Translation
Paraphrase
I, THE CONVENER AND SPEAKER OF THE ASSEMBLY, reached the pinnacle of life among THOSE WHO NEVER LET GO OF GOD, and I have done so in a PEACEFUL AND WHOLESOME manner.
Footnotes
1: The name Israel
For the ancient Jews, the impact of this name was more than just its meaning; they would have thought about the story behind it. The name means “to struggle,” and it was given to Jacob the night he struggled with God’s messenger, or God made flesh – Jesus (it is hard to know precisely who it was but many Bible scholars believe it was Jesus). Why did he struggle? He did so because he wanted something from God, and he would be persistent and hold on to God until what God promised came through. In this case it is a good thing to struggle with God. Notice it does not say he struggled against God, but with God. He was not going against God’s will; he was asking God to do what He said He would do, despite the fact that he, Jacob, was not a perfect specimen of humanity. We need to be like that too.
2
Jerusalem means “peaceful foundations.” A place with peaceful foundations will also be a peaceful place. The concept of peace was much more than an absence of violence, it meant wholeness, wellbeing, emotional and relational health.