The following is an excerpt of a review written by Leslie Elaine Smith Howe on the book Ecclesiastes: A Reflective Exposition by Thomas Miersma (Jenison, MI: Reformed Free Publishing, 2022). The review was originally published in the April 2025 edition of Africanus Journal.

I was reared as a Presbyterian where exposure to the Westminster Shorter Catechism was an integral part of classes for confirmation of children. We memorized a number of the questions and answers. I attended a Presbyterian College and received a scholarship that was available for those who would memorize the entire 107 answers to the question it poses and write an essay related to the Westminster Shorter Catechism. During my freshman year, only three of us recited the answers to the 107 questions to the chairman of the Bible Department. Over the years I have come to believe that learning the catechism has been of more value to me than the financial prize itself.

Years later my husband and I became richly aware of the Reformed standards of other Reformed denominations when my husband was working as an assistant pastor at a Presbyterian church in Sydney, Nova Scotia on the Island of Cape Breton. One Sunday, we noticed a "new" young couple and invited them to join us for lunch. During that visit the couple, named Hilbert and Mary, provided us with an unexpected introduction to the Dutch Reformed tradition. Hilbert was on a temporary assignment in Sydney. Since there was no Christian Reformed Church in Sydney his home pastor suggested that they might worship with the Presbyterians! We were so glad they did and I believe we learned more from them than they did from us.

Hilbert said that they were staying at a nearby campground and that someone he met had asked what he believed. He said that the Heidelberg Catechism was the first thing that came to his mind and he had answered with a form of the answer to the first question of the Heidelberg Catechism:

"My only comfort in life and in death is that I am not my own but that I belong - body and soul, in life and in death - to my faithful Savior Jesus Christ who has fully paid for all my sins with his precious blood, and has set me free from the tyranny of the devil. He also watches over me in such a way that not a hair can fall from my head without the will of my Father in heaven; in fact all things must work together for my salvation. Because I belong to him, Christ, by his Holy Spirit, assures me of eternal life and makes me wholeheartedly willing and ready from now on to live for him" (adapted from question one from The Heidelberg Catechism, written in 1563).

My husband and I were overwhelmed with Hilbert's response to the camper's question. I imagine that the person who asked the question was also surprised. We resolved to look up the Heidelberg Catechism and hoped to memorize at least the answer to its first question. Loving God with all our mind means digging into the biblical revelation handed down to us including the Jewish categories, "the Law," "Prophets," and "Writings" and the New Testament "Gospels," "Acts," and ''Letters." The Bible provides a lifetime adventure of learning for the Christian.

When I was young and first attempted to lead Bible Studies (1965) with young people and wanted to venture into the "Wisdom Literature" of the Old Testament, I was helped by the fact that Pete Seeger had written a "hit" song using the words of Ecclesiastes ("Turn! Turn! Turn!"). I would have loved to have read the work by Thomas Miersma on Ecclesiastes (if it had been written!) before I started a study of Ecclesiastes with the young people. Our study would have been richer and more inspiring.

When I began to review Ecclesiastes, A Reflective Exposition by Thomas Miersma, the first thing I noticed about the book Ecclesiastes was the fact that Thomas Miersma stands in the tradition of the Reformed Church and the Heidelberg Catechism. I was eager to see what he had to say. (I also noticed that he has 432 sermons online at "Sermon Audio"!)

I realized, as I read on, this book will be a resource for anyone who is seeking to learn from Wisdom Literature, specifically the book of Ecclesiastes. It is exactly what its title claims, a reflective exposition by Rev. Thomas Miersma on Ecclesiastes. Rev. Thomas Miersma graduated from the Protestant Reformed Seminary in 1982. He was ordained and installed into the ministry at Edmonton, AB, Canada in 1982. In 1994 he was called to serve as home missionary of the Protestant Reformed Churches. He labored first in Alamosa, Colorado and later and currently in Spokane, Washington. (More information on Rev. Miersma can be found here.)

Part one of the book is entitled "Introduction to the book of Ecclesiastes." It includes essays regarding authorship (advocating for Solomon) and the major themes of the book by eminent Protestant Reformed Church pastors, Cornelius C. Hanko (1907-2005) and George Ophoff (also a seminary professor) (1891-1962). These essays provide a readable and excellent background to Ecclesiastes. Don't skip them; they are rich in the teaching of the Protestant Reformed Church. Thomas Miersma is providing the Church with the wisdom of these two faithful pastors which otherwise might be lost. While reading them, I came to appreciate those of the Christian Reformed traditions and also learned the names of some of the leaders of its traditions.

Part two of the book is titled "Exposition of Ecclesiastes," which is where the commentary by Thomas Miersma is presented in a very readable and pleasant style. I found it helpful that the body of the book provides the text for every chapter in the book of Ecclesiastes making it a useful tool for Bible Study Groups that want a manageable reading assignment for group study. The reader will find that each chapter in Ecclesiastes correlates with the same chapter number in the book. Miersma also includes the text in sections throughout the commentary so that the Scriptures (KJV) can be readily referenced by the reader.

Pastor Miersma demonstrates the principle of Scripture interpreting Scripture by supplying meaningful references from both the Old and New Testaments to sections of Ecclesiastes. One such reference is Ecclesiastes 3:14 ("Nothing can be put to it, nor anything taken from it") and Romans 11:36 ("All things are 'of him and through him and to him'") (p. 56). It is apparent that much attention has been given to draw the rest of Scripture into the commentary. I myself intend to sit down to read the commentary as a devotional over many days, allowing the Wisdom of Solomon to do its work. The book is what it claims to be on the cover, "A Reflective Exposition," worthy of reflective thought.

I would suggest you too read the book thoughtfully. Imagine that the author is confiding what he sees in the text to stimulate your own understanding. Make the journey with him.

In short. I think that Ecclesiastes, A Reflective Exposition would be a good addition to the library of any Christian who wishes to dive into the riches of "Wisdom Literature" for himself or to help others to do so. The book is available in hardcover on Amazon. It is well worth keeping to read again and again. A paperback edition or a kindle version might make it more accessible.

Leslie Elaine Smith Howe received a B.S. from Westminster College, New Wilmington, PA (1965), M.A. (math) Cleveland State University (NSF) (1969) and M.T.S. Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (1970). She has worked as a public-school teacher teaching computer languages and math, camp counselor, Sunday School teacher, and served as a Pastor's wife. She is also the author of several historical novels: Hatshepsut: The Pharaoh's Daughter and Corina of Damascus, and a compilation of poems: A Child's Garden of Verses by Robert Louis Stevenson and Me: Childhood in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries.

Africanus Journal is an academic, multilingual journal published by the Africanus Guild at the Boston Campus of Gordon-Conwell, the Campus for Urban Ministerial Education (CUME). Learn more at their website here.

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