general intention, "Be not righteous nor wise wickedness, which, o.s we have seen, is not to excess; be not wicked nor foolish to ex- the meaning. St. Gregory, indeed, who uses cess." Septue.gin t, " Be uot very wicked, a.nd the La.tio Version, notes the.t to fear God is be not stubborn (<11<i1:r1p&s)." Why shouldest never to pa.as over e.ny good thing that ought thou die before thy,time 1 litera.lly, not in thy to be done (' Mora.I.,' i. 3); but he is not time; prematurely, tempting God to punish professing to comment on the whole pe.sse.ge. thee by retributive judgment, or shortening Wright, after Delilzsch, takes the term thy days by vicious excesses. (For the former, "come out of" a.s equivalent to "fuffil," so see Job xxii. 16; Ps. lv. 23; Prov. x. 27; and tbe.t the meaning would be, "He who fears comp. 1 Se.m. ii. 31, 33; a.nd for the latter, God performs all the duties mentioned abov~. Prov. v. 23; vii. 23-27; x. 21.) The Syriao e.nd a.voids extremes," as Matt. xxiii. 23, contains e. clause not given in e.ny other "These ought ye to ha,...e done, and not to version, "that thou me.yest not be hated." have left the other undone." But this is As is often the case, both iu this book and confessedly e. Talmudic use of the verb; in Proverbs, a. general statement in one place e.nd the Authorized Version may be safely is reduced by e. contrariant or modified adopted. The Septuagint gives, "For to opinion in another. Thus the prolongation them that fear God all things shall come of the life of the wicked, noticed in ver. 15, forth well." is here shown to be abnormal, impiety in the Ver. 19.-Wisdom strengtheneth the wise. usual course of events having a tendency to The moderation enjoined is the only true shorten life. In this we.y hasty generaliza- wisdom, which, indeed, is the most powerful tion is corrected, e.nd the Divine e.rre.nge- incentive and support. "Wisdom proves it- ment is vindicated. self stronger" (e.s the verb is put intransi- Ver. 18.~It is good that thou shouldeet tively) "to the wise man." Septuagint, te.ke hold of thill ; yea, also from this with- /301)6~<1 .. , "will help;" Vulge.te, confortauit, draw not thine hand. The pronouns refer "hath strengthened." The spiritual o.nd to the two warnings in vers. 16 e.nd 17 moral force of the wisdom grounded upon e.ge.inst over-righteousness e.nd over-wicked- the fear of God is here signified, e.nd is all ness. Koheleth does not advise e. man to the more insisted upon to counteract &ny make trial of opposite lines of conduct, to erroneous impression conveyed by the caution taste the fruit of the tree of knowledge of e.gainst over-wisdom in ver. 16 (see note on good o.nd evil, tho.t from o. wide experience ver. 17, at the end). More the.n ten mighty he me.y, like e. me.n of the world, pursue a men which a.re in the oity. The number safe course; this would be poor morality, ten indicates completeness, containing in it- e.nd unmeet for the stage at which his argu- self the whole arithmeticnl system, and used ment be.s arrived. Rather he advises him representatively for an indefinite multitude. to lny to heart the cautions above given, and Thus Job (xix. 3) oomplains thot his learn from them to a.void o.11 extremes. As friends he.ve reproached him teu times, e.nd Horace ea.ye (' Epist.,' i. 18. 9)- Elk11na.h asks hie murmuring wife, "Am I not better to thee thrm ten sons ? " (1 Sam. " Virtue est medium vitiorum et utrinque i. 8). Delilzeoh thinks tho.t some definite reductum." political arrangement is referred to, e.g. the "Folly, e.s usual, in extremes is seen, dyne.sties placed by Persil\n kings over con- While virtue nicely hits the happy mean." quered countries; and Tyler notes thot in (Howes.) the Mi8hne. a. city is defined to be I\ place containing ten men of leisure; nnd we know The Vulgate be.a interpolated e. word, and tho.t ten men were required for tho establish- ta.ken the pronoun a.a masculine, to the sacri- ment of a synagoguo in o.ny locality. The fice of the sense e.nd connection : Bonum est so.me idea. we.a present in the Anglo-Saxon te austentare justum, sed et ab illo ne aubtrahaa e.rrangement of tything and hundred. The manum tuam, "It is good that thou ehouldst number, however, is probably used indefi- support the just me.n, ne.y, from him with- nitely here e.s seven in the parallel passage draw not thy hand." For he tho.t feareth of Ecclesio.sticus (xxxvii.14), "A man's mind God ehe.11 come forth of them all; shall esco.pe is sometime wont to tell him more tho.n seven both extremes together with theil- evil re- watchmen that sit above in a high tower." sults. The fear of God will keep a man The sentence may bo compnreci with Prov. from all excesses. The intmnsitive verb x. 15; xxi, 22; xxiv. 5. '!'he word rendered yatsa, "to go forth," is here used with an "mighty men" (sluillitim) fa not necessarily acous&tive (comp. Gen. xliv. 4, which, how- a milita.ry designation; it is tr~nslated ever, is not quite e.nnlogous), e.s in Lntin " ruler" in oh. x. 5, and "governor" in ingre4i urbem (Livy, i. 29). Vulge.tc, Qui Gen. xiii. 6. Tho Septuagint h~re has timet Deum nihil negligit. So Hitzig o.ud 'E!ovo·ui(oVT<U 'l'ous 6vns lv 7i/ '11'0AEI ; the 0
Ginsburg, "Goes, mnkos his we.y with both," Vulgate, •principes civitatis. The persons knows bow to avo.il himself of piety o.nd intended a.re not prima.rily men of Yl\lour i11 164 ECCLESIASTES; OR, THE PREACHER. [cu. vu.1-29.