Q: Is Ecclesiastes an Inspired book or not?

A: Thanks for your question. That's a great one and one that I wish more people asked.  When we approach the book of Ecclesiastes, we need to keep things in perspective. It's being written by a man who has really reached the end of his rope...Solomon is trying to interpret life based upon a secular mind-set. He comes around in the end, but most of the book is an honest account of a man reaching out in the dark for something solid to hold onto. So it is inspired in the sense that it is an accurate and reliable account of Solomon's inner struggle (which we can all relate to on many levels) but that doesn't mean all of his conclusions are inspired truth. It's sort of like when the Bible records when a person tells a lie...what they said wasn't true but it was an accurate record of what they said. We need to measure Solomon's statements against the rest of the Word in order to see if it's a true or faulty statement. But again, the purpose of Ecclesiastes isn't to declare doctrine, it's to give us an accurate record of Solomon's struggle and eventual journey to the truth. That's what poetry is really all about, a journey towards something. So if you look at it that way it's place in the Bible becomes much clearer. Hope this helps!