Advanced Commentary

Texts -- Ecclesiastes 10:1-13 (NET)

Context
10:1 One dead fly makes the perfumer’s ointment give off a rancid stench , so a little folly can outweigh much wisdom .
Wisdom Can Be Nullified By the Caprice of Rulers
10:2 A wise person’s good sense protects him, but a fool’s lack of sense leaves him vulnerable . 10:3 Even when a fool walks along the road he lacks sense , and shows everyone what a fool he is. 10:4 If the anger of the ruler flares up against you, do not resign from your position , for a calm response can undo great offenses . 10:5 I have seen another misfortune on the earth : It is an error a ruler makes . 10:6 Fools are placed in many positions of authority , while wealthy men sit in lowly positions . 10:7 I have seen slaves on horseback and princes walking on foot like slaves .
Wisdom is Needed to Avert Dangers in Everyday Life
10:8 One who digs a pit may fall into it, and one who breaks through a wall may be bitten by a snake . 10:9 One who quarries stones may be injured by them; one who splits logs may be endangered by them. 10:10 If an iron axhead is blunt and a workman does not sharpen its edge , he must exert a great deal of effort ; so wisdom has the advantage of giving success . 10:11 If the snake should bite before it is charmed , the snake charmer is in trouble .
Words and Works of Wise Men and Fools
10:12 The words of a wise person win him favor , but the words of a fool are self-destructive . 10:13 At the beginning his words are foolish and at the end his talk is wicked madness ,

Pericope

NET
  • Ecc 10:2-7 -- Wisdom Can Be Nullified By the Caprice of Rulers
  • Ecc 10:8-11 -- Wisdom is Needed to Avert Dangers in Everyday Life
  • Ecc 10:12-15 -- Words and Works of Wise Men and Fools

Bible Dictionary

  • Wisdom

    [nave] WISDOM Of Joseph, Gen. 41:16, 25-39; Acts 7:10. Of Moses, Acts 7:22. Of Bezaleel, Ex. 31:3-5; 35:31-35; 36:1. Of Aholiab, Ex. 31:6; 35:34, 35; 36:1; of other skilled artisans, Ex. 36:2; of women, Ex. 35:26. Of Hiram, 1 K...

  • MAGIC; MAGICIAN

    [isbe] MAGIC; MAGICIAN - maj'-ik, ma-jish'-an: I. DEFINITION II. DIVISION OF THE SUBJECT 1. Magic as Impersonal 2. Margic as Personal III. MAGIC AND RELIGION IV. MAGIC IN THE BIBLE 1. Hostility to Magic 2. Potency of Magical Words ...

  • Instruction

    [nave] INSTRUCTION From nature, Prov. 24:30-34; Eccl. 1:13-18; 3; 4:1; Matt. 6:25-30. See: Parables. From the study of human nature, Eccl. 3-12. By Object Lessons: The pot of maa, Ex. 16:32. The pillar of twelve stones at the f...

  • INSECTS

    [isbe] INSECTS - in'-sekts: In English Versions of the Bible, including the marginal notes, we find at least 23 names of insects or words referring to them: ant, bald locust, bee, beetle, cankerworm, caterpillar, creeping thing, cr...

  • IGNORANCE

    [isbe] IGNORANCE - ig'-no-rans (sheghaghah; agnoia): "Ignorance" is the translation of sheghaghah, "wandering," "going astray" (Lev 4:2, etc., "if a soul sin through ignorance," the Revised Version (British and American) "unwitting...

  • HAND

    [isbe] HAND - (yadh, "hand"; kaph, "the hollow hand," "palm"; yamin, "the right hand"; semo'l, "the left hand"; cheir, "hand"; dexia, "the right hand"; aristera, "the left hand" (only Lk 23:33; 2 Cor 6:7), or euphemistically (for e...

  • GRACIOUS

    [isbe] GRACIOUS - gra'-shus (chanan; charis): In general, the word means "to favor," "to show kindness" to an inferior and "to be compassionate." All Old Testament passages are derived from the same root, and yet there are two evid...

  • Fly

    [ebd] Heb. zebub, (Eccl. 10:1; Isa. 7:18). This fly was so grievous a pest that the Phoenicians invoked against it the aid of their god Baal-zebub (q.v.). The prophet Isaiah (7:18) alludes to some poisonous fly which was believed ...

  • FOOL; FOLLY

    [isbe] FOOL; FOLLY - fool nabhal, 'ewil, kecil, cakhal and forms; aphron, aphrosune, moros): I. In the Old Testament. 1. General: Taking the words generally, apart from the Wisdom literature, we find nabhal frequently translated "f...

  • FLY; FLIES

    [isbe] FLY; FLIES - fli fliz `arobh (Ex 8:21 ff; Ps 78:45; 105:31; Septuagint kunomuia; "dog-fly"), zebhubh (Eccl 10:1; Isa 7:18; Septuagint muiai, "flies"); compare ba`al-zebhubh, "Baal-zebub" (2 Ki 1:2 ff), and beelzeboul, "Beelz...

  • EUNUCH

    [isbe] EUNUCH - u'-nuk (caric; spadon; eunouchos): Primarily and literally, a eunuch is an emasculated man (Dt 23:1). The Hebrew word caric seems, however, to have acquired a figurative meaning, which is reflected in English Versio...

  • ENCHANTMENT

    [isbe] ENCHANTMENT - en-chant'-ment: The occult arts, either supposedly or pretentiously supernatural, were common to all oriental races. They included enchantment, sorcery, witchcraft, sooth-saying, augury, necromancy, divination ...

  • ECCLESIASTES, THE PREACHER

    [isbe] ECCLESIASTES, THE PREACHER - e-kle-zi-as'-tez, or (qoheleth; Ekklesiastes, perhaps "member of assembly"; see below): 1. Structure of the Book 2. The Contents 3. Composite Authorship? 4. Qoheleth 5. "King in Jerusalem" 6. Dat...

  • DIGNITIES; DIGNITY

    [isbe] DIGNITIES; DIGNITY - dig'-ni-tiz, dig'-ni-ti (Hebrew marom, se'eth, gedhullah): Rank or position, not nobility or austerity of personal character or bearing, is denoted by this word in its Old Testament occurrences (Gen 49:3...

  • Charmer

    [ebd] one who practises serpent-charming (Ps. 58:5; Jer. 8:17; Eccl. 10:11). It was an early and universal opinion that the most venomous reptiles could be made harmless by certain charms or by sweet sounds. It is well known that ...

  • CLEAVE

    [isbe] CLEAVE - klev: Is used in the Bible in two different senses: (1) baqa` "to split," or "to rend." We are told that Abraham "clave the wood for the burnt-offering" (Gen 22:3), and that "they clave the wood of the cart" (1 Sam ...

  • BABBLER

    [isbe] BABBLER - bab'-ler ba`al ha-lashon; the King James Version of Eccl 10:11 literally, "master of the tongue"; the Revised Version (British and American) CHARMER; lapistes, the King James Version of Ecclesiasticus 20:7; the Rev...

  • APOTHECARY

    [ebd] rendered in the margin and the Revised Version "perfumer," in Ex. 30:25; 37:29; Eccl. 10:1. The holy oils and ointments were prepared by priests properly qualified for this office. The feminine plural form of the Hebrew word...
    [isbe] APOTHECARY - a-poth'-e-ka-ri: Found in English Versions of the Bible eight times in the Old Testament and Apocrypha for Hebrew word rendered more accurately "perfumer" by the Revised Version (British and American) in Ex 30:2...

  • AMULET

    [isbe] AMULET - am'-u-let (qemia, lechashim, mezuzah, tephillin, tsitsith; phulakterion): Modern scholars are of opinion that our English word amulet comes from the Latin amuletum, used by Pliny (Naturalis Historia, xxviii, 28; xxx...

  • ALLAY

    [isbe] ALLAY - a-la' (heniach, "to cause to rest," "soothe": "Gentleness allayeth (lit., "pacifieth") great offenses" (Eccl 10:4)): The word is applied to what "excites, disturbs and makes uneasy" (Smith, Synonyms Discriminated, 10...

Arts

Resources/Books

Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

  • I believe that the message of Ecclesiastes is essentially a positive one. This may seem strange since the vanity of various human endeavors is such a major theme of this book. Nevertheless the total statement that Solomon mad...
  • I. The introductory affirmation 1:1-11A. Title and theme 1:1-21. The title 1:12. The theme 1:2B. The futility of all human endeavor 1:3-111. The vanity of work 1:32. The illustrations from life 1:4-11II. The futility of work ...
  • Rather than saying, "All work is vanity,"Solomon made the same point by asking this rhetorical question that expects a negative response. He used this literary device often throughout the book (cf. 2:2; 3:9; 6:8, 11-12; et al...
  • Clues in the text indicate the value and purpose of 6:10-11:6. The phrases "does not know"and "cannot discover"occur frequently (6:12; 7:14, 24, 28; 8:17; 19:1, 12; 10:14; 11:2, 6). Also the recurrence of "it is good"(7:18) a...
  • The emphasis in this section (9:1-11:6) is on what man does not know because God has not revealed many things. Solomon also emphasized, however, that the remaining mystery in this subject (8:16-17) must not diminish human joy...
  • Solomon's emphasis in 9:2-10 was on the fact that a righteous person could not be more certain of his or her earthly future than the wicked. In 9:11-10:11 his point was that the wise cannot be more sure of his or her earthly ...
  • Since we do not know what our earthly future holds (vv. 12-15), even though governmental officials may prove reprehensible (vv. 16-19) it is not wise to criticize them (v. 20).10:12-15 Generally wise people speak graciously, ...
  • In 1:12-6:9, Solomon demonstrated that all work is ultimately futile for two reasons. It does not yield anything really permanent under the sun. Moreover we can never be sure we will enjoy the fruits of our labor before we di...
  • In conclusion Solomon repeated his original thesis (v. 8; cf. 1:2) and his counsel in view of life's realities (vv. 13-14). In between these statements he set forth his source of authority for writing what we have in Ecclesia...

Expositions Of Holy Scripture (Maclaren)

  • Whoso breaketh an hedge, a serpent shall bite him.'--Eccles. 10:8.WHAT is meant here is, probably, not such a hedge as we are accustomed to see, but a dry-stone wall, or, perhaps, an earthen embankment, in the crevices of whi...
Back to Commentary Page
Display Bible



Universal Search:

NET Only
Exact Search
Commentary
Study Dictionary
Word Study
Lexicon
Study Maps System
Sermon Illustrations
Expository
Arts
Resource
Daily Bible Reading
Training Video
Classic NET Bible
iPhone NET Bible
Mobile Bible
TIP #10: [ALL]
created in 0.05 seconds
powered by
bible.org - YLSA