after death. It seems to the careless reader
that this book is only gloomy, dark, and hopeless. But that is a
superficial view. If one reads with more care, one finds another
strain in the book. It is good for a man to enjoy his labor. This is
the gift of God. Let a man eat and drink and enjoy his labor. This is
his portion, or wages, from God. Such thoughts as these occur again
and again in the book. One begins to see that all is not darkness. On
the contrary, there is, so far as it goes, a very excellent way of
living put forward in the book. The author's question is, What are the
wages of life? What ought one to think of as making life worth living?
His answer is, The work of life itself, with the ordinary pleasures
that come with it, are the wages. It is these things that make life
worth living. Now this author does not see all the truth. He does not
even sum up the whole of life. It is a great lack that in his
pictures, in the first few chapters, of the things that may be
expected to yield pleasure, he says nothing about the unselfish life.
The life he describes is all getting, getting, getting, and never
giving. Now the life that simply spends itself in trying to get things
and never tries to help others is sure not to be a very happy life.
"Vanity of vanities" is its very proper conclusion. This picture of
life is too narrow. It needs to be enlarged by the rich and beautiful
New Testament ideal of the life of unselfish love.

{243}

TO EVERYTHING THERE IS A SEASON

To everything there is a season,
And a time to every purpose under the heaven:
A time to be born,
And a time to die;
A time to plant,
And a time to pluck up that which is planted;
A time to kill,
And a time to heal;
A time to break down,
And a time to build up;
A time to weep,
And a time to laugh;
A time to mourn,
And a time to dance;
A 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 seek,
And a time to lose;
A time to keep,
And a time to cast away;
A time to rend,
And a time to sew; {244}
A time to keep silence,
And a time to speak;
A time to love,
And a time to hate;
A time for war,
And a time for peace.

{245}

REMEMBER ALSO THY CREATOR

Remember also thy Creator in the days of thy youth:
Or ever the evil days come,
And the years draw nigh,
When thou shalt say,