How did the author of Ecclesiastes understand life after death
and man's relationship to eternity? What passages in the book
address or allude to this topic? Inspired by a reading of
Ecclesiastes 3:19-22. There does seem to be some confusion early
on: Later, though, we see that the author of Ecclesiastes
believes in the place called "Sheol" He describes this in 9:5-6:
Sheol is often translated as "the grave", but that translation
is questionable. Professors James Tabor believe that Sheol is a
place of nothingness that occurs after death, where both the
righteous and unrighteous go. One of the themes of Ecclesiastes
is the ignorance of the 'Preacher' and his intended audience,
especially when it comes to the future, eg in chapter 2: and
chapter 11: And it seems clear that while the author understands
that we have an eternal home (at least by chapter 12), the
nature of that home is something he knows very little about: He
does, however, understand that God will judge all, and concludes
God is to be feared regar