• Reading I: Ecclesiastes 3:1-11
• Resp. Psalm: Psalm 144:1-2,3-4
• Gospel Reading: Luke 9:18-22

The selection from Qoheleth is another classic, this time on time. But the "time" described here is qualitative rather than quantitative. The idea of "fulness" behind this description of time also lies behind the phrase "in the fulness of time" (cf. Galatians 4:4). But what is really striking in this selection is the following passage:

He has made everything appropriate to its time,
and has put the timeless into their hearts,
without man’s ever discovering,
from beginning to end, the work which God has done.

Thus, the New American Bible translation used at Mass.  The difficulty in this translation is that it does not render the Hebrew for olam which can mean "for a long time" or as a contrast to eyt (time) in the sense of "no-time".  Thus, my translation:

"He has made everything beautiful in its time,
but has not put a sense of what is timely in their hearts ¹, such that
no man would ever discover the timely value²
of what God has done."

Even if there is a time for love and a time for hate, man does not know it since God did not put a sense of the timeliness of love and hate in his heart.  For this reason too, it can be said that man cannot know fully what the times have in store for him.  My translation concords well with the context of the discourse of Qoheleth who applies the "mystery of time" to human work.  Even here, work turns out to be "vain" since if there is a time for profit, there is also a time for loss, a time for health, a time for sickness.  In other words, even with personal effort,  work cannot guarantee man’s fulfillment.  Thus Qoheleth is led to conclude that only "enjoyment" is to be preferred among the activities of man.

I recognized that there is nothing better than to be glad and to do well during life.  For every man, moreover, to eat and drink and enjoy the fruit of all his labor is a gift of God. (Ecclesiastes 3:12-13)

The experience of time forces Qoheleth to recognize that the celebration of God’s gifts is what matters in this life.

The selection from the Gospel of Luke has nothing to do with the reading from Ecclesiastes.  The first and Gospel readings are following two different tracks and this has become obvious in the day’s selections.

1. literally, he has put a sense of NO-Time in their hearts [↩]
2. literally, "from beginning to end" [↩]