Ecclesiastes 9 - ESV - Bible Reading / Study Notes

Ecclesiastes 9

Death Comes to All

9:1 But all this I laid to heart, examining it all, how the righteous and the wise and their deeds are in the hand of God. Whether it is love or hate, man does not know; both are before him. 2 It is the same for all, since the same event happens to the righteous and the wicked, to the good and the evil,¹ to the clean and the unclean, to him who sacrifices and him who does not sacrifice. As the good one is, so is the sinner, and he who swears is as he who shuns an oath. 3 This is an evil in all that is done under the sun, that the same event happens to all. Also, the hearts of the children of man are full of evil, and madness is in their hearts while they live, and after that they go to the dead. 4 But he who is joined with all the living has hope, for a living dog is better than a dead lion. 5 For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing, and they have no more reward, for the memory of them is forgotten. 6 Their love and their hate and their envy have already perished, and forever they have no more share in all that is done under the sun.

Enjoy Life with the One You Love

7 Go, eat your bread with joy, and drink your wine with a merry heart, for God has already approved what you do.

8 Let your garments be always white. Let not oil be lacking on your head.

9 Enjoy life with the wife whom you love, all the days of your vain² life that he has given you under the sun, because that is your portion in life and in your toil at which you toil under the sun. 10 Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might,³ for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going.

Wisdom Better Than Folly

11 Again I saw that under the sun the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor favor to those with knowledge, but time and chance happen to them all. 12 For man does not know his time. Like fish that are taken in an evil net, and like birds that are caught in a snare, so the children of man are snared at an evil time, when it suddenly falls upon them.

13 I have also seen this example of wisdom under the sun, and it seemed great to me. 14 There was a little city with few men in it, and a great king came against it and besieged it, building great siegeworks against it. 15 But there was found in it a poor, wise man, and he by his wisdom delivered the city. Yet no one remembered that poor man. 16 But I say that wisdom is better than might, though the poor man’s wisdom is despised and his words are not heard.

17 The words of the wise heard in quiet are better than the shouting of a ruler among fools. 18 Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one sinner destroys much good.

Footnotes

[1] 9:2 Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate; Hebrew lacks and the evil
[2] 9:9 The Hebrew term hebel can refer to a “vapor” or “mere breath” (see note on 1:2)
[3] 9:10 Or finds to do with your might, do it

Commentary

v1-3: The reality of death challenges all religion. Why be righteous and do good? Why sacrifice? But true religion goes beyond the grave, and death has been defeated. The writer repeats himself, "one thing happens to all," whether righteous or wicked.

v4: The Pariah dog (scavenger) was despised, contrasted with the lion, the king of beasts. Yet life brings hope, even to the despised, see 4.2.

v5-6: For the preacher, death meant the absence of all feeling and emotion and memory. Death does not join a person to his/her ancestors; human relationships end at death, Matt 22.30.

v7-8: The joy of life. The happy Jews wore white robes and had anointed heads; here is the joy of a justified life.

v9-12: Death us a certainty, therefore live well, enjoying marriage and work. Under the sun there is injustice, and "time and chance," for we all suffer life's problems and hardships; 3.1-8 present a similar thought. Death comes suddenly and unexpectedly. For the Christian, these verses encourage fresh dependence upon God.

Yet the conclusion, at face value, is wrong. It restricts itself to this world, to life 'under the sun.' We need to have an eternal perspective, that Christ will put right all the wrongs - and open the new heavens and new earth in which righteousness dwells (2 Pet 3.13).

v13-16: Again we see that life is unfair, the good man who delivered a city is quickly forgotten. Commentators suggest that Solomon is recalling an incident known to him and perhaps to his readers. The 'hero' of the story is forgotten and returns to obscurity. Such is the unfairness of life.

The deliverer can be easily forgotten; how sad when professing Christians forget Christ, their deliverer, and seek to live without a real commitment to Him.

Wisdom is still preferable, even when it is not acknowledged as such. 'A little subtleness is better than a lot of force.' (Zaire Proverb)

v17: Wise words, spoken quietly, seeking no glory for oneself; different to the shout of the ruler, drawing attention to himself.

v18: The power of wisdom to bring deliverance and victory, "better" relates to God's opinion rather than human popularity.