Therefore, his conclusion at this point is this: there is no effort or scheme for self-enrichment, no knowledge to be gained, no experience that can be had, no way of finding pleasure or fulfilment, no art or diversion, no man-made religion or philosophy that can deliver men from vanity, and therefore all human labour and effort which rejects God is futile and the whole of life becomes pointless and purposeless. Let men stop and begin to turn in a new direction, towards the one true living God who made us and can alone deliver us from this hopeless maze.
In these days people say, Christianity came out of an old book. Man didn’t know a fraction of what he knows now. In Solomon’s day they had none of the gadgets that we now have; they understood very little of what science has revealed about the world. Christians do not decry all this, indeed most of the early scientists studied the world because they believed it was created by God and therefore subject to orderly description. But knowledge of how the world works without knowledge of God, of the purpose of life, of human sinfulness and need of salvation, only increase the vain side of life. Solomon almost anticipates this objection. Yes, there are many comforts, many gadgets, advanced knowledge of our world, but in a sense all they do is contribute to the vanity. Lives have become more pleasing and more interesting, but those advances do nothing for the soul. Man’s character hasn’t changed; he is no less of selfish, no less proud, no less of an adulterer. Scientific knowledge cannot change our relationship with God, or give us a new spiritual nature. It makes man more self-confident, and even more blind to the needs of the soul. Salvation does not come through knowledge of this world, but through the knowledge of God. We must distinguish between fleeting earthly things and lasting things.