The Pulpit Commentary — Ecclesiastes — Section 173

When he wns boy, now ever blaming rather, and an ad'l/antage for thoae that sea youth." the sun. However useful wealth may be, And 'Epiet.,' ii. I. 22- wisdom is that which is really beneficial to all who Ii ve and rejoice in the light ot " .. , et nisi qum terris semote. euieque day. In Homer the phrase, 6piiv q,&m 1,,l\to,o, Temporibue defuncto. videt, foetidit et odit." " to eee the light of the sun" (' Iliad,' "All tho.t is not moat distant and removed xviii. 61), signifies merely "to live;" From his own time and place, he loatLes Plumptre considers it to be used here and and scorn,s." in eh. xix. 7 in order to convey the thought tho.t, after all, life has its bright side. Uox For thou dost not inquire wisely conoerning would lake it to mean to live much in the tlllB, In aekiug such a question you show sun, i.e. to lead an active lif&-which is an that you have not reflected wisely on the imported modern notion. matter. Every age has its light and dark Ver. 12.-For wisdom is e. defence, and side; the past was not wholly light, the money is a defenoe; literally, in the shade is present is not wholly dark. And it may wisdom, in the shade is money; Septuagint, well be questioned whether much of the .,On Ev O'K1~ C2.(1T-ijs '1] crocpla. Ws O'Kul ll.p""fvpfov, glamour shed over e.ntiquity is not false and "For iu its shadow wisdom is as the shadow unreal. The days of "Good Queen Dess" of money." Symmachus has., ;1.,ce..-e, crorp{a. were anything but halcyon ; the "merrie C:.s cr,cfre1 ..-b cip-y6p,ov, "Wisdom shelter3 England" of old time was full of disorder, as money shelters." The Vulgate explains distress, discomfort. In yearning again for the obscure text by paraphrasi?og, Sicut enim the flesh-pots of Egypt, the Israelites forgot protegit sapientia, sic protegit pecunia. the bondage nnd misery which were the Shadow, in Oriental phrase, is equivaleut to accompaniments of those sensual pleasures. protection (see Numb. xiv. 9; Ps. xvi i. 8; Ver. 11.-Such hasty judgment is incom- Lam. iv. 20). Wisdom as well as money po.tible with true wisdom and sagacity. is e. shield and defence to men . .A.sit is said Wisdom is good with an inherite.noe ; in one pas,age (Prov. xiii. 8) that riches Septuagint, •A-ya.8¾ o-orpla. µ.ero. 1<M7povoµ.las. are the ransom of e. man's life, so in another Vulgate, Utilior est sapientia cum divitiis. (eh. ix. 15) we are told how wisdom The sentence thus rendered seems to mean delivered a city from destruction. The that wee.Ith lends II prestige to wisdom, litcr,11 translation given above implies that that the man is ilo.ppy who possesses both. he who hllB wisdom and he who has money The inheritance spoken of is an heredita1·y rest under e. safe protection, are secure one; the man who is '' rich with o.noestr,\l from material evil. In this respect they wealth" is enabled to employ his wisdom are alike, and have analogous clo.ims to to good purpose, his position adding wflight man's rega.rd. Bnt the exoellenoy-proflt, or to his words e.nd actions, and relieving him o.dvo.ntage-of knowledge is, that wisdom from the low pursuit of money-me.king, To giveth life to them that have it. " Know- this effect Wright quotes Meuo.nder- ledge" (daath) and "wisdom" (clwkmah) Ma.,cclp,os llo-..-,s oucrla.v 1ta.l vouv lx«· are practically ht•re identical, the terms ,, Xpij..-a., 'Yap o?i..-os ,ls &6,, ..-a.,hp ,ca)..ws. beiug varied for the sake of poetic paral- "Bleat is the man who wealth and wisdom lelism. The Revised Version, followiug hath, Delitzach and others, renders, Wisdom For he can use hie riches as he ought." preserveth tlie life of llim that hatll it; i.e. secures him from passions and excesses (Comp. Prov. xiv. 24.) Many commentators, which tend to shorten life. This seems to thinking such a sentiment alien from the be scurcely o.n a,lequo.te ground for the context, render the particle op not "with," noteworthy e.dvaniage which wis,lom is said but " e.s : " Wisdom is [as] good as an in- to possess. The Septuagint gives, Ka.I ,..,. heritance" (see on eh. ii. 16). This is putting plcrcre,a -yvd,cr,o,r ..-ijs uorpla.s (0,0,ro,~0'<1 ..-o, wisdom on rather a low platform, and one ..-a.p' a.~..-ijs, '' And the excellence of tho know- would ho.1·e expected to read some such ledge of wisdom will quicken him that ho.th aphori~m o.s "Wisdom is better than rubies" it." Something moro than the mere nnimo.l (Prov. viii. 11), if Koheleth ho.d iutended to life is signified, a climo.x to tho " defence" make any such comparison. It o.ppear3 then mentioned in the preceding clause-the most expedient to take im in the sense of highor, spiritual life which man has from " moreover," "as well as," "and'' ( comp. God. Wisdom iu the highest sense, that is, l Sam. xvii. 42, "ruddy, and (im) of a foir pro.ctico.l piety and religion, is "e. tree of oountennnoe "). "Wisdom is good, and an life to them that lay hold of her, and happy inherito.noe is good; " both are good, but the is every one that reto.ineth her" (Prov. iii. advantngesoftheformer, e.s ver. 12 intimates, 18), where it is implied tLo.t wisdom restores far outweigh those of the latter. And by it to mo.n the gift which ho lost at the Fall there is prollt to them that see tll.e sun ; (comp. e.lso Prov. viii. 85). The Septuf\gint lGO ECCLESIASTES; OR, THE PREACHER. [OH, VII, 1-29.