More Words of Wisdom

Ecclesiastes 10:4 ¶ If the spirit of the ruler rise up against thee, leave not thy place; for yielding pacifieth great offences.

Solomon is basically advising one who finds himself in trouble with one in authority over him, he should stay calm and avoid the instinct to run away in fear or respond in anger. Proving oneself calm and with self control in such circumstances go a long way in defusing the situation and restoring normalcy.

I thought it was interesting that the Hebrew for “yielding” made reference to being curative and healing. We are so quick to associate yielding with weakness while it is actually often an action showing strength and self-control.

Ecclesiastes 10:5-7 There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, as an error which proceedeth from the ruler: Folly is set in great dignity, and the rich sit in low place. I have seen servants upon horses, and princes walking as servants upon the earth.

I think the NLT stated the heart of the meaning the best: “Kings and rulers make a grave mistake if they give foolish people great authority, and if they fail to give people of proven worth their rightful place of dignity.”

I think this truth is in great evidence today as we look at many of the appointments that President Obama has made. I know that God has some purpose for allowing Mr. Obama to hold the office of President in our country at this time; I’m just afraid it might be a case of reaping what we have sown. I will continue to pray for Him to come to a true understanding of God’s word and respond with a soft heart, and I hope that there are many Christians joining me in that prayer.

Ecclesiastes 10:8-11 He that diggeth a pit shall fall into it; and whoso breaketh an hedge, a serpent shall bite him. Whoso removeth stones shall be hurt therewith; and he that cleaveth wood shall be endangered thereby. If the iron be blunt, and he do not whet the edge, then must he put to more strength: but wisdom is profitable to direct. Surely the serpent will bite without enchantment; and a babbler is no better.

In this section of verses Solomon is basically stating that life is full of risks, but those risks can be limited when we use wisdom. Preparing well, taking safety precautions and making use of good instruments facilitate achieving one’s objective efficiently and without mishap.

Other translations made the last verse much easier to understand; it is basically saying that there is no benefit to the snake charmer in charming a snake after it bites. It helps to know that the Hebrew for babbler means master. This seems to be saying that one’s expertise can be useless if not utilized in a timely manner.