VII. 1. [+VI. 12.] How does it benefit man?  For who knows what is good for man in this life, all the days of his vain life, which he spends as a shadow?  For who can tell a man what will be after him under the sun?  When he says that man is ignorant of his condition, and does not actually know whatever he seems to know and discern, as if the truth of the matter is not seen, he does see however the shadow and image as if through a mirror, and he cannot know what will come, or escape his sin by talkativeness.  He should silence his mouth and believe that He who is written has come, and not ask by what means, how much, or what kind of man he is that has come.

2. [KJV. VII 1. sic seq.] A good name is better than precious ointment; and the day of death than the day of one's birth.  Consider, he says, man, your short days since you will cease to be quickly when your body gives out; fast longer, so that however perfume delights your nostrils with its smell, in the same way posterity will delight in all things to your name.  Symmachus interpreted this very clearly, saying, "a good name is better than a perfume that smells pleasant".  We must remember that it is the custom of the Hebrews to call good perfume 'oil'.  He also says, "and the day of death than the day of one's birth", this shows that it is better to die, and no longer be troubled, or be in an unsteady condition of life, than sustain all these things while being born into the world.  For in our death we know what we have been like, but when we are born we cannot know what we will be like or do in life.  Since birth is also linked to the freedom of the spirit in the body, it abolishes moral customs.

3.  It is better to go to the house of mourning, than to go to the house of feasting: for that is the end of all men; and the living will take it to his heart.  It is more useful to go to the rites of a funeral than to the house where there is a party, since at the house of mourning we are warned of our creator and of our mortality on account of seeing the dead body.  But in the happiness of a party, even if we seem to have any fear, we lose it.  Symmachus interpreted the last verse by saying, "and he who lives, will look back in his mind".  There is proof in these verses, in that God is seen to approve food and drink, but not seen to prefer desire to all these things, with the result that many men value them wrongly.  But in comparison with avarice and too much sparing, feasting is allowed in a small way, or allowed to him, who enjoys his work completely every moment.  For he had never preferred the sadness of mourning to the enjoyment of a party, if he had thought at any moment to drink and eat.

4. Anger is better than laughter, for through a sad face the heart is improved.  Laughter weakens the mind, anger reproves and corrects it.  Both let us become angry with ourselves when we sin, and let us get angry with others.  Through the sadness of the face, even the spirit becomes better, as Symmachus saw it.  And therefore "woe now to those who laugh, since they will mourn."[1] 

5.  The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning; but the heart of fools is in the house of enjoyment.  "Blessed", says the Saviour, "are the mourning, since they will be consoled".[2]  And Samuel mourned King Saul all the days of his life[3] and Paul said he had mourned over those who did not want to repent their many sins[4].  Therefore the heart of a wise man goes to the house of such a man, who reproves himself when he is doing wrong, so that he brings forth tears and causes himself to weep for his own sins; and he does not go to the house of joy, where the learned man flatters and deceives, not changing the listeners so they are together as one, but asking for praise and applause from them.  Such a teacher, who is rich in speeches and words, is mourned, and being filled by his knowledge, receives his consolation.  Then the following verses agree with this explanation too, because he says:

6/7.  It is better to hear the rebuke of the wise, than for a man to hear the song of fools.  For as the crackling of thorns under the pot, so is the laughter of the fool: this too is vanity.  For it is better to be rebuked by a wise man, than to be deceived by flattering praise.  Similar to this is the passage which says, "better are the wounds of a friend, than the free kisses of an enemy"[5].  Just as the sound of sharp thorns under the pot gives out a harsh sound, so the words of a flattering teacher are not of any use, or the worries of the world, which are interpreted as 'thorns', or the sound of one who encourages his listeners, or of one who prepares them for the fire which is to come.  Let us look at what Symmachus has to say about the passage that we have as "since just as the sound…fool."  Understanding the meaning which we have already explained above, he says, 'for a man is bound in chains by the voice of the ignorant".  This means that one listener is tied up to the word of such teachers, while the chains of his sins restrain another.

8.  Surely oppression makes a wise man mad; and a gift destroys the heart.  Now see the wise man as if regarding profit, according to that passage which says, "accuse the wise and he will love you"[6].  Wise, or even having completed his training, he knows no accusation, and is perturbed by no disaster.  We should use this verse if we see disaster befall a righteous and wise man, and he is perturbed by the unlawfulness of the judgement, and in that case when God does not come to his mind readily.  Instead of this though the Septuagint, and Aquila and Theodotion interpret the phrase "destroys the heart" as eutonias autou that is 'his strength', or 'his vigour'.  Symmachus says, "and matthana destroys his heart' (that is 'a gift'), using the Hebrew word in his interpretation, and making the same meaning as is written elsewhere: "gifts, too, blind the eyes of the wise".[7] 

9.  Better is the end of a thing than the beginning; Perorations are better in speaking, than just the introductory section.  For worry comes to and end in the former, and commences in the latter.  Or it could even mean this: he who begins to hear a speech, and goes to the teacher, is in first place.  For indeed he who listens until the last is consumed and complete in learning.  But this can also be understood in this way: while we are in this world, all that we know is as a beginning; but when that age is completed, we will understand everything as newest and completed.  My Hebrew tutor explained this passage together with the following verse as follows: it is better for you to ponder the end of your business, than the beginning, and be patient, rather than being seized by the frenzy of impatience.  We learn too from this reading that there is no wisdom in men, although it is better to do than to only say that you will do.  And since, when the talk had finished, the listener thinks over for himself what has been said, and though he begins to speak, he has not yet understood what he can learn from it.

And the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.  Since the heavenly one conceded to anger, saying, "anger is better than laughter", lest we think anger is to be praised in suffering, now he says that anger must be removed from deep down inside us.  For there he assigns anger instead of correction in sinners, and learning in children. But here he checks impatience.  But patience is not only necessary in difficult times, but also in happier times, in case we rejoice more than we should.  It seems to me that he who is now called high in the spirit of the Gospel, is in contrast poor in spirit, and is even blessed.

10.  Be not hasty in your spirit to be angry: for anger rests in the lap of fools.  He does not grant here that anger should be tempered, therefore he now says, "Be not hasty in your spirit to be angry"; but that when anger is mad and new, it is more easily tempered because it is dispersed easily and can be removed.  And since anger is linked to pride, and the desire for vengeance, he says it is better and above suffering, than he who is exalted in his spirit, and now shows the sign of foolishness, since however powerful or wise someone is esteemed, if he is made angry he will seem foolish in his words: "for anger lies in the lap of fools".

11.  Do not ask,' what is the cause that the former days were better than these?'  For you do not enquire wisely about this.  Do not prefer the previous age to this one, since God created both one and the other.  Virtues create good days for man, and vices make bad days.  Do not say therefore that the days were better in the time of Moses and Christ, than now they are.  For even in that time there were more disbelievers and their days were made wicked by this; now there are more believers, about whom the Saviour said, "more blessed are they, who did not see or believe"[8].  Or differently: thus you ought to live so that the days that you live in are always better than those passed, lest you begin to decrease little by little, it should then be said to you, "you did run well, who hindered you that you should not have obeyed the truth?"[9]; and again: "you who began in spirit are now consumed by flesh"[10].  Or another meaning of this: do not say that the times of old are better than now, those of Moses better than Christ, that they were more lawful than full of grace.  For if you were to ask this, you would do it unwisely, not seeing how much the Gospel differs from the Old Testament.

12/13.  Wisdom is good with an inheritance: and by it there is profit to them that see the sun.  For wisdom is a defence, and money is a defence: but the advantage of knowledge is, that wisdom gives life to those that have it.  A wise man with riches has more glory than just a wise man alone.  For some men need wisdom, some wealth, but he who is both wise and not rich is able to teach what is good, but meanwhile he can't show what is to be sought.  Therefore he says, since the protection of wisdom is the protection of money, then just as wisdom protects, so too money also protects.  And lest he seem to detract from wisdom, while he adds to it by good fortune, (for it is not in our power to obtain riches, which often the unrighteous own in greater quantity), he therefore shows wisdom to be greater, saying "but the advantage of knowledge is, that wisdom gives life to those that have it."  In that respect, he says, wisdom is greater than riches, because without any wealth it preserves those who think themselves rich.  Certain scholars see this passage in a different way: they say that he places heredity in place of good association, by which we are the heirs of God, and co-heirs of Christ.  Therefore Ecclesiastes wants to teach how much of a difference there is between those who merit seeing the sun (of justice), and have wisdom by their good association, and those in contrast, who without wisdom have only enthusiasm for vice and association.  Since even David shows this, saying "the intelligent shine out by their speech, as the shining bodies of the sky"[11], or as Theodotion interpreted this, "just as the brightness of the firmament.  Indeed those who wrote my speeches are as the stars of the sky".  But we ought to take that protection of silver (or money) according to anagoge[12] from which talents and coins are collected in the parables of the Gospels[13], just as when we were under the protection of wisdom and under the protection of such money: "the sun does not burn us by day, nor the moon by night".[14]  But this can even be said to be true since protection is our life on the earth: "the breath of our nostrils, the anointed Christ our Lord of whom we said: under His shadow we should live among the heathen".[15]  All of our protection in this life is like a shade, or like wisdom, or as is said about money, until the day moves on and the shadows move away.  Symmachus interprets this more clearly in his usual manner, saying, "just as wisdom protects, so too money protects in a similar fashion".  But the following verse openly encourages the enthusiasm for knowledge.

14.  Consider the work of God: for who can make that straight, which he has made crooked?  Symmachus translates this passage in this way: "learn the word of God, because no one can correct what He has ruined".  That is he supplies from the Holy Scriptures, or from thinking of the elements, to know and understand those things, which are done; but not to ask the causes and reasons why one thing is done in this way, or why it ought to have been done differently from the way in which it has been done.  For the sake of this passage, if anyone should ask why God spoke to Moses in this way: "who makes the dumb and the deaf, the seeing and the blind, am I not the Lord God?"[16], and if he should say, why are the blind, the deaf, the mute created in this way, and others similar to these?  This passage must be seen in reference to  Psalm 17, in which it is said to the Lord: "You will be Holy with the holy man, and  with the wicked You will err"[17].  And it must be added that the Holy Lord is with him, who is holy; and the wicked are with him, who was previously wicked by his own will.  This is similar also to that which is written in Leviticus: "if the wicked came to me I will go to them, wicked in my madness".[18]  Even this can explain why God hardened the heart of Pharaoh.  For just as one and the same quality of the sun melts wax and dries clay, and on account of each one's constitution, both wax melts and clay dries;[19] so too the one quality of the portents of God in Egypt softened the heart of those who believed, and hardened that of the incredulous, who just as their hardness and impatient heart, began to store up for themselves anger for the day of anger from those portents, which they didn't believe, though yet they saw them happen.

15.  In the day of prosperity be joyful, but in the day of adversity consider: God also has set the one over against the other, to the end that man should find nothing after him.  I have heard from a certain man in the Church, who was thought to have a knowledge of the Scriptures, that these verses are to be explained in this way: while you remain in the present world, and while you are able to do good work, work hard so that afterwards you may be without worry in the day of wickedness, that is the day of judgement, when you will see others to be tormented.  For just as God made the present world, in which we can obtain for ourselves the benefits of good work; so too he made the future age, in which no opportunity will be given for us to do good work.  This man of the Church even seemed to convince those he was preaching to, but to me there seems a different meaning to this, which Symmachus has translated, saying, 'in the good day, be good; but be wary of the day of wickedness'.  All the same, God made this world similar to the next, so that man should not be able to find that which he complains against Him.  Suffer both the good things, he says, and the bad, as they happen to you in your life.  And do not think that there is only the nature of good or bad alone in the world, especially when the world itself consists of opposites: hot and cold, dry and wet, hard and soft, dark and light, bad and good. [20]  But God made this ambivalence so that wisdom might have a place, and it is found by choosing good and avoiding bad: man is given free will, lest he argue that he has been made unfeeling, and stupid by God.  But God has made man so diverse that man is unable to complain of his manner of being.  At the same time this argument is to be taken with the previous verses, in which he says 'who is able to correct what God has done?'. 

16.  I have seen all things in the days of my vanity: there is a just man, that dies in his righteousness, and there is a wicked man that remains alive in his wickedness.  Similar to this is what the Saviour says in the Gospel: "he who finds his soul will lose it, and he who loses it on account of me, will find it"[21].  The Maccabees are seen to die on account of their justice by the law and justice of God, and martyrs too, who shed their blood for Christ.  On the other hand, those who at that time ate the flesh of pigs and sacrificed to idols after the arrival of the Lord, they are seen to live in this world and to live long lives on account of their wickedness.  But it is the endurance of God in secret which causes suffering in those who are not holy, so that they have wickedness in their life, and not to visit sinners for their crimes, and it is as if he saves for the sacrifice so that he can give to the former eternal goodness, and to the latter eternal wickedness.  The Hebrews suspect the righteous, who die for their righteousness, the sons of Aaron, since while they think they live righteously, they worship a foreign fire.  And they say Manasseh was impious and lived a long life on account of his wickedness, for he then lived a long time in a long reign after having been corrected in prison.  17. Do not be too righteous, do not make yourself too wise: why destroy yourself?  If you should see a man who is harsh and wild to the extent of sinning against his brothers, so that he pardons neither the sinner in his speaking, or he who is slow on account of natural slowness, know that this man is more righteous than is good.  For when the Saviour teaches, saying "Do not judge, so that you are not judged"[22], and let none be without sin, even if it was not his life at any given day, the judgement of God is not ignorant of the weak state of man.  Therefore do not be too righteous, since accursed conduct in the presence of God carries both a great and a minor burden.  Philosophers have placed virtues therefore in the middle, and everything which is either too much either above or below, is thought to be at fault.[23]  But he also says, "and do not ask too much, lest you become confused", or "lest you be amazed".  For he knows that our mind cannot understand complete wisdom, (or that which is to be measured), and he says that we ought to know the wisdom which must be measured in our mortality.  Then even Paul asked of him that was able to know more than man, saying, "why does he yet complain? For who has resisted his will?"[24]  He replies, "O man, who are you that reply to God?"[25], and so on.  If he had heard the causes of the complaint from the apostle, he who is introduced while he is questioning, by chance he would have been stupefied by numbness and would have felt useful gratitude.  Since it is a gift according to that same apostle, which is of no use to him that receives it.  The command "do not be too righteous"[26] is interpreted by the Hebrew as being about Saul, who felt pity for Agag, whom the Lord had commanded to be killed.  But even that servant from the Gospel whom the Lord had pardoned[27], the Lord himself didn't want to pardon the servant, yet he can be used in this verse because he was too righteous.   

18.  Do not be too wicked, and do not be foolish: why should you die before your time?  When God says, "I do not want the death of the dying, only let him return and live"[28], it suffices to have sinned only once.  We ought to raise ourselves up after a catastrophe.  For just like those who argue about worldly matters, the swallow knows how to protect its young from poppy seeds, and wounded roes seek wild marjoram to cure themselves.  Then why are we ignorant that the cure of repentance is proposed for sinners?  But he says, "do not delay in an world that is not yours".  We know that Chore, Dathan, and Habiron, on account of their uprising against Moses and Aaron, were suddenly eaten up by a gap in the earth, and in emendation of others, many were judged before the day of judgement even in their lifetime.[29]  Therefore he says, "do not add sins to sins, lest you cause God to punish you"

19.  It is good that you should take hold of this, and do not withdraw your hand; for he that fears God shall come forth of them all.  It is good to do good to righteous men, but also being kind to sinners is not wicked.  It is good to keep slaves faithful to you, but it is advised to do this only with those who seek your employment.  Even he who fears God and copies his maker, who causes rain to fall over both the righteous and the wicked, enjoys doing good to all without distinction.  Another meaning of this is, because this life changes daily with many wretched occurrences, as fortunate as unfortunate, the spirit should be prepared for righteousness and should ask for the pity of God, so that whatever happens, he suffers with a free conscience.  For he who fears God is neither raised to fortune, nor crushed by misfortune.  

20/21.  Wisdom strengthens the wise more than ten mighty men which are in the city.  For there is not a just man on the earth, that does good and does not sin.  Therefore wisdom strengthens the righteous, and not even the aid of all the citizens of the city can help him, for although someone may be righteous, yet while he is alive he is subject to vices and sins, and he therefore needs greater protection.  Another reading of this is: the ten who hold power and are in the city are angels, who have arrived at the complete number of 'denarii' and are here to help mankind.  But if anyone should consider different types of help, the aid of wisdom is better, because that is the aid of our Lord Jesus Christ.  For after the angels said, "we would have protected Babylon yet it is not now protected, so let us leave it, and let each one of us go out unto his own land"[30].  Then the teacher of doctors himself came down and healed us with a touch of His finger, we who were spattered with blood, and wet with the blood of sinners, we who weigh out all our possessions against healing.  But He healed in that city which is in that world, and 'strengthened in wisdom' or as the Septuagint says 'helped'.  For it is given and added to everyone who possesses it.  But the man who sins greatly is stuck in deep and needs more help: therefore Wisdom herself came to his aid.  Another meaning of this verse is: above he had said that one should be kind to both the good and the wicked: therefore someone was able to reply: though I want to be kind to all men, I have not the power with which to do this.  And a righteous man does not have such riches, which normally come more abundantly to sinners.  Therefore he now says, those whom you can't help with money, help with advice and comfort them with solace.  For one is more able to excel in these ways than any of the greatest of potentates.  And you would be wise to do this, for the scale of justice is great, and must decide for whom, how much, how long, and of what sort, help is given, either with monetary support or with advice.    

22/23  And do not heed all words that are spoken, lest you hear your servant curse you.  For often your own heart knows that you likewise have cursed others.  Make sure to do only those things which have been taught, and strengthened by the help of wisdom, prepare yourself for either good or bad outcomes, and don't worry about what your enemies might say about you, or what kind of reputation you have.  For just as a cautious man should not hear his servant complain about him, so he should not want to hear what is said about him in his absence, (for if he did this he would always be troubled and incensed to anger by the muttering of the servant).  Therefore it is befitting for a wise man to walk with wisdom following him, and not to dwell upon unfounded rumours.  But he teaches by another example that the righteous man ought not to worry what men say, saying, 'just as your conscience knows what you have said about others, and that you have often maligned others, so you ought to pardon others when they think badly of you.'  At the same time he teaches that it is difficult to judge for one who has a rod in his eye, not to speak about the rod of another.

24/25.  I have proved all this by wisdom: I said, I will be wise; but it was far from me.  That which is far off, and exceeding deep, who can find it out?  Just as is attested in the Book of Kings[31] he says that he sought wisdom more than other men, and tried to reach the pinnacle, but the more he sought, the less he found, and in the midst of his confusion, he was surrounded by the darkness if ignorance.  But at another time, regarding him who was learned in the Scriptures- the more he wanted to know, the more a greater obscurity arose each day for him.  Another meaning of this is: he seems to mean that contemplation of wisdom in this life is like looking in a mirror or at a picture; therefore if I look at my face in the mirror in the future I'll think back to the way it used to be, and then in the liquid pool I'll recognise that I differ greatly from the way I used to be. 

26/27.  I applied my heart to know, and to search, and to seek out wisdom, and the reason of things, and to know the wickedness of folly, even of foolishness and madness.  And I find that woman is more bitter than death, whose heart is snares and nets, and her hands are as bands: whoever pleases God shall escape her; but the sinner shall be taken by her.  The Septuagint here has: "I even applied my heart that I should know".  Symmachus has interpreted this saying, 'I have looked into all things with my reasoning to know, to distinguish and to find out.'  Since therefore Ecclesiastes had said above that he had tried to know all wisdom and the more he sought it the more it eluded him, now he says even that he sought out another thing in his wisdom, for wickedness precedes all things in human affairs, and that affair is first and foremost in impiety, stupidity, madness, and insanity.  He also says that he found woman to be the cause of all evil, since through her, death came into the world and took the most prized spirits of men.  And even for all adulterers, it is like there is a coat of mail on their heart, the heart that makes the souls of adolescents soar upwards.  And when this happens to the mind of a wretched lover, it pushes him into first position, and he is not allowed to look back at his feet, but like a snare or noose it ensnares the heart of a youth.  'For he has chains around his wrists', which Aquila interpreted as being, 'for his hands are in chains'.  For he can convince, but he doesn't have the strength and can't pull himself to those who are unwilling.  Those things destroy him, who was righteous and good before God; but the sinner who has been captured will be led down to his death.  Let us not think that Solomon held this opinion about women thoughtlessly, he speaks only those things that he has experienced.  For this reason he fears God, since women have captured him.  And these interpretations are very literal.  But according to the spiritual understanding of this passage, either we should take every sin made in general, and call it 'woman' and 'wickedness', for example, she who sits behind the façade of woman in Zechariah above the talent of lead.[32]  Or we can take woman to be the devil metaphorically on account of effeminate men; or indeed idolatry, and so that we might proceed more closely, the church or heretics, which calls the fool to itself by reasoning, so that he receives stolen bread, and stolen water, the false sacrament, and is led to be baptised in polluted water.  

28/30.  Behold, I have found this, says the preacher, counting one by one, to find out the account.  Which still my soul seeks, but I have not found it.  I have found one man among a thousand, but one woman among all those I have not found. Only this have I found: that God has made man righteous, but he has sought out many inventions.  He says, "I found this", teaching all things diligently, that by sinning little by little, and adding one crime on top of another, we amass a great number of sins for ourselves.  'esebon' even, which all translate as logismon in Greek, according to the ambiguity of the Hebrew language can be said by us to be 'number', 'sum', 'account', and 'consideration'.  But, he says, my spirit sought even this question of whether woman is rightly found to be guilty.  And although I found scarcely any men to be good, thus so that only one from a thousand can be found, I couldn't even find one woman to be completely good.  For all of them have led me not to virtue but to self-indulgence.  And because man's heart is predisposed towards wickedness from boyhood, and almost all of us offend God in some way, in this failing of mankind, women are more prone to this fate.  The famous poet says about this: "inconstant and always changeable is woman"[33].  And the apostle says, "always learning yet never arriving at the knowledge of the truth"[34].  But he does not condemn this nature as being common to all mankind, or say that God the creator does evil things, because he is the creator of these things, but he warns subtly those who are not able to avoid evil, and says that we are created good by God; but he also says that because we are left with our own free-will to deteriorate into a worse and worse state through our own vices, while we seek greater things and contemplate many things beyond our strength.  Differently: while I consider the reason behind each and every one of these verses, I have found no thought, which is not perturbed from outside by wicked thoughts.  But in a thousand men I have found one man, who is made in the image of his creator; and not in a thousand of any kind, but of one thousand men.  There is not a like number of women corresponding to men.  In the thousand, those who have not been close to a woman have therefore remained the most pure.  But all this must be taken as a metaphor.  In many though, who enthuse and every day sweat in their thinking, scarcely can there be found one pure thought, that is worthy of the name of man.  We can take thoughts for men though, and women for work, and say that the thoughts of man can only be seen as pure with great difficulty.  But since the body does work, it is always mixed up with some fault.  But instead of that which we said above interpreting the Hebrew phrase, "one upon another, so that a great accumulation is made" we could either say 'account', or 'thought'; Symmachus interprets this more clearly, saying, "one upon another makes an amount".  And we are accustomed to call this complete and neutral, which I sought and had wanted to find.  The Hebrews name this in the case of females, just as in the phrase "I sought one from God, this I ask"[35], in place of that which is one.[36]