing the works of darkness in spiritual warfare. We are also to leave peaceably with everyone when possible. Today’s God people are no more to engage in meting out God’s Justice. He rather says to us, ‘vengeance is mine, I will repay”
Eccles. 3:1-8 (KJV)
W. Graham Scroggie, P. 143 The unfolding drama of redemption, Kregel 1994,
Genesis 1:1-14
Matthew 24:36
Joshua 10:12
Song of Songs 2:7, 8:4
John 4:35
Matthew 16:2-3
John 9:4
II Timothy 4:2
John 8:28,38
Luke 6:12, John ch. 17
John 11 35
Roman’s 12:15
Phil 4:4
Nehemiah 8:10
Matt 5:10
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