V. 1/2.  Be not rash with your mouth, and let not your heart be hasty to utter a word before God; for God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let  your words be few.  For a dream comes from much concern, and foolish talk from many words.  Several men think that this teaches here that we should not promise something too quickly in the presence of God, and without due consideration of our strengths we vow things, which we cannot then fulfil.  God though is present in heaven, but we seem to be on earth, yet he hears what we say and accuses that our foolishness comes from our love of speech.  But some men understand this better, affirming that this teaches that, either speaking or thinking more about God than we are able, we hold to our opinions; but we know our stupidity, since, as much as the heavens differ from the earth, so our thoughts are separated from His character.  And therefore our words ought to be checked.  Just as he that is much in thought frequently dreams about those things about which he thinks during the day; thus he, who wanted to teach more from divinity, falls into foolishness.  Or indeed it could mean this: our words ought to be few therefore, since even those things, which we think we know, we see through a mirror and in mystery, and as we understand a dream, which we think we can grasp.  Although we have done many things, as it appears to us, the end of our argument is foolishness.  For we do not escape sin by too much speaking[1]. 

3/4.  When you make a vow to God, do not delay paying it, for He has no liking for fools; what you vow, pay.  Better that you not vow at all, than that you vow and not pay.  A simple man does not need understanding by interpretation.  It is better not to promise than not to keep promises, since they displease God and are numbered among fools, who do not fulfil their vows.  But since he says,  "There is no will in fools" underneath we hear "of God", like the word of the apostle, who says, "and just as there was no will, that I should now come to you"[2].  For even if we want to say something more inquiring, it is taught to a Christian, that he should fulfil his faith by work, and not be like the Jews, who pledge and say, "we will do all that God commands"[3], and yet worship idols.  And afterwards they beat those slaves and cast stones at them, and immediately killed the very son of the father of their house.  It is better therefore to hold a doubtful opinion for a while, which is easy to say in words, but difficult to put into practice.  For the slave, who knows the will of his God and will not do it will be defeated by many.        

5.  Let not your mouth bring guilt on your flesh, and do not tell the messenger that it was an error.  Why should God be angered by your speech and destroy the work of your hands?  What the Hebrew means is that if you are not able to do these things, do not promise to do them.  For the words do not transgress to the spirit but are carried at once to the Lord by the angel present, who sticks to one man only as a companion.  You who think to disregard God, since you have promised, you will anger Him, with the result that all your work will be destroyed.  But in that place where he says: "to bring guilt upon your flesh" and he understood this, though not caring diligently, as if he had said "let not your mouth cause you not to sin."  But there seems to me however another meaning, which is argued by those, who complain about the strength of the flesh and say they are compelled by the necessity of the body to do those things that they don't want to do, according to the apostle: "for I do not do what I want, but what I do not wish" and so on.[4]  And so he says, 'don't seek vain excuses and give occasion to your flesh to sin'.  Then in that place where he says "and do not tell the angel that it was a madness" Aquila takes the Hebrew word segaga to mean ignorance, and translates it with the Greek word akousion, that is, not of ones will.  For if you say this, he says, you provoke God, as if to say He is like the creator of evil and sin, and anger Him, so that if you seem to have anything good, He will take it from your possession.  Or indeed he translates such things with the meaning of reproof, so that you do those things, which are not appropriate. 

6.  In spite of all dreams, futility and idle chatter, rather: Fear God!  The Hebrews explain this passage in great detail, and in the following way: and you should not do the things detailed above, about which he has already spoken, lest you believe too readily in dreams.  For when you see different things, your mind will be troubled by many fears throughout your night's rest, or aroused by promises, you despise those things that are dream-like.  You should only fear God.  For he, who believes in dreams, gives himself over to vanities and nonsense.  Another meaning of this passage is, since I have said and admonished, "you should not let your mouth bring guilt on your flesh", and to seek this or that excuse; I introduce this now, since in the dream of that life, and in the appearance, shade, cloud in which we live, we are able to find many things, which seem true to life to us and excuse our sins.  Therefore I advise that you beware that alone, lest you think God is absent, but fear Him, and know He is present in all your toil, and do not force yourself to be hidden in free will, but want whatever it is that you do.  

7/8.  If you see oppression of the poor, and the suppression of justice and right of the State, do not be astonished at the fact, for there is One higher than the high Who watches and there are high ones above them.  The advantage of land is supreme; even a king is indebted to the soil.  Christ's garment, woven on top, was not able to be torn by those who crucified him; and the Saviour threw him from that demon, and advised him to go away having put on the clothes of the apostles.  So we believe that the clothes of our Ecclesiastes are not to be torn, nor should we sew on here and there patches in place of our free-will of opinion, but use the one text itself in dispute, and follow the same meaning and arrangement all the way through.  Above this he had said: "do not tell the messenger that it was a madness, lest God become angry over your speech", and regarding the remaining things, he had spoken against those, who do not know that providence rules over human affairs.  Since therefore the question arises many times about the precept, why the righteous sustain disaster, and why the unjust become judges over all the world, but God is not vengeful: now he introduces and finishes this argument, saying, 'if you see the calamity of a pauper, who is said to be blessed in the Gospel, and the situation is assessed according to his strength and not in justice, do not be astonished or let anything seem new to you.  God, who is highest above the high, sees these things, He that placed His angels above the judges and kings of the earth, to prevent injustice and they are more important on earth, than any of man's potentates.  But since he will be the Saviour at the end of the judges, and in the end of the world when the cornfield will be ripe, and the harvesters will come, he will be ordered that the wheat be separated and the darnel thrown on the fire.  Therefore he now awaits and differs in opinion, although the field of the world is cultivated carefully more fully.  But since that field is interpreted as the world, the Lord expounds about them in the parable of darnel and wheat.[5]

 9/10.  A lover of money will never be satisfied with money; a lover of abundance has no wheat.  This too, is futility!  As goods increase, so do those who consume them; what advantage, then, has the owner except what hi eyes see?  Wherever we read 'silver', according to the ambiguity of the Greek term, it can be translated as 'money', since each has the meaning of the Greek argurion.  More precisely Tullius is said to have called these men 'pecuniary', who have many small savings, that is wealth in cattle.[6]  For they were called this in antiquity.  But little by little the word devolved into the one used here through misuse.  Therefore he is described as greedy because he is never sated by wealth, and the more he has, the more he desires.  Horace also agrees with this sentiment, who says, "always the miser is wanting"[7], and too the noble historian, since "avarice is diminished neither by possessions, nor by lack of them"[8].  Nothing therefore, says Ecclesiastes can aid a man who possesses riches, unless only this: that he sees what he possesses.  For the greater his wealth, the more he will have a larger number of servants, who use up his amassed wealth.  But if he will only see what he has, he will be able to take more than the food of one man. 

11.  Sweet is the sleep of the labourer, whether he eats little or much; the satiety of the rich does not let him sleep.  So far the discourse has treated of riches and greed, and it is compared to a man who works and one who sleeps without worry, or eats little or a great deal.  Because he eats any food obtained from the toil of work and from his sweat, he enjoys peaceful sleep.  For a rich man indeed is busy with banquets and lacerated by many thoughts, is not able to sleep, and abounds in hangovers and uncooked food boils in the intestines of his stomach.  More precisely, since it is called sleep, and is a common exit from life, that rest will be better for him, who is busy at present and reserves his strength for good work, than the riches of those men, about whom it is written: "woe to you, O rich, for you have received your consolation".[9] 

12/16.  There is a sickening evil that I have seen under the sun; riches hoarded by their owner to his misfortune, and he loses those riches in some bad venture.  If he begets a son, he has nothing in hand.  As he had come from his mother's womb, naked will he return, as he had come; he can salvage nothing from his labour to take with him.  This too, is a sickening evil: Exactly as he came he must depart, and what did he gain in exchange for toiling for the wind?  Indeed, all his life he eats in darkness; he is greatly grieved, and has illness and anger.  Take what follows as linked to what is written above: while Ecclesiastes describes wealth, even he is not able to enjoy his riches and on many occasions endangers himself on account of them.  Nor to his heir does he leave what he has amassed; but even he and his son, just as they came nude, will return nude to the earth and nothing of their toil will accompany them.  Surely apathy is the worst, to be tortured by thought on account of riches, and wealth will perish.  And are we able to take it with us when we die, in sadness, in mourning, in indignation, in laws or to seek it in vain toil?  And all this is according to the apparent simple meaning of the text.  But as we are lifted higher, it seems to me that it speaks about the philosophers, or the heretics, who amass riches of doctrines into their wickedness, and nor are authors able to follow any usefulness, nor leave perpetual fruit for their followers.  But even they and their disciples return to the earth and lose their riches, from him who said, "I will lose the wisdom of the wise men, and I will reprove the prudence of the careful."[10]  Truly in fact, just as they left their mother's womb, (apparently as from a heretical church), contrary to this about which it is written: "but Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of all."[11]  Thus they go nude to become a spirit, and work for nothing.  Those who examine, lack examination, and they are carried on every wind of doctrine, nor do they have the light, but eat their sacraments in the darkness.  They are always ill, and are easily moved to anger, storing up anger for themselves for the day of anger, and they do not have the favour of God.

17/19  So what I have seen to be good is that it is suitable to eat and drink and enjoy pleasure with all one's labour that he toils beneath the sun during the brief span of his life that God has given him, for that is his lot.  Furthermore, every man to whom God has given riches and possessions and has given him the power to enjoy them, possess his share and be happy in his work: this is the gift of God.  For he shall remember that the days of his life are not many, while God provides him with the joy of his heart.  This is in comparison to him, who consumes his wealth in the darkness of his worries, and carries those things which are about to die throughout the great tedium of his life, and says that that man is better, who enjoys what he has.  For here there is but a small desire of enjoyment, but there in the latter indeed there is a great magnitude of worries.  He also gives the reasons why the gift of God is to be able to enjoy riches.  Since "he will not remember much of the days of his life".  For God turns him to the happiness of his heart's desire: he will not be sad, he will not be worried by thought, since he is led away by happiness and desire for present things. But it is better understood as according to the apostle[12], seen as spiritual food and spiritual drink which is given by God and I understood to see goodness in all of his toil, since we are only able to consider true good things with great toil and enthusiasm.  For what is permitted to be good, though, until Christ appears in our life, is not yet openly considered good.  And therefore God will not remember much of the days of our life.  We should also note that here perispasmos is used in a better way, in the place of the occupation of the spirit and true happiness.