Ecclesiastes 10
10
1Dead flies can make perfumed oil smell bad. Likewise a little foolishness outweighs great wisdom and honor. 2The mind of the wise person chooses the right side, but the mind of the fool goes left! 3Just the way that fools walk down the road shows they have no sense, making clear to everyone their stupidity. 4If your superior gets angry with you, don't give up and leave. If you stay calm even bad mistakes can be resolved. 5I also realized there's another evil here on earth: rulers make a big mistake 6when they put fools in high positions, while those who are richly qualified#10:6. “Richly qualified”: literally simply “the rich,” but surely more is in view here than simply accumulated wealth. are put in low positions. 7I've seen slaves riding on horseback, while princes walk on the ground like slaves.#10:7. In that society, it would have been very unlikely that slaves, often captured enemies, would have ever ridden on horseback. In contrast the image of princes being forced to walk is to show a loss of their dignity.
8If you dig a pit, you could fall in. If you knock down a wall, you could be bitten by a snake. 9If you quarry stone, you could be injured. If you split logs,#10:9. Or “cut down trees.” you could be hurt. 10If your ax is blunt and you don't sharpen it, you have to use a lot more force. Conclusion:#10:10. Implied. being wise brings good results. 11If the snake bites the snake charmer before it's charmed, there's no benefit to the snake charmer! 12Wise words are beneficial, but fools destroy themselves by what they say. 13Fools begin by saying foolish things, and end up talking evil nonsense. 14Fools talk on and on, however no one knows what's going to happen, so who can say what the future holds?#10:14. See 8:7. 15Work makes fools so worn out they can't achieve anything.#10:15. “They can't achieve anything”: literally, “can't find their way to town,” a colloquial expression meaning that people become confused so they are not successful.
16You're in trouble if the king of your country is young, and if your leaders are busy feasting from early morning. 17You're fortunate if your king comes from a noble family, and your leaders feast at the proper time to give themselves energy, and not to get drunk.
18Lazy people let their roofs collapse; idle people don't repair their leaky houses. 19A good meal brings pleasure; wine makes life pleasant; money provides for all needs. 20Don't talk badly about the king, not even in your thoughts. Don't talk badly about leaders,#10:20. “Leaders”: literally, “the rich.” even in the privacy of your bedroom. A bird may hear what you say and fly away to tell them.
Currently Selected:
Ecclesiastes 10: FBV
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com
Ecclesiastes 10
10
The Burden of Folly
1Dead flies make a perfumer’s oil ferment and stink; # Ex 30:25
so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor.
2A wise man’s heart goes to the # Lit his right,
but a fool’s heart to the # Lit his left.
3Even when the fool walks along the road, his heart lacks sense,
and he shows everyone he is a fool. # Pr 13:16; 18:2
4If the ruler’s anger rises against you, don’t leave your place, # Ec 8:3
for calmness puts great offenses to rest. # 1Sm 25:24-33; Pr 25:15
5There is an evil I have seen under the sun, an error proceeding from the presence of the ruler:
6The fool is appointed to great heights, # Est 3:1; Pr 28:12; 29:2
but the rich remain in lowly positions.
7I have seen slaves on horses, # Pr 19:10
but princes walking on the ground like slaves. # Est 6:8-10
8The one who digs a pit may fall into it, # Ps 7:15
and the one who breaks through a wall may be bitten by a snake. # Am 5:19
9The one who quarries stones may be hurt by them;
the one who splits trees may be endangered by them.
10If the ax is dull, and one does not sharpen its edge,
then one must exert more strength;
however, the advantage of wisdom is that it brings success.
11If the snake bites before it is charmed, # Jr 8:17
then there is no advantage for the charmer. # Lit master of the tongue
12The words from the mouth of a wise man are gracious, # Pr 10:32; 22:11; Lk 4:22
but the lips of a fool consume him. # Pr 18:7
13The beginning of the words of his mouth is folly,
but the end of his speaking is evil madness.
14Yet the fool multiplies words.
No one knows what will happen,
and who can tell anyone what will happen after him? # Ec 8:7,17
15The struggles of fools weary them,
for they don’t know how to go to the city.
16Woe to you, land, when your king is a youth # Pr 30:21-22; Is 3:4,12
and your princes feast in the morning.
17Blessed are you, land, when your king is a son of nobles
and your princes feast at the proper time —
for strength and not for drunkenness. # Pr 31:4; Is 5:11
18Because of laziness the roof caves in,
and because of negligent hands the house leaks.
19A feast is prepared for laughter,
and wine makes life happy, # Ps 104:15
and money is the answer for everything. # Ec 7:12
20Do not curse the king even in your thoughts, # Ex 22:28
and do not curse a rich person even in your bedroom, # 2Kg 6:12; Lk 12:3
for a bird of the sky may carry the message,
and a winged creature may report the matter.
Currently Selected:
:
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
© 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville, Tennessee. All rights reserved.