Today’s Scripture Reading (May 15,
2013): Ecclesiastes 6
He is
arguably the most famous ruler of Egypt – and he died at the age of 19. We have
reduced his name to three letters – Tut. His real name was Tutankhamen which
means the “Living Image of Amun.” Amun was the chief of all of the gods in the
Egyptian pantheon. We remember Tutankhamen probably for two reasons. One is the
mystery of his death at a very young age after only a decade of rule as Pharaoh
of Egypt. At the time of his death, the young king was had experienced less than
two decades of life. Theories about the boy king’s death have abounded and have
ranged from a death due to disease (maybe even diseases related to an
incestuous union of which the young king was a product) to the idea that he was
the victim of a complex assassination plot. Most experts now believe that
Tutankhamen died as a result of an accident, possibly the result of an
unfortunate fall.
The second
reason why we remember Tutankhamen is because we have found his elaborate place
of burial – a place which bore witness to the respect that he seemed to have of
the people – and the care that was taken to lay the king to rest. So we
remember the young king – a king who lived a life that was too short. It almost
seems that it might be the young king of Egypt that the preacher is thinking
about as he continues his discussion on the meaninglessness of life. If the
preacher really was Solomon, than his allusion to a hundred children is not out
of the question. Solomon was known to have 300 wives and 700 concubines. Tutankhamen
had only one royal consort. If Solomon is alluding to his own 100 children (and
that number might be low), for Tutankhamen his only children were two stillborn
little girls – he left no heirs to succeed him on the throne. Solomon would die
at the age of 69, Tutankhamen at the age of 19. And yet, even without all of
those things that Tutankhamen seemed to lack in comparison to Solomon, he is
still remembered.
A number of
years ago I performed one of the saddest funerals of my career. I did not know
the man who had died, but in talking with his family it was evident that very
few people would ever miss the man. He had amassed all of the things in life
that we consider to be the trappings of success, he had money and children and
he lived to be of a considerable age, and yet it amazed me as I talked to the
family that no one seemed to have a kind word to say about the man. And this is
exactly the point that Solomon is trying to make. The trappings of success that
we may find important in this life are really meaningless. The most important
thing that any of us can possess as we lay dying is a good memory in the hearts
of the ones that knew us. And in those memories, we can continue to live on.
Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading:
Ecclesiastes 7
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