He that fears God

ECCLESIASTES.

shall escape evil.

A. M. 3027. knoweth that thou thyself likewise || folly, even of foolishness and mad- A. M. 3027. hast cursed others.

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23 All this have I proved by wisdom: 'I said, I will be wise; but it was far from

me.

ness:

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26 And I find more bitter than death the woman whose heart is snares and nets, and her hands as bands: whoso pleaseth God

24 That which is far off, and exceeding shall escape from her; but the sinner shall be deep, who can find it out?

u

25 10I applied my heart to know, and to search, and to seek out wisdom, and the reason of things, and to know the wickedness of

Job xxviii. 12, 20; 1 Tim. vi. 16. Rom. 10 Heb. I and my heart compassed.- - Chap. i. 17;

r Rom. i. 22. xi. 33.ii. 12.

taken by her.

27 Behold, this have I found, saith the preacher, 12 counting one by one, to find out the account;

* Prov. v. 3, 4; xxii. 14.— - Heb. he that is good before God. y Chap. i. 1, 2.12 Or, weighing one thing after another, to find

out the reason.

Verse 25. I applied my heart to know-I was not discouraged, but provoked, by the difficulty of the work, to undertake it. To know, search, and seek out wisdom-He useth three words signifying the same thing, to intimate his vehement desire, and vigorous and unwearied endeavours after it. And the reason of things-Both of God's various providences, and of the counsels and courses of men. To know the wickedness, &c.-Clearly and fully to understand the great evil of sin.

Verse 26. And I find-By my own sad experi

out of curiosity, are wont to do. Under this one kind of offences which are most frequent, namely, those of the tongue, he seems to comprehend all injuries which we suffer from others, and advises that we should not too rigidly examine them, nor too deeply resent them, but rather neglect and forget them. Lest thou hear thy servant curse thee Which would vex and grieve thee, and might, perhaps, provoke thee to treat him with severity, if not with vengeance and cruelty. For oftentimes also thine own heart-Thy mind or conscience, knoweth -Bears thee witness; that thou thyself likewise-ence, which Solomon here records as a testimony of Either upon some great provocation, and sudden passion, or possibly upon a mere mistake, or false report, hast cursed others-Hast censured them unjustly, and spoken ill of them, if not wished ill to them. If therefore thy servant, or any other, act thus toward thee, thou art only paid in thy own coin. Observe, reader, when any affront or injury is done us, it is seasonable to examine our consciences whether we have not done the same, or as bad, to others: and if, upon reflection, we find we have, we must take that occasion to renew our repentance for it, must justify God, and make use of it to qualify our own resentments. If we be truly displeased and grieved at ourselves for censuring and backbiting others, we shall be less angry at others for censuring and backbiting us. We must show all meekness toward all men, because we ourselves were formerly foolish, Titus iii. 2.

Verses 23, 24. All this have I proved-All these things, of which I have here discoursed, I have diligently examined and found to be true; by wisdom- || By the help of that singular wisdom which God had given me. I said, I will be wise-I determined that I would, by all possible means, seek to attain perfection of wisdom, and I persuaded myself that I should attain it; but it was far from me-I found myself greatly disappointed, and the more I knew the more I saw mine own folly. That which is far off, &c.-No human understanding can attain to perfect wisdom, or to the exact knowledge of God's counsels and works, and the reasons of them, because they are unsearchably deep, and far above out of our sight; some of them being long since past, and therefore utterly unknown to us, and others yet to come, which we cannot foreknow.

his true repentance for his foul miscarriages, for which he was willing to take shame to himself, not only from the present, but from all succeeding geerations; more bitter than death is the woman— The strange woman, of whom he speaks so much in the Proverbs; more vexatious and pernicious, as producing those horrors of conscience, those reproaches, diseases, and other plagues, both temporal and spiritual, from God, which are far worse than the mere death of the body, and, after all these, everlasting destruction; whose heart is snares and nets-Who is full of crafty devices to ensnare men; and her hands-By gifts, or lascivious actions, as bands-Wherewith she holds them in cruel bondage, so that they have neither power nor will to forsake her, notwithstanding all the dangers and mischiefs which they know attend upon such practices. Whoso pleaseth God-Hebrew, he that is good before God, who is sincerely, and in the judgment of God, truly pious; shall escape her-Shall be preserved from falling into her hands. Hereby he intimates, that neither a good temper of mind, nor great discretion, nor a good education, nor any other thing, except God's grace, is a sufficient preservative from the dominion of fleshy lusts; but the sinner-Who rests satisfied without the saving grace of God and true piety, and therefore lives in known and wilful sin; shall be taken by her-Shall be entangled and held in her chains.

Verses 27, 28. Behold, saith the preacher-Or, the penitent, who speaks what he hath learned, both by deep study and costly experience; this have 1 found-And it is a strange thing, and worthy of your serious observation; counting one by oneConsidering things or persons, very exactly and dis

any of them were previously well disposed, the jealousies, party interests, contests, and artifices which take place in such situations, would tend exceedingly to corrupt them, and render them all nearly of the same character. Solomon therefore here speaks the language of a penitent, warning others against the sins into which he had been be

tinctly, one after another; to find out the account-not willingly form one in such a group; and, if That I might make a true and just estimate in this matter; or, as it is in the margin, to find out the reason. Which yet my soul seeketh-It seems so wonderful to me, that I suspected that I had not made a sufficient inquiry, and therefore I returned and searched again, with more earnestness; but I find not-That it was so he found, but the reason of the thing he could not find out. One man-A||trayed; and not that of a waspish satirist, lashing indiswise and virtuous man; among a thousand-With || whom I have conversed; have I found-He is supposed to mention this number in allusion to his thousand wives and concubines, as they are numbered, 1 Kings xi. 3; but a woman-One worthy of that name, one who is not a dishonour to her sex; among all those, have I not found—In that thousand whom I have taken into intimate society with myself. It is justly observed by different commentators here, that "we are not hence to infer, that Solomon thought there were fewer good women than men: but that he knew he had not gone the right way to find the virtuous woman, when he deviated so widely from the original law of marriage; and instead of seeking one rational companion, the sole object of his endeared affections, he had col- || lected a vast multitude for magnificence and indulgence. The more valuable part of the sex would

criminately one half of the human species."-Scott. Verse 29. Lo, this only have I found-Though I could not find out all the streams of wickedness, and their infinite windings and turnings, yet I have discovered the fountain of it, original sin, and the corruption of nature, which is both in men and women; that God made our first parents, Adam and Eve, upright-Hebrew, right: without any imperfection or corruption, conformable to his nature and will, after his own likeness: but they-Our first parents, and after them their posterity; have sought out many inventions-Were not contented with their present state, but studied new ways of making themselves more wise and happy than God had made them. And we, their wretched children, are still prone to forsake the certain rule of God's word, and the true way to happiness, and to seek new methods of attaining it.

The benefit of wisdom, 1. Honour the king and obey God, 2–5. Prepare for sudden evils, and for death, 6-8. Marvel not at oppression, or the present impunity of the wicked, 9-11. It shall be well with the good, and ill with the wicked, though not immediately, 12-14. Therefore cheerfully use the gifts of God, and acquiesce in his will, 15–17.

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с

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A. M. 3027. WHO is as the wise man? and who|| 2 I counsel thee to keep the A. M. 3027. knoweth the interpretation of a king's commandment, and that in thing? a man's wisdom maketh his face to shine, regard of the oath of God. and the boldness of his face shall be changed.

b

> Prov. iv. 8, 9; xvii. 24; see Acts vi. 15.- Heb. the strength.

Deut. xxviii. 50.

NOTES ON CHAPTER VIII.

Verse 1. Who is wise?—There are few wise men in this world.

Who knoweth, &c.-How few un

3 Be not hasty to go out of his sight: stand

c1 Chronicles xxix. 24; Ezekiel xvii. 18; Romans xiii. 5. d Chap. x. 4.

roughness or fierceness of it, shall be changed-Into gentleness and humility.

Verses 2-4. I counsel thee to keep the king's comderstand the reasons of things, and can rightly || mandment-All his commands which are not conexpound the word and works of God! A man's || trary to the will of God, who must be obeyed rather visdom makes his face, &c.-Makes a man venera- than any man, even rather than a king. In reble, cheerful, mild, and amiable. The face is put gard of the oath of God-Because of that oath for the mind, because the mind discovers itself in which thou hast taken to keep all God's laws, the countenance. The boldness of his face-The || whereof this of obedience to superiors is one.

Be

7 8 For he knoweth not that which shall be: they were forgotten in the city where they had for who can tell him 3when it shall be? so done this is also vanity.

e Job xxxiv. 18.- 2 Hebrew, shall know.

Chap. iii. 1. * Prov. xxiv. 22; Chap. vi. 12; ix. 12; x. 14.

not hasty to go out of his sight-Hebrew, to go from his face or presence, namely, in dislike or discontent to withdraw thyself from the king's service, or from obedience to him: stand not in an evil thing -If thou hast offended him, persist not to do so, but humbly acknowledge thine offence, and beg his pardon; for he doth whatsoever pleaseth him-His|| power is uncontrollable. Where the word of a king|| is, there is power-Whatsoever he commands he wants not power nor instruments to execute, and therefore can easily punish thee as he pleases. And who may say unto him-Hebrew, who shall say? who will presume, or dare to say so? He does not affirm that it is unlawful to say so; for Samuel spoke in that manner to Saul, and Nathan to David, || and several other prophets to the kings of Judah and Israel; but only that it is difficult and dangerous.

3 Or, how it shall be. h Psalm xlix. 6, 7.—i Job xiv. 5. 4 Or, casting off weapons.

in the day of death-Or, against the day, that is, to avoid, or delay that day; and there is no discharge -As there is in other wars; in that war--In that fatal conflict between life and death, when a man is struggling with death, though to no purpose, for death will be always conqueror. Neither shall wickedness deliver, &c.—And although wicked men, who most fear death, use all possible means to free themselves from it, yet they shall not escape it. The most subtle wickedness cannot out-wit death, nor the most daring wickedness out-brave it.

Verses 9, 10. All this I have seen-All these things before mentioned; and applied my heart unto every work-I have been a diligent observer of all actions and events. There is a time when one man ruleth, &c.-There are some kings, who use their power tyrannically, whereby they not only oppress their Verse 5. Whoso keepeth the commandment--So-|| people, but hurt themselves, bringing the vengeance lomon here passes to a new subject; shall feel no of God upon their own heads. And so I saw-In evil thing-Shall be delivered from those mischiefs like manner; the wicked-Wicked princes or rulers, which befall the disobedient. A wise man's heart || buried-With state or pomp; who had come and discerneth, &c.--Both when, and in what manner,|| gone-Had administered public justice, which is frehe must keep the commands of God. quently signified by the phrase of coming in and Verses 6, 7. Because to every purpose there is a going out before the people; from the place of the time, &c.-There is a fit way and season for the|| holy-The seat of majesty and judgment, which accomplishment of every business, which is known may well be termed, the place, or seat, of the holy— to God, but for the most part hidden from man. See That is, of God, often called the holy one; who is notes on chap. iii. 1. Therefore the misery of man in a special manner present in, and presides over is great--Because there are few who have wisdom those places where justice is administered: and for to discern this, most men expose themselves to whom, and in whose name and stead, magistrates manifold miseries. For he knoweth not that which || act, who, therefore, are called gods. And the tribushall be--Men are generally ignorant of future nal seems to be so called here, to aggravate their events, and of the success of their endeavours, and sin, who, being advanced by God into so high and therefore their minds are disquieted, and their sacred a place, betrayed so great a trust, and both expectations frequently are disappointed, and they practised and encouraged that wickedness which, by fall into many mistakes and miscarriages, which their office, they were obliged to suppress and punthey might prevent if they foresaw the issues of ish. And they were forgotten—Although they dethings; who can tell when it shall be?—No wise signed to perpetuate their names and memories to man, no astrologer, no soothsayer can discover this. succeeding ages; in the city where they had so done Verse 8. No man hath power over the spirit--||-Where they had lived in great splendour, and That is, over the soul of man; to retain the spirit were buried with great magnificence, which one --To keep it in the body beyond the time which might have thought would have kept up their God hath allotted to it. This is added as another remembrance, at least, in that place. This is also evidence of man's misery. Neither hath he power || vanity-That men should so earnestly thirst after,

||

CHAPTER VIII.

Outward things come to good and bad men alike, 1-3. Death puts an end to all, 4-6. Therefore enjoy the comforts and mind the business of life while it lasts, 7-10. God's providence disposes all things, 11, 12. Wisdom often makes men very useful, and yet gains them little respect, 13–18.

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A. M. 3027. FOR all this 'I considered in my ||
heart even to declare all this,
a that the righteous, and the wise, and their
works, are in the hand of God: no man
knoweth either love or hatred by all that is be-
fore them.

2 All things come alike to all: there is one event to the righteous and to the wicked; to the good, and to the clean, and to the unclean; to him that sacrificeth, and to him that sacrificeth not as is the good, so is the sinner; and he that sweareth, as he that feareth an oath.

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done under the sun, that there is one A. M. 3027.
event unto all: yea, also the heart of
the sons of men is full of evil, and madness is
in their heart while they live, and after that
they go to the dead.

4 ¶ For to him that is joined to all the living there is hope: for a living dog is better than a dead lion.

5 For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of a them is forgotten.

6 Also their love, and their hatred, and their

3 This is an evil among all things that are envy, is now perished; neither have they any

1 Heb. I gave, or, set to my heart.a Chap. viii. 14.b Job xxi. 7; Psa. lxxiii. 3, 12, 13; Mal. iii. 15.

NOTES ON CHAPTER IX. Verse 1. For, or therefore, as the LXX. render it, all this I considered in my heart-All that I have said concerning the methods of divine providence, toward good and bad men; to declare all this-To|| make this evident, first to myself, and then to others; that the righteous-Whom he mentions, not exclusively, as if wicked men were not also in God's hand, for the next clause relates both to the good and bad; but eminently, because, by the course of God's providence toward them, they might seem to be quite neglected by God; and their works are in the hand of God-All their actions and employments; all events which befall them are governed by his providence, and therefore, although we cannot fully understand the reasons of all, yet we may be assured they are done righteously. No man knoweth either love or hatred-No man can judge by their present outward condition, whether God loves or hates them; for whom he loves he chastens, and permits those whom he hates to prosper in the world.

||

© Job xiv. 21; Isa. lxiii. 16.d Job vii. 8, 9, 10; Isaiah xxvi. 14.

Of wicked men, such as the generality of mankind are; is full of evil-Of wickedness; and madness is in their heart-Upon this account they go on madly and desperately in evil courses, without any fear of an after reckoning; and after that they go to the dead-And after all they appear to die in the same manner as the best men do. So hitherto there is no difference. For Solomon here forbears to take into consideration the future life: he intimates, however, that as the madness, so the happiness of the wicked, is ended by death: which is more fully expressed in the following words.

Verses 4-6. For to him that is joined to all the living-That continues with living men; there is hope-He hath not only some comfort for the present, but also hopes of further and greater happiness in this world, which men are very prone to enter tain and cherish in themselves. Yea, he may have the hopes of a better life, if he improve his opportunities. For a living dog is better than a dead lion -Much happier as to the comforts of this world. Verses 2, 3. All things come alike to all-The "The meanest and most contemptible person here, good and evil things of this world equally happen to in this world, hath the advantage of the greatest good and bad men; as is the good, so is the sinner-king, when he is gone out of it." For the living As to all outward things. This is an evil, &c.—A|| know that they shall die-Whereby they are taught great trouble and temptation to a considerate and to improve life while they have it. But the dead good man; yea, also the heart of the sons of men— know not any thing-Of the actions and events of