Who is the author of Ecclesiastes?
 

There has long been a debate as to who wrote Ecclesiastes. I would like to get your thoughts and evidence as to who wrote it.

So, with out further adue . . .

Who is the author of Ecclesiastes?

Ok, showing my ignorance here, but is there really any question? I thought that it was (nearly) universally accepted that it was King David's son (Blanking on his name right now)

Traditionally authorship has been attributed to Solomon, son of David. But the original texts are written in a form of Hebrew too recent for Solomon's era. The most likely theory is that later Jewish sages or historians took the sayings of King Solomon and, essentially, remixed them. If this is correct, then Ecclesiastes is the most recent of all the books of the Old Testament.

hawkeye, no ignorance shown, as a matter of fact I was pretty much unaware of what the other ideas where for the authorship. All I knew was that there was some reason to question if it was Solomon or not. It is something that I have known about but never taken the time to study out past the written text. And when you go no further than that, the only logic answer is, like you said, David's son . . . Solomon.

i've read the bible numerous times... and as far as i can tell... its solomen... who else?

http://www.theology.edu/biblesurvey/eccles.htm

This outlines most of the pros and cons to solomonic authorship i've seen discussed intelligently. personally, i shy away from ascribing it to solomon. one thing that's key to understand is that authorship was viewed very differently. to not ascribe works to one's mentor or inspiration was considered dishonest, while we would consider pseudonymity of this sort fraudulent. IMO, it doesn't really matter who wrote it...it's interesting and provoking.

Thanks for the link chavos.

I think in the end you pretty much hit the nail on the head. The true author of the book is God Himself. What hand He used to write it is somewhat inconsequential. The book speaks of Solomon's life and struggle to find meaning in life. But it is an interesting topic to look into and have discussion of none the less.

that's dangerous talk my friend. if the author is G-d himself, who are His scribes? and who are His translators? and footnoters? and should His work be translated from Hebrew to Greek to English or just straight to English? and who are His priests so that you might get the right idea. the point of view is deeply important.

Right. I've never actually heard a convincing argument that the entire Bible, and nothing else, is straight from the mouth of God through people, perfect and inerrant.

You can point to where James says "All Scripture is God-breathed," but at most he was talking about the Old Testament; the New Testament wasn't around.

Sorry to open this thread again, but what are the possibilities for authorship? Is there any idea for the person/group besides Solomon that could have wrote it?

virus, I understand your point here. There is a lot of room for human error, to say the least. But one thing I have always held to is the thought that with God being powerful enough to create everything just by speaking them into creation, I believe and have faith in Him that he is also powerful enough to bring His Word to the present time. No matter what faults man has, God is in control and in the end, as I seek His will, He will direct me.

Now with that said, I know it still doesn't answer the main point of your questions. How do we know which translation is the true and right one to go with? I think we must always go back to the original text and study it ourselves as much as possible. Look into the Hebrew and the Greek and not 'trust' the translation of someone else. I know this still leaves plenty of room for flaws, misinterpretations and the like. But if we are truly seeking God, He will direct and help us.

Hopefully this post has made since. I feel like I may have went in circles while spinning my wheels in the sand.

Oh, and check out Chavos' link for an intro into the authorship theories.

I think the pessimism and the near reactionary tone underlying Ecclesiastes likely makes it attributable to the Babylonic exilic times or later (i.e. quite a while after solomon lived).