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Selected Verse: Ecclesiates 9:17 - King James
| Verse |
Translation |
Text |
| Ec 9:17 |
King James |
The words of wise men are heard in quiet more than the cry of him that ruleth among fools. |
Summary Of Commentaries Associated With The Selected Verse
| A Commentary, Critical, Practical, and Explanatory on the Old and New Testaments, by Robert Jamieson, A.R. Fausset and David Brown [1882] |
The words of wise, &c.--Though generally the poor wise man is not heard (Ecc 9:16), yet "the words of wise men, when heard in quiet (when calmly given heed to, as in Ecc 9:15), are more serviceable than," &c.
ruleth--as the "great king" (Ecc 9:14). Solomon reverts to "the rulers to their own hurt" (Ecc 8:9). |
| Commentary on the Old Testament, by Carl Friedrich Keil and Franz Delitzsch [1857-78] |
| "The words of the wise, heard in quiet, have the superiority above the cry of a ruler among fools." Instead of tovim min, there stands here the simple min, prae, as at Ecc 5:1, to express the superiority of the one to the other. Hitzig finds in this proverb the meaning that, as that history has shown, the words of the wise, heard with tranquillity, gain the victory over the cry of a ruler over fools. But (1) the contrast of נחת and זעקת require us to attribute the tranquillity to the wise man himself, and not to his hearers; (2) מו בּךּ is not a ruler over fools, by which it would remain questionable whether he himself was not a fool (cf. Job 41:26), but a ruler among fools (cf. Sa2 23:3, מו בּ, "a ruler among men;" and Pro 30:30, גּבּ בּ, "the hero among beasts"), i.e., one who among fools takes the place of chief. The words of the poor wise man pass by unheeded, they are not listened to, because he does not possess an imposing splendid outward appearance, in accordance with which the crowd estimate the value of a man's words; the wise man does not seek to gain esteem by means of a pompous violent deportment; his words נשׁ בּ are heard, let themselves be heard, are to be heard (cf. e.g., Sol 2:12) in quiet (Isa 30:15); for, trusting to their own inward power of conviction, and committing the result to God, he despises vociferous pomp, and the external force of earthly expedients (cf. Isa 42:2; Mat 12:19); but the words of the wise, which are to be heard in unassuming, passionless quietness, are of more value than the vociferation with which a king among fools, an arch-fool, a non plus ultra among fools, trumpets forth his pretended wisdom and constrains his hearers. |
| Explanatory Notes on the Whole Bible, by John Wesley [1754-65] |
| Of wise men - Though poor. In quiet - Uttered with a modest and low voice. The cry - The clamorous discourses of a rich and potent, but foolish man. |
| Adam Clarke Commentary on the Whole Bible - Published 1810-1826 |
| The words of wise men are heard in quiet - In the tumult of war the words of Archimedes were not heard; and his life was lost. |
9 All this have I seen, and applied my heart unto every work that is done under the sun: there is a time wherein one man ruleth over another to his own hurt.
14 There was a little city, and few men within it; and there came a great king against it, and besieged it, and built great bulwarks against it:
15 Now there was found in it a poor wise man, and he by his wisdom delivered the city; yet no man remembered that same poor man.
16 Then said I, Wisdom is better than strength: nevertheless the poor man's wisdom is despised, and his words are not heard.
19 He shall not strive, nor cry; neither shall any man hear his voice in the streets.
2 He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause his voice to be heard in the street.
15 For thus saith the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel; In returning and rest shall ye be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength: and ye would not.
12 The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land;
30 A lion which is strongest among beasts, and turneth not away for any;
3 The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spake to me, He that ruleth over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God.
26 The sword of him that layeth at him cannot hold: the spear, the dart, nor the habergeon.
1 Keep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear, than to give the sacrifice of fools: for they consider not that they do evil.