9:13–15 The Preacher relates an anecdote in which, despite apparently overwhelming odds, a small city is delivered from a mighty king’s siege by a poor but wise man. The story bears similarities to the one recounted in 4:13–16, which likewise contained an element of surprise in that the wise hero of the story was described as “poor.” In general the Bible does not associate poverty with intelligence and wisdom, since it typically requires money and time to study and acquire an education (cf. comment on 4:13–16). The story’s purpose in exalting the power and desirability of wisdom is obvious, though the point will be made even more explicitly in 9:16 (“Wisdom is better than might”). Just as the hero’s wisdom is something of a surprise, an additional surprise is that, despite this great victory, “no one remembered that poor man” (v. 15), just as people did not “rejoice” in the poor but wise youth of the earlier anecdote (4:16). Sinking into obscurity does not take away from the importance of his accomplishment, but it again serves as a reminder that wisdom should be pursued for its own sake, not for any possible gain in one’s fortune or reputation.

In this and the earlier anecdote the biblically attentive reader will note the striking similarities with Jesus Christ, the suffering servant who was “despised and rejected by men,” was not “esteemed” by the ones whose burdens he bore (Isa. 53:3), and “came to his own” but was not received by them (John 1:11). Redemptive work for the kingdom of God is often met initially with ingratitude and resistance, but the faithful disciple will persevere in serving others sacrificially.

9:16–18 The anecdote of Ecclesiastes 9:13–15 implies that the poor man’s peers listened to his wise plan to deliver the city. Therefore, when verse 16 says that “the poor man’s wisdom is despised and his words are not heard,” it must be referring to later generations of citizens. This is due in part to the natural human inclination to forget the wisdom of the past, a point previously emphasized by the Preacher (cf. 1:11; 2:16; 9:5). An additional factor is the reality that, by and large, people do not give heed to “the poor,” who would typically be thought of as uneducated and unintelligent (cf. comments on 4:13–16); our biases against various types of people are often hard to shake. What 9:13–15 proves, however, is that wisdom can be found in the most unlikely of sources and should be heeded regardless of one’s perception of the messenger. Wisdom spoken in a humble, quiet manner may be less impressive than the “shouting of a ruler among fools” (v. 17), but it is nevertheless more effective than military might (v. 18a). The implication for the reader is that words of wisdom are to be “heard” (vv. 16–17) and heeded. At the same time, the Preacher observes that foolishness and sin can also exercise a formidable influence, just as wisdom can. These verses therefore conclude with the sober warning: “One sinner destroys much good” (v. 18b). The influential nature of both godly wisdom and sinful folly will be explored in the collection of wise sayings that follow.

10:1–3 The destructive power of just one sinner mentioned in 9:18 leads to an analogous observation in 10:1, which compares the negative influence of “a little folly” to flies in a perfumer’s ointment. Though miniscule, they can ruin a lovely fragrance and turn it into an instrument for destruction. The phrase “dead flies” renders the Hebrew “flies of death,” which could be speaking of flies that bring death by spreading deadly diseases. The reader is reminded of the Serpent’s temptation to Adam and Eve, which took something that possessed both beauty and a God-designed purpose and turned it into a cause of death (Gen. 3:1–6). Indeed, in a number of ways the imagery in this section of Ecclesiastes hints at the diabolical root of folly (cf. comments on 10:4–7; 10:8–15 [at vv. 8, 11]); the OT’s “Baal-zebub,” or “lord of the flies” (2 Kings 1:2–3, 6, 16), makes his appearance in the NT as “Beelzebul,” that is, the “prince of demons” (Matt. 12:24).

Given folly’s capacity for destruction, one must be on guard against it. At least one can be forewarned when a fool is approaching and take evasive action; the careful observer can see that the behavior and decisions of the wise move in the opposite direction (Eccles. 10:2). In the Bible, decisions are sometimes presented as a choice between the right hand and the left (Gen. 24:49; Isa. 30:21), with the right hand or side possessing general connotations of strength, rectitude, and blessing and the left having less favorable implications (cf. Matt. 25:33, 41). The hearts of the wise and the foolish display typical patterns of making right or wrong choices. As a result, fools make their stupidity as obvious to others as if they were proclaiming it in public (Eccles. 10:3).

10:4–7 In verse 4 the Preacher returns to an earlier theme: wisdom for the person serving in a political administration (8:2–9). A royal counselor in a position of political influence runs the risk of falling afoul of a ruler and incurring his anger. Indeed, it is a virtual certainty for every faithful disciple that he or she will eventually be exposed to the rage of the “ruler of this world,” that is, the Evil One (John 12:31; 14:30; 16:11; cf. 2 Cor. 4:4; Eph. 2:2; 6:12). As before (cf. Eccles. 8:3), the Preacher urges the believer not to abandon his or her post. He recommends pursuing instead the wisdom of “healing” (ESV mg.), that is, adopting a conciliatory spirit, in order to defuse a potentially dangerous situation. Such delicate political wisdom will in fact often be necessary, since fools (the embodiment of “folly”) are often set in high places, while conversely the wisdom of the “rich” (10:6–7), who would receive the best education and presumably be the best prepared to rule skillfully, is often ignored (cf. comment on 9:16–18).

While modern-day cultural sensibilities may balk against associating wealth and the privileged nobility with wisdom and fitness to rule, or associating privation and slavery with a lack of education and inability to govern, in the Bible and throughout much of human history that association has been assumed to be generally valid based on empirical evidence. This is what makes the exceptional instances of the “poor and wise” characters in 4:13–16; 9:13–15 particularly noteworthy. Regardless, modern readers can nevertheless appreciate the sharp political humor of Ecclesiastes here: it seems to be a universal feature of human societies that the least competent people wind up in public office.

10:8–15 On the surface, verse 8 may seem to be an implied warning against conspiring to hurt others (cf. Ps. 7:15; Prov. 26:27). On closer inspection, however, it appears that the actions described in this section, such as quarrying stones and splitting logs, are not necessarily intended to harm others. These verses simply observe that foolishness has a tendency toward self-destruction. It leads the fool into harm’s way through carelessness or a lack of skill (Eccles. 10:8–9, 11), via ignorance (v. 15), or by causing one to expend more labor than necessary (v. 10). While the wise win favor when they speak (v. 12), fools destroy themselves by their words in addition to their actions (vv. 12–13). This is true whether they speak of things they do not actually know (v. 14) or simply display their own folly (cf. v. 3) and thereby ruin whatever credibility they might have had in the eyes of others.

Such fools are to be pitied and ought to be lovingly pursued, as circumstances allow. On a darker level, however, the attentive reader again catches the stench of the diabolical source of folly. Along with the “dead flies” already mentioned (v. 1), we encounter not one but two references to deadly serpents (vv. 8, 11), which have a long association with the Evil One (2 Cor. 11:3; Rev. 12:9; 20:2). The accumulation of references to flies, death, serpents, and the threatening fury of rulers in this section teach the lesson that, if Jesus is the perfect embodiment of wisdom (1 Cor. 1:24, 30), then the Devil must be the true embodiment of folly. If the fear (or reverential worship) of God is the beginning of wisdom and knowledge (Ps. 111:10; Prov. 1:7; 9:10), then Satan’s attempt to claim such worship (e.g., Matt. 4:9) is the epitome of foolishness. God’s people therefore need to hone their skills of patiently “charming” the “serpent” (Eccles. 10:11), particularly through their grace-filled, “healing” words and deeds (10:4 ESV mg.), if they are to survive when their “adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Pet. 5:8).