KOHELES PEREK 1

Welcome back to NachDaily, with the 1st perek in Megilas Koheles.

The Megilah opens with the words, “Divrei Koheles ben Dovid Melech Birushalayim – The words of Koheles, son of David, King of Yerushalayim.”

Rashi points out that divrei implies “tochacha – constructive criticism.” This sefer is full of rebuke regarding the meaning of life.

Why isn’t it called Divrei Shlomo? After all, he’s the one who wrote it! The Meforshim point out that these words were said at Hakel, when the nation would gather together.

Rashi adds that Shlomo gathered together a lot of chochma and put it in this book, while the Metsudos highlights that it is called Koheles because it incorporates all the different possibilities of the meaning of life.

Seforno notes that the passuk mentions Dovid to inform us that Shlomo had already received a tremendous amount of wisdom from his father Dovid, himself an extraordinarily wise man.

In the second passuk, which is equally as famous, Shlomo says, “Havel havalim amar Koheles, havel havalim, hakol havel – Utter futility, said Koheles. Utter futility! All is futile!”

The simple meaning, the main theme, is that everything is worthless! Verse 3 asks, “What does man gain by all his labor under the sun?”

Rashi points out that havel, futility, is mentioned 7 times in this chapter, corresponding to the 7 days of creation. Koheles was encapsulating the entire scope of the human experience. “What do you really gain from everything you’re busy with? Nothing!”

Havel is actually an interesting word. The Metsudos says that it comes from hevel piv, the air emitted when a person exhales. It has no substance.

It can be said that the material world without the spiritual inner dimension is like hevel, like a body without a soul. Containing no real substance, it becomes inconsequential.

Koheles describes the lack of meaning in the world represented by the cycle of life. Generations come and go, the sun rises and sets, the winds blow. The streams flow into the river which never fills.

Verse 9 is somewhat fatalistic. “Mah shehaya hu sheyih’yeh, u’ma shena’asah hu sheyeiaseh. V’ein kol chadash tachas hashamesh. – That which has happened is what will happen. That which has been done is what will be done. There is nothing new under the sun!”

This can sound depressing. What’s the point of trying? Whatever was, will be again.

On the other hand, the Ramad Walli explains that whatever happened above in the heavenly Worlds, will happen below. All shefa, Divine flow, is contained above, and Hashem sends it to us as needed. This is what is meant by “That which has been done is what will be done.” There is no escaping God’s Hashgacha Pratis.

He explains that the riches of our Avos, Patriarchs, had been held for them in Heaven, but they were not revealed in this world until Hashem decided to send their bracha down.

The Ramad Walli explains, “V’ein kol chadash tachas hashemesh – There is nothing new under the sun” as meaning that when Mashiach comes, new supernal Divine lights will be released into the world for all to see!

He finishes the thought by explaining that Hashem stores all our bracha in the upper worlds but waits to reveal it to us. The shefa is already there in Shamayim. There is nothing new under the sun! The influence and shefa of Mashiach already exist, but the time has not yet come for them to be revealed.

From verses 12 until 18, which end the perek, Koheles describes being the king of Yerushalayim. As a student of life, he set his mind on learning wisdom, and observed the decaying and futile nature of this world.

Growing greater and wiser than all the people in Yerushalayim caused him a tremendous amount of emotional pain and despair, because “with much wisdom comes much anger. And he who increases knowledge increases anguish.”

Stay tuned to the next episode of NachDaily as we continue to learn this deeply sobering Megila, confronting the very truths that we don’t want to acknowledge.

Thank you for listening, and have a wonderful day.