Ecclesiastes 3: Group Study Handout

How to use: read Ecclesiastes 3 aloud together, then take the questions in order. One page is enough for an evening.

Overview

The speaker notes that there is 'a time for every purpose under heaven' (v. 1). This includes specific times to be born and to die, to weep and to laugh, and to love and to hate (vv.

Key verse

“He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in their hearts, yet so that man can’t find out the work that God has done from the beginning even to the end.”
Ecclesiastes 3:11 (WEB)

Outline

Ecclesiastes 3:1–8 A Time for Everything
Ecclesiastes 3:9–10 The Burden of Labor
Ecclesiastes 3:11–14 God's Sovereignty and Beauty
Ecclesiastes 3:15–17 Justice and Judgment
Ecclesiastes 3:18–21 Human Limitation
Ecclesiastes 3:22 Finding Joy in Work

Discussion questions

In v2, what does the phrase 'a time to be born' indicate about human existence?
What does the author mean by 'a time to weep' in v4?
In v11, how does the phrase 'has made everything beautiful in its time' affect our understanding of God's work?
In v18, why does the author compare humanity to animals when discussing God's tests?
When have you experienced a 'time to cast away' something meaningful in your life?

Go deeper

Passages that echo Ecclesiastes 3: Ecclesiastes 8, Ecclesiastes 2, Ecclesiastes 7.

Before next time: read Ecclesiastes 4.