5. G); also, "Beelzebub" means prtnce o
of Wiodom and Folly. ECCLESIASTES X XI. Men should Revere Kinga, wisdom Ig profitable to direct—to a prospercas issii«. Instead of forcing matters by main "strength" to one S own liurt (ch. 9. 16, 18). 11. A "serpent will bite the temporal advantages of true wisdom, though it often saves olliers. It receives little reward from tlie world, wliich admires none save the rich and great, no mnii remembci-fil—(Genesis 40. 23.) 16. Resuming tlie sentiment (ell. 7. 19; Proverbs 21,22; 24.5). poor man's wisdom is despised—not tlie poor man mentioned in v. 15;
' if "eochantinent" is not used; "and a babbling calumniator )S no better." Tlierefore, as one may escape a sei pent by cliarms (Psalm 58. i, 5), so one may escape the sting of a calumniator by discretion (u. 12). [Hoi.den.] Tlius, " without encliantment" answers to " not whet the e<Ige" {v. 10), both expressing, figuratively, want of judgment. Maukeb transl(Ues, "There is no gain to tlie enchanter" (Margin, "muster of the tongue") from liis encliantments, because tlie serpent bites before he can use tlieni; lience tlie need of continual caution. Ver. 8-10, caution in acting; v. U and foliowing verses, caution in speaking. 12. gracious tliereby he takes precaution against sudden injury [v. 11). s\vallow up himself—(Proverbs 10. 8, 14, 21, 32; 12. 13; 15.
for his wisdom could not have saved tlie city, liad "his words not been heard ;" but poor men in general. So Paul (Acts 27. 11). 17. Though generally the poor wise man is not lieard (v. lli), yet " the words of wise men, wlien lieard in quiet (when calmly given heed to, as in v. 15), are more serviceable tiian," &c. rnletU—as tlie "great king" (v. 14). Solomon reverts to "the rulers to tlieir own hurt" (eh. 8.
9). 18. one sinner, dec—(Joshua 7. 1, 11, 12.) Though wisdom excels lolly (i'. 10; ch. 7. 19), yet a "little folly (equivalent to sin) can destroy much good," both in iiimself (ch.
10. 1; James 2. 10) and in others. "Wisdom" must, from the antitliesis to "sinner," mean religion. Thus typicallj-, the "little city" may beapplied to the Cliurcti (Luke 12.82; Hebrews 12. 22) ; the great king to Salan (John 12. 31); tiie despised poor wise man, Jesus Christ (Isaiah 53. 2. 3; Mark
2; 22. 11.) 13. Illustrating the folly and injii.riousness of the fool's words; last clause of v. 12. I*, full of words (ch. 5. 2.) a man cannot tell what sliall be— (cll. 3, 22; 6. 12; 8. 7; 11. 2; Proverbs 27. 1.) If man, universally (including the wise man), cannot foresee the future, much less can the fool; his " many words" are therefore futile. 13. labour . . . wearieth—(Isaiah 5.5. 2; Habalvkuk 2. 13.) kno Weill not how to go to the city—proverb for ignorance of the most ordinary matters (v. 3); spiritually. Dip heavenly city (Psalm 107. 7; Matthew 7. 13, 14). Maukeb connects v. 15 with the following verses. The labour (vexation) caused by the foolish (injurious princes, v. 4-7) harasses him who "knows not how to go to tlie city," to ingratiate himself with them there. English Version is simpler. 16. a child—given to pleasures; beliavis with childish levity. Not in years; for a nation may be luippy under a young prince, as Josiah. eat in the morning
6. 3; 2 Corintliians 8. 9; Epliesiaus 1. 7, 8; Colossiaus 2. 3).
CHAPTER X.
Ver. 1-20. 1. Following up ch. 9. 18. him tliat is in reputation cx.gr., David (2 Samuel 12. 14); Solomon (1 Kings 11.); Jehoshaphat (2 Chronicles 18.; 19. 2) ; Josiah (.2 Chronicles 3.5. 22). The more delicate the perfume, the more easilj' spoiled is tlie ointment. Common oil is not so liable to injury. So the higher a man's religious character is, tlie more hurt Is caused by a sinful folly in him. Bad savour is endurable in oil, but not in wliat professes to be, and is compounded by the perfuuu-r ("apothecary") for, fragrance. "Flies" answer to "a tlie usual time for dispensing jits^/ce in the East (Jeremiah
21. 12); here, given to feasting (Isaiah 5. 11 ; Acts 2. 15). 17. son of nobles—not merely in blood, but in virtue, the true nobility (Song of Solomon 7.1; Isaiah 32. 5,8). iii d«ic season—(ch. 3. 1), not until duty has first iieen attended to. for strength—to refresh tlie body, not for revelry (included in "drunkenness"). 18. building—^/t., thejoining of the rafters, viz., the kingdom (v. 16; Isaiah 3.
little fo!ly"(sin), appropriately, being small (1 Corinthians
5. G); also, "Beelzebub" means prtnce o/ Jlics. "Ointment" answers to "reputation" (cli. 7. 1; Genesis 31. 30). Tiie verbs are siiiyaltir, the nonn plural, implying tliat eadi of the flies causes the stinking savour. 3. (Ch. 2. 14.) rigitt —the riglit hand is more expert than the left. Tlie godly wise is more on his guard tlian the foolish sinner, tliough at times he slip. Better a diamond with a flaw, tliaii a pebble without one. 3. by tlie way—in his ordinary course; in his simplest acts (Proverbs (i. 12-14). That lie "saith," virtually, "that he" himself, &c. [LXX.] But Vtdgate,"He tliinks that every one (else v/\iom he meets)
6; Amos 9. 11). hands—(ch. 4. 5; Proverbs 6.10.) droppeth—by neglect to repair the roof in time, tlie niin gets tlirough. 19. Referring to i'. 18. Instead of repairing the breaches in the commonwealth (equivalent to "building"), the princes "make a feast for laughter {v. 16), and wine maketh tlieir life glad (Psalm 104. 15), and (but) money supplieth (answeretli their wishes by supplying) all things," i. e., they taiie bribes to support tlieir extravagance ; and hence arise the wrongs that are perpetrated is a fool." 4. spirit—anger, yielding pacilietli—(Proverbs 15.1.) This explains " leave not thy place;" do not in a resisting spirit withdraw from thy post of duty (cli. 8.
3). 5. as—ratlier, "by reason of an error." [Maureh and HoLDES.] 6. rich—not in mere wealth, but in wisdom, as the antithesis to "folly" (for "foolisli men") sliows. So Hebrew, rich, equivalent to "liberal," in a good sense (Isaiah 32. .5). Wordecai and Haman (Esther 3. 1, 2 ; 6. 6-11). 7. servants upon horses—the worthless exalted to dignity (Jeremiah 17. 25); and vice versa (2 Samuel 15.30). 8. Tlie fatal results to kings of sucli an unwise policy; tiie wrong done to otiiers recoils on themselves (ch. 8. 9); they fall into the pit which they dug for others (Esther 7. 10; Psalm
(1). 5, 6; ch. 3. 16; Isaiah 1. 23; 5. 23). Mauker takes "all tilings" of the wrongs to which princes are instigated by "money;" ex. gr., the heavy taxes, which were tlie occasion of Rehoboam losing ten tribes (1 Kings 12, 4, Ac). 20. tiioiiglit lit., consciousness, rich—tlie great. The language, as applied to earthly princes knowing the "tliought," is figurative. But it literally holds good of the King of kings (Psalm 139.), whose consciousness of every evil thought we should ever realize, bcd-cliamber —the most secret iilace (2 Kings 6. 12). bird of llie air, etc.—proverbial (cf. Ilahakkuk 2. 11; Luke 19.40); in a way as marvellous and rapid, as If birds or some winged messenger carried to the king information of the curse so uttered. In the East superhuman s.agacity was attributed to birds (see my note. Job 28. 21 ; hence the proverb).
7. 15; Proverbs 26. 27). Breaking through the wise fences of tlieir throne, they suf Ter unexpectedly themselvejs ; as when one is stung by a serpent lurking in the stones of his neiglibour's garden wall (Psalm 80. 12), wliich he maliciously pulls down (Amos 5. 19). 9. removetli stones viz., of an ancient building. [Weiss.] His neiglibour's landmarlcs. [Holden.] Cuts out from the quarry. [JlAUBEB.] eiidungered—by the splinters, or by tlie liead of the liatchet, flying back on himself. Pithy aphorisms are common in the East. The sense is: Violations of true wisdom recoil on the perpetrators. 10. iron . . . blnnt —in "cleaving wood" (v. 9), answering to the " fool set in dignity" (u. 6), who wants sharpness. More force has I hen to be used in both cases ; but force witliout judgment "endangers" one's self. Translate, " l( one hatli blunted his iron." [Mauhek.] The preference of rasa to judicious
CHAPTER XI.
Ver. 1-10. 1. Ver. 2 shows that charity is here Inculcated, bread-bread-corn. As in the Lord's jirayer, all thing* needful for the body and soul. Solomon reverts to the sentiment (ch. 9. 10). watf'i-s-image from the cusloni of sowing seed by casting it from boats into the oveillowing witiers of the Nile, or in any marshy ground. When the waters receded, the grain in the alluvial soil sprang up (Isaiah 32. 20). " Waters" express multitudes, no v. 2; Revehuion 17. 15; also the seemingly hopeless character of the recipients of the charity ; but it shall prove at last to have
(A)uiiscllors, wliich entailed the pusliing of matters by foice, proved to be the "hurt" of Rehoboam (1 Kings 12^ 412