Ecclesiastes 11

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Solomon commends diversification, risk-taking, and personal industry as ways to counter the unpredictable events of life. He also admonishes readers to seek God in their youth.

You Do Not Know

Four times this phrase appears in Ecclesiastes 11, emphasizing our inability to foresee the future. Seeing this limitation, Solomon offers guidance for protecting yourself against loss.

Ecclesiastes 11 Outline

11:1-6
Prepare for life’s uncertainties
11:1-2
Diversify your efforts
11:3-4
Take risks
11:5-6
Be continually industrious
11:7-10
Affirm the joys of life
11:7-8
Make every moment count
11:9-10
Seek God when you are young

Cast your bread upon the waters.

This word picture depicts a farmer casting grain into flooded soil. When the flood or irrigation waters recede, the grain grows to yield a bountiful harvest.

Two schools of interpretation are applied to this proverb. The traditional view is that we should sow charity in faith. Our benevolence will return to us, perhaps when we are in need. See Proverbs 3:9-10, 19:17, 28:27, and Luke 6:38.

The contemporary view is that we should diversify our assets. In other words, don’t put all your eggs in one basket. If calamity strikes one of your assets, you won’t loose it all.

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