Other items indicating repetitions, 'times' or quantity could be added

to the list if it were necessary.  The word we are considering is the Hebrew

eth, a word that means, not so much the flight of time, but its fitness.  An

opportune time.  To illustrate by some occurrences:

'According to the time of life' (Gen. 18:10).

'A time of much rain' (Ezra 10:13).

'A shock of corn cometh in his season' (Job 5:26).

'A word spoken in due season' (Prov. 15:23).

We are assured by Ecclesiastes that, in spite of all appearances to the

contrary, God hath made everything beautiful 'in His own fit time'.

Everything is not beautiful here and now.  Death and corruption, sin and

disease, these are not beautiful but in His time these things are destined to

pass away, 'no more' will be written over them (Rev. 21:4).  All the

activities which sum up human life from birth to death are set out in

Ecclesiastes 3:1 -8.  Killing and healing, weeping and laughing, war and

peace, but these belong to the present, the transitory age of man.  God's

work begins before man's time and will go on after man's day has run its

course.  While we cannot find out the work that God doeth from the beginning

to the end, we can in the midst of such obscurity take our stand here.  All

things beautiful -- in His time.  God will yet be all in all, but the whole

story 'from the beginning to the end' is not a subject of revelation.  This

purposed limitation of man's endeavour is brought about by setting in his

heart the age.

God hath 'set' the world in the heart of man.  What is the significance

of the word 'set'?  The Hebrew word nathan primarily means 'to give' and is

so translated over one thousand times.  Nathan is employed a number of times

in Ecclesiastes, of which the following is a summary of its usage as

connected with the 'heart':

'Applied my heart unto every work ... to know wisdom' (Eccles. 8:9,16

cf. 7:25 Heb. sabab).

'I considered in my heart ... the righteous, and the wise ... are in

the hand of God' (Eccles. 9:1).

'Gave my heart to seek and search out ... to know' (Eccles. 1:13,17).

Set in the heart.  God 'hath set the world in their heart'

(Eccles. 3:11).

While, therefore, Solomon applied his heart to search and to know, the

Lord set in his heart a limiting factor, the 'world', the olam or the age.

Olam.  This word occurs seven times in Ecclesiastes -- and the very

number of occurrences challenges a fuller investigation.  We discover that

these references fall into a pattern which we set out here.

A

The earth abideth to the age.

The passing generation.

B

1:10. It hath already been in ages past.

Nothing new under the sun.

C

2:16. No remembrance to the age.

D

3:11. The age in the heart

God 's work past finding out.

C

3:14,15.  God's work is to the age. It remains.