Life Stinks and Then You Die

The book of Ecclesiastes is one that I have always had trouble understanding. As a minister I say that with great humility and embarrassment. I have actually avoided teaching that book and studying it because of my lack of understanding. I recently had the pleasure of reading the book, Life Stinks and Then You Die by Bob Hostetler. Hostetler takes on the book of Ecclesiastes in a way that everyone from the learned scholar to the average member in the pew can understand. I can say that this book has given me a new appreciate for the genius of the book of Ecclesiastes. I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed this book, and I believe it has allowed me to reclaim a book of the Bible that has laid dormant in my devotion and teaching. I will have to say that that the title of Hostetler’s book may seem odd, but once you pick up the book it makes perfect sense. He points out that Solomon, by the time he writes Ecclesiastes, has lived a long and full life. Anyone that lives a long life will experience heartache and dispair. The book of Ecclesiastes does not sugar coat the issue of pain in this life with mere moral platitudes, but hits it head on with sobering teaching. Hostetler has organized his book in a masterful way that begins to unpack the main theme of the book of Ecclesiastes which is found in chapter 1 verse 2 that says, “Meaningless!, Meaningless! says the Teacher, Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless!” Hostetler points out that the word ‘meaningless’ or ‘vanity’ appears 38 times in the book of Ecclesiastes. From that statement one would think that Hostetler’s book is depressing but it sincerely deals the problems that we face today with boldness and provides hope throughout its pages. Hostetler sheds light on the why so many things seem to be meaningless in this life. Hostetler takes the ancient wisdom of Ecclesiastes and makes it relevant for postmoderns. For example, Hostetler pulls into the light the vanity of the fast paced life that pursues money and the fleeting things that will not last. As a matter of fact, after reading “Life Stinks”, it seems like Ecclesiastes speaks perfectly to this current age. The pointless pursuit of just ‘being busy’ to the point that we look back and realize that none of this ‘stuff’ lasts leads one to throw their hands up and cry ‘Vanity!’. I believe the real strength of this book is found in the wisdom that he unpacks from Solomon in that if you live your life for those things that last you are impervious to the things that tend to rock people to their core. The greatest highlights of the book are the following: just because we age and grow older does not mean we mature, we should expect the unexpected, and we should live each moment as it is the last of our life. The title of Hostetler’s, which at first seemed to be odd to me, truly nails the outlook of this amazing book of Ecclesiastes as “Life Stinks and then you Die.” I would highly recommend this book to anyone struggling with life and its many problems as well as anyone that wants to unlock the meaning of the book of Ecclesiastes.