DESTINY:
Learning to Live by Preparing to Die
By David Gibson
IVP. 160 pages. £9.99
ISBN 978 1 783 592 852
This is a very good book. Based on his sermons, the minister of Trinity Church Aberdeen walked the Book of Ecclesiastes straight into my life.
Gibson argues that Ecclesiastes is written to help us to live by preparing us to die. He suggests the book’s key word should not be translated as ‘meaningless’, but as ‘breathe’ or ‘breeze’.
Shortness of life
Instead of thinking the Teacher is a sceptic, who’s been reading too much modern philosophy, he treats him as a trustworthy guide to help me live life now. This means Ecclesiastes is actually about the shortness and slipperiness of our lives, rather than their pointlessness. Ecclesiastes isn’t describing the despair you feel if you don’t believe (which is a common approach); it’s describing the reality of my life in a fallen world. This transforms how Gibson reads the book and was what I found so fresh about it. As well as paying close attention to the text, the book is really strong on application. It makes you think about dying, which is not something we tend to do, and shows how doing that really helps you live a God-glorifying life now. He was particularly helpful in bringing out the importance of enjoying God’s good gifts in the present.
It’s the best thing I’ve read on Ecclesiastes. I know the author has run an evangelistic course based on the material. In an age of distraction, this book hits notes that God’s people and the world around us really need to hear.
