Old Testament Commentary - Ecclesiastes 5

by Don R. Hender

Scriptural Text [& Editorial]	Commentary & Explanation	Footnotes ~ References ~ JST
CHAPTER 5 God is in heaven—A fool's voice is known by multitude of words—Keep thy vows—Riches and wealth are the gift of God.
1 ^aKEEP thy foot when thou goest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear, than to give the sacrifice of fools: for they consider not that they do evil. 2 Be not ^arash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be ^bhasty to ^cutter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy ^dwords be few. 3 For a dream cometh through the multitude of business; and a fool's voice is known by multitude of words.		1^a TG Reverence 2^a TG Rashness ^b TG Haste ^c Matt. 12:36; Eph. 5:4 ^d Matt. 6:7
4 When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it; for he hath no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast ^avowed^a. 5 Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest ^avow and not pay. 6 Suffer not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin; neither say thou before the angel, that it was an error: wherefore should God be angry at thy voice, and destroy the work of thine hands? 7 For in the multitude of dreams and many words there are also divers ^avanities: but ^bfear thou God.	4^a pay that which thou hast vowed Here the translated word 'pay' is not will interpreted. Its meaning is not just in relationship to the 'paying' or money or sacrificial tribute, but it also means and applies to the actual 'keeping the commitment of the covenant vow made'. These 'covenant vows' included all those made in relationship to obey the commandments and the 'law of commitment' of the Law of Moses. Jeremiah 34 is one such example wherein Jeremiah condemns the Jews for NOT living up to their temple vows they had made at the time of installation of King Zedekiah of releasing the Hebrew servants according to their commitment to live by the Law of Moses (see Jeremiah 34:18-20). As a part of the sacrificial ceremony, the covenant is made in verbal oaths to live by the Law of Moses and the men of Israel participating in the ceremony would pass between the parts of the calf which had been cut in twain. We do not have such ceremonial details passed down though Jeremiah's witness against the Jews certaily does allude directly to such an accompanying ceremony being performed along with the temple sacrifice of the calf.	4^a Lev. 22:21 5^a TG Honesty 7^a TG Vanity ^b OR revere thou God; Eccl. 3:14
8 ¶ If thou seest the ^aoppression of the poor, and violent perverting of ^bjudgment and justice in a province, marvel not at the matter: for he that is higher than the highest regardeth; and there be higher than they.		8^a TG Oppression ^b TG Judgment
9 ¶ Moreover the profit of the earth is for all: the king himself is served by the field. 10 He that loveth ^asilver shall not be satisfied with silver; nor he that loveth abundance with increase: this is also ^bvanity. 11 When goods increase, they are increased that eat them: and what good is there to the owners thereof, saving the beholding of them with their eyes?		10^a TG Treasure ^b TG Vanity
12 The ^asleep of a ^blabouring man is sweet, whether he eat little or much: but the abundance of the rich will not suffer him to sleep. 13 There is a ^asore evil which I have seen under the sun, namely, riches kept for the owners thereof to their hurt. 14 But those riches perish by evil travail: and he begetteth a son, and there is nothing in his hand.		12^a TG Sleep ^b TG Industry; TG Labor 13^a OR grievous
15 As he came forth of his mother's womb, ^anaked shall he return to go as he came, and shall take nothing of his labour, which he may carry away in his hand. 16 And this also is a sore evil, that in all points as he came, so shall he go: and what profit hath he that hath laboured for the wind? 17 All his days also he eateth in darkness, and he hath much sorrow and wrath with his sickness.		15^a Job 1:21
18 ¶ Behold that which I have seen: it is good and comely for one to eat and to drink, and to enjoy the good of all his ^alabour that he taketh under the sun all the days of his life, which God giveth him: for it is his ^bportion. 19 Every man also to whom God hath given ^ariches and wealth, and hath given him power to eat thereof, and to take his portion, and to rejoice in his ^blabour; this is the ^cgift of God. 20 For he shall not much remember the days of his life; because God answereth him in the joy of his heart.		18^a TG Industry ^b Eccl. 2:10 19^a TG Treasure ^b TG Labor ^c TG God, Gifts of