be thou foolish: why shouldst thou die 8 before thy time? 18 It is good that thou shouldst take hold of this; yes, also from this withdraw not thy hand: for he that feareth God shall escape from them all. 19 Wisdom strengtheneth the wise more than ten mighty men who are in the city. 20 For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not. 21 Also take no heed to all words that are spoken; lest thou hear thy servant curse thee: 22 For often also thy own heart know-9 eth that thou thyself likewise hast cursed. others. 23 All this have I proved by wisdom: I said, I will be wise; but it was far from me. 24 That which is far off, and exceedingly deep, who can find it out? 25 10 I applied my heart to know, and to search, and to seek out wisdom, and the reason of things, and to know the wickedness of folly, even of foolishness and madness: Before 977. 8 Heb. not in thy time? Prov. 21. 22. & 24. 5. c. 9. 16. 1 Kings 8. 46. Prov. 20. 9. Heb. give not thy 10 Heb. I Ither hath he power in the day of death: and there is no 4 discharge in that war; neither shall wickedness deliver those that are given to it. 9 All this have I seen, and applied my heart to every work that is done under the sun there is a time in which one man ruleth over another to his own hurt. 10 And so I saw the wicked buried, who had come and gone from the place of the holy, and they were forgotten in the city where they had so done: this is also vanity. 11 Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil. 12 Though a sinner doeth evil a hundred times, and his days are prolongheart comed, yet surely I know that it will be well passed. with them that fear God, who fear before him: Prov. 22. 14. 11 Heb. he 12 or, weigh 26 And I find more bitter than death the woman whose heart is snares and nets, and her hands as bands: 11 whoey-ing er pleaseth God shall escape from her; but the sinner shall be taken by her. 27 Behold, this have I found, saith the preacher, 12 counting one by one, to find out the account: 28 Which yet my soul seeketh, but I find not: one man among a thousand have I found; but a woman among all those have I not found. 29 Lo, this only have I found, that God hath made man upright; but they have sought out many inventions. CHAP. VIII. 1 Kings are greatly to be respected. 6 The divine providence is to observed. 12 It is bet ter with the godly in adversity, than with the wicked in prosperity. 16 The work of God is unsearchable. HO is as the wise man? and who i Gen. 1. 27. 13 But it will not be well with the wicked, neither will he prolong his days, which are as a shadow; because he feareth not before God. 14 There is a vanity which is done upon the earth; that there are just men, to whom it a happeneth according to the work of the wicked; again, there are wicked men, to whom it happeneth according to the work of the righteous: I said that this also is vanity. 15 Then I commended mirth, because a man hath no better thing under the sun, than to eat, and to drink, and to Prov.17.24. be merry: for that shall abide with him of his labor the days of his life, which God giveth him under the sun. 1 Heb. the 2 Heb. shall know. 3or, how it b Job 14. 5. W knoweth the interpretation of a 4 or, casting 2 I counsel thee to keep the king's com-e Ps. 37. 11. 3 Be not hasty to go out of his sight: stand not in an evil thing; for he doeth & Ps. 73. 14. whatever pleaseth him. 4 Where the word of a king is, there is power: and who may say to him, what c. 3. 22. doest thou? 5 He who keepeth the commandment 2 shall feel no evil thing: and a wise man's heart discerneth both time and 1 Heb. I judgment. gave, or, set to my 6 Because to every purpose there is heart. time and judgment, therefore the misery of man is great upon him. 7 For he knoweth not that which shall a Ps. 73. 3. be: for who can tell him 3 when it shall 12, 13. be? Mal. 3. 15. 8 There is no man that hath power over the spirit to retain the spirit; nei-l 16 When I applied my heart to know wisdom, and to see the business that is done upon the earth: (for also there is that neither day nor night seeth sleep with his eyes:) 17 Then I beheld all the work of God, that a man cannot find out the work that is done under the sun: because though a man may labor to seek it out, yet he shall not find it; yes further; though a wise man thinketh to know it, yet shall he not be able to find it. CHAP. IX. 1 Like things happen to good and bad. 4 There is a necessity of death to men. 7 Com fort is all their portion in this life. 11 God's providence ruleth over all. 13 Wisdom is better than strength. 1 FOR all this 1 I considered in my heart even to declare all this, 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 before them. 2 a 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. 3 This is an evil among all things that are done under the sun, that there is one event to all: yes, also the heart of the sons of men is full of evil, and madness c. 2. 24. & 3. 13. & 5. 18. 3 Also, when he that is a fool walketh by the way, 2 his wisdom faileth him, and he saith to every one that he is a fool. 4 If the spirit of the ruler riseth against thee, leave not thy place; for yielding pacifieth great offenses. 5 There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, as an error which proceedeth 3 from the ruler: 6 Folly is set 4 in great dignity, and the rich sit in low place. 7 I have seen servants upon horses, and princes walking as servants upon the earth. 8. He that diggeth a pit shall fall into it; and whoever breaketh a hedge, a ser 7 Go thy way, eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a merry heart; for God now accepteth thy works. Prov. 29. 6. pent shall bite him. 8 Let thy garments be always white; and let thy head lack no ointment. 22. c. 7. 19. 9 2 Live joyfully with the wife whom Prov. 21. thou lovest all the days of the life of thy vanity, which he hath given thee under the sun, all the days of thy vanity that is thy portion in this life, and in thy labor which thou takest under the sun. for 10 Whatever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest. 11 I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, no yet favor to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all. 12 For man also knoweth not his time: as the fishes that are taken in an evil net, and as the birds that are caught in the snare; so are the sons of men snared in an evil time, when it falleth suddenly upon them. 13 This wisdom have I seen also under the sun, and it seemed to me great: 14 There was a little city, and few men within it; and there came a great king against it, and besieged it, and built great bulwarks against it: 1 2 Heb. flies of death. Heb. his heart. 3 Heb. from before 4 Heb. in great hights. a Prov. 30. 22. Ps. 7. 15. Prov. 26.27. Heb. the master of the tongue. Prov. 10. & 32. & 12. 13. Heb. grace. 7 Heb. his 15 Now there was found in it a poor mouth. wise man, and he by his wisdom deliv-d Prov. 15. 2. ered the city; yet no man remembered 8 Heb. mul that same poor man. 16 Then said I, wisdom is better than strength: nevertheless the poor man's wisdom is despised, and his words are not heard. 17 The words of wise men are heard in quit more than the cry of him that ruleth among fools. 18 Wisdom is better than weapons of war: but one sinner destroyeth much good. CHAP. X. 1 Observations of wisdom and folly, 16 of riot, 18 of slothfulness, 19 and money. 20 Men's thoughts of kings ought to be reverent. EAD flies cause the ointment of the 'Dapothecary to send forth an offensive odor: so doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and honor. 2 A wise man's heart is at his right hand; but a fool's heart is at his left. 12 The words of a wise man's mouth are & gracious; but the lips of a fool will swallow up himself. 13 The beginning of the words of his mouth is foolishness: and the end of 7 his talk is mischievous madness. 14 d A fool also 8 is full of words: a man cannot tell what shall be; and what shall be after him, who can tell him? 15 The labor of the foolish wearieth every one of them, because he knoweth not how to go to the city. 16 T Woe to thee, O land, when thy king is a child, and thy princes eat in the morning! 17 Blessed art thou, O land, when thy king is the son of nobles, and thy princes eat in due season, for strength, and not for drunkenness! 18 By much slothfulness the building decayeth; and through idleness of the hands the house 9 droppeth through. 19 ¶ A feast is made for laughter, and wine 10 maketh merry: but money answereth all things. 20 Curse not the king, no not in thy 11 thought; and curse not the rich in thy bed-chamber: for a bird of the air will carry the voice, and that which hath wings will tell the matter. cease because they are few, and those that look out of the windows shall be darkened, 4 And the doors shall be shut in the streets, when the sound of the grinding shall be low, and he shall rise up at the voice of the bird, and all the daughters of music shall be brought low. 5 Also when they shall be afraid of 6 In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thy hand: for 3 or, anger. that which is high, and fears shall be in thou knowest not whether 2 shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good. 7 Truly the light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold the sun: 8 But if a man shall live many years, and rejoice in them all; yet let him remember the days of darkness; for they shall be many. All that cometh is vanity. the way, and the almond tree shall flourish, and the grasshopper shall be a bura Prov. 22. 6. den, and desire shall fail: because man goeth to his long home, and the mourners go about the streets: 4 or, the Gen. 3. 19. 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 thy heart, and in the sight of thy e c. 1. 2 eyes: but know thou, that for all these things God will bring thee into judg- 5 or, the ment. 10 Therefore remove 3 sorrow from thy heart, and put away evil from thy flesh: for childhood and youth are vanity. CHAP. XII. 1 The Creator is to be remembered in due time. 8 The preacher's care to edify. 13 The fear of God is the chief antidote for vanity. REMEMBER & now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the 6 more wise 32. 6 Or ever the silver cord shall be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern. 7 Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return to God who gave it. C 8 Vanity of vanities saith the preacher; all is vanity. 9 And 5 moreover, because the preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge: yes, he gave good heed, and sought out, and a set in order many proverbs. 10 The preacher sought to find out s acceptable words: and that which was 1 Kings 4. written was upright, even words of truth. 11 The words of the wise are as goads, and as nails fastened by the masters of assemblies, which are given from one shepherd. Heb. words 7 or, read- 8 or, The 12 And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books weariness of the flesh. evil days come not, nor the years draw end of the there is no end; and much 7 study is a nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them; matter, even all 2 While the sun, or the light, or the that hath been heard, moon, or the stars, are not darkened, nor is. the clouds return after the rain: Rom. 2. 16. & 14. 10. 3 In the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow themselves, and 4 the grinders 13 Ts Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. 14 For God will bring every work 2 Cor. 5. 10. into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it is good, or whether it is evil. 6 Look not upon me, because I am black, because the sun hath looked upon me: my mother's children were angry with me; they made me the keeper of the vineyards; but my own vineyard have I not kept. 7 Tell me, O thou whom my soul loveth, where thou feedest, where thou makest thy flock to rest at noon: for why should I be 3 as one that turneth aside by the flocks of thy companions? 8 T If thou knowest not, O thou fairest among women, go forth by the footsteps of the flock, and feed thy kids beside the shepherds tents. 9 I have compared thee, O my love, to a company of horses in Pharaoh's chariots. 10 Thy cheeks are comely with rows of jewels, thy neck with chains of gold. 11 We will make for thee borders of gold with studs of silver. 12 T While the king sitteth at his table, my spikenard sendeth forth its smell. 13 A bundle of myrrh is my well beloved to me; he shall lie all night betwixts my breasts. 14 My beloved is to me as a cluster of 4 camphor in the vineyards of En-gedi. 15 Behold, thou art fair, 5 my love; behold, thou art fair; thou hast doves's 505 and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land; 13 The fig-tree putteth forth her green figs, and the vines with the tender grape give a good smell. Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away. 14 TO my dove, that art in the clefts stairs, let me see thy countenance, let me of the rock, in the secret places of the hear thy voice; for sweet is thy voice, and thy countenance is comely. 15 Take for us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes. 16 Td My beloved is mine, and I am his: he feedeth among the lilies. 17 Until the day shall break, and the shadows flee away, turn, my beloved, and be thou like a roe or a young hart upon the mountains 7 of Bether. 1 Christ setteth forth the graces of the church: BEHOLD, thou art fair, my love; 2 Thy teeth are like a flock of sheep 9 Thou hast 3 ravished my heart, my 5 or, sister, my spouse; thou hast ravished my cypress. heart with one of thy eyes, with one chain of thy neck. 10 How fair is thy love, my sister, my spouse! how much better is thy love than wine! and the smell of thy ointments than all spices! 11 Thy lips, O my spouse, drop as the honey-comb; honey and milk are under thy tongue; and the smell of thy garments is like the smell of, Lebanon. 12 A garden 4 inclosed is my sister, my spouse; a spring shut up, a fountain sealed. 1 or, and be drunken with loves. 2 or, (as some read) in me. 3 Heb. pass 13 Thy plants are an orchard of pome-ing, or, granates, with pleasant fruits; 5 cam- running phor, with spikenard, about. 4 Heb. what. 5 Heb. a 14 Spikenard and saffron; calamus and cinnamon, with all trees of frankincense; myrrh and aloes, with all the chief standard spices: 15 A fountain of gardens, a well of living waters, and streams from Leba bearer. 6 or, curled. a c. 1. 15. & 4. 1. 7 Heb. sitfullness, ting in that is, fitly 3 I have put off my coat; how shall I put it on? I have washed my feet; how shall I defile them? 4 My beloved put in his hand by the hole of the door, and my bowels were moved 2 for him. 5 I rose up to open to my beloved: and my hands dropped with myrrh, and my fingers with 3 sweet-smelling myrrh, upon the handles of the lock. 6 I opened to my beloved; but my beloved had withdrawn himself, and was gone: my soul failed when he spoke: I sought him, but I could not find him; I called him, but he gave me no answer. 7 The watchmen that went about the city found me, they smote me, they wounded me; the keepers of the walls took away my vail from me. 8 I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, if ye find my beloved, 4 that ye tell him, that I am sick with love. 9 What is thy beloved more than another beloved, O thou fairest among women? what is thy beloved more than another beloved, that thou dost so charge us? 10 My beloved is white and ruddy, s the chief among ten thousand. 11 His head is as the most fine gold, his locks are 6 bushy, and black as a ra ven. 12 His eyes are as the eyes of doves by the rivers of waters, washed with milk, and 7 fitly set. 13 His cheeks are as a bed of spices, as 8 sweet flowers: his lips like lilies, dropping sweet-smelling myrrh. 14 His hands are as gold rings set with the beryl: his belly is as bright ivory overlaid with sapphires. 15 His legs are as pillars of marble, set upon sockets of fine gold: his countenance is as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars. 169 His mouth is most sweet: yes, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem. CHAP. VI. 1 The church professeth her faith in Christ. 4 Christ showeth the graces of the church, 10 and his love towards her. WH HITHER is thy beloved gone, thou fairest among women? placed and whither is thy beloved turned aside? that we may seek him with thee. set as a precious stone in the 1 Christ awaketh the church with his calling. 2 The church having a taste of Christ's love, foil of a is sick with love. 9 A description of Christ by his graces. ring. 8 or, I HAVE come into my garden, red my ter, my spouse: I have gathered my myrrh, with my spice; I have eaten my honey-comb with my honey; I have drank my wine with my milk: eat, O friends; drink, yes, 1 drink abundantly, a O beloved. 2 TI'sleep, but my heart waketh: it is the voice of my beloved that knocketh, saying, Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my undefiled: for my head is filled with dew, and my locks with the drops of the night. towers of per fumes. 2 My beloved is gone down into his garden, to the beds of spices, to feed in the gardens, and to gather lilies. a 3 I am my beloved's, and my beloved is mine: he feedeth among the lilies. 4 ¶ Thou art beautiful, O my love, as Tirzah, comely as Jerusalem, terrible as an army with banners. 5 Turn away thy eyes from me, for 1 they have overcome me: thy hair is as a flock of goats that appear from Gilead. 6 Thy teeth are as a flock of sheep which go up from the washing, of which every one beareth twins, and there is not one barren among them. |