A Time to Mourn, and a Time to Dance Derek Kidner, The Message of Ecclesiastes. IVP Academic, As Christians read through the New Testament, often pictures come to mind of a teacher and his disciples. We see Jesus Christ leading and teaching His disciples as they walk. We picture Paul, followed by his co-workers, instructing the new believers in the Gentile west. Kidner uses this imagery to involve the reader in the instruction found in the Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes. In The Message of Ecclesiastes, the author introduces the reader to "Qoheleth" (pronounced Ko-helleth or Ko-hellet), which is translated "the Preacher" in the NKJV. Qoheleth is the wise teacher who skillfully leads the reader through the contemplation of life, carefully keeping the subject of discussion "under the sun" until the last moment. Derek Kidner (1913-2008) was a graduate of Christ College in Cambridge, a Pastor in the Church of England, a senior tutor at Oak Hill Theological College, and finally, warden of book publisher Tyndale House. In his career as commentator, Kidner composed volumes for the Tyndale Old Testament Commentary series and for The Bible Speaks Today OT series. His experience is evident, as he puts himself in the place of teacher, interpreting without giving up too much and spoiling the tension that was originally intended by the words of the Preacher. The governing point Kidner keeps close at hand is found in the Preacher's opening volley: "Vanity of vanities! All is vanity!" Like the Preacher, the author keeps in mind the impact of the message upon the student as much as the transfer of wisdom. In The Message of Ecclesiastes, Kidner opens up and explains the machinery of the scriptures without obscuring the mastery of the original author. Not unusually, the commentary is begun with an explanation about where this book fits into the overall picture of the Biblical canon. Kidner asks "What is this book doing in the Bible?" Ecclesiastes nearly seems to persuade the reader to throw his hands up in frustration and wait for the end; this is hardly what we expect from the Bible. The commentator expresses our thoughts like this: "Triviality is more stifling than tragedy, and the shrug is the most hopeless of all comments on life (Kidner, 20)." However, Kidner points out the connection for us: The function of Ecclesiastes is to bring us to the point where we begin to fear that such a comment [all is vanity!] is the only honest one. So it is if everything is dying. We face the appalling inference that nothing has meaning, nothing matters under the sun. It is then that we can hear, as the good news which it is, that everything matters." If nothing under the sun has meaning, then the reader is goaded to consider the ultimate questions of life. Namely, as Kidner writes, we encounter God in our futility. "God meets us in this book in three main aspects: as Creator, as Sovereign, and as Unsearchable Wisdom." The meaning of life is found in our understanding of man's relationship to his Creator. Kidner deftly extracts the lesson of the Preacher concerning this relationship. First, I was surprised to find continuity in Ecclesiastes after reading Kidner's running commentary of the book. Ecclesiastes seemed to be a collection of grumbles and gripes about the utter dissatisfaction felt in trying out all that life has to offer. However, Kidner succeeds in showing the genius of Qoheleth in drawing the student's heart toward satisfaction in God. Second, I enjoyed Kidner's prose; he did not use many words where the original wrote briefly. Neither did he use overly flowery terms, but kept them grounded, easy for the student to reach. Last, I appreciate that Kidner takes a whole-book approach to interpreting passages. He sees the Preacher as taking away all human avenues of thought until he is able to build upon the only avenue left: the fear of God. The vanity of life is only so if there is no fear of God. The Message of Ecclesiastes draws out the modern-day relevance of this Old Testament book. Derek Kidner is a wise commentator with a respect for the force of the original text. Just like the Preacher, Kidner walks along with the reader and involves him in the lesson. I recommend this commentary not only to pastors, but also as a meaningful resource for Sunday school teachers and laymen.