The Pulpit Commentary — Ecclesiastes — Section 54

tho some experiment os the king di<l? He consistent with Kohcleth's religion to refer could not do so under more favouroblo con- this termination to fate or accident. With ditions, and will only repeat the same pro- all hie experience, he could only conclude cess and reach the some result. But the that in one important as~ct the observ,Y.1 posRoge ia obscure, and every interpretation superiority of wisdom to folly was illusou hlLB its own ditiioulty. If the 7'i with which and vain. He saw with his own eyes, n.n;I the second portion of the passage begins needed no instructor to teach, that both (" for what," eto.) assigns the reason or wise and fool must succumb to death, the motive of the fil'st portion, shows what we.a universal leveller. Horace, in many pas- the design ofKoheleth in contra.sting wisdom sages, sings of this: thus 'Carm.,' ii. 3. 21- and folly, the rendering of the Authorized Version is not inappropriate. Many critics " Di veene prisco natns ab !nacho, consider that Solomon is here speaking of Nil interest, an pauper et infima. his successor, askiug what kind of man he De gente sub divo moreris, will be who comes after him-the man whom Victima nil miscrantis Orci." some have alreo.dy chosen? And certainly (Comp. ibhl., i. 28. 15, etc.; ii. 14. 9, etc.) there is some ground for this interpretation Plato (' Phredo,' !vii. p. 108, A) refers to in vers. 18, 19, where the complaint is that e. passage in 'Telephua,' a lost play of all the king's greatness and glory will be 1Eschylus, which is restored thus- left to an unworthy successor. But this view requires the Solomonic authorship of 'A1r,\,j -yo:p olµ.os 1rd11Tas sis "A,6ou ,P<pfl. the book, 1md makes him to refer to Re- "A single path leads all unto the grave." hoboam or some illegitimate usw·per. The wording of the text is too general to admit Ver. 15.-Then (and) said I in my heart of this ElXJJlanation ; nor does it exactly suit (eh. i. 16), As it happeneth to the fool, so it the immediate context, or duly connect the happeneth even to me. He applies the two clauses of the verse. It seems best to general statement of ver. 14 to his own toke the successor, not as one who comes to ce.se. The end that overtakes the fool will the kingdom, but as one who pursues similar ere long overtake him; and he proceeds, investigations, repents Koheleth's experi- Why was I then more wise t "Then" (1~). ments. m[l.y be understood either logically, i.e. in Ver. 13.-Then (and) I saw that wisdom this case, since such is the fate of wise and excelleth folly, as far as light excelleth dark- foolish; or temporally, nt the hour of death ness; or, there is profit, advantage (1replrr<Te111., regarded as past. He puts the question- Septuagint, eh. i. 3) to wisdom over folly, as To what end, with what design, has he the advantage of light over darlmess. 'fhis been so excessively wise, or, e.s it may be, result, at o.ny rote was obto.ined-he learned wise overmuch (oh. vii. 16)? His wisdom tho.t wisdom had a certain value, that it has, ne it were, recoiled upon himself-it was as much superior to folly, in its effects on taught him much, but not content; it made men, as light is more beneficial thnn dark- him keen-sighted in seeing the emptiness of ness. It is a no.tural metaphor to represent human things, but it satisfied not his crav- spiritual and intellectual development o.s ings. Then I said in my heart, that this light, and mental and moral depro.vity o.s also is vanity. This similarity of fate for do.rkness (comp. Eph. v. 8; 1 Thess. v. 5). philosopher and fool mnkcs life vnin and Ver. 14.-The wise man's eyes ore in his worthless ; or rather, the mcnning mny be, hoad ; but the fool walketh in darkness. if the superiority of wisdom over folly con- This olause is closely connected with the duces to no other end than this, that superi- preceding verse, showing how wisdom ex- ority is a vanity. The LXX. has glossed celleth folly. The wise man has the eyes the passage, followed herein by the Syriac, of his heart or understanding enlightened "Moreover, I spake in my henrt that indeed (Eph. i. 18); he looks into the no.ture of this is also vanity, becau~e the fool spanks things, fixes his regard on what is most im- out of his abundance "-ver. 16 giving tho pc.na.nt, sees where to go; while the fool's substance of the fool's thoughts. Vulgate. eyes are in the ends of the earth (Prov. xvii. Loc11tu.sque cum menle mea, animadverti 24); he walks on still in da.rkness, stum- quod lioc quoque esset variitas. Ot1r Hehrew bling as be goes, knowing not whither his text does not confirm this interpretation or roe.d sha.11 take him. And I myself also addition. (I even I) peroeived that one event happeneth Ver. 16.-J'or there is no ramembra.nce of to them all, "Event" (miMeh); <Tv11rJ.11,,.11µci the wise more than of the fool for ever ; (Septmtgint); interitus(Vulgate); not chance, Revised Version, more emphatically, for but death, the final event. 'l'he word is trcms- of the wise 11wn, even as of the fool, there is ln.tecl "hap" in Ruth ii. 3, an~ "chance•: in no remembrance for c1·er. This, of course, l Sam. vi. 9; bnt the connection here pomts is not absolutely true. There ttre men to II definite termination; nor would it be whose names are history, aml will cndnro  ECCLESIASTES; OH, 'l'HE PREACHER. [en. u. 1-26,