All this I have proved in wisdom. I said, “I will be wise;” but it was far from me.
Parallel Translations
-
All this I have proved in wisdom. I said, “I will be wise;” but it was far from me.
-
All this have I proved by wisdom: I said, I will be wise; but it was far from me.
-
All this have I tried by wisdom; I said: 'I will get wisdom'; but it was far from me.
Cross-references (5)
Passages linked to Ecclesiastes 7:23 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Romans 1:22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,
- Genesis 3:5 for God knows that in the day you eat it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
- 1 Corinthians 1:20 Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the lawyer of this world? Hasn’t God made foolish the wisdom of this world?
- 1 Kings 3:11-12 God said to him, “Because you have asked this thing, and have not asked for yourself long life, nor have you asked for riches for yourself, nor have you asked for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern justice; behold, I have done according to your word. Behold, I have given you a wise and understanding heart; so that there has been no one like you before you, and after you none will arise like you.
- 1 Kings 11:1-8 Now king Solomon loved many foreign women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites; of the nations concerning which Yahweh said to the children of Israel, “You shall not go among them, neither shall they come among you; for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods.” Solomon joined to these in love. He had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines. His wives turned his heart away. When Solomon was old, his wives turned away his heart after other gods; and his heart was not perfect with Yahweh his God, as the heart of David his father was. For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. Solomon did that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight, and didn’t go fully after Yahweh, as David his father did. Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, on the mountain that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech the abomination of the children of Ammon. So he did for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (18 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
Private notes
Saved on this device only — never synced or sent anywhere.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain Credit them not, neither care for them.
Credit them not, neither care for them.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Ecc 7:23 All this have I proved by wisdom:…
Ecc 7:23 All this have I proved by wisdom: I said, I will be wise; but it [was] far from me.
Ver. 23. I said, I will be wise; but it was far from me.] Solomon here seems to say of wisdom, as Nazianzen doth of God the author of it, Tantum recedit, quantum capitur. Not that wisdom itself doth fly away, but because that they who have most of it do especially understand that it exceedeth the capacity of any one to be able to comprehend it (as Basil {a} gives the reason), so that they that think they have got demonstrations perceive afterwards that they are no more than topica aut sophisticae rationes, topical or sophistical arguments, as Lyra here noteth. Bonus quidam vir solebat esse solus, &c., saith Melanchthon: a certain well meaning man was wont to walk and study much alone, and lighting upon Aristotle’s discourse concerning the nature of the rainbow, he fell into many odd speculations and strange conceits; and, writing to a friend of his, told him that in all other matters, though dark and obscure, he had outdone Aristotle; but in the matter of the rainbow he had outdone himself. After this he came into the public schools, and disputed of that argument, Et tote prorsus coelo a veritate aberrabat suis phantasiis; { b} and then he came to see that he had been utterly out, and strangely miscarried by those phantasies which he had so strongly fancied.
Read full note →
{a} Basil., Tract de Fide.
{b} Joh. Manl., Loc. Com., 536.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain All this, or all these things, of which I…
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.
Read full note →
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; I found myself greatly disappointed, and the more I knew, the more I saw mine own folly and misery.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain Solomon had hitherto been proving the vanity of the…
Solomon had hitherto been proving the vanity of the world and its utter insufficiency to make men happy; now here he comes to show the vileness of sin, and its certain tendency to make men miserable; and this, as the former, he proves from his own experience, and it was a dear-bought experience. He is here, more than any where in all this book, putting on the habit of a penitent. He reviews what he had been discoursing of already, and tells us that what he had said was what he knew and was well assured of, and what he resolved to stand by: All this have I proved by wisdom, Ecc 7:23. Now here,
I. He owns and laments the deficiencies of his wisdom. He had wisdom enough to see the vanity of the world and to experience that that would not make a portion for a soul. But, when he came to enquire further, he found himself at a loss; his eye was too dim, his line was too short, and, though he discovered this, there were many other things which he could not prove by wisdom.
Read full note →
1. His searches were industrious. God had given him a capacity for knowledge above any; he set up with a great stock of wisdom; he had the largest opportunities of improving himself that ever any man had; and, (1.) He resolved, if it were possible, to gain his point: I said, I will be wise. He earnestly desired it as highly valuable; he fully designed it as that which he looked upon to be attainable; he determined not to sit down short of it, Pro 18:1. Many are not wise because they never said they would be so, being indifferent to it; but Solomon set it up for the mark he aimed at. When he made trial of sensual pleasures, he still thought to acquaint his heart with wisdom (Pro 2:3), and not to be diverted from the pursuits of that; but perhaps he did not find it so easy a thing as he imagined to keep up his correspondence with wisdom, while he addicted himself so much to his pleasures. However, his will was good; he said, I will be wise. And that was not all: (2.) He resolved to spare no pains (Ecc 7:25): "I applied my heart; I and my heart turned every way; I left no stone unturned, no means untried, to compass what I had in view. I set myself to know, and to search, and to seek out wisdom, to accomplish myself in all useful learning, philosophy, and divinity." If he had not thus closely applied himself to study, it would have been but a jest for him to say, I will be wise, for those that will attain the end must take the right way. Solomon was a man of great quickness, and yet, instead of using that (with many) as an excuse for slothfulness, he pressed it upon himself as an inducement to diligence, and the easier he found it to master a good notion the more intent he would be that he might be master of the more good notions. Those that have the best parts should take the greatest pains, as those that have the largest stock should trade most. He applied himself not only to know what lay on the surface, but to search what lay hidden out of the common view and road; nor did he search a little way, and then give it over because he did not presently find what he searched for, but he sought it out, went to the bottom of it; nor did he aim to know things only, but the reasons of things, that he might give an account of them.
2. Yet his success was not answerable or satisfying: "I said, I will be wise, but it was far from me; I could not compass it. After all, This only I know that I know nothing, and the more I know the more I see there is to be known, and the more sensible I am of my own ignorance. That which is far off, and exceedingly deep, who can find it out?" He means God himself, his counsels and his works; when he searched into these he presently found himself puzzled and run aground. He could not order his speech by reason of darkness. It is higher than heaven, what can he do? Job 11:8. Blessed be God, there is nothing which we have to do which is not plain and easy; the word is nigh us (Pro 8:9); but there is a great deal which we would wish to know which is far off, and exceedingly deep, among the secret things which belong not to us. And probably it is a culpable ignorance and error that Solomon here laments, that his pleasures, and the many amusements of his court, had blinded his eyes and cast a mist before them, so that he could not attain to true wisdom as he designed.
II. He owns and laments the instances of his folly in which he had exceeded, as, in wisdom, he came short. Here is,
1. His enquiry concerning the evil of sin. He applied his heart to know the wickedness of folly, even of foolishness and madness. Observe, (1.) The knowledge of sin is a difficult knowledge, and hard to be attained; Solomon took pains for it. Sin has many disguises with which it palliates itself, as being loth to appear sin, and it is very hard to strip it of these and to see it in its true nature and colours. (2.) It is necessary to our repentance for sin that we be acquainted with the evil of it, as it is necessary to the cure of a disease to know its nature, causes, and malignity. St. Paul therefore valued the divine law, because it discovered sin to him, Rom 7:7. Solomon, who, in the days of his folly, had set his wits on work to invent pleasures and sharpen them, and was ingenious in making provision for the flesh, now that God had opened his eyes is as industrious to find out the aggravations of sin and so to put an edge upon his repentance. Ingenious sinners should be ingenious penitents, and wit and learning, among the other spoils of the strong man armed, should be divided by the Lord Jesus. (3.) It well becomes penitents to say the worst they can of sin, for the truth is we can never speak ill enough of it. Solomon here, for his further humiliation, desired to see more, [1.] Of the sinfulness of sin; that is it which he lays the greatest stress upon in this inquiry, to know the wickedness of folly, by which perhaps he means his own iniquity, the sin of uncleanness, for that was commonly called folly in Israel, Gen 34:7; Deu 22:21; Jdg 20:6; Sa2 13:12. When he indulged himself in it, he made a light matter of it; but now he desires to see the wickedness of it, its great wickedness, so Joseph speaks of it, Gen 39:9. Or it may be taken there generally for all sin. Many extenuate their sins with this, They were folly; but Solomon sees wickedness in those follies, an offence to God and a wrong to conscience. This is wickedness, Jer 4:18; Zac 5:8. [2.] Of the folly of sin; as there is a wickedness in folly, so there is a folly in wickedness, even foolishness and madness. Wilful sinners are fools and madmen; they act contrary both to right reason and to their true interest.
2. The result of this enquiry.
(1.) He now discovered more than ever of the evil of that great sin which he himself had been guilty of, the loving of many strange women, Kg1 11:1. This is that which he here most feelingly laments, and in very pathetic expressions. [1.] He found the remembrance of the sin very grievous. O how heavily did it lie upon his conscience! what an agony was he in upon the thought of it - the wickedness, the foolishness, the madness, that he had been guilty of! I find it more bitter than death. As great a terror seized him, in reflection upon it, as if he had been under the arrest of death. Thus do those that have their sins set in order before them by a sound conviction cry out against them; they are bitter as gall, nay, bitter as death, to all true penitents. Uncleanness is a sin that is, in its own nature, more pernicious than death itself. Death may be made honourable and comfortable, but this sin can be no other than shame and pain, Pro 5:9, Pro 5:11. [2.] He found the temptation to the sin very dangerous, and that it was extremely difficult, and next to impossible, for those that ventured into the temptation to escape the sin, and for those that had fallen into the sin to recover themselves by repentance. The heart of the adulterous woman is snares and nets; she plays her game to ruin souls with as much art and subtlety as ever any fowler used to take a silly bird. The methods such sinners use are both deceiving and destroying, as snares and nets are. The unwary souls are enticed into them by the bait of pleasure, which they greedily catch at and promise themselves satisfaction in; but they are taken before they are aware, and taken irrecoverably. Her hands are as bands, with which, under colour of fond embraces, she holds those fast that she has seized; they are held in the cords of their own sin, Pro 5:22. Lust gets strength by being gratified and its charms are more prevalent. [3.] He reckoned it a great instance of God's favour to any man if by his grace he has kept him from this sin: He that pleases God shall escape from her, shall be preserved either from being tempted to this sin or from being overcome by the temptation. Those that are kept from this sin must acknowledge it is God that keeps them, and not any strength or resolution of their own, must acknowledge it a great mercy; and those that would have grace sufficient for them to arm them against this sin must be careful to please God in every thing, by keeping his ordinances, Lev 18:30. [4.] He reckoned it a sin that is as sore a punishment of other sins as a man can fall under in this life: The sinner shall be taken by her. First, Those that allow themselves in other sins, by which their minds are blinded and their consciences debauched, are the more easily drawn to this. Secondly, it is just with God to leave them to themselves to fall into it. See Rom 1:26, Rom 1:28; Eph 4:18, Eph 4:19. Thus does Solomon, as it were, with horror, bless himself from the sin in which he had plunged himself.
(2.) He now discovered more than ever of the general corruption of man's nature. He traces up that stream to the fountain, as his father had done before him, on a like occasion (Psa 51:5): Behold, I was shapen in iniquity. [1.] He endeavoured to find out the number of his actual transgressions (Ecc 7:27): "Behold, this have I found, that is, this I hoped to find; I thought I could have understood my errors and have brought in a complete list, at least of the heads of them; I thought I could have counted them one by one, and have found out the account." He desired to find them out as a penitent, that he might the more particularly acknowledge them; and, generally, the more particular we are in the confession of sin the more comfort we have in the sense of the pardon; he desired it also as a preacher, that he might the more particularly give warning to others. Note, A sound conviction of one sin will put us upon enquiring into the whole confederacy; and the more we see amiss in ourselves the more diligently we should enquire further into our own faults, that what we see not may be discovered to us, Job 34:32. [2.] He soon found himself at a loss, and perceived that they were innumerable (Ecc 7:28): "Which yet my soul seeks; I am still counting, and still desirous to find out the account, but I find not, I cannot count them all, nor find out the account of them to perfection. I still make new and amazing discoveries of the desperate wickedness that there is in my own heart," Jer 17:9, Jer 17:10. Who can know it? Who can understand his errors? Who can tell how often he offends? Psa 19:12. He finds that if God enters into judgment with him, or he with himself, for all his thoughts, words, and actions, he is not able to answer for one of a thousand, Job 9:3. This he illustrates by comparing the corruption of his own heart and life with the corruption of the world, where he scarcely found one good man among a thousand; nay, among all the thousand wives and concubines which he had, he did not find one good woman. "Even so," says he, "When I come to recollect and review my own thoughts, words, and actions, and all the passages of my life past, perhaps among those that were manly I might find one good among a thousand, and that was all; the rest even of those had some corruption or other in them." He found (Ecc 7:20) that he had sinned even in doing good. But for those that were effeminate, that passed in the indulgence of his pleasures, they were all naught; in that part of his life there did not appear so much as one of a thousand good. In our hearts and lives there appears little good, at the best, but sometimes none at all. Doubtless this is not intended as a censure of the female sex in general; it is probable that there have been and are more good women than good men (Act 17:4, Act 17:12); he merely alludes to his own sad experience. And perhaps there may be this further in it: he does, in his proverbs, warn us against the snares both of the evil man and of the strange woman (Pro 2:12, Pro 2:16; Pro 4:14; Pro 5:3); now he had observed the ways of the evil women to be more deceitful and dangerous than those of the evil men, that it was more difficult to discover their frauds and elude their snares, and therefore he compares sin to an adulteress (Pro 9:13), and perceives he can no more find out the deceitfulness of his own heart than he can that of a strange woman, whose ways are movable, that thou canst not know them. [3.] He therefore runs up all the streams of actual transgression to the fountain of original corruption. The source of all the folly and madness that are in the world is in man's apostasy from God and his degeneracy from his primitive rectitude (Ecc 7:20): "Lo, this only have I found; when I could not find out the particulars, yet the gross account was manifest enough; it is as clear as the sun that man is corrupted and revolted, and is not as he was made." Observe, First, How man was made by the wisdom and goodness of God: God made man upright; Adam the first man, so the Chaldee. God made him, and he made him upright, such a one as he should be; being made a rational creature, he was, in all respects, such a one as a rational creature should be, upright, without any irregularity; one could find no fault in him; he was upright, that is, determined to God only, in opposition to the many inventions which he afterwards turned aside to. Man, as he came out of God's hands, was (as we may say) a little picture of his Maker, who is good and upright. Secondly, How he was marred, and in effect unmade, by his own folly and badness: They have sought out many inventions - they, our first parents, or the whole race, all in general and every one in particular. They have sought out great inventions (so some), inventions to become great as gods (Gen 3:5), or the inventions of the great ones (so some), of the angels that fell, the Magnates, or many inventions. Man, instead of resting in what God had found for him, was for seeking to better himself, like the prodigal that left his father's house to seek his fortune. Instead of being for one, he was for many; instead of being for God's institutions, he was for his own inventions. The law of his creation would not hold him, but he would be at his own disposal and follow his own sentiments and inclinations. Vain man would be wise, wiser than his Maker; he is giddy and unsettled in his pursuits, and therefore has many inventions. Those that forsake God wander endlessly. Men's actual transgressions are multiplied. Solomon could not find out how many they are (Ecc 7:28); but he found they were very many. Many kinds of sins, and those often repeated. They are more than the hairs on our heads, Psa 40:12.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain All this have I proved by wisdom,.... Referring either…
All this have I proved by wisdom,.... Referring either to all that he had been discoursing of hitherto in this book, concerning the vanity of natural wisdom and knowledge, of pleasure, power, and riches; or to the several useful instructions given in this chapter, particularly concerning patiently bearing everything from the hands of God or men, Ecc 7:8. This, by the help and use of that wisdom which God had given him, he had made trial of, and found it to be right, and therefore recommended it to others; though he acknowledges that, with all his wisdom, he was from perfection;
I said, I will be wise; but it was far from me; he determined, if possible, to attain to the perfection of wisdom, and made use of all means to come at it; that he might know all the works of God in creation, the nature, use, and excellency of them; in providence, his different dispensations towards the sons of men, and the causes of them; and in grace, the redemption and salvation of men, and the mysteries thereof; but the more he knew, the more he was convinced of his own ignorance, and seemed further off from the summit of knowledge than he was before; and plainly saw, that perfection in wisdom is not attainable in this life. The Targum restrains this to the wisdom of the law; but it is better to understand it in a more general sense.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain Proved - I have found to be true, by…
Proved - I have found to be true, by the help of that singular wisdom which God had given me. I said - I determined that I would attain perfection of wisdom. But - I found myself greatly disappointed.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 23. All this have I proved by wisdom]…
Verse 23. All this have I proved by wisdom] These rules I have laid down for my own conduct, and sought after more wisdom; but have fallen far short of what I wished to be.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Ecc 7:23-24. All this have I proved — All…
Ecc 7:23-24. All this have I proved — All these things, of which I have here discoursed, I have diligently examined and found 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 that I would, by all possible means, seek to attain perfection of wisdom, and I persuaded myself that I should attain it; but it was far from me — I found myself greatly disappointed, and the more I knew the more I saw mine own folly. That which, is far off, &c. — No human understanding can attain to perfect wisdom, or to the exact knowledge of God’s counsels and works, and the reasons of them, because they are unsearchably deep, and far above out of our sight; some of them being long since past, and therefore utterly unknown to us, and others yet to come, which we cannot foreknow.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain I will be - Or, I am. There was…
I will be - Or, I am. There was a time when Solomon thought himself wise enough to comprehend the work of God, and therefore needed for himself the self-humbling conviction declared in this verse.
It - i. e. Wisdom. Compare Ecc 8:17.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Thy. We must be satisfied with a good conscience,…
Thy. We must be satisfied with a good conscience, as we cannot control the thoughts and words of all. (St. Ambrose, Of. i. 1.)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain All this--resuming the "all" in Ecc 7:15; Ecc 7:15-22…
All this--resuming the "all" in Ecc 7:15; Ecc 7:15-22 is therefore the fruit of his dearly bought experience in the days of his "vanity."
I will be wise--I tried to "be wise," independently of God. But true wisdom was then "far from him," in spite of his human wisdom, which he retained by God's gift. So "over wise" (Ecc 7:16).
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 23. This have I proved — Simple common sense…
23. This have I proved — Simple common sense went thus far in this direction, but here reached its barrier. Koheleth hoped it would lead him further, so as to grasp the mysteries of providence, so often mentioned by him as inscrutable.
I will be wise — It should be, “I will be” wiser. But in vain. The keenest sagacity cannot by searching find out the ways of the Almighty.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 23. I said, I will be wise; but it…
23. I said, I will be wise; but it was far from me] The words express at once the high aim of the seeker and his sense of incompleteness. Wisdom in its fulness was for him, as for Job (chap. 28) far above out of his reach. He had to give up the attempt to solve the problems of the Universe, and to confine himself to rules of conduct, content if he could find guidance there.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (23) The confession of failure to attain speculative knowledge…
(23) The confession of failure to attain speculative knowledge gives energy to the preacher’s next following enunciation of the practical lesson which he has learned from his experience.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Vers. 23-29. Section 4. Further in sight into essential…
Vers. 23-29. Section 4. Further in sight into essential wisdom was not obtain able; but Koheleth learned some other practical lessons, viz. that wickedness was folly and madness; that woman was the most evil thing in the world; that man had perverted his nature, which was made originally good. All this have I proved by wisdom; i.e. wisdom was the means by which he arrived at the practical conclusions given above (vers. 1-22). Would wisdom solve deeper questions? And if so, could he ever hope to attain it? I said, I will be wise. This was his strong resolve. He desired to grow in wisdom, to use it in order to unfold mysteries and explain anomalies. Hitherto he had been content to watch the course of men"s lives, and find by experience what was good and what was evil for them; now he craves for an insight into the secret laws that regulate those external circumstances: he wants a philosophy or theosophy. His desire is expressed by his imitator in the Book of Wisdom (9.), "O God of my fathers, give me Wisdom, that sitteth by thy throne.... O send her out of thy holy heavens, and from the throne of thy glory, that being present she may labor with me." But it was far from me. It remained in the far distance, out of reach. Job"s experience (28.) was his. Practical rules of life he might gain, and had mastered, but essential, absolute wisdom was beyond mortal grasp. Man"s knowledge and capacity are limited.
Vers. 23-29.
Read full note →
A great quest, and its sorrowful result.
I THE GREAT QUEST.
1. The person of the seeker. The Preacher. (see on Ecc_1:1) The frequency with which he draws attention to himself shows that he regarded himself as one possessed of ample and perhaps well-known qualifications for the search upon which he had engaged.
2. The object of his search. To be wise to know and to search out and to seek wisdom and the reason of things; and in particular to know the wickedness of folly, and that foolishness is madness. In other words, he desired to reach that wisdom in its fullness which would enable him to solve the problem of the universe.
3. The spirit in which he entered on his quest.
(1) Calm resolution. He said to himself, "I will be wise.
(2) Genuine humility. He understood that wisdom in its ideal vastness and elevation was beyond his reach.
(3) Earnest application. He applied his heart, or turned himself and his heart, to the business he had undertaken.
(4) Patient perseverance. His soul kept on seeking, laying one thing to another to find out the account. These qualities should distinguish all seekers after wisdom.
II THE SORROWFUL FINDING.
1. Concerning the strange woman. Not "heathenish folly" (Hengstenberg), but the flesh-and-blood harlot of Proverbs (2:16-19; 5:3-13). With respect to her the Preacher calls attention speaking, no doubt, from personal experience, and recording the results of his own observation to:
(1) Her seductive arts. "Her heart is snares and nets," luring with her false beauty, bewitching voice, and voluptuous person, numerous unthinking and inexperienced persons, chiefly young men devoid of understanding, (Pro_7:7) into her embrace.
(2) Her deceptive gifts. While promising her lovers liberty, she only leads them into slavery" Her hands are as bands;" and while flattering them with promises of hidden sweets, what she gives them is an experience "more bitter than death," i.e. an inward wretchedness more intolerable to the soul than even darkness and the grave. "Her house is the way to hell, going down to the chambers of death". (Pro_7:27)
(3) Her powerless charms in some eases. Fascinating to the natural heart, and especially to sensual dispositions, her attractions have no influence upon pure minds and religious souls. "Whoso pleaseth God shall escape from her;" either never be captivated by her spells, or be recovered from them before it is too late.
(4) Her miserable victims. Those she leads off as prey are "sinners," in whose hearts sin rules as a dominating principle; who are carnally minded, and delight to make provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof; (Rom_8:1 Rom_13:14) lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God; (2Ti_3:4) foolish and disobedient souls, who serve divers lusts and pleasures. (Tit_3:3)
2. Concerning womankind.
(1) The Preacher"s finding was incorrect if designed as a universal negative, in the sense that, while in a thousand men taken at random one might be found good, in a thousand women similarly taken not one could be found entitled to be so characterized. The best refutation of such woman-hating utterances is to point to" the numerous examples of noble women mentioned in Old Testament Writ, and of the devoted heroines of New Testament days, "whose names stand forth conspicuously, side by side with those of men, in the muster-roll of the "noble army of martyrs (Wright).
(2) The Preacher"s finding may have been correct if accepted only as the record of his own individual experience. In this case, either his lot must have fallen in very evil times in respect of moral corruption, rivaling the days that were before the Flood, (Gen_6:11 Gen_7:1) or he himself must have mixed with extremely questionable characters and limited his investigations to the lowest strata of society. It is doubtful if in any age, at least since the Flood, the condition of mankind has been so deplorably degenerate as the Preacher"s language implies.
(3) The Preacher"s finding may be endorsed if it only means (as is probably the case) that woman less frequently attains to her ideal than man does to his which, however, need not argue deeper depravity in woman than in man, but may point either to the loftier character of woman"s ideal than of man"s, or to the greater difficulties that stand in the way of woman realizing her ideal than hinder man from reaching his.
3. Concerning the human race.
(1) Their original condition had been one of uprightness. This one of two conclusions to which the Preacher had been conducted, viz. that whatever of evil was now perceptible in man"s nature had not proceeded from the hand of God.
(2) Their present condition was one of "inventive refined degeneracy" (Delitzsch). A second result to which the Preacher had been led. Man had lapsed from his primitive condition of moral simplicity and had become an ingenious inventor; not always of things indifferent, but frequently of things immoral in themselves, and leading to immorality and sin as their results.
LESSONS.
1. The value of wisdom as a human pursuit.
2. The worth of experience as a teacher.
3. The danger of sensuality.
4. The excellence of piety as a protection against impurity.
5. The inestimable worth of a good woman.
6. The rarity of noble men.
7. The certainty that man is not what God made him.
Vers. 23-28.
Degradation and elevation.
The words of the Preacher painfully remind us of the familiar story of Diogenes and his lantern. Whether we are to ascribe this pitiful conclusion respecting woman to his own infirmity or to the actual condition of Oriental society, we do not know. But there was, no doubt, so much of realism about the picture that we may learn a very practical lesson therefrom. It is twofold.
I THE AWFUL POSSIBILITIES OF DEGRADATION. That woman, created by God to be a helpmeet for man, and so admirably fitted, as she is at her best, to comfort his heart and to enrich and bless his life that woman should be spoken of in such terms as these, is sad and strange indeed. It would be unaccountable but for one thing. The explanation is that man, in his physical strength and in his spiritual weakness, has systematically degraded woman; has made a mere tool and instrument of her whom he should have treated as his trusted companion and truest friend. And if you once degrade any being (or any animal) from his or her true and right position, you send that being down an incline, you open the gates to a long and sad descent. You take away self-respect, and in so doing you undermine the foundation of all virtue, of all moral worth. Dishonor any one, man or woman, lad or child, in his (her) own eyes, and you inflict a deadly injury. A very vile woman is probably worse than a very bad man, more inherently foul and more lamentably mischievous; it is the miserable consequence of man"s folly in wishing to displace her from the position God meant her to hold, and in making her take a far lower position than she has the faculty to fill. To degrade is to ruin, and to ruin utterly.
II THE NOBLE POSSIBILITIES OF ELEVATION. How excellent is the impossibility of seriously writing such a sentence as that contained in the twenty-eighth verse, in this age and in this land of ours! Now and here it certainly is not more difficult to find a woman worthy of our admiration than to find such a man. In the Churches of Jesus Christ, in the homes of our country, are women, young and old and in the prime of Their powers, whose character is sound to the center, whose spirit is gracious, whose lives are lovely, whose influence is wholly beneficent, who are the sweetness and strength of the present generation, as they are the hope and promise of the next. And this elevation of woman all comes of treating her as that which God meant her to be giving to her her rightful position, inviting and enabling her to fill her sphere, to cultivate her powers, to do her work, to take her heritage.
1. It is easy as it is foolish and sinful to degrade; assume the absence of what God has given and deny the opportunity which should be offered, and the work is speedily done.
2. It is quite possible as it is most blessed to elevate; treat men and women, wherever found and at whatever stage in worth or unworthiness they may be taken, as those God meant to be his children, and they will rise to the dignity and partake the inheritance of "the sons and daughters of the living God. C.
Vers. 23-29.
Woman.
The limitations of human knowledge are nowhere more plainly indicated than in the opening verse of the present section. The Preacher points out that after his utmost endeavors to obtain wisdom with the view of solving the perplexing questions connected with mankind, their actions and their relation to God, he found all such knowledge to be far beyond mortal ken (Wright). "For that which is," that which exists, the world of things in its essence and with its causes, "is far off," far removed from the sight of man, "and it is deep, deep; who can discover it?" (vers. 23, 24). Essential wisdom appeared to him as to Job (28.), quite out of reach. But all his efforts after it had not been in vain. In the course of his researches he had discovered some truth of great value. Though the problems of the universe proved to be insoluble, some lessons had been learned of practical value in the conduct of life. Some rules for present guidance he had discovered, though much remained hidden from him. So is it in every age. The sagest philosophers, the profoundest thinkers, are baffled in their endeavors to explain the mysteries of life, but are able to lay down rules for present conduct which approve themselves to the consciences of all. And happy is it for us that it should be so; that while clouds hang over many regions into which the intellect of man would fain penetrate, the way of duty is plain for all. One great truth he learned, that wickedness was folly, that foolishness was madness, that men who lived in the pursuit of folly were beside themselves and were mad (ver. 25). This thought is very closely akin to the teaching of the Stoics, that the wickedness of men is a kind of mental aberration, and that knowledge is but another name for righteousness. One great source of wickedness he introduces in ver. 26 the fatal fascination of so many by scheming and voluptuous women. The picture he draws is like those in Proverbs 2. and 7., and, but for the more sweeping condemnation in the verses that follow, might be thought to express reprobation of a certain degraded class rather than a cynical estimate of the whole of womankind. One man, he says, he had found among a thousand, one only what a man ought to be; but not one woman among the same number who corresponded to the ideal of womanhood, who reminded him of the innocence and goodness of Eve as God created her (ver. 29). The race, both men and women, had been created upright, but had become almost utterly corrupt by the devices they had invented by which to gratify their inclinations toward evil. What are we to make of his words? Is the case really as bad as be represents it? The answer to the question is not far to seek. The Preacher is recording his own experience, and if we take his words as a truthful report, we can only say that he was specially unfortunate in his experience. There is no doubt that in some countries and in some ages of the world, corruption is very widespread and deep, and in the land and time in which our author lived matters may have been as bad as he represents them. But the experience of a single life does not afford sufficient ground for broad generalizations concerning human nature. The words may be an expression of that terrible feeling of satiety and loathing which is the curse following upon gross sensuality such as that of the historical Solomon, with his three hundred wives and seven hundred concubines. No sensible person would take the moralizings of the satiated debauchee without very considerable deductions. Those of a chaste, temperate, God-fearing man are much more likely to hit the truth. We may grant that search had been made, and not one woman among the thousand whose dispositions and characters had been passed in review approved herself worthy of praise as like what a true woman should be, and still doubt whether the thousand were fair representatives of their sex. Did he search in the right quarter? or were the women the population of his seraglio? If they were, we cannot wonder that, in an institution which is itself an outrage upon human nature, all its inhabitants were found corrupt. For a very different estimate of the female character as exemplified in some of its representatives, we have only to read the praises of the Shulamite in the Song of Songs, and of the virtuous women described in Pro_5:18, 19 31:10-31. And Scripture itself is rich in the histories of good women. There are those of patriarchal times whose tender grace gives such an idyllic charm to so many incidents of that early age. The names of Sarah, Rebekah, and Rachel call up ideas of purity, innocence, piety, and steadfast love, as a rich inheritance they have left to the race. Miriam, Hannah, Ruth, and Esther, too, suggest a world of goodness and holiness which was quite unknown to the experience of the writer of these dark and somber words in Ecclesiastes. Then in the New Testament we have the luminous figures of the Virgin-mother, the Prophetess Anna, the devout women who ministered to Christ and stood by his cross, and were early in the morning at his sepulcher, and were the first to believe in him as their risen Lord. There are those in the long list recorded in the Epistles of St. Paul, who were zealous fellow-laborers with him in all good works, who, by their deeds of hospitality, their kindly ministrations to the poor and sick and. bereaved, reproved the wickedness of the world in which they lived, and gave promise of the rich harvest of goodness which would spring from the holy teaching and example of the Redeemer. And in no Christian country have abundant examples been wanting of the pure and devoted love by which mothers and wives and sisters have enriched and blessed the lives of those connected with them, and redeemed their sex from the stigma cast upon it by gross-minded and corrupt men. No persecutions have ever wasted any section of the Christian Church without finding among women as true and steadfast witnesses for the cause of Christ as among men.
A noble army men and boys, The matron and the maid, Around the Savior"s throne rejoice, In robes of light array"d. They climb"d the steep ascent of heaven Through peril, toil, and pain; O God, to us may grace be given To follow in their train! J.W.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain Ecc_7:27. Counting one by one, to find out the…
CRITICAL NOTES.—
Ecc_7:27. Counting one by one, to find out the account] Collecting the results of many observations—thus forming an opinion carefully and slowly.
Read full note →
Ecc_7:29. Many inventions] Refers not so much to the devices of wickedness, but rather to evil arts, perverse thinkings, foolish and adventurous speculations.
MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.—Ecc_7:23-29
THE CONFESSIONS OF A RELIGIOUS PHILOSOPHER
The Royal Preacher, approaching religion from its speculative or philosophic side, has some sad confessions to make.
I. That the Search for Wisdom is Difficult. (Ecc_7:23-24.) His search is represented as most complete, marked by earnestness, the Royal thinker urging himself to it by a strong effort of the will. “I said I will be wise.” The plan of procedure was most complete and exhaustive. It was no surface inspection—no mercenary work. He “applied” his “heart to know, and to search, and to seek out wisdom.” He tried to discover what lay behind all appearances, “the reason of things”—that deep insight which would reveal to him perfect order and harmony. In his speculations, he used variety of method, approaching the subject from different sides. Virtues were contemplated in their opposites. With a painful revulsion of feeling, knowledge was obtained from the morbid anatomy of sin. “Wickedness” and “folly,” “foolishness” and “madness,” are not inviting subjects, but they are facts of human life, and must be investigated by all who would speculate upon the state of man. Here is a search after wisdom most energetic and complete. Whence does the difficulty arise? In general, it arises from the vast dimensions of the subject of investigation. But these dimensions are here contemplated in two directions.
1. In their surface. The knowledge of man—his duty and destiny, and of the mysteries of religion—forms a subject extending far beyond our mental sight. We see and explore our narrow circle all around, but it is bounded by darkness, clouds, and shadows. If we adventure far, and the scene opens out before us, yet it closes behind us! We cannot chase the darkness away. The surface which we are permitted to explore is painfully limited. Like the end of the rainbow, where fancy has placed a golden cup, the prize of absolute wisdom is unattainable by man. The most successful explorer must make the confession, “It was far from me.”
2. In their depth. “Exceeding deep, who can find it out?” Even that which is before our eyes, when we attempt to fathom it, proves too deep to be sounded by our plummet. Great secrets lie there hidden from mortal sight. Even the commonest objects are mysterious, and lie on dark foundations, quite inaccessible by us; and therefore how remote from our reach must be the ultimate mystery of God and man!
II. That the Results of the Search are Humiliating. They are but poor, scanty, and unsatisfactory. And this,
1. In a speculative view. The gains of our search after wisdom, regarded as an intellectual effort, are but small. We meet with some success, and obtain considerable insight into man’s life and destiny. But the goal of absolute wisdom is as far off as ever. We can only express the little that we know in broken accents. Cur different movements of thought come into frequent collision. Partial wisdom—mere fragments of knowledge—are all that we have—crumbs from the table.
2. In a practical view. In this direction, our search after wisdom is more plentiful in results. We gather more facts and principles. But how sad and humiliating are these! We have been investigating evil, disorder, the force and terrible complications of temptation—all the melancholy facts of human nature under the influence of violent passions and unworthy motives. We have here a recital of some of these sad facts.
(1) That there are some special dangers to virtue. (Ecc_7:26.) There are temptations in life which have elements of special danger. They deceive by treacherous arts, and the unsuspecting sinner, at first pleased with the siren song, delays, yields to the enchantment, and is lured to his destruction. That book of practical and prudential wisdom, the Proverbs of Solomon, is full of warnings against the seductive arts of women. Their lascivious looks and foul embrace are here described as “snares,” “nets,” and “bands.” An easy virtue is soon entrapped and overwhelmed. The Serpent first approached man through his weak side, and she who was first deceived more easily deceives others (1Ti_2:14). This portion of humanity, when loosened from the restraints of social morality and religion, presents the most pitiable forms of degradation, and one of the chief dangers to virtue. Special help from God is needed to escape these dangers. “Whoso pleaseth God shall escape from her.”
(2) That the highest moral excellence is rare. (Ecc_7:28.) The Royal Preacher professes an extensive knowledge of human nature. He is satisfied with no hasty glance, obeys not the impulse of first impressions, but acquires his knowledge by slow and painful steps. He searches out his facts “one by one,” summing them up with a cool and severe judgment. (Ecc_7:27.) As a standard of comparison, he takes man as he came pure from the hands of his Maker, before his glory had fallen—God’s idea of humanity. He confesses that no one reaches this absolute standard of sinless purity and perfection. Among men, he had found “one of a thousand,” in some sense, worthy of the name—one who approached the Divine idea within some computable distance. But among women, he had not found one worthy of the name, in the primeval ideal. “That he never found such a one, consequently that he considered the whole female sex as vicious, and highly corrupt, cannot possibly be his opinion, as appears from Ecc_7:29, as also in Chap. Ecc_9:9. But that moral excellence, taken as a whole, is much more rarely found than among men, that sin reigns more uncontrolled among the former than the latter, and in the forms of moral weakness and proneness to temptation, as well as in the inclination to seduce, to deceive, and ensnare—such is clearly the sense of this passage” [Lange].
3. That man must sigh in vain for a lost Paradise. (Ecc_7:29.) That perfect uprightness, that moral integrity of man in his primeval state, is but a splendid fact of the past, a sad remembrance of what once was, but is now no longer. There will, indeed, be a restored Paradise for man, but it will not be the same as that which was lost. Fallen man may attain a better estate than that which he forfeited, yet his final honours and distinctions will be those of one whose fortunes have been repaired, and not of one who has preserved his inheritance as he received it from the beginning. The dispensation of mercy itself cannot obliterate the sad facts of sin. Surrounded and penetrated by evils, our spirit can only sigh for the past, “God hath made man upright.”
4. That man makes the evils which trouble him. “They have sought out many inventions.” The sad moral calamity of our race has not destroyed human activity. The powers of our nature still exert themselves with restless effort, but they have taken a wrong direction. They are fruitful in those “inventions” which, though marked by fertility of device and skill, are yet hurtful, and are but great powers altogether misused. The Religious Philosopher does not dwell here upon external actions, but goes rather to their spring in the perverse thinkings of the mind. The devices of natural reason—useless or impious speculations—have often corrupted and confused the truth. Instead of receiving Divine wisdom with the simple instinct and faith of childhood, man follows his own dazzling speculations, and the higher knowledge is hidden from him. (Mat_11:25.) These perverse thinkings are the seed from which the evil of the world springs, for sin works from within outwardly, from thought to act. The assumed superiority in moral strength and excellence, which man may have over the woman, is but a short-lived and unseemly boast in the presence of that sinfulness which belongs to all the race.
SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS ON THE VERSES
Ecc_7:23. The true teacher must be a constant learner. He can only impart what he has gained by trial and exercise.
Though the effort is beset with tremendous difficulties, yet the resolve to be wise, at all hazards, is noble and praiseworthy.
Our study of the mysteries of God, man, and nature, is not altogether barren of results. We are able to “know in part.” We gather a few facts, and by a kind of prophetic insight, frame those portable and convenient statements of them called hypotheses and laws. But even the wisest must confess that the ultimate mystery is as far off as ever.
There are some fixed stars whose distance is so great, that when observed from the extremes of the diameter of the earth’s orbit, they show no change of direction; thus affording no data for the calculation of their distances. If we could get nearer to them, then we should discover how far off they are. He who has approached the nearest to the great secrets of God and this universe, is most of all conscious how distant he is from absolute wisdom.
The goal of intellectual wisdom lies so far off that the hope of attaining it can impart no solid satisfaction. But there is a Divine word which is ever nigh unto man; yea, in his heart, and ready to break forth from his mouth. We need not seek for it in the height of heaven or in the abyss (Rom_10:6-8).
He had said, indeed, “I will be wise.” He had set his heart on understanding all mysteries and all knowledge. In that vain confidence to which at one time he had given way, he had imagined himself to be equal to the task of unlocking every secret, whether of nature or of Providence, and of leaving no difficulty unexplained. Time and the trial had undeceived him, and had taught him to form a humbler and juster estimate of the powers that are given to man.… The dark problems which he had thought to solve remained, many of them as far from solution as ever. Such was the experience of Solomon, and such will, and must, be the experience of every finite mind [Buchanan].
Ecc_7:24. Neither the wide range of subjects with which the intellect can grapple, nor its power of penetrating their depths, can put us into the possession of those secret things which God has reserved for Himself.
The infinite superiority of God renders it necessary that many things be concealed from man. Such mystery and reserve are the life of adoration.
Though Revelation is clear on all matters of practical duty, yet it presents truths whose mysterious depths it does not illumine. Such are the eternity and immensity of God—the mystery of creation—the existence of evil under a holy and righteous government—the dealings of God with men in Providence and in grace.
We can have no true happiness if we wait for perfect satisfaction of the intellect. We can only comprehend God through love. Neither height nor depth can vanquish or distress him who has the love of God in his heart (Rom_8:39).
Wisdom is so far off that it is not known from whence it cometh, nor where the place of it is (Job_28:20). It is so deep that the depth saith it is not in me, and the sea saith it is not with me. It is so far, that the weakness of man’s understanding is over-wearied before it can come unto it; so exceeding deep that the eyes of man’s understanding is dazzled to look into it, and man’s wit is endangered by venturing into it. It is deep and deep, as the original expresses it—deep to men, deep to angels [Jermin].
Ecc_7:25. Wisdom does not yield her treasures to the indolent, but only to minds accustomed to earnest and patient toil.
Truth is so often mixed with error, so completely confused and disguised by that which has gathered around it, that it is only traced out with difficulty and cleared from the entanglement.
We must not be satisfied with the simple observation of facts; we should try to discover their causes, or the principles they illustrate. It is the glory of the human intellect that it can contemplate laws, and does not depend upon the limited information gained from passive impressions.
However painful the task may be, the great teachers of mankind must investigate the causes of the chief dangers to virtue.
There are some forms of human evil so bold, full of wild passion, and irrational, that they stand out like mountains on the scene of the world’s guilt.
That which is truly good is more clearly seen when we consider the evil that is contrary to it. The beauty of holiness, and excellency of saving knowledge, is illustrated, and best seen, when the deformity of sin, the madness and unreasonableness of those courses which natural men take to come at their imaginary happiness, are compared therewith [Nisbet].
Ecc_7:26. To know the wickedness of folly, the wickedness and foolishness of madness, seems equivalent to knowing the worst species of it.… In his own wild career he had come in contact with folly, and he had himself wrought folly of many sorts. And now, comparing all these one with another, so as to ascertain to which of them the pre-eminence of evil should be assigned, this was the conclusion at which he had arrived. These terribly significant words point plainly to the same seducer of whose base and destructive arts so startling a picture is given in Chap. 7 of the Book of Proverbs [Buchanan].
How strong the expression—“whose heart is snares and nets!” signifying the multitude of her devices of temptation, and the consummate skill, the secrecy, the address, the guile, with which she uses them for the accomplishment of her purposes. Her very “heart is snares and nets,” in whose intricate and entangling meshes the fascinated and deluded soul is taken captive to its destruction. “And her hands as bands.” Her powers of detention are equal to her powers of allurement. Her heart is a net, to entangle the unwary; her hands as bands, to hold him fast when her wiles have proved successful. So irresistible is the power, operating like the spell of enchantment, by which she retains under her influence the hapless victim of her charms [Wardlaw].
The most pleasant fountains of sin turn, in the end, into the bitterness of long regret.
Education and culture—the restraints of human prudence, may do much to preserve the maintenance of the highest virtue, in the face of the most insidious allurements. But religion furnishes the highest motives, the most powerful restraints. The noble ambition to stand well in the sight of God is the only trustworthy sentinel of virtue.
By “the sinner” is meant one who is thoroughly vicious—with whom the practice of evil is habitual. With such the power to resist temptation grows less, and they become an easy prey to every pleasurable sin.
Ecc_7:27. Sin cannot be treated by vague generalities, the forms of it are so many and diversified. We must descend to particulars in order to make a deep impression.
Even the most patent facts should not be treated as known upon a mere surface inspection. The real knowledge of them can only be gained by minute investigation.
Knowledge comes not to man by sudden irradiations, but by slow degrees—by adding, arranging, and reflecting.
Ecc_7:28. Much is gained by the diligent seeker after wisdom—many facts, principles, lessons, and warnings; but the full possession of wisdom is not permitted to man.
Men of the highest qualities of mind and soul, powerful in word and influence, are but rarely found. There are but few stars of the first magnitude.
The strong expression of a truth brought home to the soul by sore experience, may easily wear the appearance of harshness and exaggeration.
The Preacher may refer to woman in regard to her attainments in Divine wisdom. The superior delicacy of her natural sensibilities often give her the advantage of an immediate and vivid perception of truth, to which man attains chiefly by the slow and laboured processes of the mind. Yet this power, when directed into wrong channels, shows a faculty just as strong in embracing error and superstition. It must be confessed that the natural weakness of woman has contributed, in no small measure, to the spread of these evils. They have too often been the natural home of frivolities both in life and religion. Though the Bible records the praise of many noble women, yet the fact remains that an inspired Apostle thought it necessary to warn the Church against dangers arising from this source (1Ti_2:12. 1Co_14:34). They are the easy dupes of false teachers (2Ti_3:6).
Never, perhaps, has there been any period in the history of the visible Church of God, and certainly never in these more modern times, concerning which we are best informed, in which the majority of those who lived in the fear and love of God were not women. Solomon is here evidently speaking, and that as a humbled penitent, of his own particular case. He had loved “many strange women,” outdoing, in this respect, the laxity and the luxury of the heathen monarchs around him.… Is it any wonder that in such a household, even among the thousand he had gathered into it, one solitary example of real goodness could not be found? Among his male attendants and courtiers, gay and dissolute as the society of the palace had become, one might now and then be met with who had not forgotten the piety and integrity of other and better days [Buchanan].
Ecc_7:29. The present evils of man are not to be charged upon his Maker.
However rude and vague the commencement the Creator may have given to inanimate matter, as the God of souls He must needs produce His own image in fit perfection.
“Upright,”
1. As to his mind. It was a plain mirror wherein the images of truth were reflected without distortion. The knowledge he possessed was, in its kind, perfect and pure, unmixed with baser matter.
2. As to his affections. They were fixed on God. He was pleased and attracted only by what was noble and good.
3. As to his conscience. As an indicator, it was in a condition of perfect adjustment and delicacy. As an instrument of moral control, it had both the right and the power to rule.
4. As to his will. It had no perversity, no element of rebellion; but was easily determined to that which was right and good.
The hurtful inventions—the evil arts and devices of the human intellect, are marked by endless complexity, variety, and skill. This is power ill-directed and misapplied; but still a power, great in its perversion and ruin.
The first Paradise will never return; for the past never returns to us, bringing the same features as those long since vanished. But by that Divine mercy which triumphs over all difficulties, and through them educes a greater good, there will be for man a better Paradise than the first.
We read that in the future Paradise there will be a “tree of life,” but no “tree of knowledge.” “The glory of the Lord did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.” The mind will then allow God’s light to shine upon it instead of working out its own devices.
The actual existence of moral evil is too notorious to admit of a moment’s question. The Bible account of its origin did not cause it; it existed independently of the revelation which informs us how it began; and the rejection of that revelation neither removes nor mitigates it, nor disencumbers it, in the slightest degree, of its embarrassing difficulties. On the contrary, revelation alone, whilst it assumes and proceeds upon the mournful fact, provides a remedy; all other systems, finding human nature in ruins, leave it as they find it. Revelation rears out of the ruins a magnificent and holy Temple to the God of purity and love [Wardlaw].
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 All this have I proven
All this have I proven
here the word "this" refers to all of the things the author has written about. AT: "All this that I have already written about have I proven" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
Read full note →
it was more than I could be
"it was beyond my ability to understand" or "but I was not able to do it"
far off and very deep
This speaks of wisdom being difficult to understand as if it were something located far away or in a very deep place. AT: "difficult to understand" (See: Idiom)
Who can find it?
The writer uses this rhetorical question to emphasize the difficulty in understanding wisdom. This question can be written as a statement. AT: "No one can understand it." (See: Rhetorical Question)
I turned my heart
Here the word "heart" refers to the mind. Also, here the word "turned" is an idiom. AT: "I directed my thoughts" or "I determined" (See: Metonymy and Idiom)
the explanations of reality
"the reason for things." This word "explanations" can be expressed as a verb. AT: "how to explain various things in life" (See: Abstract Nouns)
translationWords
wise
understand
evil
fool
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 7:23-25 it didn’t work: The Teacher was not able…
7:23-25 it didn’t work: The Teacher was not able to find the wisdom that he sought or the reason for things. Such reasons are hidden in the mind of God (3:11; 8:17).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.