Ecclesiastes 7

Ecclesiastes 7:1 A good name is better than precious ointment,

and the day of death than the day of one's birth.

Some say that the “Better Than" observations of this chapter are the words of the natural man. Burton Coffman says, “God supernaturally endowed Solomon with great wisdom; but that cannot be a guarantee that everything Solomon either said or did was invariably correct. Like many another person, Solomon's experiences, at least many of them, were of a nature to confuse and deceive him; and, here and there in his writings, one finds unmistakable evidence of that truth. We do not proceed very far into this chapter before we encounter examples of it.”

However, I am going to take them one by one to show forth their wisdom. “‘A good name is better than precious ointment.’ (1a) In Israel, a name means a lot more than a name tag or a label. A name expresses how a person is, his personality and character. ‘A good name’ (Ecclesiastes 7:1) is given after a period of time and based on a certain behavior. That good name remains even after death. The smell of ‘good oil’ is only temporary, although the smell is pleasant for the time it lingers.” (G. de Koning) Moreover, don’t forget Jacob‘s new name, Israel. And “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it.” (Rev 2:17)

"The good name will go farther than the best and most savoury things of the earth. Mary pours a box of precious ointment on Christ, which no doubt sent its savour through the whole house; but Christ paid her for it with the good name that should send its savour through the whole world (Matt 26:13). But ye may think we can have no hope that ever our good name will go that wide. That is a mistake; for if we raise ourselves the good name, it will certainly be published before all the world at the last day (Revelation 3:5), and we will carry it over the march betwixt the two worlds into the other world (Ecc 7:12)." (T. Boston, D. D.)

Jesus taught, "Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven.” (Luke 10:20) "In Christianity and Judaism, the Book of Life (Hebrew: ספר החיים, transliterated Sefer HaChaim; Greek: βιβλίον τῆς ζωῆς Biblíon tēs Zōēs) is the book in which God records the names of every person who is destined for Heaven and the World to Come…." (Wikipedia), that is, those who inherit eternal life.

“‘And the day of death than the day of one's birth.’ (1b) for although the day of death extinguishes the light of this life, it kindles the light of eternal life and blessedness.” (Berleburger Bible) “Of course, such a day is only better for the man with a good reputation, the person who is prepared to meet God in judgment (Luke 12:21).” (Dunagan's Comm.) "You must have a good name,--you must be written among the living in Zion, written in the Lamb’s book of life, or else the text is not true of you; and, alas, though the day of your birth was a bad day, the day of your death will be a thousand times worse. But now, if you are one of God’s people, trusting in Him, look forward to the day of your death as being better than the day of your birth." (C. H. Spurgeon)-- ‘far better,’ as Philippians 1:23 hath it.” (Jamieson, Fausset, Brown) "The day of his birth brought him at most into but a small company of brothers and sisters; perhaps he was an eldest child, or an only one; but the day of his death lands him in a numerous family, whereof each one with him calls God in Christ Father (Rev 14:1).

Whatever welcome he had in the day of his birth from neighbours or relations, the joy was but on one side; though they rejoiced in him, he could not rejoice in them, for he knew them not; but in the day of his death the joy will be mutual." (T. Boston, D. D.)…. well, at least after he awakens from his sleep of death by the voice of the Lord Jesus.

“Then I heard a voice from heaven saying to me,

“Write: ‘Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.’ ‘Yes,’ says the Spirit, ‘that they may rest from their labors, and their works follow them.’” (Revelation 14:13)

Ecclesiastes 7:2 Better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting, for that is the end of all men; and the living will take it to heart.3 Sorrow is better than laughter, for by a sad countenance the heart is made better. 4 The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.

“‘Better to go to the house of mourning, than to go to the house of feasting.’ In Israel, “the lamentation continued for seven days, and extended sometimes, as in the case of the death of Aaron and Moses, to thirty days.” (Keil & Delitzsch). “So they sat down with him on the ground seven days and seven nights, and no one spoke a word to him, for they saw that his grief was very great.” (Job 2:13) “Men will not break bread in mourning for them, to comfort anyone for the dead, nor give them a cup of consolation to drink for anyone's father or mother.” (Jer 16:7) — “For that,” namely death, “is the end of all men” on earth — "a lot that awaits all mankind.” (Joseph Benson) “The confrontation with death, which a funeral always brings, is useful because it is precisely then that the reality of man’s fragile and transitory existence becomes manifest.” (G. de Koning) They are faced with the issue of their final destiny— the second death after the Judgment. (Heb 9:27)— “‘And the living will take it to heart.’ “Those who do so realize that the same end awaits them, and their hearts are turned from folly.” (Dunagan) “So teach us to number our days; that we may present to You a heart of wisdom’.” (Ps 90:12)

“‘Sorrow is better than laughter, for by a sad countenance the heart is made better.’ (3) i. e., is made bright and joyful (cp. 2 Corinthians 6:10)” (Albert Barnes) with the Good News of a Redeemer who died the second death in our stead on a tree, “as sorrowful yet always rejoicing, as poor yet making many rich, as having nothing yet possessing all things.”

“'Made better'; more weaned from the lusts and vanities of this world, by which most men are ensnared and destroyed, and more quickened to seek after and embrace that true and everlasting happiness which God offers to them in his word.” (Matthew Poole)

“‘The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.’ (4) The heart is the center of one’s existence, the place where considerations are taking place.”(G. de Koning) “A wise man loves those occasions from which he can derive spiritual advantage; and therefore prefers visiting the sick, and sympathizing with those who have suffered privations by death. But the fool - the gay, thoughtless, and giddy - prefers places and times of diversion and amusement. Here he is prevented from seriously considering either himself or his latter end.” (Adam Clarke)... not just the end of this life but eternity.

Both individuals “and nations have, by affliction, come to their right mind, like the Prodigal.” (Jospeh Sutcliffe) “‘Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted’ (Matthew 5:4) The godly remnant of Jesus’ day weeps because of the humiliation of Israel, but they understand that it comes from personal and corporate sins. The psalmist testified, ‘Streams of tears flow from my eyes, for your law is not obeyed’ (Ps 119:136; cf. Eze 9:4). When Jesus preached, ‘The kingdom of heaven is near,’ He, like John the Baptist before Him, expected not jubilation but contrite tears. It is not enough to acknowledge personal spiritual bankruptcy (Mt 5:3) with a cold heart. Weeping for sins can be deeply poignant (Ezr 10:6; Ps 51:4; Da 9:19–20) and can cover a global as well as personal view of sin and our participation in it. Paul understands these matters well (cf. Ro 7:24; 1Co 5:2; 2Co 12:21; Php 3:18). ‘Comfort, comfort my people’ (Isa 40:1) is God’s response. These first two beatitudes deliberately allude to the messianic blessing of Isaiah 61:1–3 (see Lk 4:16–19; cf. France, Jesus and the OT, 134–35), confirming them as eschatological and messianic.” (The Expositor's Bible Commentary)

Moses took Israel “into the Wilderness of Shur. And they went three days in the wilderness and found no water.” (Exo 15:22) “‘Now when they came to Marah, they could not drink the waters of Marah, for they were bitter. Therefore the name of it was called Marah.’ (Exo 15:23— literally bitter] “We may in our journey have reached the pools that promised us satisfaction, only to find them brackish. That marriage, that friendship, that new home, that partnership, that fresh avenue of pleasure, which promised so well turns out to be absolutely disappointing. Who has not muttered 'Marah' over some desert well which he strained every nerve to reach, but when reached, it disappointed him!” (F. B. Meyer) Surely, this is the Message of the Preacher. It is all temporal. The people complained to Moses and Moses cried out to the LORD (more of a holy crying, I suppose.) We are dying, LORD! The LORD “showed him a tree. When he cast it into the waters, the waters were made sweet.” "Throwing the wood into the water did not magically change it [nor was the change natural- by science, for it was a supernatural miracle from Yahweh]. This was a symbolic act, similar to Moses lifting his staff over the sea.” (Dr. Thomas Constable)“He bare our sins in his own body on the tree.” (1 Peter 2:24) "What changes bitter to sweet for us- the Cross, the remembrance of Christ’s death. ‘Consider Him that endured.’ (Hebrews 12:3) The Cross is the true tree which, when ‘cast into the waters, the waters were made sweet.’” (Maclaren’s Exposition) “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:14–16)

Eccl 7:5 It is better to hear the rebuke of the wise than for a man to hear the song of fools. 6 For like the crackling of thorns under a pot, So is the laughter of the fool. This also is vanity.

“Better is it to hear the rebuke of the wise, as Israel was now compelled to hear the voice of its prophets, reproaching it with its sins on the ground of its misery. The rebuking wise man is set before us for example in Malachi (4:1), whose prophecies bear the inscription, ‘the burden of the word of the LORD.’” (Hengstenberg) “If we listen to his words (the Preacher) and take them to heart, it will be of great benefit to us. It is better that we humiliate ourselves now and go into the ‘house of mourning’ so that our hearts can be exalted in the long run, than the other way around.” (G. de Koning) “For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble. The day that is coming shall set them ablaze, says the LORD of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.”

“‘It is better to hear the rebuke of the wise,’ though it causeth some grief, yet frequently brings great benefit, even reformation and salvation, both from temporal and from eternal destruction, both which are the portion of impenitent sinners.— ‘than for a man to hear the song;’ the flatteries or other merry discourses ‘of fools’ (5), which are as pleasant to corrupt nature.” (Matthew Poole) “Godly reproof offends the flesh, but benefits the spirit. Fools' songs ‘in the house of mirth’ please the flesh, but injure the soul.” (Jamieson, Fausset, Brown)

“Please note that the statement infers that we can recognize wisdom when we hear it---only if we are really wanting to face reality and improve ourselves (Prov. 9:8-9; 27:5; 17:10; Galatians 2:11-14; 2 Timothy 4:2; Titus 1:13; 2:15). The song of fools might be a very popular song… The world is filled with many such songs, often irreverent, boisterous, reckless, immodest and immoral. ‘Present-day society, which emphasizes self-centered hedonism, desperately needs to heed this reminder’ (Bible Knowledge Comm. p. 992).” (Dunagan's Commentary)

“‘For like the crackling of thorns under a pot, so is the laughter of the fool.’”’In the East, charcoal is commonly used for fires, but thorns (nettles) or stubble might be burned by the hasty, but the result was [mostly] noise not heat.’ [International Critical Commentary] This is an excellent simile for the noisy and worthless meaning of a fool's laughter.” (Burton Coffman) “‘This also is vanity.’ (6) The joys of life; they are noisy, flashy, and transitory.” (Adam Clarke)

“‘For as the crackling of thorns under a pot.’ Much noise, little fire; much light, little heat. So here is much mirth, little cause; a blaze it may yield, but is suddenly extinct.” (John Trapp)

Worldly joy of the natural man “is like the fire which the wayfarer lights from the thorns that he has gathered, and which goes out as suddenly as it has sprung up, leaving only dead ashes: cp. Psalms 58:9.” (Dummelow's Commentary) “Before your pots can feel the fire of thorns He will sweep them away with a whirlwind, the green and the burning alike.” (Psalm 58:9)

Eccl 7:7 Surely oppression destroys a wise man's reason, and a bribe debases the heart. 8 The end of a thing is better than its beginning; the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit. 9 Do not hasten in your spirit to be angry, For anger rests in the bosom of fools.

“‘Surely oppression destroys a wise man's reason,’ rather, oppression maketh a wise man mad... The chief difference here is in the word יהולל yeholel, which, from the root הלל halal, signifies to glister, irradiate, as well as to move briskly, to be mad, furious, in a rage; and certainly the former meaning suits this place best." (Adam Clarke) as it did Saul. “The word oppression means, ‘violence, injury, esp. oppression demonstrated by defrauding, extortion, fraud and unjust gain’” (Dunagan's Commentary) A wise wise man knows that if God wills something, it will come about in His time and way (without violence). — "'and a bribe debases the heart.’(7) i.e., corrupts it, makes it blind, and so destroys it; as the eagle lights upon the hart’s horns, flutters dust in his eyes, and so by blinding him brings him to destruction. (See Deuteronomy 16:19) Let a judge be both wise (for his understanding) and righteous (for his will), a gift will mar all, as it is there: it dazzleth the eyes, and maketh a wise man mad.” (Trapp)

David waited for God’s vindication and timing to take the throne, though he has long been the LORD's annointed. (1 Samuel 16) “Do not trust in oppression and do not vainly hope in robbery; if riches increase, do not set your heart upon them.” (Psalm 62:10)

“‘Better is the end of a thing,’ even of a beclouded providence, ‘than the beginning.’ So it proved in Job’s affliction, and in a thousand cases in which afflictions work for the good of man.” (Joseph Sutcliffe) “Let the ‘wise’ wait for ‘the end’ - i:e., the final issue to the righteous and the wicked respectively; and the ‘oppressions,’ which now (in ‘the beginning’) perplex their faith, will be found by God's working to be overruled to their good (Rom 8:28).— ‘The patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.’ [8] The patient in spirit. ‘Tribulation worketh patience’ (Romans 5:3), which is infinitely better than ‘the proud spirit’ that prosperity might have generated in them, as it has in fools (Psalms 73:2-19.73.3; Psalms 73:12-19.73.14; Psalms 73:17-19.73.26; James 1:19; James 5:11).” (Jamieson, Fausset, Brown)

“’Do not hasten in your spirit to be angry, for anger rests in the bosom’ in the heart,’ the proper seat of the passions" (Matthew Poole) of fools.’ (9 ) Surely David felt anger as his men did, when Shimei curse him in 2 Sam 16:5-14 and as the sons of thunder did in Mark 3, but the righteous wait to see what the LORD’s take was on the issue at hand. “A wise man, off his guard, may feel it for a moment: but in him it cannot rest: it is a fire which he immediately casts out of his breast. But the fool - the man who is under the dominion of his own tempers, harbours and fosters it, till it takes the form of malice, and then excites him to seek full revenge on those whom he deems enemies. Hence that class of dangerous and empty fools called duellists.” (Adam Clarke) Consider that spirit in our own nation, as well as Israel.

Paul taught, "Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men. Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, 'Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,' (Deut 32:35) says the Lord. Therefore 'If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head' (Prov 25:21-22). Not to consume, but to melt him into kindness; a metaphor taken from smelting metallic ores." (Adam Clarke) "So artists melt the sullen ore of lead, by heaping coals of fire upon its head: In the kind warmth the metal learns to glow, and pure from dross the silver (righteousness) runs below. " (S. Wesley) Or "The original meaning of this figure of speech has been lost, but Paul suggests that the enemy will burn with shame for his abuse of one who loves him” (Richard Batey) 'Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.'" (Romans 12:17-21)

Eccl 7:10 Do not say, "Why were the former days better than these?" For you do not inquire wisely concerning this. 11 Wisdom is good with an inheritance, and profitable to those who see the sun. 12 For wisdom is a defense as money is a defense, but the excellence of knowledge is that wisdom gives life to those who have it.

"Do not say, ‘Why were the former days better than these?’ (10a)” (Wisdom brings you out of slavery to sin and death. "It has been said that ’the good old days’ are the combination of a bad memory and a good imagination, and often this is true." (Wiersbe)

“The Israelites [had] desired to go back to Egypt out of dissatisfaction with their stay in the wilderness. They preferred their stay in slavery in Egypt above their stay in the wilderness with God…. The glorification of the past is foolishness, for then it is also overlooked that God does not change (Malachi 3:6), and that the support of the Lord remains available to the believer at all times (Hebrews 13:8). Paul forgot what lay behind him and reached forward to what lay ahead because Christ filled his field of vision (Philippians 3:13). It is about the present and listening to the voice of the Lord...” (G. de Koning) with the goal of obedience.

“‘For you do not 'inquire wisely' concerning this.’ (10b)- Heb., 'with wisdom.' Wisdom would teach thee that the sufferings of God's people are designed to humble them in remembrance of sin, and that these sufferings are disciplinary and only for a time, and will eventuate in eternal glory to those who are exercised thereby.” (Jamieson, Fausset, Brown)

“Wisdom is good with an inheritance,’ (11a) or, as good as an inheritance, yea, better too. Ecclesiastes 9:15-18, 1 Kings 3:6-9, Luke 16:8, Luke 16:9, 1 Timothy 6:17-19.” (C. H. Spurgeon) Leave it as as a heritage to your children, by your example unto them.—

“’and [it is] profitable to those who see the sun.' (11b) Wisdom ”pays no dividends in the grave.” (Kidner) “‘For WISDOM is a defense’ literally a shadow, “‘as MONEY is a defense.’ The two gifts are alike thus far in the narrative. God declared by the prophet that Israel sought money, when they went “down to Egypt without consulting Me, to take refuge in the safety of Pharaoh and to seek shelter in the shadow of Egypt!” (Isaiah 30:2)

“’But the pre-eminence of knowledge (over money) is that wisdom (includes obedience) gives life to those who have it.’ (12) lit., “it animates him” (Lange’s Commentary) It grants abundant and long life to the fauthful. “Israel had then fallen into the hands of death, but the treasure which they still retained, that wisdom from above which still dwelt amongst them, was the pledge of a joyful resurrection. Wisdom quickens, gives life, because the grace of the living and life-giving God rests on the wise man. The principal passage on this subject is Deuteronomy 32:39, where, in regard to Israel’s restoration after severe tribulations, it is said, ‘I kill and I make alive, I wound and I will heal,’… In Hosea 6:2, it is said, ‘he will revive us after two days: on the third he will raise us up that we may live before him.’” (Hengstenberg) Thus, long life is post-mortem by resurrection of the dead.

Remember that wisdom is knowledge obeyed. Jesus said, “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.” (John 6:63) And “it is written, ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God’(Deut 8:3).” (Matthew 4:4)“So you shall keep My statutes and My judgments, by which a man may live if he does them; I am the LORD.” (Leviticus 18:5)

Sometimes money may divert temporal death (Jeremiah 41:8). "Whereas riches frequently expose men to death or destruction, true wisdom doth ofttimes preserve a man from temporal, and always from eternal ruin.” (Matthew Poole) “Nabal’s wealth had undone him, if Abigail’s wisdom had not interposed. And in the other life money bears no mastery.” (John Trapp)

Eccl 7:13 Consider the work of God; for who can make straight what He has made crooked? 14 In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity consider: Surely God has appointed the one as well as the other, so that man can find out nothing that will come after him.15 I have seen everything in my days of vanity: There is a just man who perishes in his righteousness, and there is a wicked man who prolongs life in his wickedness. 16 Do not be overly righteous, nor be overly wise: Why should you destroy yourself? 17 Do not be overly wicked, or be foolish: Why should you die before your time? 18 It is good that you grasp this, and also not remove your hand from the other; for he who fears God will escape them all.

Do you want to return to the wilderness of sin? “‘Consider the work of God’ Jesus said, "This is the work of God, that ye believe on Him whom He hath sent.” (John 6:29) “Recognize God's work and God's ordering, and man's impotence.” (The Pulpit Commentary) See Roman’s 8:29-30! He calls us— by His Word and Spirit; and ‘whom He called’— when obedient to the heavenly calling, Acts 26:19; ‘these He also justified’— accounted righteous, pardoned, and accepted; ‘and whom he justified,’ provided they continued in His goodness, Romans 11:2; ‘these He,’ in the end, also glorified.’ The apostle does not affirm, either here or in any other part of his writings, that precisely the same number of persons are called, justified, and glorified. He does not deny that a believer may fall away and be cut off, between his special calling and his glorification, Romans 11:22. Neither does He deny that many are called who are never justified. He only affirms that this is the method whereby God leads us, step by step, toward heaven. He glorifies none whom he does not first justify, and indeed also sanctify: and He justifies none who are not first called, and obedient to the call. (Jospeh Benson)

“‘For who can make straight what He has made crooked?“ (13) He speaks of “spiritual defects in such who walk in crooked ways, and are hardened in them. Who can correct them, and make them other ways, if God does not give them His grace to convert them, and soften their hard hearts?” (John Gill) For the Scripture says to the Pharaoh, ‘For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth.’ [Exodus 9:16] Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens.” (Romans 9:17-18) “Or, so then, upon the whole, we may conclude; ‘He hath mercy on whom He will have mercy’— namely, on those that comply with his terms, on them that repent and believe in Christ. And whom He will, He hardens— namely, them that remain in impenitence and unbelief, and who reject his counsel against themselves; he hardeneth… “ (Joseph Benson) “In the destruction of Pharaoh and his host he (had) warned all princes from repeating the like crimes, and he dispersed the Jews by such tremendous judgments, as to caution future ages against resisting the goodness of God, which would lead them to repentance.” (Joseph Sutcliffe) One day, when Jesus comes again in glory,

“Every valley shall be filled and every mountain and hill brought low; the CROOKED places shall be made straight and the rough ways smooth.” (Isaiah 40:4; Luke 3:5)

Morever, it rains on the just and the unjust. “In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity consider: ‘Surely God has appointed the one as well as the other, so that man can find out nothing that will come after him.’ (14) This doesn't apply to the afterlife, for the righteous know what the future holds beyond this life… (1 Cor 2:9-10). Rather, this applies to the events in this life (James 4:14). No man can predict the future, God mingles good days and bad, so that man never knows what tomorrow may hold. Such a verse should humble us and clip the wings of our self-sufficiency.” (Dunagan's Commentary)

“I have seen everything in my days of vanity,” (15a) that is, during the few years of my futile life —> “‘A just man perisheth in his righteousness’ (15b) Notwithstanding his righteousness; whom his righteousness does not deliver in common calamities, or, for his righteousness, which exposes him to the envy, anger, or hatred of wicked men. — “‘And a wicked man prolongeth his life, life, in his wickedness.’ (15c) Not withstanding all his wickedness, whereby he provokes and deserves the justice and wrath both of God and men.” (Joseph Benson)

This speaks of making a pretense of righteousness and wisdom. “‘Do not be overly righteous,’ (16a) — By being too severe in observing, censuring, and punishing the faults of others beyond the rules of equity, without giving any allowance for human infirmity, extraordinary temptations, the state of times, and other circumstances…. ‘Neither make thyself over-wise’ (16b) Be not wise in thine own conceit, nor above what is written, 1 Corinthians 4:6, nor above what is meet; which he here implieth to be the cause of being righteous over-much.”” (Matthew Poole) “This is not meant of true and real righteousness, even moral righteousness, a man cannot be too holy or too righteous; but of a show and ostentation of righteousness, and of such who would be thought to be more righteous and holy than others, and therefore despise those who, as they imagine, do not come up to them; and are very rigid and censorious in their judgment of others, and very severe in their reproofs of them; and, that they may appear very righteous persons, will do more than what the law requires of them to do, even works of supererogation, as the Pharisees formerly, and Papists now, pretend, and abstain from the lawful use of things which God has given to be enjoyed; and macerate their bodies by abstinence, fastings, pilgrimages, penance, scourges, and the like.” (John Gill) The Pharisee did alms before men to be seen of them. Why should you destroy yourself?’(16c)— “Because they pretended to be so righteous, destruction came upon them, which the Lord spoke about them (Matthew 23:28; Matthew 5:20).” (G. de Koning)

“‘Do not be overly wicked,’ (17a) Not that a man should be wicked at all; but some, observing that wicked men prolong their days in wickedness, are encouraged to go into greater lengths in sin than they have yet done, and give up themselves to all iniquity…— “’or be foolish: Why should you die before your time?’ (17b) that is, “bring diseases on thy body by a wicked course of living, which will issue in death; or fall into the hands of the civil magistrate, for capital offences, for which sentence of death must pass and be executed, before a man comes to the common term of human life.” (John Gill) Let us serve God and we can have peace.

“If we allow God to be involved, we know that the time to die is determined by Him (Job 14:5).

We cannot prolong our lives (Matthew 6:27).” (G. de Koning)

“‘It is good that you grasp this, and also not remove your hand from the other.’ (18a) ) Put both hand to the plow. Be “constant in thine integrity, not turning aside to the right hand or to the left. As for those that ‘turn aside unto those crooked ways’ Psa 125:5 of being just too much by needless scrupulosity, or wicked excessively by detestable exorbitancy, ‘the Lord shall lead them forth with the workers of iniquity,’ as cattle led to the slaughter, or malefactors to execution.” (Trapp) — “’For he who fears God [in this way] will escape them all.’ (18b) The phrase is become Rabbinical, that, is, he shall be free or exempt from them all; from over much righteousness and over much wisdom, and over much wickedness or over much folly; the fear of God, which is the beginning of wisdom, is the best preservative from, and antidote against, these things; for a man that fears God is humble, and renounces his own righteousness, and distrusts his own wisdom; he fears to commit sin, and shuns folly.” (John Gill)

Eccl 7:19 Wisdom strengthens the wise more than ten rulers of the city. 20 For there is not a just man on earth who does good and does not sin. 21 Also do not take to heart everything people say, lest you hear your servant cursing you. 22 For many times, also, your own heart has known that even you have cursed others. 23 All this I have proved by wisdom. I said, "I will be wise"; but it was far from me.

“Wisdom’ (19a)— i:e., the true wisdom, religion (2 Timothy 3:15)” (Jamieson, Fausset, Brown)— "'strengthens the wise more than ten rulers of the city,’ (19b) who may have the power, but when there is no wisdom they lead the city to destruction.” (G. de Koning) "There is a power greater than brute force." (Dummelow's Comm)) “Those that are wise to salvation go ever under a double guard; the peace of God within them, the power of God without them. No sultan of Babylon or Egypt (who have that title from the Hebrew word here rendered mighty men) did ever go so well guarded.” (John Trapp) “We shouldn't blindly follow any man, even professed experts, for no man operating on his own wisdom is infallible. Apart from the Scriptures, every man is blind (Jer 10:23)..” (Dungan’s Comm)— “For there is not a just man on earth who does good and does not sin.’ (20) Hence the necessity for wisdom as a corrective (i. e. the atonement). He who lacks wisdom will inevitably be guilty of that which will involve him in divine judgments. But only in the midst of Israel has it its abode: in the heathen world folly has pitched its tent, (Deut 32:21).” (Hengstenberg) We are indeed to strive for holiness or perfection, but alas “this is reserved for the state of perfection in heaven, where are ‘the spirits of just men made perfect.’ Heb 12:23” (John Trapp) “This is the O.T. equivalent of Romans 3:23. Carefully note that the verse isn't teaching that all men are born sinners. Rather, once one reaches an age of accountability (Rom 7:9), all find themselves guilty of violating the will of God at some point. The verse is also noting that no mere man can live a sinless life (1 John 1:8-10).” (Dungan’s Commentary) “Therefore, every one needs this true wisdom for his protection against the justice of God; no one can dispense with this only reliable guide in the way of truth.”(Lange's Commentary) Let us daily seek that True Bread from heaven!

“’Also do not take to heart everything people say, lest you hear your servant cursing you.’ (21) While there are many things that we need to hear and take seriously (Mark 4:24), the wise man will learn to separate the truth from gossip and idle talk. In fact, Paul instructed Timothy to reject a number of human speculations (1 Tim. 1:4; 4:7; 6:20). In addition, always wanting to know what people think and say about us… is to set up a false standard. The opinions of other men and women don't establish reality, actually, they are the opinions of sinners (7:20), and what is that worth?”(Dungan’s Commentary)— “‘For many times, also, your own heart has known that even you have cursed others.’ (22) The wrong that David had done to Uriah helped him to bear the barkings of that dead dog Shimei.” (John Trapp) “If others curse us, rightly or wrongly, wisdom will remind us of our own mistakes and flaws (Ecclesiastes 7:22). What would happen to us if we were given the punishment we had deserved for every wrongful word about someone else? We have to realize that we ourselves have hurt others because of what we said. I have committed the same sins or similar sins that I condemn in others (Romans 2:1; Titus 3:2; Matthew 7:1; James 3:1).” (G. de Koning) “A good dose of humility will enable us to deal with the unkind things that people say from time to time.” (Dungan’s Commentary)

Thus, "the heart then becomes tender towards those who offend, and can receive their injuries with indifference: this is the necessary and solid foundation of the love of enemies, and of prayer for those who despitefully use us and persecute us. We regard them as instruments of God, servants at once of His righteousness, and of that pitiful love which chastises at the right moment, to the end that it may not be compelled to give us up to death: we say also, ‘let them curse, for God has commanded it.’ אשר (where it happened) that, is used here in the sense of ‘where, there where,’ as in 2 Samuel 19:25, and Genesis 35:13; Genesis 35:15. Others, especially the heathen, whom Israel had so often wounded to the quick, by his haughty presumption and contempt of their prerogatives.” (Hengstenberg)

“’All this’. or all these things, of which I have here discoursed, ‘have I proved’, I have diligently examined and found all this 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 within myself that I would by all possible means seek to attain perfection of wisdom, and I persuaded myself that I should attain to it.— ‘But it was far from me.’ (23) I found myself greatly disappointed, and the more I knew, the more I saw mine own folly and misery.” (Matthew Poole) "We really need to appreciate what we have in the Bible (or in Christ, it’s Inspirer) , so many riddles that would be forever beyond the grasp of man, are revealed within its passages (1 Cor. 2:9).” (Dungan’s Commentary)

Eccl 7: 23 All this I have proved by wisdom. I said, “I will be wise”;but it was far from me. 24 As for that which is far off and exceedingly deep, who can find it out? 25 I applied my heart to know, to search and seek out wisdom and the reason of things, to know the wickedness of folly, even of foolishness and madness. 26 And I find more bitter than death the woman whose heart is snares and nets, whose hands are fetters. He who pleases God shall escape from her, but the sinner shall be trapped by her. 27 “Here is what I have found,” says the Preacher, adding one thing to the other to find out the reason, 28 which my soul still seeks but I cannot find: "One man among a thousand I have found, but a woman among all these I have not found." 29 Truly, this only I have found: "That God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes.”

“All this I have proved by wisdom. I said, ‘I will be wise’;but it was far from me. As for that which is far off (what has been) and exceedingly deep, who can find it out?’ (23-24) The paralleling of wisdom’s being far away (v. 23*) with the past (v. 24*) seems to presuppose that ‘wisdom,’ which is the topic in v. 23*, has something to do with the (distant) past. This is true both of a ‘wisdom’ that understands itself as knowledge of tradition that was taken over from the ancestors and of a ‘wisdom’ that is defined through ‘creation’ and/or ‘(salvation) history.’“ (Thomas Krüger) “Who was present at the creation? Who can comprehend what God has caused to exist and who can understand how He sustains all things that He has created? Man cannot gain insight in this by human research, for the wisdom that lies in all things that God has created, is ‘exceedingly mysterious’, or in other words unfathomably deep. Every honest philosopher and scientist will admit that no one can ‘discover it’.” (G. de Koning)

“‘I applied my heart to know, to search and seek out wisdom and the reason of things, to know the wickedness of folly, even of foolishness and madness.’ (25) “Everything is permeated with ‘evil’ and ‘foolishness’ with the ultimate result of ‘madness’. Man therefore remains removed from God’s plan and produces nothing of real and lasting value. — [Therefore]

Our ‘research work’ ought to be focused on Christ. Our life should be about looking at Him from all sides and investigating Him in all His actions and ways. Then we also see man’s wickedness and folly, for Christ sheds His light on every man, for which we will be kept. We come to an entirely different conclusion and that is that in Christ ‘all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden’ (Colossians 2:3).” (G. de Koning)

“‘And I find more bitter than death the woman whose heart is snares and nets, whose hands are fetters.’ The woman “is the personification of heathenish folly, putting on the airs of wisdom and penetrating into the territory of the Israelites: she is no other than the φιλοσοφίας and κενῆ?ς ἀ?πάτης of Colossians 2:8, and the ψευδωνύμου γνώσις of 1 Timothy 6:20, which renewed its old attempts at invasion in the very first beginnings of the Christian Church.” (Hengstenberg) “‘He who pleases God shall escape from her, but the sinner shall be trapped by her.” (26b) He shall be pitted for the destruction of the second, more terrible, death.

One man among a thousand I have found [who escapes her],— “The Hebrew word for ‘man’ here (adam) is generic, and refers to people, rather than males in contrast to females. Solomon meant in Ecclesiastes 7:28 b that a person who is pleasing to God is extremely rare (cf. Job 9:3; Job 33:23).” (Dr. Thomas B. Constable) “But a woman among all these I have not found.’ This strange woman is anything not of Christ, that is, “‘philosophy and vain deceit after the tradition of men’ (Colossians 2:8; cf. 1 Timothy 6:20; contrast Proverbs 2:16-20.2.17 with Jeremiah 3:4; Jeremiah 3:20)… ….” (Jamieson, Fausset, Brown) "God made man (adam) upright, but they have sought out many schemes.’ New tricks and devices, like those poetic fictions and fabulous relations, whereof there is neither proof nor profit.” (Trapp)