1 Remedies against vanity are, a good name, 2 mortification, 7 patience, 11 wisdom. 23 The difficulty of wisdom.
Ecc 7:1 A good name is better than fine perfume, and the day of death better than the day of birth. 1. A good name. Compare Prov. 22:1.
One’s birth is the beginning of a brief “threescore years and ten” (Ps. 90:9, 10), but death may be the prelude to an eternity in the new earth (Luke 20:36; 1 Cor. 15:51–55), of rest (Rev. 14:13), of supreme content (Rev. 7:16), and of eternal glory in contrast with the present afflictions (2 Cor. 4:17).
Ecc 7:2 It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of everyone; the living should take this to heart.
The period of mourning among the Jews was seven days (Gen. 50:10), with mourners in attendance to comfort the sorrowing (Mark 5:38; John 11:19, 31).
Feasting. Marriage festivities also continued seven days (Gen. 29:27), and, like the time of mourning, were shared by others (Rom. 12:15; cf. Gal. 6:2).
It is a sobering thought for a man to bear in mind that the day will come when he must meet his Maker. Throughout life he will not forget to prepare for that solemn moment of meeting his Maker.
Ecc 7:3 Frustration is better than laughter, because a sad face is good for the heart.
The fires of affliction and frustration purify the motives and create the capacity to be sympathetic toward others.
Ecc 7:4 The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure.
The wise turn to the sobering things of life, and learn to appreciate its moral and spiritual lessons. The fool, on the other hand, is attracted to the lighter side of life and seeks satisfaction in amusement, with little thought of the hereafter.
Ecc 7:5 It is better to heed the rebuke of a wise person than to listen to the song of fools.
The rebuke. Verse 5 develops still further the thought of v. 4. The “rebuke” of God is the protection of His people.
Song of fools. Including, no doubt, the ribald and unedifying songs of places of amusement (see Amos 6:5), but referring to the kind of counsel one might expect from fools.
Ecc 7:6 Like the crackling of thorns under the pot, so is the laughter of fools. This too is meaningless.
Thorns, twigs, and dry stubble burn quickly and with considerable noise, but do not give the steady heat needed to cook a meal or to heat a room (see Ps. 58:9; 118:12; cf. Isa. 9:18).
A fool’s laughter is easily aroused, noisy, and meaningless (see Job 20:5). Some understand this to refer to the applause of a fool, which lacks value because there is no sense in it or responsibility behind it.
Ecc 7:7 Extortion turns a wise person into a fool, and a bribe corrupts the heart.
It refers to a tyrannical use of opportunity and ability to defraud others to enrich oneself.
If a wise man falls into the sinful habit of extortion, he will become demoralized, and most certainly be despised by others.
A man’s judgment is warped and rendered ineffective by the acceptance of bribes (see Ex. 23:8; Deut. 16:19; Prov. 15:27).
Ecc 7:8 The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride.
Ecc 7:9 Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools.
One’s emotions are to be held in control (see James 1:19). Words and actions that result from anger often inflict great damage, are extremely hard to forget, and are often held against the perpetrator of them for many years (see Prov. 14:33).
Ecc 7:10 Do not say, “Why were the old days better than these?” For it is not wise to ask such questions.
A person with an undisciplined spirit often feels that the present is more trying than the past, and as a result becomes peevish and petulant. It is also easy for elderly people to take such an attitude, forgetful of the problems of bygone days, and perhaps of their own shortcomings.
Ecc 7:11 Wisdom, like an inheritance, is a good thing and benefits those who see the sun.
Wisdom is good. Some take this to mean that wisdom is the best kind of an inheritance; others, that an inheritance, with wisdom to make the best use of it, is a twofold blessing.
Ecc 7:12 Wisdom is a shelter as money is a shelter, but the advantage of knowledge is this:
Wisdom in the highest sense leads to the practice of true piety (Prov. 3:13–18; 8:35). It is in the realm of the spirit that the true preservation of life, leading to immortality, is worked out (John 5:21; 6:63).
Ecc 7:13 Consider what God has done: Who can straighten what he has made crooked?
Never questioning the wisdom or goodness of God (Job 9:12; 11:10; 12:14).
Ecc 7:14 When times are good, be happy; but when times are bad, consider this: God has made the one as well as the other. Therefore, no one can discover anything about their future.
Be happy. When things are well with one, he should be happy and thankful. Even if things do not go along as we would wish, we need not complain and fret. It is a sin to doubt God and to be despondent. God brings things into proper balance. It is man’s privilege to trust God and submit to His will, assured that in His hands all will work together for good (Rom. 8:28; cf. Gen. 42:36).
Ecc 7:15 In this meaningless life of mine I have seen both of these: the righteous perishing in their righteousness, and the wicked living long in their wickedness.
The final reckoning will be, of course, at the second coming of Christ (Matt. 16:27; cf. Rev. 20:12–15).
Ecc 7:16 Do not be overrighteous, neither be overwise— why destroy yourself?
A rebuke to legalism with its reliance on outward forms and expressions. True religion is a personal relation to the holy God (Lev. 19:2; Eph. 3:14), and the Saviour Jesus Christ (Eph. 3:17–19).
Over wise. Solomon has spoken of the value of wisdom; now he warns against an attitude that might bring one to question God’s leadings.
The Pharisee in the parable is an example of one who, in self righteousness and human wisdom, destroys himself (Luke 18:9–14).
Ecc 7:17 Do not be overwicked, and do not be a fool— why die before your time?
Do not cast off all restraint; eventually the point is reached where the Holy Spirit is no longer able to bring about sincere repentance. Beware of ignoring or underestimating God (Ps. 10:11; cf. Mal. 1:2, 6; 2:17; 3:8, 13).
The man who sins deliberately, deceiving himself into the belief that God ignores what he does, may become so obsessed with a certain course of action that, in his spiritual blindness, he comes to think there is no God at all (Ps. 14:1).
Die before your time.
Wicked excesses often result in premature death, as with the antediluvians (Job 22:16) and wicked men of later days (Ps. 55:23; Prov. 10:27).
Ecc 7:18 It is good to grasp the one and not let go of the other. Whoever fears God will avoid all extremes.
Moderation is a good rule in life; extremes are generally dangerous.
Fears God. The ability to go through life, achieving its true objectives, is possible only in the fear of the Lord (Neh. 5:9; Job. 28:28; Ps. 111:10; Isa. 33:6).
Ecc 7:19 Wisdom makes one wise person more powerful than ten rulers in a city.
He who is truly wise gains his victories in life through an infilling of that wisdom that is from above. Ecc 7:20 Indeed, there is no one on earth who is righteous, no one who does what is right and never sins.
Ecc 7:20 Indeed, there is no one on earth who is righteous, no one who does what is right and never sins.
Even the child of God may at times make grievous mistakes, as did Abraham and David, but by the enabling grace of Christ he will obtain victory over them (see 1 John 3:6; 5:4).
Ecc 7:21 Do not pay attention to every word people say, or you may hear your servant cursing you.
To be concerned about what others think is not conducive to success.
Familiarity often breeds contempt. The Christian should, however, be more concerned about the opinion of God than he is of the opinion of man (1 Cor. 4:3, 4).
Ecc 7:22 for you know in your heart that many times you yourself have cursed others.
The meaning here is “to speak disparagingly,” “to speak contemptuously.”
Ecc 7:23 All this I tested by wisdom and I said, “I am determined to be wise”— but this was beyond me.
Ecc 7:24 Whatever exists is far off and most profound— who can discover it?
Ecc 7:25 So I turned my mind to understand, to investigate and to search out wisdom and the scheme of things and to understand the stupidity of wickedness and the madness of folly.
Ecc 7:26 I find more bitter than death the woman who is a snare, whose heart is a trap and whose hands are chains. The man who pleases God will escape her, but the sinner she will ensnare.
Ecc 7:27 “Look,” says the Teacher, “this is what I have discovered: “Adding one thing to another to discover the scheme of things.
Ecc 7:28 while I was still searching but not finding— I found one upright man among a thousand, but not one upright woman among them all.
Solomon here means to say that the perfect man is rare.
Solomon does not say there are no perfect women, but implies that he had found such women more rare than perfect men.
His experiences with a thousand wives and concubines, many of them heathen and all of them no doubt jealous and quarrelsome—as is generally the case in such a household—had no doubt brought Solomon no end of trouble. These difficulties he seems to have blamed on the women rather than upon himself for entering multiple marriages (see Gen. 3:12).
Ecc 7:29 This only have I found: God created mankind upright, but they have gone in search of many schemes.”
Man has fallen from his original condition of moral rectitude and has become adept at contriving things that, though not necessarily evil of themselves, are employed in such a way as to lead men into immorality.