The Pulpit Commentary — Ecclesiastes — Section 151

his own day (Wright), There is nothing very heroic or inspiring in the counsel. It is simply an admonition, based on prudence, to escape personal danger by stolidly submitting to evils which one's own power can do nothing to abolish or alleviate, To those who under an Oriental despotism had become hopeless and dispirited, the words might seem worthy of a wise counsellor; but surely there is a servile ring about them which ill harmonizes with the love of freedom and intolerance of tyranny which ars native to .a European mind. There is but one relieving circumstance in connection with the:rn, and that is that submission to oppression is not commanded in them or asserted to be a duty; and therefore .those in whose hearts the love of country and of justice burns brightly, and who find that a pure and devoted patriotism moves them to make many sacrifices for the good of their fellows, violate no canon of Scripture when they rise, superior to the prudential considerations dwelt upon here. Granted that submission to the. inevitable is the price at which material safety and happiness may be bought, it is still a question at many times whether the patriot should not hazard material safety and happiness in the attempt to win for his country and for himself a higher boon.-J. W. Ver. 9,-,-.A well-ordered state. In contrast with the evils produced by an adminis- tration ii:J. which all the officials, from the lowest to the highest, seek to enrich themseh:es, our author ·now sets the picture of a well-governed community, in which the efficient cultivation of the land is a matter of the first consideration, and all classes of the population, up to the .king himself, share in the consequent prosperity. (The verse has been differently rendered, but the translation of both our Revised and Authorized Versions is probably the best reproduction of the original words.) From the kings who wasted the resources of the lands over which they ruled in carrying on bloody wars, and in the indulgence of their capricious tastes, he turns to those who, like Uzziah, encouraged agriculture, and under whose beneficent rule Judah enjoyed the blessings of peace and prosperity (2 Chron. xxvi. 10). "The profit of the earth is for ell." All are dependent upon the labours of the husbandman for the supply of the necessaries of life. By the judicious cultivation of the soil wealth is accumulated, by which comforts and luxuries are to be procured, so that even" the king himself is served by the field." The king, indeed, is more dependent upon the husbandman than the husbandman upon the king; without his labours there would be no bread for the royal palace, and no luxuries could make up for the absence of this necessary of life. We have, surely, in this consideration a strong proof of the dignity and value of the humblest labour, and in the fact of the mutual dependence of all classes upon each other an argument for the necessity of mutual forbearance and co-operation. A very striking illustration of the teaching here given is afforded in an incident which took pla;ce at Heidelberg in the reign of Frederic L (1152-1190). "This prince invited to a banquet all the factious barons whom he had vanquished at Seckingen, and who had previously ravaged and laid waste great part of the palatinate. Among them were the Bishop of Mentz and the Margrave of Baden, The repast was plentiful and luxurious, but there was no bread. The warrior-guests looked round with sur- prise and inquiry. 'Do you ask for bread?' said l<'redcric, sternly; 'you who have wasted the fruits of the earth, and destroyed those whose industry cultivates it? There is no bread. Eat, and be satisfied; and learn henceforth mercy to tho:ce who put the bread into your mouths'" (quoted in 'Sketches of Germany,' by Mrs. Jameson).-J. W. Vers. 10-20.-The dratubacks upon wealth. The series of aphorisms which begins in ver. 10 is not unconnected with what precedes it. It is for wealth generally that the unjust judge and oppressive ruler barters his peace of mind, sells his very soul. As the means for procuring sensual gratification, for surrounding one's self with ostent::itious lux.ury, and for carrying out ambitious schemes, riches have great fascination. The Preacher, however, records at length the drawbacks connected with them, which are calculated to diminish the envy with which the poor very often regnrd those who possess them, Probably the bulk of mankind would say that they nre willing to put up with the drawbacks if only they could possess the riches. But surely those who read the Word of God reverently and with a docile spirit are disposed to profit by the 136 ECCLESIAST:ES; OR, THE PRElACBF.llt, [ou, v. 1-20,