Mammon Unveiled

(Ecclesiastes 5:10 - 6:12)

"...he is not able to dispute with one stronger than he." (6:10)

Our universe is inhabited by an unalterable reality. It is that God has created human-beings in his image to love, honour and worship him. That is how we are made. It is a great delusion that human power can somehow change that reality. Such power finds expression in the worship of alternatives to God, worship that idolatrously elevates and trusts in the created order rather than the Creator. The Bible subsumes such worship in one word: Mammon. The word contains two concepts: one is the notion of riches, the other connotes trust in such riches. The two ideas together make up Mammon. Mammon is epitomized in the love of money, trust in wealth and riches. But it embraces the human worship of (ie submission and commitment to) power, honour and materialism in all its forms. Mammon's greatest allies are our fallen, corrupt, self-serving hearts. Mammon is the great alternative to the worship of God - which is why Ecclesiastes introduces it here in Chapter 5. Having told us how to approach God (5:1 - by listening), he now warns us against displacing the worship of God with Mammon. To do this he blows the whistle on Mammon, unveiling it for what it is:

1. The Hurt Mammon Inflicts. 6:7 explains that our appetite cannot be satisfied by the things of this world. The word for 'appetite' describes the essential nature of all human-beings. It is first used with relation to human-beings in Genesis 2:7 when God gave life to the man he had created by breathing into his nostrils. It tells us that our inner living nature came direct from God and that only a living relationship with God will truly satisfy it. Nothing that this world offers can sate our souls. That's why 5:10 tells us that "He who loves money will not be satisfied with money..." According to 5:10-12, the love of wealth is an addiction, bringing with it hangers-on (v11), dyspepsia and insomnia (v12). And that's not all! vv13 - 17 tell us that a commitment to riches creates false security which leads to sickening disappointments - either in this life (if the money is lost in a bad venture) or the next. You can't take it with you! Most tragically of all, dependence on wealth confines a person to darkness, vexation, sickness and anger (v17). These words depict the unhappiness and corrosion of character that Mammon inflicts upon the money-lover - characteristics that describe alienation from God. Mammon addicts, deceives, maims and ruins! 1 Timothy 6:9 puts it this way: "But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction." These severe warnings apply to anyone (rich or poor) who places material advancement before God. The Preacher calls us to examine our hearts lest our dependence or ambitions have been seduced by Mammon.

2. The God Mammon Opposes. Ecclesiastes isn't condemning wealth. He wouldn't be hurling bricks through the windows of MacDonalds on May Day. Indeed he asserts that wealth and possessions come from God - as does the power to enjoy them (5:19). And our world knows very well that the former doesn't guarantee the latter. The God whom Mammon opposes, therefore, is the source of everything - even life itself (5:18).

3. The Advice Ecclesiastes Gives. The Preacher exhorts his readers to accept their lot - and to enjoy whatever wealth and possessions God sends them. They are to be received as a gift of God, not pursued as an alternative to God. Ecclesiastes motivates us in this by reminding us of God's sovereignty. The closing paragraph of Chapter 6 (vv10-12) tell us that God is Creator. Moreover he is our Creator. And the name he gave to man was Adam - meaning in the original language 'from the ground'. Earthlings cannot dispute with their Creator (6:10). So worshipping Mammon is not only wicked but stupid. Jesus spoke about the choice each person has to make in Matthew 6:24: "You cannot serve God and Mammon." Jesus said this because we'll think we can do both. But we can't - they're mutually exclusive alternatives.

Everything under the sun, everything the world can offer is ultimately vain. Choosing Mammon is a tragedy. If that's not learnt in this world, it will be learnt in everlasting anguish in the next. What terror must confront a Mammon-ensnared soul as it faces death! As the threads connecting it to life loosen, as it trembles on the rim of eternity - if it can only look for comfort and meaning to what lies behind, then only ignorance and doubt and apprehension remain to address the darkness ahead.

Ecclesiastes urges us to guard our hearts, our priorities, our ambitions and our desires for security from the depredations of Mammon. If our goals lie in what this world offers, we are striving after wind (6:9). The Preacher tells us not to dispute with God in this way, not to deny the reality that dominates our universe. Rather we should submit to our Creator, accept our lot and enjoy the blessings that he chooses to give us.

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