Nothing New

“What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.”  

(Ecclesiastes 1:9)

Here’s the problem with being young, and not a student of history (and most young people aren’t these days, as Western history and culture is under systematic attack): you don’t realize that most of the things that you think are bold, grand new ideas destined to create Utopia have been done before, over and over, and quite a lot of them have failed spectacularly. Young people are so badly educated that they don’t even know how badly educated they are.

I’ve been reminded of this as I read the news, hear the political discourse (way too polite a word for what’s actually spewed out), and marvel at the way society has collectively lost its mind in the last few years. I’m thinking particularly of all the youngsters (relatively) running for president. Even the dinosaurs marketing their shopworn wares have become infected by this fantasia of government’s ability to make our world into Paradise Redux.

At the same time, I’ve been reading the story of Solomon in the Bible, who, as a young man about to become King of Israel, asked God for wisdom to know how to rule his kingdom. He did it well for most of his life, until in his final years he turned away from God and his peaceful kingdom disintegrated into war and strife. (Hmmmm … sound familiar? “What has been will be again …”)

What caught my interest was what happened next, when Solomon’s son Rehoboam was to become King. His rival, Jeroboam, along with the entire twelve tribes of Israel, said to Rehoboam, “your father put a heavy yoke on us, but now lighten the harsh labor and the heavy yoke he put on us, and we will serve you.” Rehoboam replied, “go away for three days and then come back.” Then King Rehoboam asked the elders who had served his father what to do. The elders, who had long years of experience with the vagaries of human nature, said, “if today you will be a servant to these people and serve them and give them a favorable answer, they will always be your servants.” It’s been my experience (I have children and grandchildren) that a young person is not often receptive to an old person’s advice.

So Rehoboam asked his friends, who had grown up with him, how he should answer. And they all, excited by the power over the people in the kingdom which they now held in their hands, decided on their governing policies. “We’re going to take your guns away! We’re going to raise your taxes so illegal immigrants can have welfare and health care! We’re going to take away your insurance and put you on Medicare! We’re going to get rid of fossil fuels! And cars! And trucks! And airplanes! And cows! You’re going to eat what you’re told! Do what we say! You’re no longer an individual, you’re a collective!”

When Jeroboam and the people came back in three days, King Rehoboam told them, “My little finger is thicker than my father’s waist. My father laid on you a heavy yoke; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions.”

Jeroboam and the people blew King Rehoboam a big fat raspberry and went home, leaving Rehoboam with only the tribes of Judah and Benjamin to rule over. When he went out with his official in charge of forced labor to compel the rest of the people to return and work, the people stoned the official to death, and Rehoboam barely escaped back to Jerusalem.

Did you notice the difference in advice between the elders and the young? There have been very few governments in history who followed the elders’ advice to “serve the people”. We are fortunate to live under one of them. If we’re not careful and vigilant, we will soon find ourselves living under Rehoboam’s government, “people serving the rulers.” There is, indeed, nothing new under the sun.

God Thoughts

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