The Pulpit Commentary — Ecclesiastes — Section 264

" For why-n portioned wife, fair fame, and some unguarded moment: for "out of the friends, abundance of the henrt the mouth speo.keth." Benutv and birth on sovereign Wealth Cune not the rioh in thy bedchamber. In nttcuds. ability to injure, the rich stnnd iu the same D!est is her votRry throned his bags category as the king. You o.re not safe iv nmongl Taµ.teiotf 1<0,Twvo,11 crov, " in your very bed- Persuasion's self sits perched upon bis chamber," where, if nnywhere, you would tongue; fancy yourself free from espionage. But Love beams in every fcature of his face, " walls have ears," says the proverb ( comp. And every gesture beams celestial grace." Hab. ii. 11 ; Luke xix. 40); and the King of (Howes.) Syria. is warned, "Elisha, the prophet that Corn. a La,pide appositely quotes- is in Israel, telleth the King of Israel the words thou -speakest in thy bedchamber" ,, ... quidquid nummis prmsentibus opta, (2 Kings vi. 12). " That which ye have Et veniet; cle.usum possidet arce.Jovem." spoken in the ear in closets ('v Tois Taµ.ielocs) shall be proclaimed upon the housetops" " If thou hast gold, then wish for anything, (Luke xii. 3). For a bird of the air shall And it will surely come; the money-box carry the voioe. A proverbial saying, I-lath in it a most potent deity." common to all languages, and not to be re- rineda, followed by Mote.is, suggests that ferred especially to the story of the cranes this verse may be taken in a good sense. of Ibycus (see Erasmus,' .A.dag.,' s.11. "Ultio He would make ver. 18 correspond to ver. malefucti ") or to the employment of carrier 16, characterizing the government of de- pigeons. We say of secret information, "a bauchees, and ver. 19 correspond to ver. 17, little bird told me." Plumptre quotes representing the rule of temperate princes Aristophanes,' Aves,' 575- where all is peace and prosperity. But 0b6ds 016,11 Tbv 871cra.vpbJ1 Tbll ip)J11 1r>..~v ,r 'TIS there is nothing grammatical to indicnte ll.p' 6p11,s. this arrangement ; and the explanation given above is doubtless correct. The "No one knows of my treasure, save, it may Septuagint Version is not faithful to our be, a bird." present text, though it is followed virtually On which the Scholia.st notes, " There is o. by the Syriac: Els 'YENl>T" ,ro,oiicr,v ll.pToJI, Kai proverb extant, 'No one observes me but the olJ10J1 K<U l>..a.,011 Toii w</)p""B,j""' (CdllTcu, 1cc,I passing bird'" ( comp. Erasmus, •Adag.,' B.'11, 'T'O V CA.p-yvplov Ta.1rEL11CbO'E1 E,rcuc.oVuE'Ta.t Tel wclvTci, " Occulta "). In Koheleth's day informers .. For gladness they make bread and wine evidently plied their trade industriously, and oil, that the living may rejoice, nnd to and here meet, not only with notice, but money all things will humble themselves, ironically with reprobation. On the general will obey" (doubly translating the word). sentiment of the verse, we may quote Ver. 20.--Curse not the king, no not in Juvenal, 'Sat,,' ix. 102, "0 Corydon, thy thought. Under the above-mentioned Oorydon," thus versified in Ginsburg's com• circumstances, a man might be tempted to mentary- abuse and curse these ill-conditioned rulers. ,, And dost.thou seriously believe, fond swain, Koheleth warns against this error; it ia The actions of the great unknown remain? dangerous to give way to it (eomp. Exod. Poor Corydon I _even beasts would silence xxii. 28). In eh. viii. 2 the motive for sub- mi.,,sion to the king is placed on religious break, And stocks and stones, if servants did not, grounds ; in the present passage the ground speak. is prudence, regard for personal safety, Bolt every door, stop every cranny tight, which might be compromised by pla.iu Close every window, put out every light: speaking, especially when one has to do Let not a. whisper reaoh·the listening enr, with such depraved and unscrupulous No noise, no motion ; let no soul be near: persons. We mny compare David's generous Yet all that passed at the cock's second conduct to his cruel persecutor Sa.ul, whom he spared because he was the Lord's crow,. anointed (1 Sa.m. xxiv. 6, 10; :u:vi. 9, etc.: The neighbouring vintner sh11ll, ere d11y- 2 Slim. i. 14). Maddn, "thought,'' "con- break, know." ficiousness," is ra.re, and is supposed to That which hath wings (compare Latin ales); Lidoug to late Hebrew (see 2 Chrou. i. 10, the possessor (baal) of a p11ir of wings, a 11, 12; Dan. i. 4, l 7). The Septuagint periphrasis for "a bird," as in Prov. i. 17. translates it crvvd671crts: Vulgate, ccgitatio. We had " master of the tongoe," ver. 11 ; 'Jo t>pcoumgc such thoughts in the mind is so in Dan. viii. 6, 20, "hnving horns," t8 io rµo thll riijlr of opeiily e:ipressing tpem "t " m11ster (baal) of ~Ofllll," Oil, X. 1-20.] EOCLESIASTES; OR, THE PREACUER. 257