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Qohelet and the gospel

Provan has this insightful comment: "A central theme of [Jesus'] ministry, enacted in his own life, is that the proper way in which to respond to the nature of reality is to give away one's life rather than hold on to it, to open our hands and let things go rather than to close our fist around them, grasp hold of them, and try to use them for personal advantage."

Not: Go with the flow. But: Go with the vapor. You can't hold what you've got anyway, so beat the vapor to the punch and let it go before it slips away. As Augustine knew, life one of those goods that can be possessed only when we are dispossessed.

Solomon implies the world is built to require us to live by faith; he also implies that the world is constructed to encourage us to live by gift, self-gift. Chesterton knew this: Whoever clings to life shall lose it, but whoever loses his life shall find it, Chesterton said, is not some bit of paradoxical mysticism, but purest common sense. It's the way the world works.

Solomon Among the Postmoderns

The Baptized Body

1 & 2 Kings
Brazos Theological Commentary

The Promise Of His Appearing: An Exposition Of Second Peter

A Great Mystery: Fourteen Wedding Sermons

Deep Comedy: Trinity, Tragedy, And Hope In Western Literature

Miniatures & Morals: The Christian Novels of Jane Austen

The Priesthood of the Plebs: A Theology of Baptism

A Son To Me: An Exposition of 1 & 2 Samuel

Against Christianity

From Silence to Song: The Davidic Liturgical Revolution

Ascent to Love: A Guide to Dante's Divine Comedy

Blessed Are the Hungry: Meditations on the Lord's Supper

A House For My Name: A Survey of the Old Testament

Heroes of the City of Man: A Christian Guide to Select Ancient Literature

Brightest Heaven of Invention: A Christian Guide To Six Shakespeare Plays

Wise Words: Family Stories That Bring the Proverbs to Life

The Kingdom and the Power: Rediscovering the Centrality of the Church