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Ecclesiastes, part 6, Appointed Times

Ecclesiastes 3:1 begins,

¹ There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven—

The poem about Time in Ecclesiastes 3:2-8 follows directly after Ecclesiastes 2:24–26, where Koheleth reframes joy as a gift from God rather than a human achievement. Chapter 3 now explains why human mastery fails: Because time itself is not ours to command. Time is a divine creation and therefore answers only to God Himself.

Hebrews 1:2, speaking of Christ, says, “…through whom also He made the ages” (aionas, “eons, ages, epochs, ordered times.”) Creation includes time-history itself, not only matter, and the Son is the agent through whom history’s structure is made. God owns all that He has created; therefore, He owns time, and He has appointed a time for everything. God has appointments; man has responses. Hence, man cannot achieve godly joy by human effort, for it is a gift from a sovereign God.

An “appointed time” (Hebrew: moʿēd) is God’s feast day that is commemorated as a Sabbath. So we read in Leviticus 23:4,

⁴ These are the appointed times [plural: mo’adim] of the Lord, holy convocations which you shall proclaim at the times appointed for them.

The word usually translated “appointed time,” is one of the Bible’s most theologically loaded time-words. It does not mean mere chronology, but divinely fixed appointment—a time summoned by God for a specific purpose, a fixed appointment determined by authority. It is an intentional moment when God has determined to act, meet, judge, or redeem. Time is not random but forms the structure of history. Thus moʿēd is not when something happens, but when something is meant to happen.

Hence, when men respect God’s appointed times, they recognize God’s sovereignty over time as well as giving their assent to the purpose of the gathering itself. History is scheduled, not accidental. Worship is response, not initiated by man. Fulfillment is guaranteed, not rushed. Delay is not absence—it means waiting for the previously scheduled appointment. This is why biblical faith emphasizes patience and trust.

The Appointed Time for Redemption

In prophetic texts, moʿēd is the mark of future certainty. Judgment and salvation arrive on schedule. For example, speaking of the birth of the promised son (Isaac), “At the appointed time I will return to you at this time next year…” (Genesis 18:14). This is not delay—it is precision. Isaac was born on the day later observed (under Moses) as Passover. It had been precisely 400 years since Isaac was born to Sarah in Canaan under the hegemony of Egypt (Genesis 15:13). Abraham was 100 years old when Isaac was born (Genesis 21:5). It was also precisely 430 years between the covenant with Abraham and the Old Covenant at Mount Sinai (Galatians 3:16, 17).

Exodus 12:40, 41 says,

⁴⁰ Now the time that the sons of Israel lived in Egypt was four hundred and thirty years. ⁴¹ And at the end of four hundred and thirty years to the very day, all the hosts of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt.

The Greek Septuagint of Exodus 12:40 reads slightly differently:

⁴⁰ The sojourning of the sons of Israel which they sojourned in the land of Egypt and in the land of Canaan was four hundred and thirty years.

Abraham’s seed (beginning with the birth of Isaac) lived in Canaan for 180 years, and then they migrated to Egypt, where they remained for another 210 years. Israel’s exodus from Egypt then occurred precisely 430 years after the Abrahamic covenant and precisely 400 years after Isaac was born. Only then did that appointed time become known as Passover.

When God gives prophetic revelation, He does not often tell them specific timing. They are usually expected to be alert and to wait patiently until the event approaches its fulfillment. So it is helpful for prophets to understand that time is in God’s hands, not theirs, and that they ought not to try to force fulfillment by the power of their own will.

The Time Poem

The Time Poem dismantles the idea that if I work harder or wiser, I can set the timing and thereby control the outcomes. The Poem itself contains 14 pairs. The number 14 itself is the biblical number of deliverance or release.

https://godskingdom.org/studies/books/the-biblical-meaning-of-numbers/chapter-3-numbers-11-20/

The implication is that the time of deliverance is ordered by God alone. Thus time, not human effort, governs success. Ecclesiastes 3:1–8 declares that all human activity unfolds within divinely ordered times that lie beyond human control. Koheleth sets forth divine order without giving up His sovereignty to the “free will” of men. The poem explains why wisdom, pleasure, and achievement cannot secure meaning. Far from fatalism, the passage teaches humility—inviting mankind to receive life as it comes rather than attempting to dominate its seasons.

Birth-Death; Plant-Uproot

Ecclesiastes 3:1 begins,

¹ A time to give birth and a time to die;
A time to plant and a time to uproot what is planted.

Everyone was born at an appointed time in God’s plan; everyone dies at an appointed time in God’s plan. Likewise, God created the seasons, and time is necessary to go from planting to harvesting. Mankind would love to plant one day and reap the next, but they are constrained by the law of time. When applying this principle to divine judgment, note that in Isaiah 5:7 Israel was God’s vineyard and that Judah was the plant itself. Because the vines produced sour grapes that were inedible, God uprooted them and replanted the vineyard. This delayed the Kingdom to a new appointed time, where God could receive the fruits of His labor.

Kill-Heal; Tear Down-Build Up

Ecclesiastes 3:2 says,

² A time to kill and a time to heal;
A time to tear down and a time to build up.

This verse contains two paired contrasts, dealing with power over life and structure—biological and social. It does not condone murder or destruction. The Hebrew verb הָרַג (hārag) refers broadly to taking life, not specifically criminal murder. Hence, there are laws that carefully regulate warfare, capital punishment, self-defense, and unavoidable acts within an imperfect world. Governments were established to restore justice and maintain social order in restraining sin in God’s kingdom.

Healing is the implied solution to killing. Life is not only taken but is also restored. Even when death intrudes, it does not have the final word, because there is also future resurrection which restores all things in the end. Healing represents mercy after judgment, restoration after judgment, and God’s sustaining presence within the parameters of time.

The second pair shifts from biology to society. “Tear down” can refer to dismantling corrupt systems, destroying idolatrous structures, or removing what has become harmful or obsolete. In Jeremiah 1:10, tearing down is often a precondition for renewal,

¹⁰ See, I have appointed you this day over the nations and over the kingdoms, to pluck up and to break down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.

This is constructive destruction, not nihilism. Tearing down is not the goal; rebuilding is the goal. Destruction is seasonal and bound by the constraints of time. Humans act, but they do not control the seasons in which action becomes necessary. You may wish to heal—but face an unpleasant time to kill. You may wish to build—but face a necessary time to tear down before rebuilding.

Morally speaking, it is the death of the “old man” and the birth of the “new man” in Christ (Romans 6:4-6). The old man has been sentenced to death; we are all on death row, but we have been given a season in life to find the path of salvation. If not, that path will be imposed by divine judgment. God’s “fiery law” (Deuteronomy 33:2 KJV) issues from the throne as a river of fire (Daniel 7:10) and forms a “lake of fire” (Revelation 20:15) in the final age of judgment leading ultimately to the Jubilee.