Proverbs 1–4; 15–16; 22; 31; Ecclesiastes 1–3; 11–12: Lesson 111

Ecclesiastes

“God Shall Bring Every Work into Judgment”

Sometimes it can be easy to focus on what happens in this life while forgetting to view our lives from an eternal perspective. In Ecclesiastes, the Preacher reminds us that the things of this world are temporary. He counsels us to prepare for when God will judge all of His children. This lesson can help students understand how focusing on meeting God at the Final Judgment can help them make wise choices.

Student preparation: Invite students to have a conversation with a parent or trusted leader about how they have seen the long-term impact of the decisions they made as a teenager.

Possible Learning Activities

Making decisions

Consider beginning class by helping students realize how an eternal perspective can influence decisions they make. To do this, you could write the following on the board. Invite students to discuss how each of these decisions when they are young can affect their future.

• How I treat my body

• How I spend my free time

• How I treat people

Then share the following statement and invite students to make connections between the decisions above and what President Nelson taught.

President Russell M. Nelson taught the following about our choices.

Every righteous choice that you make here will pay huge dividends now. But righteous choices in mortality will pay unimaginable dividends eternally. …

The adversary, of course, does not want you even to think about tomorrow, let alone eternal life. (“Choices for Eternity” [worldwide devotional for young adults, May 15, 2022], Gospel Library)

• How might failing to view our choices with an eternal perspective affect us?

Write down a decision you are currently facing that could “pay unimaginable dividends eternally.”

It could help to give students some ideas about the kinds of decisions they might write down, such as:

• Whether to continue spending time with a certain group of friends.

• Whether to repent of a sin that has been on their mind.

• What they choose to do on the Sabbath.

Ponder why Heavenly Father might want you to think about the future as you make this decision. What might happen if you don’t?

As you study Ecclesiastes today, seek to understand truths and receive personal revelation from the Lord that can help you with this decision.

Focusing on temporal things

In the book of Ecclesiastes, the author referred to himself as “the Preacher” (Ecclesiastes 1:1). The Preacher contrasted the emptiness of focusing our lives on temporal things with the importance of preparing to meet God.

Consider creating small groups and inviting each group to read one of the passages below. To help students better understand the passages, you could display the following definitions. Invite students to substitute the following words and phrases with their definitions as they read:

• “Vanity” means empty or fleeting.

• “Under heaven” or “under the sun” means in this mortal life.

• “Vexation of spirit” means frustrating.

Read the following passages, looking for what the Preacher discovered after pursuing certain things that some people think will make them happy and bring fulfillment:

• Wisdom of the world. Ecclesiastes 1:13–18

• Temporal pleasures and material possessions. Ecclesiastes 2:1, 4–11

You might want to clarify that worldly wisdom and material possessions are not necessarily bad or wrong. But when these things become our focus, especially over pleasing God, they become spiritually dangerous. Invite groups to discuss the following question. Then a group member could share the group’s insights with the class.

• In what ways might pursuing these things eventually leave us feeling empty or frustrated?

Our eventual meeting with God

After seeking temporal knowledge and possessions, the Preacher ends his book with the lessons he learned. Read Ecclesiastes 12:7, 13–14, looking for what he taught that can help us keep an eternal perspective.

This perspective is so important that God has inspired many of His servants to teach it. Cross-reference or link Ecclesiastes 12:7, 13–14 with Alma 34:32 and Mormon 3:20, 22. Read these passages, looking for how Amulek and Mormon taught a similar message.

• How would you summarize what these verses teach in a statement of truth?

  Help students identify a truth like: Our choices in this life will determine how prepared we are to stand before God at the Final Judgment. Before students answer the next question, you could invite them to close their eyes and imagine meeting God after this life. Encourage them to consider what they know about Him and His attributes.

• What attributes of God uniquely qualify Him to be our Judge?

You might remind students of Jesus Christ’s role in helping us prepare for the Final Judgment by sharing the following scripture and question.

Read 3 Nephi 27:16, 19, looking for how we can prepare to meet Jesus Christ at the Final Judgment.

• Why is it important to understand that we cannot prepare for the Final Judgment without Jesus Christ?

Our celestial goal

Help students see how knowing that our choices prepare us for eternity can affect the daily decisions we make. One way to do this is by letting students practice what President Nelson taught in the following statement.

President Russell M. Nelson testified of the importance of beginning “with the end in mind”:

In my first message as President of the Church, I encouraged you to begin with the end in mind. This means making the celestial kingdom your eternal goal and then carefully considering where each of your decisions while here on earth will place you in the next world. (“Think Celestial!,” Liahona, Nov. 2023, 118)

• In what ways do Jesus Christ’s teachings and example show that He made decisions “with the end in mind”?

Explain that students will practice applying what President Nelson is teaching. Before they begin, you could ask them to think of decisions that will impact them in the next life. Add these decisions to the list of decisions on the board from the beginning of class.

Students could then discuss the following in small groups.

Pick one of the decisions on the board and answer the following questions:

• What decisions might a teenager make about this that will affect their preparation to meet God?

• What have you learned from the gospel of Jesus Christ that could help a teenager make decisions about this?

Invite groups to share their insights with the class. You might encourage students to find and share scriptures or statements from Church leaders that support what they share.

The conclusion

Before students complete the following activity, you might remind them about the decision they wrote down at the beginning of class.

Imagine standing before God at the Final Judgment and hearing Him tell you, “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:23).

Now imagine that, while standing before God, you have the opportunity to send a message back in time to your current self. Write a message giving your current self advice that will help you prepare for the Final Judgment. You could include what you learned and felt today about:

• How choices when you are young affect your preparation to meet God.

• What adjustments you would encourage yourself to make about decisions you are currently facing.

Consider testifying of the importance of making decisions with a focus on the day we will stand before God to be judged.

Additional Resources

Ecclesiastes 1:2–3. If much in this life is temporary, what really matters?

President M. Russell Ballard (1928–2023) taught:

In my ministry, I have learned what matters most is our relationships with Heavenly Father and His Beloved Son, our families, and our neighbors, and allowing the Spirit of the Lord to guide us in those relationships so we can testify of the things that matter most and last longest. (“Remember What Matters Most,” Liahona, May 2023, 107)

Ecclesiastes 2:17. If we are all going to die, then is the Preacher right when he says that “all is vanity and vexation of spirit”?

Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles taught:

Elder Neal A. Maxwell once spoke of the “human predicament,” the fact that everything ends in death. Our accomplishments, our acquisitions, our associations all have an end, and if there is nothing more, then as “the Preacher” says in Ecclesiastes, “all is vanity and vexation of spirit” [Ecclesiastes 2:17]. Death is a fact, and we are forced to acknowledge that without a power that overcomes death, our lives would have little enduring purpose. Fortunately, we know that death has been overcome, life has purpose and meaning, and all is not vanity. By His Atonement, Jesus Christ has overcome the human predicament of death, and now, as Elder Maxwell observed, “there are only personal predicaments [our individual sins, mistakes, and failings], and from these too we may be rescued by following the teachings of him who rescued us from general extinction.” (“Trust in God” [Church Educational System annual training broadcast, Jan. 26, 2024], Gospel Library)

Ecclesiastes 3:17; 12:14. How will I be judged?

President Dallin H. Oaks of the First Presidency taught:

The Final Judgment is not just an evaluation of a sum total of good and evil acts—what we have done. It is an acknowledgment of the final effect of our acts and thoughts—what we have become. It is not enough for anyone just to go through the motions. The commandments, ordinances, and covenants of the gospel are not a list of deposits required to be made in some heavenly account. The gospel of Jesus Christ is a plan that shows us how to become what our Heavenly Father desires us to become. (“The Challenge to Become,” Ensign, Nov. 2000, 32)

Ecclesiastes 12:13. How might God bless me as I keep His commandments?

President Thomas S. Monson (1927–2018) taught:

Our Heavenly Father loves us enough to say: Thou shalt not lie; thou shalt not steal; thou shalt not commit adultery; thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself; and so on. We know the commandments. He understands that when we keep the commandments, our lives will be happier, more fulfilling, and less complicated. Our challenges and problems will be easier to bear, and we will receive His promised blessings. But while He gives us laws and commandments, He also allows us to choose whether to accept them or to reject them. Our decisions in this regard will determine our destiny. (“Keep the Commandments,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2015, 83)

Supplemental Learning Activities

Alternative beginning

You could start by displaying the statement from President Nelson from the beginning of the lesson. Ask students what they know about life after death that they wish everyone knew. Then invite students to discuss how our beliefs about life after death can influence our decisions.

2 Nephi 9:51. “For that which cannot satisfy”

After studying about the worldly pursuits that the Preacher pursued in Ecclesiastes 1 and 2, consider reading 2 Nephi 9:50–51. Ask students to consider how we spend our time and money on things that have no lasting value or satisfaction. Then you could discuss how Jesus Christ and His gospel can bring lasting satisfaction.

Examining concepts and questions with an eternal perspective

You might want to let students practice identifying the world’s premises or assumptions. Students could read paragraph 8 in the “Acquiring Spiritual Knowledge” section of the Doctrinal Mastery Core Document (2023), looking for what can help them view things with an eternal perspective.

Then students could study the verses in the lesson from Ecclesiastes 1 and 2 about pursuing the wisdom of the world, material possessions, and temporal pleasure. Invite students to identify worldly assumptions that those who prioritize these things might have. Students might share things like:

• You will be happiest if you do whatever makes you feel good in the moment (see Ecclesiastes 2:1, 10).

• Material possessions are signs of success and bring us joy (see Ecclesiastes 2:4–8).

Students could then look at those same assumptions “based on the Lord’s standard of truth rather than accepting the world’s premises or assumptions” (Doctrinal Mastery Core Document [2023], “Acquiring Spiritual Knowledge,” paragraph 8).