Mankind has boasted a wonder of inventions, and so it is debatable (and debated) which ones would be at the pinnacle of innovation. Would it be the bucket? The wheel? The spear? The printing press? The internal-combustion engine? Or the much-exalted computer? Maybe another veritable candidate comes to mind. Certainly, many have marked their place as benefitting humanity, but one comes to mind which deserves an avowal of higher recognition than it generally receives—it is the humble, perhaps even soft-spoken—nail.
Let’s think about it a bit. Nails have been conscripted from among the earliest of times to fasten together elements of construction for the comfort and edification of mankind. They even garner Biblical acclaim. Near the end of King David’s life, as he begins to secure materials for Solomon to construct the Temple, of mention he secures stones from the quarry, timbers of cedar logs, “more bronze than could be weighed,” “… And David prepared large quantities of iron to make the nails for the doors of the gates and for the clamps…” (1 Chronicles 22:3 LSB).
The shape of nails has evolved over time; from square to round, from shorter to longer, and from thin wire-size to spikes. Nails, driven deep with force into the fibers of wood, fasten and hold secure different objects or various materials. We must keep in mind that these fasteners were those which held the Messiah to the Cross—in so doing these nails would be utilized to deliver the greatest benefit to mankind. Given the nail’s value, it has earned its vaunted place in history, and so, it is slight wonder that it is used by the author of Ecclesiastes as a powerful metaphor.
Using this metaphor of nails, a brief, but insightful exhortation of sorts is presented of the value of instruction by the Preacher in the epilogue of the Book of Ecclesiastes. I have chosen to examine the English Standard Version as it seems to capture well the meaning of the text.
Besides being wise, the Preacher also taught the people knowledge, weighing and studying and arranging many proverbs with great care. The Preacher sought to find words of delight, and uprightly he wrote words of truth. The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails firmly fixed are the collected sayings; they are given by one Shepherd. —Ecclesiastes 12:9-11 [ESV]
As Solomon is drawing this book to a close, he issues wise words of a penitent soul who had once sought only folly. He describes the efforts of a Preacher who had taken great pains to transfer truth and wisdom to the sheep, that the words harvested would bear fruit, that his words would not be in vain, but rather words fitly spoken.
The goads seem to point to words issued by the wise, words used in some sense to awaken the listener. They prod the congregation into action, even if that action is only a beginning to listen to these accompanying “nails.”
Nails driven deep find their mark of integrity, and are not likely to loosen or give way. Similarly, spiritual nails find their way deep in the heart of the soul. As Matthew Henry said, “Drive them as nails to the head, in order to which the Word of God is likewise a hammer.” Those nails remain fixed in the memory and core of the hearer—an assurance to those who would otherwise waver.
The ESV makes a clear case that the nails are the collections, or the assembly of multiple words and sayings in the conveyance of instruction (ESV). I affirm the understanding that the “collected sayings” are identifying composed teachings for edification, and thus, are those nails “firmly fixed” (ESV), or, better yet, termed the “well-driven nails” of the LSB.
These sayings, these collections are given for the instruction of God’s people, through the preachers, ultimately by the hand of one Shepherd—Yahweh. “That which is written, and thus recommended to us, is of divine origin”—again, Henry.
The picture of Jesus nailed to the Cross, secured for the eternal redemption for sinners is difficult not to visualize. Paul issues a commentary in Colossians 2:14 of Christ “Having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us which was hostile to us, He also has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the Cross.”
From the vivid imagery of the Person of Christ secured by nails to the rugged altar of the Cross, to the work of Christ—arresting the certificate of debt upon the Cross—both are held by those same nails.
Brothers—That is the Gospel!
As preachers who assume the pulpit before the Flock of Christ, let us not be swayed to dabble in the trivial or the elaborate for our own merits. Rather, let us be singularly devoted to those nails set fast, that they root and slumber deep and secure. As Paul promotes in 1 Corinthians 2:1-2:
And when I came to you, brothers, I did not come with superiority of word or of wisdom, proclaiming to you the witness of God. For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. [LSB]
The nails we set into the hearts and minds of the sheep are the truth of the Person of Christ, and His work of redemption. For the Lord’s sake, let us get that right—let us certainly get the Gospel right!