PM Home Bible Study Group; June 9, 2010

Ecclesiastes 10:1-10

Theme: Solomon, in this chapter, offers insights into the kind of wisdom that is better than strength—but despised by the strong.

Solomon had made the case, in 9:13-18, that though wisdom is far better than foolishness, it is nevertheless far from respected as such ‘under the sun’. It is, as we characterized in our last study, ‘mighty, but forgotten’. “Wisdom is better than strength,” he writes; and in this context, the “strength” he writes about seems to be the areas of “strength” that this world respects—particularly, the political power of a ruler. Yet, as he goes on to say, “Nevertheless the poor man’s wisdom is despised, and his words are not heard. Words of the wise, spoken quietly, should be heard rather than the shout of a ruler of fools. Wisdom is better than weapons of war; but one sinner destroys much good” (9:16-18). It seems that this thought—the way the excellencies of humble wisdom are despised in a world that exalts in foolishness—is a great frustration for Solomon.

And it’s in this theme that he offers a series of short, wise statements in chapter 10 that sound very much like something from the Book of Proverbs. But these aren’t—as they may seem at first—simply unrelated and unconnected ideas. They each reinforce the idea that wisdom—while far better than strength—is sadly despised in life ‘under the sun’.

Each one deserves careful thought; so we’ll only look at verses 1-10 this week; and consider verses 11-20 next week.

I. ON FOLLY’S WEIGHTINESS (v. 1).

“Dead flies putrefy the perfumer’s ointment, and cause it to give off a foul odor; so does a little folly to one respected for wisdom and honor.”

The perfumer’s craft involves the careful combination and composition of elements—in just the right balance with one another—to give off a pleasant fragrance. Introduce one wrong element into the mix, and the pleasing fragrance may not only be lost, but may even become an offensive stench. Thus, in even a large container of stored perfume, a fly that falls into the container and dies—thus mixing the elements of its decaying body in with the carefully prepared contents—throws the entire compositional balance off and creates a foul odor.

In the same way, the life of a ruler that is otherwise respected for “wisdom and honor” can suddenly be thrown into the “odorous” side by the allowance of some folly into his life. Many a public person’s life—a life that was otherwise respected and esteemed—was brought to ruin by a stupid and harsh comment, or by an immoral indulgence, or by an even temporary lapse of judgment. Think of David—the king that God said was “after His own heart”—and you can’t help thinking of Baths. Think of Solomon—the wisest man who ever lived—and you can’t help thinking about how his many wives drew him away into idolatry. Little events of folly or wisdom are not equal in their potency. Men won’t esteem a man as “wise” who is slightly more wise than he is foolish. And even when a man lives wisely his whole life long, people tend to forget the multitude of his wise acts and judge him on the basis of his one act of folly. As Numbers 32:23 warns, “be sure your sin will find you out.”

II. ON WISDOM’S INFLUENCE (v. 2).

“A wise man’s heart is at his right hand, but a fool’s heart at his left.”

Solomon—the wisest man in the world—certainly would have known which side of the body the human heart is on! But he’s not talking about a physical heart; nor is he talking about a physical right-side or left-side. Rather, he’s speaking of the heart in a figurative way; and of the right side as the place of honor and of the left side as the place of dishonor.

What he may be saying, then, is that a wise man’s “heart”—in the sense of his inner man—is always kept in the place of his most careful attention and protection. He is always considering the state of his inner sense of values and priorities and is always diligent to do good. As Proverbs 4:23 says, “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it springs the issues of life.” If this is the case, then he’s saying that the fool disregards his inner man—and suffers for it with respect to that which issues out of his life in terms of his choices, priorities and actions.

If the wise man’s “heart”, however, is a reference to his thought life, then it is exalted by true wisdom. Wisdom helps the wise man put the pursuit of wisdom in the place of high priority; and shows him to truly be a wise man. “Who is like a wise man?” Solomon asked earlier; “And who knows the interpretation of a thing? A man’s wisdom makes his face shine, and the sternness of his face is changed” (Ecclesiastes 8:1). The fool, however, doesn’t esteem wisdom. He doesn’t listen to the words of the wise, nor does he seek their council. His “heart”—that is, the realm of his thoughts and his intellectual life—is, for him, ‘on the back-burner’. Either of these interpretations is possible—and either of the things that they affirm is true.

III. ON THE CONSPICUOUS NATURE OF FOOLISHNESS (v. 3).

“Even when a fool walks along the way, he lacks wisdom, and he shows everyone that he is a fool.”

The word “way”, here, may be quite literal. All you have to do is sit on a park bench and watch people walking by—and you can sometimes tell who is a fool and who isn’t. (Although it may not be wise to do this in such a way as to let passersby know that that’s what you’re doing!) People often betray—in just the way they carry themselves—that they are prideful, or hostile, or covetous, or lustful, or wasteful, or idle. (By the way; you don’t have to do this on the park bench. Sometimes you can tell a lot by paying attention on the freeway!)

But then, the word “way” may refer to something far more general. It may refer to the entire course of one’s daily life. A fool displays his lack of wisdom, and shows everyone that he is a fool, by the way he conducts his finances, cares for his home, manages his family life, cares for his body and manner of dress, fulfills his business obligations, or carries on daily conversation about things.

The point seems to be that true wisdom isn’t always so easily detectable. It’s subtle; and doesn’t always show itself off. Foolishness, on the other hand, is very conspicuous—out there for everyone to see. If I’m wise, I can easily keep the fact to myself and very few people will notice. In fact, if I’m truly wise, I’ll strive to do so. But if I’m foolish, it won’t be long before everyone knows it—just by watching me live!

IV. ON THE WISDOM OF REMAINING CALM (v. 4).

“If the spirit of the ruler rises against you, do not leave your post; for conciliation pacifies great offenses.”

Solomon—as the greatest monarch of his day—here gives us a little “insider tip”. The “rising” of “the spirit of the ruler” is an expression that describes the rising of suspicion and anger of a ruler against one of his subjects or servants. The rising of his anger may be justified, or it may not be. But one thing that would be a grave mistake is to try aggressively to straighten him out on the matter!

Solomon advises that, because a ruler tends to be given to emotional passion, the best thing to do is to remain calm and at your post. “Calmness”, as the NIV translates it, “can lay great errors to rest”. The principle would be just as true at work or at home as in the court of the king: “A soft answer turns away anger, but a harsh word stirs up anger” (Proverbs 15:1). To not run or hide, nor to arrogantly stand and defend one’s self; but rather to stay put, remain calmly at one’s duty, to own up to one’s error, and pacify the king’s wrath wisely, is the best answer. But sadly, in a day and age in which everyone is prone to defensiveness, and feels like they have a ‘piece of mind’ to give, this is a word of wisdom that is rarely respected.

V. ON THE INCONGRUITIES OF FOLLY (vv. 5-7).

“There is an evil I have seen under the sun, as an error proceeding from the ruler: folly is set in great dignity, while the rich sit in a lowly place. I have seen servants on horses, while princes walk on the ground like servants.”

Note that Solomon says that this is an error under the sun “proceeding from the ruler”. It’s something that rulers tend to do. When it comes to matters worthy of people of true importance, or when it comes to offices and responsibilities that ought to be handled by the wisest and most prudent of men, they’re not given the job. Instead, it becomes a time to return favors or pay-back supporters; and someone is placed in a position of authority that—frankly—has no real business being there. So often, the people who would be most equipped to solve social or economic problems are kept out of the discussion; and the positions of honor are handed over to those least worthy or least competent.

Haven’t we often seen fools in the place of dignity in king’s court, while those who are “rich” in wisdom and know-how sit in places of disrespect or contempt? Haven’t we often seen those who are “servants” in terms of their qualities riding high on the horse, while those who are “princes” walk on the ground like servants? What a sad commentary this is on how wisdom is so lowly esteemed “under the sun”!

VI. ON THE COMEUPPANCES OF FOLLY (vv. 8-9).

“He who digs a pit will fall into it, and whoever breaks through a wall will be bitten by a serpent. He who quarries stones may be hurt by them, and he who splits wood may be endangered by it.”

There are ‘just deserts’ served up in God’s universe. When a man means evil against another man, God sees to it that the evil he meant for that man comes down on his own head. As Psalm 7:14-16 has it, “Behold, the wicked brings forth iniquity; yes, he conceives trouble and brings forth falsehood. He made a pit and dug it out, and has fallen into the ditch which he made. His trouble shall return upon his own head, and his violent dealing shall come down on his own crown.”

Solomon probably means for us to think of this as true of the king; but it is also true for the common man. If he digs a pit for someone else, he falls in. If he breaks through the wall to steal or attack, he gets bit. If he seeks to move the memorial stones, he gets crushed by them. If he seeks to divide a people, he gets cut. “Do not be deceived”, Galatians 6:7 says; “God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.” This principle in God’s moral universe is one of the most often ignored—yet most frequently verified—of them all! How tragically ignored it is “under the sun”!

VII. ON THE EFFECTUALNESS OF WISDOM (v. 10).

“If the ax is dull, and one does not sharpen the edge, then he must use more strength; but wisdom brings success.”

There’s an old saying: If you have five minutes to cut down a tree, spend three minutes sharpening the ax. It makes the work much easier—as anyone who has tried to cut with a dull ax will readily testify. It takes time to sharpen the blade; but a sharpened ax requires less power to cut—and thus, less of an expenditure of energy overall.

Again, this may have to do with the ruler; but it also has application to all who are in power and authority. The more of a fool you are in a position of power—that is, the more of a dull ax you are—the more forceful you seem to have to be over people. It’s far easier, in the short term, to be a brutal dictator than the time it takes to be a prudent monarch. A harsh style of leadership is usually an indication that the one in authority is a fool. If he can’t lead by the force of reason, then he resorts to making the people follow by reason of force! This is true, we can be sure, in business, in family life, and even in church. How sadly often it is that the greater effectualness of wisdom is ignored by those in positions of power!

* * * * * * * * * *

These short, pithy sayings of wisdom are undeniably true—both by common sense and by common experience. But they seem to carry very little weight in the minds of men “under the sun”.

May those of us who live with an insight “above the sun” appreciate them, and—by God’s grace—be “sharpened” by them for wise living.