Ecclesiastes — Qohelet the Preacher — ''vanity of vanities, all is vanity.'' The book's relentless examination of life under the sun, resolving not in despair but in ''fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.''

Author

Traditional: Solomon (''son of David, king in Jerusalem''). Critical: a later Qohelet figure writing in Solomonic persona. §7.9 surfaces; Pastor Marc's drawer carries the position.

Date

Solomonic reading: c. 940 BC. Critical reading: Persian or early Hellenistic period (5th–3rd century BC).