5:1 Even when traveling to perform an act of religious piety at the temple (the only place where sacrifices were permitted), one’s “steps” could go off course and lead into sin. The word translated “steps” is literally “feet” (Hb. regel). The OT sometimes mentions the heart or the eyes as the primary influencer of human conduct (Num. 15:39; Job 31:7), but here and elsewhere (e.g., Prov. 1:15–16; 4:27) it ascribes this role to the feet, since one’s life and behavior is often described as walking (Ps. 1:1; Prov. 1:15). To resist sin effectively one must keep watch over any of the potential avenues by which we are led into it. This verse is a vital reminder that even the most “religious” of actions can be performed with sinful intent, and our motives must therefore be carefully scrutinized in the light of God’s Word.

The Preacher exhorts his hearers to “draw near to listen,” which echoes the profound call of the Shema in Deuteronomy 6:4: “Hear, O Israel!” The common verb “to hear” (Hb. shamaʿ) frequently includes the notion of obedience. Receptivity to hearing and obeying God’s voice is far more important than any sacrifices we might make or any pious words we might utter. The Preacher thereby affirms Samuel’s pointed rebuke to Saul (“To obey [or “listen”] is better than sacrifice”; 1 Sam. 15:22), who foolishly sought to make amends for his disobedience by making offerings.

When the Preacher says that fools “do not know that they are doing evil” (5:1), he is not using ignorance as an excuse for their behavior. It is clear from verse 6 that excuses will not be accepted for an unpaid vow. Rather, verse 1 indicates that fools’ consciences are so “seared” (cf. 1 Tim. 4:2; Titus 1:15) and their sense of morality is so warped that, in one sense, they are unable to recognize that what they do is evil. While an inability to discern between right and wrong is expected to some degree in the very young (cf. Deut. 1:39; Isa. 7:15–16), it is assumed that continued instruction as the young grow and mature will result in the necessary spiritual discernment. The fact that these fools lack any kind of conscience in these matters is a testimony to the depth of their depraved nature. If these fools lack a moral compass, it is because they have intentionally sought to suppress it.

5:2–7a  These verses are not a general urging for people to be careful with their words and to be quick to listen but slow to speak (Eccles. 5:2–3, 6–7a), although this is a common enough theme in wisdom teaching (Prov. 10:19; 17:27; 18:21; Matt. 12:36; James 1:19, 26; 3:2–12). The Preacher is applying this counsel more specifically to the issue of making religious vows before the Lord (Eccles. 5:4–5). Vows were an entirely voluntary act of religious worship in the OT, by which a person promised to perform an action; to dedicate costly objects such as houses, land, or even people to the Lord (Lev. 27:1–34); or to abstain from some legitimate blessing such as wine or “sweets” such as raisins (Num. 6:3–4) as a means of expressing special devotion and consecration.

Vows were sometimes made in response to God’s deliverance or were made conditionally, asking for God to intervene in some extraordinary way (e.g., 1 Sam. 1:11). Generally they involved offering some sort of sacrifice, which is why the Preacher links vows and sacrifices in Ecclesiastes 5:1. Since vows are not required for believers but are absolutely binding once made, one must take great care when making them. It is for this reason that the Preacher, interacting specifically with the law of Deuteronomy 23:21–23 in Ecclesiastes 5:4–5, urges complete and prompt fulfillment of one’s vow and says it is better not to vow rather than to make a vow and leave it unkept. In the same vein he urges, “Let your words be few” (v. 2), which in context refers to the words of a vow.

In verses 3, 7a the Preacher utters two proverb-like statements regarding “dreams” that accompany “much business” and the “words” or “vanity” of fools. Scholars are divided over what is meant by such “dreams” here, however. Some suggest that verse 3 is observing that overwork (“much business”) leads to dreams.37 In context the dreams go hand in hand with the vows made by fools. The word translated “much” or “many” in verse 3 and verse 7a (Hb. rab) could be rendered in these instances as “greatness”: “A dream comes with the greatness of business and a fool’s voice with the greatness of words” (v. 3) and “In the greatness of dreams there is vanity and many words” (v. 7). “Dreams” are probably the unrealistic fantasies of “daydreamers” ungrounded in reality. Their extravagant schemes lead them to make great claims and to make unrealistic vows to the Lord, which they are later unable to fulfill.

Regardless, whether a vow was made under the influence of unrealistic daydreaming or hastily under duress, when the cost of fulfilling a vow begins to set in it is common for people to have second thoughts and look for some way to avoid fulfilling it (cf. Matt. 23:16–22; Mark 7:9–13). In Ecclesiastes 5:6 the Preacher anticipates one possible excuse that might be offered for failing to fulfill a vow: when a priestly messenger arrives to lay claim to the dedicated item (or its significant monetary equivalent), one might demur by saying that the vow was a “mistake.” The word used here (Hb. shegagah) does not mean that the vow was somehow made unknowingly or unintentionally. Rather the term is used in Leviticus and Numbers in contrast to the “sin of the high hand” or “unrepentant sin,” for which there is no sacrifice (cf. Num. 15:24–31). A shegagah sin is one for which remorse has been expressed and a sacrifice has been offered for atonement. Thus, rather than keeping the costly vows they make, some fools will casually express their (blatantly insincere) “remorse” for their vow and possibly offer one of the much-less-expensive sin offerings instead of what was originally promised. The Preacher warns in the sternest possible terms that the Lord will express his anger against such antics and bring judgment, even “destroy[ing] the works of your hands” (Eccles. 5:6).

5:7b Such a casual approach to sacrifices and vows betrays a degraded view of God, who is the one called to witness when a vow is made. The Preacher joins his voice to that of numerous other OT writers by urging us to “fear” the exalted God who lives in heaven (v. 2). True reverence for God is in fact the very definition of wisdom (Prov. 1:7; 9:10; Job 28:28; Ps. 111:10), in contrast to fools, who despise it.