Ecclesiastes as a protest manifesto
No wonder Ecclesiastes has long been my favorite part of Hebrew scripture (along with Song of Songs, Esther, and… nope, just those three I think.) This little gem dropped in the entry on Encyclopedia Brittanica:
The book reflects the ideas of one who questioned the doctrine of retributive justice associated with wisdom theology.
A book within the scriptures casting doubt on the other scriptures is always my jam, but denying retribution theology too—no wonder it resonated inexplicably with younger me. That and the existentialism of course. And to everything a season.
- see also: behaviorist theory proves retributive justice does not work—I too will protest the shit out of retributive justice