With the way things are going in the world, with the economic downturn and violence in the Middle East and elsewhere, it’s sometimes hard to believe that things will get any better. But there are cycles, ups and down, in everything: the economy, the weather, agriculture, international affairs, and our personal lives. Solomon, in all his wisdom, wrote in chapter 3 of Ecclesiastes, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heaven." We all know this, but sometimes it’s hard to get through the down part of the cycle. Sometimes we lose the vision of the up part of the cycle. So we need something to remind us of that and encourage us to keep going. Also, when we’re in the up part, we tend to take our good fortune for granted and not be humbly grateful. I know I did 5 years ago when we sold our home at the height of the market for almost twice what we paid for it and also got a great deal on a better home. Now we couldn’t sell the second home for what we sold the first home for. So we also need something to remind us of the hard times so we don’t feel overconfident and boastful.

King Solomon found something that reminded him of both the ups and the downs, so that whatever part of a cycle he was going through, he would look at it and feel the appropriate emotion. There’s a story about this I first read over 40 years ago and it had a powerful effect on my philosophy of life and helped me through a lot of difficulties. There are many versions to this story, and this adaptation by Amy Friedman I think is the best because it portrays Solomon as a compassionate as well as wise king.

Long ago there lived a man named Benaiah, the captain of King Solomon's palace guards, and also the king's good friend. Benaiah was a noble man, with a handsome face and a beautiful soul. Some say he was among the 30 men of his generation chosen to exist so that the world might continue.

Benaiah served his king well, but one day King Solomon was passing through a courtyard and happened to overhear his soldiers gossiping. His heart sank when he heard Benaiah boast, "No task is too difficult for someone like me. I can accomplish anything."

The king went to his chambers and there he thought about pride. "Pride can harm a man," he thought. "I must give my captain a task that is impossible. Only in this way will he understand that he is but a man."

That evening he called Benaiah to appear before him. "I have a job for you, my friend," said the king.

"Whatever you ask," Benaiah said. "Your wish is my command."

"I want to own a magical ring," said the king.

"As you wish," Benaiah said. "Describe the ring for me so that I may find it."

King Solomon smiled. "All I can tell you is this: If a person is happy and puts this ring on his finger, he will become instantly sad. But a sad man who places this ring upon his finger will become happy." Of course the king understood that there was no such ring, but he knew his friend would never rest until he found it.

"I shall find it for you," Benaiah said.

"And you will surely succeed," said the king, "for I have heard you can accomplish anything."

Benaiah set out for the marketplace, where one by one he visited the jewelers of Jerusalem. "I am looking for a magical ring that makes a happy person sad and a sad person happy," he told each merchant.

Each one shook his head. "Never heard of such a ring," each said, and by sunset, Benaiah realized he would have to travel far to fulfill his king's desire.

That evening he prepared a caravan, and at dawn he set out to find the trader who possessed the magical ring. Benaiah and his men traveled for days and met many traders along their way, but each time he asked where he might find the magical ring that altered moods, he heard the same response: "I've never heard of such a treasure."

Benaiah visited the seaports, and there he met captains from every foreign land. Once again he asked where he might find this ring of wonders.

"Never heard of such a ring," each captain said.

Benaiah traveled on, but after many weeks his heart began to feel heavy. Perhaps he would fail to fulfill his king's desire. He could not bear the thought.

Still, he had no more ideas about where to look for the treasure, and so he returned to Jerusalem. He decided he would look one last time in the local marketplace, and as he was visiting the jewelers, he happened past a young man he had never before seen. The young man wore ragged clothes and sat upon the ground, and before him was a threadbare carpet laden with simple bracelets and rings.

"Surely this lad won't have the magical ring," Benaiah thought, but he decided he must at least look. He bent down and said, "I am looking for a ring that makes a sad person happy and a happy person sad. Have you ever heard of such a treasure?"

The boy's eyes lighted up, and he reached into his pocket and handed a single gold band to Benaiah. "This is a ring my grandfather gave me long ago," said the boy. "He inscribed it. Read what he has written."

Benaiah shrugged. Such a plain ring could not be magical. Still, he reached out and held the ring in his palm. He turned it over, and when he read the words inscribed, his heavy heart lifted. "This is it!" he cried.

Benaiah fulfilled one lad's dream as he handed over all the silver and gold coins he carried in exchange for the ring. "Your grandfather was a wise man, indeed," he told the young man. And then, the ring in hand, he returned to the palace.

When Benaiah appeared before King Solomon, he bowed low, and at the sight of his good friend, the king felt suddenly sad. He did not wish to humiliate such a friend.

"Ah, poor man," Solomon said softly, "the task I gave you was impossible, but you have tried your best ..."

But before he could finish his sentence, Benaiah held out the ring. "I have found it!" he exclaimed.

King Solomon could not believe his ears, but he reached out and took the ring. The moment he read the inscription, his smile vanished, and when he looked out at the grand things surrounding him, he felt so sad that tears welled in his eyes.

"What has happened?" the king's guards whispered.

King Solomon passed them the ring. "Read the inscription," he said, and soon the whole court understood.

"Gam zeh ya'avor -- this too shall pass," were the words the boy's grandfather had written inside the ring. King Solomon now realized that all his treasures would one day turn to dust, and those who felt sad realized that one day their sadness would leave them and they might feel happiness again.

The king reached for Benaiah's hand. "Forgive me, friend," he said. "From this day on you shall wear my jewels, and I will wear the magical ring." For King Solomon was wise, and he understood those words would keep him forever balanced.

Not long after this, the demon Ashmadai, the king of demons, banished Solomon to a remote country for several days. It is likely that he then wrote the beginning of Ecclesiastes, "...Vanity of vanities; all is vanity." But by the time he got to writing chapter 3, he probably remembered his ring, and took comfort in the thought that his exile would pass and one day he would return to Jerusalem and resume his throne. And so it happened.

Abraham Lincoln loved this story, and commenting on the expression “This too shall pass,” he said, “How much it expresses! How chastening in the hour of prize! How consoling in the depths of affliction!” I can imagine him saying it often during the civil war, and it’s probably how he was able to keep a sense of humor.