Canonicity
Both Judaism and Christianity accept Ecclesiastes as canonical. However, in the 1st century AD, literal interpretation of the work led to debate over whether it was to be included in the Jewish canon.
[22] The
House of Hillel and the
House of Shammai debated its inclusion, with the Hillel school arguing for it.
[23] Its inclusion was decided when
Eleazar ben Azariah was made head of the assembly.
Based on the contents of the majority of the book, it has perplexed scholars as to why Ecclesiastes was included in the canon of the Hebrew Bible. While there is no hypothesis that is unanimously supported by scholarship, there have been many suggestions offered. One idea is that association with Solomon had lent enough credibility to the book that it was canonized. However, “the difficulty with this justification…is clear: similar pseudonymous attributions in other texts-texts that were more orthodox than Ecclesiastes-proved to be insufficient reason for those texts to be accepted as canonical.”
[24] Another prominent explanation for the canonical status of Ecclesiastes is that the final words redeem the entire book. This view is supported by the discussions at Jamnia, and Rabbi Akiba’s utterances there, “Why did they not withdraw it? Because the beginning and the end of it consist of words of the law” (b. Sabb. 30b)
[25] This hypothesis though also has flaws, because of the lack of canonical status for other books that more consistently interpret the laws of Judaism in an orthodox manner.