Getting Biblical in Daily Life
Ecclesiastes's theological perspective is—like we said at the beginning—different. It's odd, weird, strange, idiosyncratic: put it how you want to put it. People can say that it sounds like skeptical Greek philosophy if they want to (and maybe it does, a little), but it's more probable that Ecclesiastes was a free-thinker, a Judaic original. At every turn, he challenges and undermines ideas that most other Jews had about Life, the Universe, and Everything.
God doesn't play much of a role in history and in the everyday business of life for Ecclesiastes. He's a distant, difficult presence—but one that exists and rules over all, nonetheless. God is mysterious and strange—Ecclesiastes doesn't quite know what to think about him.
Embrace the Mystery
At one point, Ecclesiastes says that righteous people often suffer what wicked people should suffer, and wicked people enjoy the rewards that righteous people should've had. It's similar to what he says about how the wise man and the fool both face the same destiny: they'll die and that's that. But suddenly, he swings into saying the opposite and claims that judgment definitely awaits us all.
You could see that as an editor or another writer adding this to try to make Ecclesiastes more orthodox—but it seems in line with Ecclesiastes's own hesitations. He seems willing to admit that he doesn't really know what's going on, so he needs to consider different possibilities, suggest things without really saying, "This is what I believe, specifically."
Also, as mentioned in the "God" character analysis, Ecclesiastes doesn't use the word Yahweh for God, but only Elohim. He thinks of God as being more impersonal, almost like Fate. This God is different from the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, who is intimate, involved, and interested in getting to know you. Ecclesiastes's God isn't the God who speaks out of the burning bush to Moses and tells him to free Israel. This is a God who hides in the clouds, who keeps to himself. You should fear him—not because you know what he's like, but because you have no real idea, he's so far beyond you.