Ecclesiastes, Fleeting and timeless

In fact, Abel’s deliverance is not restricted to that of a single person, either. Through Abel, God offers his first universal explanation of life’s calling. By heeding the offering of Abel and not of Cain, God teaches humanity a fundamental law of divine justice, in his response to Cain’s vexation: “If you better, you will transcend.”²³ Life is not a game of chance.

And yet, who was this man whom God affirmed? Abel’s life was too short to allow for the attainment of material success. Nor can he be credited with any innovation: Even the idea of sacrifice was Cain’s.²⁴ Above all, Abel was childless. His life, therefore, left no trace. He walked without footprints.

If we translate Abel’s name, hevel, as “vanity,” as readers of Ecclesiastes have long been accustomed, it is impossible to reconcile the term with Abel’s acceptance by God. Indeed, the story of Abel teaches the exact opposite—the possibility of salvation despite the fleeting nature of life. Precisely because of the tragic nature of Abel’s interrupted life, we learn its deepest message: In turning one’s life into an offering, one is not dependent on any life circumstance, or on any achievements in the material world

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