alyssafraley's review against another edition
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
5.0
jtisreading's review against another edition
2.0
There are some thoughtful ideas present in this book. It is a novel reflection on Ecclesiastes but it never really hits home. It is also full of some theological ideas that simply can't be found in Ecclesiastes. I feel like the hurt and pain of the speaker is sometimes given up too quickly in order to make room for redemption. Though I would agree Ecclesiastes is redemptive it feels forced in this volume.
notwithoutwitness's review against another edition
4.0
Recovering Eden is not so much a commentary on Ecclesiastes as it is a meditation. Eswine doesn't walk through Ecclesiastes verse by verse and often his thought is scattered all over the place. But in the end it fits. It gets tied together in the end.
We live in "once-Eden." The world is not the way it is supposed to be. Paradise has been lost. And "Ecclesiastes starts decidedly with the truth that all of us are in the world no matter who we are and that all of us have this one thing in common: we are human and as such we must commonly navigate the same God-governed and maddening world together" (11).
So why does Ecclesiastes exist? Why is it in Scripture? "Ecclesiastes is an apologetic sermon... it defends a life of faith in a generous God by pointing to the grimness of the alternative" (13). "The aim of this Preacher's message is that we who listen will come to believe in God and to recover our purpose with his gift and to see that our whole purpose as human beings is a God-centered relationship toward all things" (17).
Eswine has a way with words and with analogies. Sometimes he over does it, but rarely. More often than not, I was left thinking how perfectly his illustration fit with his point.
The one complaint, being that this is not a commentary per se, is that he tends to drift all over the place. What he says is good and helpful, but it's not always founded upon the text at hand. And with that large sections of Ecclesiastes are ignored.
In the end, this was a very enjoyable read. There's much to think about in this books relating to Ecclesiastes and beyond.
We live in "once-Eden." The world is not the way it is supposed to be. Paradise has been lost. And "Ecclesiastes starts decidedly with the truth that all of us are in the world no matter who we are and that all of us have this one thing in common: we are human and as such we must commonly navigate the same God-governed and maddening world together" (11).
So why does Ecclesiastes exist? Why is it in Scripture? "Ecclesiastes is an apologetic sermon... it defends a life of faith in a generous God by pointing to the grimness of the alternative" (13). "The aim of this Preacher's message is that we who listen will come to believe in God and to recover our purpose with his gift and to see that our whole purpose as human beings is a God-centered relationship toward all things" (17).
Eswine has a way with words and with analogies. Sometimes he over does it, but rarely. More often than not, I was left thinking how perfectly his illustration fit with his point.
The one complaint, being that this is not a commentary per se, is that he tends to drift all over the place. What he says is good and helpful, but it's not always founded upon the text at hand. And with that large sections of Ecclesiastes are ignored.
In the end, this was a very enjoyable read. There's much to think about in this books relating to Ecclesiastes and beyond.
petersont4's review against another edition
3.0
This book has a lot of good insights about Ecclesiastes. The author goes into lots of details and organized the book well. I like how each chapter went through a specific topic and looked at it throughout the entire book of Ecclesiastes.
That being said, the information was hard to follow and dull at times. I wish the information would have been a little more captivating then it was.
That being said, the information was hard to follow and dull at times. I wish the information would have been a little more captivating then it was.
s_melly's review against another edition
5.0
Poetically written and filled with truth! Excellent book and study! In the forward Iain M. Duguid lays out the goals for the entire series "The Gospel According to the Old Testament". Recovering Eden meets and exceeds that purpose!
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