Part 3 of 3
We have been studying Ecclesiastes 5:1-7. In the first three verses, the preacher calls us to be thoughtful and reverent when we come to the house of the Lord to worship Him. In this article, we will consider verses 4-7, which has to do with making vows to God.
Making Vows to God (vv. 4-7)
Verse 4, “When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it; for he hath no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed.” A vow is an act of worship in which the worshipper commits himself to doing something or to undertake a certain course of action. Such vows are voluntary and not something which the law itself requires.
Solomon says that when a person vows a vow to the LORD, he should not delay or make excuses in fulfilling it for the LORD has no pleasure in those who are unfaithful and hypocritical. Instead, the person should pay that which he has vowed.
Then in verse 5, Solomon says that it is better not to vow than to vow and not pay. In other words, those who do not fulfill their vows are in a worse situation than those who never made them in the first place. When we make a vow, we are to do what we have promised, otherwise it is better not to vow at all.
Verse 6, “Suffer not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin; neither say thou before the angel, that it was an error: wherefore should God be angry at thy voice, and destroy the work of thine hands?” In other words, don’t allow your mouth to drag you into sin by vowing to do something, which you later fail to fulfil. The word “angel” means messenger. Most likely, the vow here involves promising to give some item to the Lord. Solomon is saying that when the temple messenger, perhaps a priest or Levite, makes his rounds to your home to collect what you have vowed, don’t say to him that it was all just a mistake. Why should you provoke God to anger by your rash vow and your silly excuse, and thus bring judgment upon yourself?
But you might ask, “Since vows are voluntary and it is better not to vow than to vow and not fulfill it, then why should any Christian choose to make a vow at all in the first place?”
We may say three things in response. First, vowing or covenanting with God has the effect of strengthening our resolve and commitment to the Lord. In a sense, we can even call it a means of grace to strengthen and build us up in the faith. Perhaps if you are struggling with a particular sin or weakness or situation in your life, you might want to consider vowing or covenanting with God in that area.
Second, vows are often taken at important occasions or significant events in our life. For example, when we get married, we exchange marital vows with our spouses to be faithful to each other till death do us part.
Third, we need to remember that all of us without exception, if we are true believers, have covenanted with the Lord to be His people even as He is our God. It is not just on special occasions like marriage or ordination or baptism that we make vows. If we are true believers, we are already in a covenant relationship with the Lord.
Deuteronomy 6:13 says, “Thou shalt fear the LORD thy God, and serve him, and shalt swear by his name.” And again in Deuteronomy 10:20, “Thou shalt fear the LORD thy God; him shalt thou serve, and to him shalt thou cleave, and swear by his name.”
God’s people are positively commanded to swear by His name, which means to confess our faith in Him. We swear by His name because He alone is the true and living God and there is none else beside Him. Swearing by God’s name means to pledge our loyalty and allegiance to His Lordship over our whole life. It is to call God to bear witness to our solemn vow and promise and commitment to walk according to His ways. And swearing by God’s name is not merely for those who are more serious and matured in the faith. It is for all God’s people.
Now if God requires those who voluntarily vow to do something, which the law itself does not specify, to fulfill their vow, how much more will God require all of us to fulfill what the law does require, namely, to swear by His name?
God will bring judgment upon those who swear insincerely. But God will also judge and destroy those who refuse to swear by His name. That was what happened to the Canaanites and all others who refused to submit to His lordship and to pledge their allegiance to Him. The only right thing for us to do is to swear by His name and to do so from a sincere heart, and to seek, by His grace, to walk as His covenant people.
Finally, verse 7 reads, “For in the multitude of dreams and many words there are also divers vanities: but fear thou God.” The exact connection between many dreams and many words is not so clear. Perhaps what is meant is that just as having too many dreams puts one out of touch with reality, so speaking too many words in worship leads to empty words and even rash promises. But regardless of what the exact connection between dreams and words may be, the overall message is clear – keep your words few but meaningful and sincere, and the best way to cultivate that is to have a healthy and holy fear of God.
And so verse 7 ends with the command, “but fear thou God.” The fear of God is crucial to right and proper worship. Without the fear of God, there will be much foolishness and rashness and insincerity in worship, but with the fear of God, there will be serious preparation for and godly participation in worship. Or to say it in another way, the fear of God will lead a person to seriously prepare for worship and to participate in it in a godly way.
Concluding Thoughts
As we close, I’ll like to leave us with two concluding thoughts.
The first has to do with the utter seriousness and weightiness of worship. Let us take heed to the warning of Ecclesiastes to guard our feet when we go to the house of God, lest we go carelessly and irreverently; to guard our ears, lest we fail to hear God speaking to us; to guard our lips, especially when we pray and sing, lest we utter things which are meaningless and thus offensive to God. And let us guard our hearts and minds, lest we forget that we have sworn by the name of God to be His people and to walk in obedience to His commandments.
Day by day, and especially week by week, let us remind ourselves of these things for it is so easy to get into the routine of worship and just to go through the motion of it.
Let us be mindful of who God is – that He is in heaven above, and who we are – that we are upon the earth. That God is infinitely holy and separate from all that is common and unclean, whereas we are poor, miserable and sinful creatures, who do not deserve to come into His presence to worship Him, and yet, in His mercy, He has given us such an unspeakable privilege.
And so, brethren, let us make every effort to prepare ourselves and to be present for worship, not just for some parts of it but for the whole service beginning with the call to worship.
For some of us, this would mean making extra effort to try to get to church on time before the service begins. For others, this would mean resting sufficiently during the week so as to be more alert on the Lord’s Day. And yet for others, this might mean disciplining yourself not to check your messages on the phone or to scroll through social media or watch videos or play games etc during the service so as not to be distracted or to distract others from worship.
Brethren, let us seek, by God’s grace, to make a difference in the way that we approach and participate in worship.
The second thing I’ll like us to take note of is that our worship can only be acceptable to God through the Lord Jesus Christ. I hope we all realize by now that there is simply no way that we, of ourselves, are able to offer up true spiritual worship and to render to Him the obedience that He requires. And none of us will be able to perfectly keep the vows that we have made as His covenant people.
The Lord Jesus Christ is the One who came to render perfect obedience to the law on our behalf. And He came to do that in fulfillment of the vow which He willingly made to the Father from all eternity. Christ was faithful to perform His vow to the very end, even to the death of the cross. He did not fail to pay the full price of that vow in order to redeem us. Only through His blood are all our sins forgiven and removed. Only in Him are we viewed as righteous before God. And only through Him can we draw near and offer up the worship that is acceptable to Him.
Thank God for our great high priest who is able to save us to the uttermost and to bring us into the presence of the Most High God! Amen.