Ecclesiastes 9:5 "The living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing..."

"The living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing; they have no more reward, and even the memory of them is lost" (Ecclesiastes 9:5).

Question:

Does this mean that our beloved who have died (or we when we die) will have no consciousness—in other words, this physical life is all there is?

Comment:

One of the most important realizations about the Bible that underlies a metaphysical approach is that it is not a single, unified work. It is rather a history of spiritual growth—growth in awareness, growth in our ability to manifest our Oneness with the divine. This was clear to Jesus, who consistently called his followers to release limited beliefs defined by a literal reading of Scripture and embrace instead a broader understanding of our relationship to God and our purpose in human form.   The author of Ecclesiastes is often writing from a sense of hopelessness and despair. This is a stage with which we are all familiar—it's a part of the spiritual process we must all experience if we are to achieve our spiritual purpose. That doesn't make it true; it is only true from our limited human perspective. From that perspective death is final, depressing, the end of everything. The author is basically saying in this passage that even though life is dismal, it's better than death. Our intellect and senses—the source of our human consciousness—cannot prove or perceive the spiritual truth that we are eternal beings, and that death is simply a transition into another dimension of eternal life.   Blessings!

Rev. Ed