The Search (Ecclesiastes 1:12-2:26)

The longest unit in Ecclesiastes is also the deepest rabbit hole. We start off by being introduced to Qoheleth directly; he is now the speaker. From the description, we're to imagine Solomon embarking on a quest to find meaning and contentment in life by using all available resources and his God given wisdom. If anyone should be able to answer this timeless quest of humanity, surely Solomon was equipped.

But with each look at life and all that even Solomon could accomplish, the answer doesn't change - life under the sun is hevel - vapour, mist, fleeting, absurd... The more intently he looks at life, the more intensely he probes the question, the more the answer is uncomfortable and unwelcome. Ultimately, he gives up to despair.

But that's never the end of the story. This is, after all, an honest evaluation of "all that is under the sun" - which has excluded the person and purposes of God.