I want to publicly thank and acknowledge my buddy, Dennis, for bringing this to my attention...
Get a load of this. You are familiar with Ecclesiastes 11:1,2 which states,
Cast your bread upon the waters, for you will find it after many days. Give a serving to seven and also to eight, for you do not know what evil will be on the earth.
Well, most commentators have understood this to be a reference to charity / generosity which should spring from engaging in profitable trade. Eugene Peterson picks this up in his "contemporized" translation in the The Message,
Be generous: Invest in acts of charity. Charity yields high returns. Don't hoard your goods; spread them around. Be a blessing to others. This could be your last night.
So far so good, but watch this - "cast your bread upon the waters" is an ancient idiom meaning, "brew beer." Apparently, "casting bread on water" was an ancient and crude manner of brewing beer. Think about it - beer really is the result of soaked / fermented grains...
It makes a lot more sense to understand the balance of verses 1 and 2 in light of this idiom. Are we supposed to serve up a portion of charity to seven or eight folks - or are we supposed to serve up a malted beverage and party hearty? Clearly, we are supposed to serve up malted beverages because we should make merry (Eccl. 8:15) before the "difficult" days come (Eccl. 12:1).
How cool is that? The Bible is encouraging us to make some home brew and throw a party. If that ain't Reformed, I don't know what is.
Cheers!
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