{ "lessonDate": "2026-09-10", "lessonNumber": 111, "lessonTitle": "Ecclesiastes — \"God Shall Bring Every Work into Judgment\"", "semester": "fall-2026-ot", "source": "Seminary manual, Lesson 111 — Ecclesiastes", "scriptureBlock": "Proverbs 1–4; 15–16; 22; 31; Ecclesiastes 1–3; 11–12", "bookName": "ECCLESIASTES", "deckType": "scripture", "lessonObjective": "Help students take one decision they are facing right now and follow it all the way out to the Final Judgment — then write the message their future self would send back about it.", "doctrinePrinciple": "Our choices in this life will determine how prepared we are to stand before God at the Final Judgment.", "personalScriptureStudy": { "chapters": "Ecclesiastes 1:1–18; 2:1–11; and 12:7, 13–14", "questions": "Read with the words swapped in: vanity means empty or fleeting, and \"under the sun\" means in this mortal life. What did the Preacher try, and what did he conclude about all of it? Then find exactly where the book turns." }, "teacherNote": "BOARD first thing: \"How I treat my body / How I spend my free time / How I treat people.\" Leave it up and come back to it at the end. Student prep was to ask a parent or trusted leader about the long-term impact of decisions they made as teenagers — ask who actually did it. DEFINITIONS to display: vanity = empty or fleeting; \"under the sun\" or \"under heaven\" = in this mortal life; \"vexation of spirit\" = frustrating. Have them substitute as they read; it changes the book. Clarify that worldly wisdom and possessions are not bad in themselves — the danger is making them the focus. Cross-reference Ecclesiastes 12:7, 13–14 with Alma 34:32 and Mormon 3:20, 22. Optional video: \"Think Celestial!\" (19:15), from 5:20 to 5:46. Note the loop back to the parable of the talents from Lesson 193 — Matthew 25:23 is the verse the closing activity uses.", "cards": [ { "card": 0, "sectionName": "CONTEXT SETUP", "tagline": "Begin with the end.", "title": "ECCLESIASTES — CONTEXT SETUP", "subtitle": "A Man Who Tried Everything, And Said So.", "columnHead": "THE BOOK AT A GLANCE", "bullets": [ "The author calls himself \"the Preacher,\" son of David, king in Jerusalem.", "He had wisdom, wealth, projects and pleasure. He tried all of it.", "His verdict on every bit of it: vanity — empty, fleeting, passing.", "\"Under the sun\" means in this mortal life, and only this life.", "\"Vexation of spirit\" means frustrating. \"Vanity\" means empty.", "He is not saying wisdom and possessions are bad. He says they do not last.", "The last chapter turns and looks past the sun entirely." ], "keyFacts": { "Author": "\"The Preacher,\" son of David, king in Jerusalem", "Type": "Wisdom literature, written as a search", "Vanity Means": "Empty and fleeting — not conceited", "Under The Sun": "In this mortal life, and only this life", "Main Themes": "Emptiness, time, judgment, eternal perspective", "Christ Connection": "We cannot prepare for judgment without Him (3 Nephi 27:16)" }, "bandHeading": "WHAT HE TRIED, AND WHERE HE LANDED", "timeline": [ { "title": "WISDOM", "ref": "Ecclesiastes 1:18", "text": "More knowledge, more grief." }, { "title": "PLEASURE", "ref": "Ecclesiastes 2:1", "text": "He tried it. Empty." }, { "title": "BUILDING", "ref": "Ecclesiastes 2:4–6", "text": "Houses, vineyards, pools." }, { "title": "WEALTH", "ref": "Ecclesiastes 2:7–8", "text": "Silver, gold, servants." }, { "title": "THE VERDICT", "ref": "Ecclesiastes 2:11", "text": "No profit under the sun." }, { "title": "THE CONCLUSION", "ref": "Ecclesiastes 12:13", "text": "Fear God. Keep His commandments." } ], "scrollQuote": { "text": "Vanity of vanities; all is vanity.", "attribution": "Ecclesiastes 1:2" }, "artPrompt": "A warm painterly golden-hour scene of a grand terraced garden gone to seed at sunset, dry fountains and empty stone walkways, hills beyond." }, { "card": 1, "sectionName": "DIRECT TEXT INTERACTION & AI", "tagline": "Swap the words. Read again.", "title": "ECCLESIASTES — DIRECT TEXT INTERACTION & AI", "subtitle": "Then Find Where The Book Turns.", "focusHead": "OUR FOCUS TODAY", "focusText": "Read with the definitions swapped in — vanity means empty, \"under the sun\" means in this life only, \"vexation of spirit\" means frustrating. It changes the whole book.", "scripturesHead": "TODAY'S SCRIPTURES", "scriptureKey": "The key: Ecclesiastes 12:13–14", "scriptureList": [ "Ecclesiastes 1:13–18 — the wisdom of the world", "Ecclesiastes 2:1, 4–11 — pleasure and possessions", "Ecclesiastes 12:7, 13–14 — the conclusion of the matter", "Alma 34:32 — this life is the time to prepare", "3 Nephi 27:16, 19 — how we are made ready" ], "aiUseHead": "HOW WE USE AI", "aiUse": [ "Define: Vanity, under the sun, vexation.", "Trace: What did he try, and why did it fail?", "Turn: What changes in chapter 12?", "Stay Spiritual: AI supports — the Spirit teaches." ], "aiPromptHead": "AI PROMPT TO TRY", "aiPrompt": "\"Read Ecclesiastes 1:13–18, 2:1 and 4–11, and 12:7 and 13–14. In this book 'vanity' means empty or fleeting, and 'under the sun' means in this mortal life. Show me everything the Preacher tried and what he concluded about each one. Then show me exactly where the book turns, and what changes.\"", "afterHead": "AFTER YOU GET A RESULT", "after": [ "Write his conclusion in your own words.", "Name one thing you chase that is fleeting.", "Name one thing you chase that is not." ], "rememberHead": "REMEMBER", "rememberText": "The Preacher is not saying wisdom and possessions are wrong. He is saying they do not last, and that building a whole life on them leaves you empty.", "bandHeading": "EXAMPLE QUESTIONS WE CAN EXPLORE WITH AI", "bandQuestions": [ "Who was the Preacher?", "What does \"vanity\" mean here?", "What is \"under the sun\"?", "Is Ecclesiastes pessimistic?", "What is the Final Judgment?" ], "scrollQuote": { "text": "God shall bring every work into judgment.", "attribution": "Ecclesiastes 12:14" }, "artPrompt": "A warm painterly golden-hour still life of an hourglass and a closed leather book on a stone windowsill, the sun low over distant hills beyond the window." }, { "card": 2, "sectionName": "TALK ABOUT EXPERIENCE", "tagline": "Where does this end?", "title": "ECCLESIASTES — TALK ABOUT EXPERIENCE", "subtitle": "Follow One Decision All The Way Out.", "goalHead": "DISCUSSION GOAL", "goalText": "Take one decision you are making right now and follow it all the way out — not to next month, to the next life.", "howHead": "HOW TO DISCUSS", "how": [ "Everyone gets a chance to share.", "Talk about the decision, not who is making it.", "Your own decision stays private if you want.", "Keep the Savior at the center." ], "aiHead": "CONTINUE TO USE AI", "aiText": "Find one teaching of Jesus Christ that shows Him deciding with the end in mind.", "questionsHead": "THINK ABOUT THESE TOGETHER", "questions": [ "How would it change you if you never thought past this week?", "How do the ways you treat your body, your time and other people show up decades later?", "What attributes of God make Him uniquely qualified to be our Judge?" ], "bandHeading": "EXAMPLE QUESTIONS TO DISCUSS", "bandQuestions": [ "What lasts past this life?", "What am I chasing right now?", "Who have I treated badly?", "What do I do on Sunday?", "What would I undo?" ], "scrollQuote": { "text": "This life is the time for men to prepare to meet God.", "attribution": "Alma 34:32" }, "artPrompt": "A natural photograph of five teenagers talking around a classroom table with open scriptures in bright morning light." }, { "card": 3, "sectionName": "CHRIST-CENTERED ACTION", "tagline": "Send yourself a message.", "title": "ECCLESIASTES — CHRIST-CENTERED ACTION", "subtitle": "Write What Your Future Self Would Say.", "columns": [ { "head": "START WITH JESUS", "text": "We do not get ready for the Judgment alone. The Savior promised to hold guiltless those who repent, are baptized, and endure to the end.", "citation": "See 3 Nephi 27:16, 19.", "art": "A warm painterly golden-hour scene of the resurrected Savior in white robes at the top of a rise at sunrise, arms extended toward a figure walking up toward Him." }, { "head": "THE PREACHER'S CONCLUSION", "text": "He tried everything and ended in one line: fear God and keep His commandments. The dust returns to the earth, and the spirit returns to God.", "citation": "See Ecclesiastes 12:7, 13.", "art": "A warm painterly golden-hour scene of an old man standing at an open window at dawn, a closed book resting on the sill beside him." }, { "head": "BEGIN WITH THE END", "text": "Make the celestial kingdom the goal, then ask where each decision you make here would place you there.", "citation": "See Ecclesiastes 12:14; Matthew 25:23.", "art": "A natural photograph of a teenager writing a letter by lamplight at a desk in the early morning." } ], "ideasHead": "IDEAS: WHAT LASTS PAST THIS LIFE?", "ideas": [ "How you treated people.", "What you repented of.", "Covenants you kept.", "Who you helped.", "What you became.", "Who you brought along." ], "planHead": "MAKE A PLAN", "planQuestion": "What decision are you facing right now?", "plan": [ "Where does this decision end up?", "What would your future self say?", "What changes today because of that?" ], "challengeHead": "CHALLENGE THIS WEEK", "challengeText": "Write the message your future self would send back about the decision you named — then do the first thing it tells you to do.", "rememberHead": "REMEMBER", "rememberText": "\"Every righteous choice that you make here will pay huge dividends now. But righteous choices in mortality will pay unimaginable dividends eternally\" (Russell M. Nelson, \"Choices for Eternity,\" May 15, 2022).", "scrollQuote": { "text": "Fear God, and keep his commandments.", "attribution": "Ecclesiastes 12:13" }, "artPrompt": "" } ], "journalPrompt": "Imagine standing before God and hearing Him say \"Well done, good and faithful servant\" (Matthew 25:23). From there, write a message back to yourself today. Say how the choices you make now affect how ready you will be, name the decision you are currently facing, and tell yourself exactly what to change about it." }