WHO 3 dBe not hasty to go out of his 50. Bight: stand not in an evil thing I Ch. 29. ch. 3. 11. out the work that is done under 8 hThere is no man that hath power iover the spirit to retain Or, the spirit: neither hath he pow-how it er in the day of death: and there shall be. is no discharge in that war; hPs.49.6. neither shall wickedness deliv-7. er those that are given to it. 9 All this have I seen, and ap-10r, plied my heart unto every work casting that is done under the sun: there off weap isatime wherein one man ruleth ons. over another to his own hurt. 10 And so I saw the wicked buried, who had come and gone l Wisdom better than strength. ECCLESIASTES. things that are done under the sun, that there is one event unto all: yea, also the heart of the sons of men is full of evil, and madness is in their heart while they live, and after that they go to the dead. 4 T For to him that is joined to all the living there is hope for a living dog is better than a dead lion. 5 For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for dthe memory of them is forgotten. 6 Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more a portion for ever in any thing that is done under the sun. B. C. cir. 977. n ver. 16. Jos.7.1, 11, 12. † Heb. + Heb. 7 T Go thy way, "eat thy bread ch.8. 15. heart. with joy, and drink thy wine with a merry heart; for God now accepteth thy works. 8 Let thy garments be always white; and let thy head lack no ointment. Heb. 10, 9 Live joyfully with the wifet whom thou lovest all the days of the life of thy vanity, which he hath given thee under the sun, all the days of thy vanity: for that is thy portion in this life, and in thy labour which thou takest under the sun. 10 Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest. 11 TI returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all. 5. 18. gAm. 2. 14, 15.Je. 9.23. a Pr. 13. 2. b ch. 8. 3. † Heb. Of wisdom, folly, and riot. heard in quiet more than the cry of him that ruleth among fools. 18 "Wisdom is better than weapons of war: but "one sinner destroyeth much good. CHAPTER X. Observations of wisdom and folly, 1 16 of riot, 18 slothfulness, 19 and money. 20 Men's thoughts of kings ought to be reverent. DEAD + flies cause the oint ment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savour: so doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and hon our. 2 A wise man's heart is at his right hand; but a fool's heart at his left. 3 Yea also, when he that is a fool walketh by the way, f his wisdom faileth him, and he saith to every one that he is a fool. 4 If the spirit of the ruler rise up against thee, bleave not thy place; for yielding pacifieth great offences. 5 There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, as an error which proceedeth from the ruler: d Es. 3.1.7 I have seen servants upon 6 dFolly is set fin great dignity, and the rich sit in low place. horses, and princes walking as servants upon the earth. 8f He that diggeth a pit shall fall into it; and whoso breaketh an hedge, a serpent shall bite him. 9 Whoso removeth stones shall be hurt therewith; and he that cleaveth wood shall be endangered thereby. 10 If the iron be blunt, and he do not whet the edge, then must he put to more strength: but 8Ps.58.4, wisdom is profitable to direct. 5.Je.8.17. 11 Surely the serpent will bite † Heb. without enchantment; and a 12 For hman also knoweth not hch 8. 7. the mastbabbler is no better. 14 There was a little city, and few men within it; and there came a great king against it, 16,-22. 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 1, Wisdom is better than strength: nevertheless the poor man's wisdom is despised, and his words are not ver. 18. heard. Ma.6.2, ter of the & 18. 7. k Pr.15.2. 1ch. 3.22. 8. 7. ch. 7. 19. 17 The words of wise men are 13. 12 hThe words of a wise man's mouth are tgracious; but ithe lips of a fool will swallow up himself. 13 The beginning of the words of his mouth is foolishness and the end of this talk is mischiev ous madness. 14 kA fool also is full of words: a man cannot tell what shall be; and I what shall be after him, who can tell him? 15 The labour of the foolish wearieth every one of them, because he knoweth not how to go to the city. 16 Wo to thee, O land, when thy king is a child, and thy princes eat in the morning! 17 Blessed art thou, O land, when thy king is the son of nobles, and "thy princes eat in due season, for strength, and not for drunkenness! Exhortations to charitableness. CHAPTER XI, XII. The preacher's care to edify. B. C. 18 T By much slothfulness the building decayeth; and through cir. 977. idleness of the hands the house droppeth through. • Ps. 104. 19 A feast is made for laughter, and wine tmaketh merry: but money answereth all things. 20 T PCurse not the king, no, not in thy thought; and curse for a bird of the air shall carry not the rich in thy bed-chamber: life. the voice, and that which hath wings shall tell the matter. CHAPTER XI Directions for charity, 1. 7 Death in it after many days. P Ex. 22. 28. Ac.23. Or,con- 19. 40. † Heb. B. C. cir. 977. a Pr.22.6. 35. Or, the fail, begrinders cause they tle. REMEMBER "now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, bwhen thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them; 2 While the sun, or the light, or the moon, or the stars, be not darkened, nor the clouds return after the rain: 3 In the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders cease that look out of the windows be because they are few, and those darkened, 4 And the doors shall be shut in the streets, when the sound of the grinding is low, and he shall rise up at the voice of the upon the c2 Sa. 19. bird, and all the daughters of ters. b De. 15. 10. If the clouds be full of rain, they empty themselves upon the earth and if the tree fall toward the south, or toward the north, in the place where the tree falleth, there it shall be. 4 He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap. 5 As fthou knowest not what is the way of the spirit, nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child: even 80 thou knowest not the works of God who maketh all. 6 In the morning sow thy seed,g Ps. 139. and in the evening withhold not 14, 15. thine hand: for thou knowest not whether tshall prosper, ei-† Heb. ther this or that, or whether shall be they both shall be alike good. 7 Truly the light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes bto behold the sun: 8 But if a man live many years, and rejoice in them all; yet let him remember the days of darkness; for they shall be many. All that cometh is vanity. 9 T Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth; and let thy heart © Ps. 112. right. h ch.7.11. 5 Also when they shall be afraid shall be in the way, and the alof that which is high, and fears mond-tree shall flourish, and the grasshopper shall be a burden, and desire shall fail: because man goeth to his long home, and the mourners go about the streets: 6 Orever the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern. 7 Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God h who gave it. 8 TVanity of vanities, saith wise the the Preacher; all is vanity. Preach- 9 And moreover, because the Preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge: k1 Ki. 4. yea, he gave good heed, and sought out, and kset in order many proverbs. ch. 12. 14. Ro. 2. cheer thee in the days of thy Nu. 15. the mat The Creator is to be remembered in 13 T Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: "Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. 14 For "God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil. 589 The church's love unto Christ, 1. 5 She confesseth her deformity, and prayeth to be directed to his flock. 8 Christ directeth her to the shepherds' tents: 9 and sheweth his love to her, 11 giving her gracious promises. 12 The church and Christ congratulate one another. B. C. written cir. 1014. B. C. HE "Song of songs, which is 1 Ki. 4. 2 Let him kiss me with the 6 Look not upon me, because I am black, because the sun hath looked upon me: my mother's children were angry with me; they made me the keeper of the vineyards; but mine own vineyard have I not kept. 32. bch. 4.10. † Heb. thy loves. + Heb. ed and Ho.11.4. &c. e Ps. 45. 2. † Heb. CHAPTER II. The mutual love of Christ and his church, 1. 8 The hope, 10 and calling of the church. 14 Christ's care of the church. 16 The profession of the church, her faith and hope. I AM the rose of Sharon, and the lily of the valleys. 2 As the lily among thorns, so is my love among the daughters. 3 As the apple-tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. †1 sat down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste. 4 He brought me to the † banqueting house, and his banner over me was love. 5 Stay me with flagons, tcomfort me with apples: for I am sick of love. 14,15. Jn house of head, and his right hand doth they love thee up rightly. Or, 7 Tell me, O thou whom my soul loveth, where thou feedest, where thou makest thy flock to rest at noon: for why should I be las one that turneth aside by the flocks of thy companions? 8 If thou know not, f O thou fairest among women, go thy veiled. way forth by the footsteps of the flock, and feed thy kids beside the shepherds' tents. 91 have compared thee, O my love, hto a company of horses in Pharaoh's chariots. 10 Thy cheeks are comely with rows of jewels, thy neck with chains of gold. 11 We will make thee borders of gold with studs of silver. 12 While the King sitteth at his table, my spikenard sendeth forth the smell thereof. 13 A bundle of myrrh is my well-beloved unto me; he shall lie all night betwixt my breasts. 14 My beloved is unto me as a cluster of camphire in the vineyards of En-gedi. 15 Behold, thou art fair, my love; behold, thou art fair; thou hast doves' eyes. 16 Behold, thou art fair, my beloved, yea, pleasant: also our bed is green. 17 The beams of our house are cedar, and our rafters of fir. 590 as one that is feh.5.9.& ch. 2. 2, 10,13.&4. 1,7.&5. 2. 15. 14, 15. h2 Ch. 1. 71 charge you, Oye daughters of Jerusalem, by the roes, and by the hinds of the field, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, till he please. 8 T The voice of my beloved! behold, he cometh leaping upon the mountains, skipping upon the hills. 9 dMy beloved is like a roe, or a young hart: behold, he standeth behind our wall, he looketh forth at the windows, tshewing himself through the lattice. 10 My beloved spake, and said unto me, "Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away. 11 For lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone.; 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; 13 The fig-tree putteth forth her green figs, and the vines with the tender grape give a good i Ez. 16. ver. 10. smell. fArise, my love, my fair 11, 12, 13. one, and come away. 14 TO my dove, that art in the clefts of the rock, in the secret places of the stairs, let me Ech.8. 13. see thy countenance, let me hear thy voice; for sweet is thy voice, and thy countenance is comely. him whom loveth: I sought him, but I found him not. 2 I will rise now, and go about the city in the streets, and in the broad ways I will seek him whom my soul loveth: I sought him, but I found him not. 3 bThe watchmen that go about b ch.5.7. the city found me: to whom I said, Saw ye him whom my soul loveth? 4 It was but a little that I passed from them, but I found him whom my soul loveth: I held him, and would not let him go, until I had brought him into my mother's house, and into the chamber of her that conceived me. 5 I charge you, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, by the roes, and by the hinds of the field, that ye stir not up. nor awake my love, till he please. 6 TdWho is this that cometh © ch. 2. 7. & 8.4. ch. 7. 4. fNe.3. 19. 4 Thy neck is like the tower of David builded f for an ar moury, whereon there hang a thousand bucklers, all shields of mighty men. 5 Thy two breasts are like two See Pr. young roes that are twins, which feed among the lilies. 5.19.ch.7. 3. hch.2.17. † Heb. breathe. 6 h Until the day t break, and the shadows flee away, I will get me to the mountain of myrrh. and to the hill of frankincense. iEp.5. 27.7 Thou art all fair, my love; there is no spot in thee. 8 T Come with me from Leba non, my spouse, with me from Lebanon: look from the top of Amana, from the top of Shenir k De.3.9. and Hermon, from the lions' dens, from the mountains of the leopards. Or, taken away my heart. 9 Thou hast ravished my heart, my sister, my spouse; thou hast ravished my heart with one of thine eyes, with one chain of thy neck. 10 How fair is thy love, my sister, my spouse! how much bet out of the wilderness like pillars d ch. 8.5.1 ch. 1. 2. ter is thy love than wine! and of smoke, perfumed with myrrh and frankincense, with all powders of the merchant? 7 Behold his bed, which is Solomon's: threescore valiant men are about it, of the valiant of Israel. 8 They all hold swords, being expert in war: every man hath his sword upon his thigh because of fear in the night. 9 King Solomon made himself la chariot of the wood of Leba non. 10 He made the pillars thereof of silver, the bottom thereof of gold, the covering of it of purple, the midst thereof being paved with love, for the daughters of Jerusalem. 11 Go forth, O ye daughters of Zion, and behold king Solomon with the crown wherewith his mother crowned him in the day of his espousals, and in the day of the gladness of his heart. CHAPTER IV. Christ setteth forth the graces of the church, 1. 8 He sheweth his love to her. 16 The church prayeth to be made fit for his presence. BE EHOLD, "thou art fair, my love; behold, thou art fair; thou hast doves' eyes within thy locks: thy hair is as a block of goats, that appear from mount Gilead. 2 Thy teeth are like a flock of sheep that are even shorn, which came up from the washing; whereof every one bear twins, and none is barren among them. 3 Thy lips are like a thread of the smell of thine ointments than all spices! 11 Thy lips, O my spouse, drop as the honey-comb: honey and milk are under thy tongue; and the smell of thy garments is "like the smell of Lebanon. 12 A garden tenclosed is my sister, my spouse; a spring shut up, a fountain sealed." 13 Thy plants are an orchard of pomegranates, with pleasant fruits; camphire, with spikenard, 14 Spikenard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon, with all trees of frankincense; myrrh and aloes, with all the chief spices: 15 A fountain of gardens, a well John 4. of living waters, and streams 10.&7.38. from Lebanon. 16 TAwake, O north wind; and come, thou south; blow upon my garden, that the spices thereP ch. 5. 1. of may flow out. P Let my beloved come into his garden, and eat his pleasant fruits. Christ awaketh the church with his calling, 1. 2 The church having a taste of Christ's love is sick of love. 9 A description of Christ by his graces. a AM come into my garden, my sister, my spouse: I have gathered my myrrh with my spice; bl have eaten my honeycomb with my honey; I have Or, drunk my wine with my milk: and be eat, Ofriends; drink, I yea, drunken drink abundantly, O beloved. with 2 TI sleep, but my heart waketh: it is the voice of my bedRe.3.20. loved d that knocketh, saying, 14. loves. |