Annotated Outline of Ecclesiastes

Ecclesiastes

1. Introduction and theme (1:1-2)  (1:1-18)
   1. VANITY: man's works (1:3-11)  (1:3)
      1. Man's works unprofitable  (1:3)
   2. Man's works transitory: four eternal transients  (1:4-7)
   100. Man's works never satisfies  (1:8)
   4. Man's works repetitious  (1:9-10)
   5. Man's works soon forgotten  (1:11)
   6. VANITIES: personal search of a backslidden preacher (81 personal pronouns, 1:12-2:26)  (1:12-14)
      1. VANITY: all man's works  (1:12-14)
   7. VANITY: wisdom, knowledge, madness and folly  (1:15-18)
2. VANITY: personal pleasures  (2:1-26)
   1. VANITY: great works  (2:4-6)
   2. VANITY: riches and glory  (2:7-9)
   100. VANITY: unbridled lusts  (2:10-11)
   4. VANITY: wisdom and folly  (2:12-17)
   5. VANITY: insecurity of works  (2:18-19)
   6. VANITY: unworthy inheritors  (2:20-21)
   7. VANITY: no personal profit from own labors  (2:22-23)
   8. VANITY: a sinner's life of hard labor ends only in judgment for his rebellion; his works are left to the righteous  (2:24-26)
3. Man's span of life (3:1-22)  (3:1-22)
   1. Twenty-eightfold weary round of human life  (3:1-8)
   2. The great question to the laboring man (cp. 1:3-11)  (3:9)
   100. Sixfold personal observation of life and death  (3:10-11)
        1. Man's labor and ignorance  (3:10-11)
   4. Blessings and opportunities  (3:12-13)
   5. Man's chief end in life  (3:14-15)
   6. Man's wickedness and judgment  (3:16-17)
   7. Man dies like the beasts, but their spirits go to different places  (3:18-21)
   8. A backslider's conclusion.  Cp. 5:18-20; 7:1-29, notes; 9:2-6; 11:9-10; 12:13  (3:22)
4. Vanities alternated with advice and instruction (4:1-5:20)  (4:1-16)
   1. VANITY: oppressions by others and labors for others  (4:1-4)
   2. ADVICE: live in peace  (4:5-6)
   100. VANITY: a miser's life  (4:7-8)
   4. ADVICE: two are better than one; reasons  (4:9-12)
   5. VANITY: no justice or pleasure in life  (4:13-16)
5. ADVICE: fourteenfold advice on wisdom works, vows and justice  (5:1-20)
   1. VANITY: love and money (1 Tim. 6:10)  (5:10)
   2. ADVICE: be satisfied with the fruit of your own labor  (5:11-12)
   100. VANITY: riches saved by others are profitless  (5:13-17)
   4. ADVICE: enjoy your own labor all the days of your life  (5:18-20)
6. Vanities and evils (6:1-12)  (6:1-12)
   1. VANITY: no power to enjoy the many blessings of life  (6:1-2)
   2. VANITY: raise a large family and then die a pauper  (6:3-6)
   100. VANITY: desires and appetites are never satisfied  (6:7-9)
   4. VANITY: continual questionings concerning the good life  (6:10-12)
7. Advice and the better things of life (7:1-29)  (7:1-29)
   1. Eight better things of life  (7:1-8)
   2. Sixfold advice: reasons  (7:9-14)
   100. Be not over righteous: reason  (7:15-16)
   4. Be not over wicked: reason  (7:17-18)
   5. Do not trust in might: reason  (7:19-20)
   6. Be not over sensitive: reason  (7:21-22)
   7. Seven discoveries of a backslider  (7:23-29)
8. Vanities alternated with advice and instruction (8:1-9;10)  (8:1-17)
   1. ADVICE: wisdom in conduct before God and the king.  Cp. 10:1-20; Pr. 1:7, 20  (8:1-8)
   2. VANITY: oppression and sins  (8:9-10)
   100. ADVICE: sin will not pay in the final end  (8:11-13)
   4. VANITY: unequal rewards  (8:14)
   5. ADVICE: enjoy own labor  (8:15)
   6. VANITY: man's ceaseless work  (8:16-17)
9. ADVICE: be content to know that God knows more than man and that God is sovereign  (9:1-18)
   1. VANITY: all things come alike to all and sin is inherent in man all the days of his life  (9:2-6)
   2. ADVICE: enjoy the many blessings God has bestowed  (9:7-10)
   100. Wisdom and folly (9:11-10:20)  (9:11-12)
        1. Wisdom unequally rewarded  (9:11-12)
   4. Wisdom better than strength  (9:13-18)
10. Folly in high places  (10:1-20)
    1. Wisdom known by conduct  (10:2-3)
    2. Wisdom better than power  (10:4)
    100. Folly in high places  (10:5-7)
    4. Wisdom better than labor  (10:8-10)
    5. Wise men and fools  (10:11-15)
    6. Folly in high places  (10:16-20)
11. Good advice (11:1-12:14)  (11:1-10)
    1. To all men  (11:1-3)
    2. Advice to farmers  (11:4-6)
    100. Advice to the youth  (11:7-8)
         1. Profit by experiences of others  (11:7-8)
    4. Live in view of coming judgment  (11:9-10)
12. Remember God: reasons  (12:1-14)
    1. Remember death is certain: eighteenfold description of man's body and death  (12:3-7)
    2. Take heed to the words of the wise  (12:8-12)
    100. Conclusion of the whole matter  (12:13-14)