Ecclesiastes 10:1-10
Ecclesiastes
10:1
Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send
forth a stinking savour: so doth a little folly him that is in reputation
for wisdom and honour.
If a dead fly gets into a bottle of ointment which is
used by an apothecary which is someone who makes medicines or medicinal
compounds, then the ointment is no good and if used can cause the medicine to be
flawed and if a patient takes a flawed medication, it could make them sicker or
even cause death. This is the
comparison that Solomon is making that when a person who is known for their
wisdom and honor engages in some kind of foolishness which totally goes against
his character, then he is basically doing character assassination of himself as
if he is poisoning himself with bad medicine.
Ecclesiastes
10:2
A wise man's heart is at his right hand; but a
fool's heart at his left.
The right hand means that the wise man is using his
abilities and wisdom that he has accrued over the years to perform something in
a wise manner. Then the left hand
is showing a person who is resorting to foolishness and unwise mannerisms to do
something which will end in troubles.
The wise man's eyes are in his
head; but the fool walketh in darkness: and I myself perceived also that one
event happeneth to them all.
(Ecclesiastes 2:14) Just like
the wise man’s eyes which are in his head means he sees the troubles or the
prosperity before him. The foolish
man has eyes in his head but neglects what he is seeing and blindly pursues
whatever he wants no matter how detrimental it may be to him.
Wisdom
is before him that hath understanding; but the eyes of a fool are in the ends of
the earth. (Proverbs 17:24)
Ecclesiastes
10:3
Yea also, when he that is a fool walketh by the way, his
wisdom faileth him, and he saith to every one that he is a
fool.
A person acting in a foolish manner who rejects the ways
of wisdom will be known to be a fool by the way he is doing something or what he
is attempting to do. He tells
everyone he is a fool not by words but by his very actions or goals.
Every prudent man dealeth with
knowledge: but a fool layeth open his folly.
(Proverbs 13:16)
Proverbs 13:16 deals specifically with a fool who openly displays it.
Other verses about fools are below where Solomon comments:
It is as sport to a fool to do mischief: but a man of
understanding hath wisdom.
(Proverbs 10:23)
The way of a fool is right in his own eyes: but he that
hearkeneth unto counsel is wise.
(Proverbs 12:15)
Ecclesiastes
10:4
If the spirit of the ruler rise up against thee, leave
not thy place; for yielding pacifieth great offences.
If a person is a ruler and is given advice by a wise
counselor and that ruler rejects the wise counsel, then the counselor must not
leave his post in haste and in anger.
Be not hasty in thy spirit to be
angry: for anger resteth in the bosom of fools.
(Ecclesiastes 7:9) Instead a gentle spirit should be had by the
counselor because if the ruler accepts foolish advice, the wise counselor will
soon be vindicated. This is also
applicable to everyday situations where you may give someone wise counsel and
they reject it. Do not be angry
with them because if your counsel is correct, then you too will be vindicated
and you may gain a new friend.
Ecclesiastes
10:5
There is an evil which I have seen under the sun,
as an error which proceedeth from the ruler:
Then Solomon turns to the ruler and states what he has
seen, how rulers sometimes make wrong decisions or follow bad advice from
unqualified counselors. He calls
these things an error which can be understood as an unwitting or mistaken
transgression.
Ecclesiastes
10:6
Folly is set in great dignity, and the rich sit in low
place.
Sometimes a ruler raises a person to a high position
which they do not deserve or are unqualified to maintain but just because they
have entertained the ruler, then that was the reason for promotion instead of
proper qualifications. Then the
rich sit in low places and it could mean rich in finances or rich in
qualifications for the position they were not given because the unqualified
person received it. We see this
every day in business where unqualified people are promoted and the qualified
are never advanced. This is also
seen in the church where unqualified people are placed in positions of
leadership and lead the church astray because they lack discernment concerning
false teachings.
Ecclesiastes
10:7
I have seen servants upon horses, and princes walking as
servants upon the earth.
Then another one of life’s absurdities is that Solomon
has experienced the sight of servants who are riding horses and being exalted to
places of honor who do not have the right to be in high exalted positions.
The servants would represent those people who are unqualified for the
positions they hold and conversely there are those who are well-qualified to
fill other positions but are walking around as servants instead of the leaders
they can be. Their places are that
of a servant instead of using the qualifications they have in the service of the
ruler or even a business where many qualified people are withheld from promotion
by Management simply because they will not do illegal or underhanded things.
Ecclesiastes
10:8
He that diggeth a pit shall fall into it; and whoso
breaketh an hedge, a serpent shall bite him.
This verse basically carries two meanings.
The first, is that life is full of risks and one should not limit
themselves because risk is involved.
A person may dig a ditch and fall into it if the side of the pit gives
way and someone who does grounds keeping may attempt to trim a bush and a snake
may be curled up inside the bush and may bite the person doing the trimming
because the snake takes it as an attempt to hurt him so he is only making a
defense. Then the second meaning is
that a person may fall by their own devices.
A ruler may promote someone who is unqualified and that may lead to
disaster within his administration such as a scandal or some other
improprieties. To break the hedge
might also mean that a person is impinging upon another person’s property which
may cause friction and be like a sting of a serpent coming back to bite him.
Ecclesiastes
10:9
Whoso removeth stones shall be hurt therewith; and
he that cleaveth wood shall be endangered thereby.
Then Solomon illustrates further the situation of a
person who does things which may cause themselves hurt.
Cursed be he that removeth his
neighbour's landmark. And all the people shall say, Amen.
(Deuteronomy 27:17) The
first part of the verse deals with removing stones which was forbidden under the
law because they set the boundaries of the land given to them when they came
into the land of Canaan and everyone was assigned a parcel of land which was not
to be sold or given away but handed down to the next generation.
This is what got Naboth killed when he refused to sell his vineyard to
King Ahab. (1 Kings 21)
Then a person who cuts down trees or cuts wood may injure himself if he
uses a dull ax or is unskilled in the proper use of tools.
He may also misuse his intellect and cause division (cleaveth) among
people causing a rift in the city or country.
Ecclesiastes
10:10
If the iron be blunt, and he do not whet the edge, then
must he put to more strength: but wisdom is profitable to direct.