How does Ecclesiastes 7:28 challenge our understanding of human wisdom and righteousness? \Setting the Context\ Ecclesiastes 7 records Solomon’s candid reflections on the limits of human wisdom. Verse 28 stands out as a sobering observation in the middle of his search for understanding. \The Verse\ “while my soul is still searching but not finding— I found one upright man among a thousand, but not one upright woman among them all.” (Ecclesiastes 7:28) \What Solomon Discovered\ • He examined “a thousand” people, a poetic way of saying he surveyed a vast sample. • Within that multitude he located only “one upright man.” • He found “not one upright woman,” underscoring the near–total scarcity of genuine righteousness in his experience. • The statement is recorded as fact, not hyperbole; it describes the situation Solomon actually encountered. \The Sting to Human Self-Confidence\ • Scripture repeatedly teaches that true righteousness is exceedingly rare (Psalm 14:2-3; Romans 3:10-12, 23). • Solomon’s inability to find the righteous proves that even the wisest human investigator cannot unearth what simply is not there. • The verse exposes the poverty of human virtue: wisdom cannot manufacture righteousness; it can only reveal its absence (Jeremiah 17:9). \Why Mention “Not One Upright Woman”?\ • The wording reflects Solomon’s personal survey, not a divine judgment that women are intrinsically less capable of righteousness than men. • His royal court and harem (1 Kings 11:1-3) surrounded him with women who—by his own choices—were idolatrous and morally compromised, skewing the results. • The literal record serves a theological purpose: to dramatize the universal reach of sin across both genders—if even one group shows zero examples, the entire race is implicated. \Righteousness: Scarce, Not Non-existent\ • “One upright man among a thousand” hints that righteousness, while scarce, does exist—yet only by God’s grace (Genesis 6:9; Job 1:1). • The rarity drives us to look beyond ourselves for the righteousness we lack (Isaiah 64:6). \Christ Alone Fills the Void\ • The New Testament confirms the Old: “There is no one righteous, not even one” (Romans 3:10). • God supplies the righteousness we cannot produce in Jesus Christ: “God made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21). • Solomon’s observation prepares the heart to receive the gospel—our inability becomes the backdrop for Christ’s sufficiency. \Take-Home Truths\ • Human wisdom, no matter how diligent, uncovers but cannot solve the problem of unrighteousness. • Scripture’s candid exposure of our moral bankruptcy is an act of grace, steering us away from self-reliance and toward the Redeemer. • Because Christ provides perfect righteousness, believers can walk in humble gratitude, resisting the temptation to boast in their own wisdom or virtue (Proverbs 3:5-7; Ephesians 2:8-9). |
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