The Strand Study Bible

ECCLESIASTES 10:8

ECCLESIASTES 11:10

1023

Inattention to wisdom is dangerous 8 1 He that diggeth a pit shall fall into it; and whoso breaketh an hedge, a serpent shall bite him. 9 Whoso removeth stones shall be hurt therewith; and he that cleaveth wood shall be endangered thereby. Wisdom serves better than strength 10 If the 2 iron be blunt, and he do not whet the edge, then must he put to more strength: 3 but wisdom is profitable to direct. 11 Surely the serpent will bite without enchantment; and a babbler is no better . 12 4 The words of a wise man’s mouth are gracious; but the lips of a fool will 5 swallow up himself. 13 The beginning of the words of his mouth is foolishness: and the end of his talk is mischievous madness. 14 A fool also is 6 full of words: a man cannot tell what shall be; and what shall be after him, who can tell him? 15 The labour of the foolish wearieth every one of them, because he knoweth not how to go to the city. 16 7 Woe to thee, O land, when thy king is a child, and thy princes 8 eat in themorning! 17 Blessed art thou, O land, when thy king is the son of nobles, and thy princes eat in due season, for strength, and 9 not for drunkenness! 18 10 By much slothfulness the building decayeth; and through idleness of the hands the house 11 droppeth through. 19 A feast is made for laughter, and wine maketh merry: but money answereth all things. 20 12 Curse not the king, no not in thy thought; and curse not the rich in thy bedchamber: for a bird of the air shall carry the voice, and that which hath wings shall tell the matter.

1. Prov 26:27 & 28:10 2. or, “ax be dull” 3. Eccl 9:16,18

Ecclesiastes 11 Learn to labor, trusting God for the results Date Written - c. 970 BC/AM 3030 1 Cast thy bread upon the waters: 13 for thou shalt find it after many days. 2 Give a portion to seven, and also to eight; for thou knowest not what evil shall be upon the earth. 3 If the clouds be full of rain, they empty themselves upon the earth: and if the tree fall toward the south, or toward the north, in the place where the tree falleth, there it shall be. 4 He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap. 5 14 As thou knowest not what is the way of the SPIRIT , 15 nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child: even so thou knowest not the works of God who maketh all. 6 In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good. 7 Truly the 16 light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold the sun: 8 But if a man live many years, and rejoice in them all; yet let him remember the 17 days of darkness; for they shall be many. All that cometh is vanity. 9 Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth; and let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, and walk in the ways of thine heart, and in the sight of thine eyes: but know thou, that for all these things 18 GOD will bring thee into 19 judgment. P 10 Therefore remove sorrow from thy heart, and put away evil from thy flesh: for childhood and youth are vanity.

4. Prov 25:11 5. or, “destroy

himself by much useless talk” – vs 14 & Prov 13:16 & 15:2” 6. Prov 13:16 & 15:2 7. Isa 3:1-5 8. that is, “they eat when they should be working” 9. Prov 31:4 10. Prov 24:30-34 11. that is, “leaks from the roof” 12. Exo 22:28 & Acts 23:1-5 13. Prov 19:17 & Gal 6:9 14. Jn 3:8 15. Psa 139:14-15 16. that is, “the enjoyment of life” 17. or, “death, the grave, eternity” 18. “ Elohim ” Note - In this case Elohim is referring to God the Son - Jn 5:22,27. 19. Fulfilled - Rev 20:11-15 (Christ’s White Throne Judgment) (See - Jn 5:22,27 & Acts 10:42 & 17:31 & Gen 18:25 & Deut 32:4 & Psa 96:13 & Isa 45:22-23 & Rom 14:9-12 & II Cor 5:10)

10:8 What Solomon is referring to here (vs 8-9) are the unpredictable disasters ( shall fall into it ) in life. 10:10 Quarrying stones and/or the cutting down of trees is certainly dangerous work. What Solomon was saying here is that the man void of wisdom expends vast amounts of energy, but accomplishes very little ( then must he put to more strength ). In other words, he works harder, not smarter. 10:11 Meaning: If the serpent bites before its charmed ( enchantment ), then the charmer failed to do his job. Wisdom, when applied, spells success; wisdom avoided, spells failure. The Liberty Bible Commentary does a good job rephrasing this portion of Scripture. It reads: In a world where folly is often set in high places, a man needs the profitable direction of wisdom to avoid the venomous bite of serpentine rulers. Just as the serpent may be kept from biting through the careful work of the charmer, so may the serpentine ruler be kept from ruling against the man who carefully employs the charm of wisdom. In Isaiah 26:16 the word for charming (Heb lachash ) is used for prayer. The wisdom Preacher points to the way of profit in the presence of such evil rulers. To deal wisely with these serpentine rulers, one ought to practice well the charm of prayer (Dan 6). 1 Almost forty years earlier (c. 1007 BC) Solomon put it another way when he said in Proverbs 15:1-2: “ A soft answer turneth away