Wisdom and Folly
A chapter of proverbs on wisdom and folly, the fool in power and the wise in low places, the dangers of the court, the laborer whose toil profits nothing if he lacks the wisdom to direct it.
Summary
Ecclesiastes 10 is the most Proverbs-like chapter in the book: a sequence of short observations on wisdom and folly. Dead flies make the perfumer’s ointment give off a stench; so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor. A wise man’s heart inclines him to the right, but a fool’s heart to the left. Even in your thoughts, do not curse the king, nor in your bedroom curse the rich, for a bird of the air will carry your voice.
The chapter reflects on the inversion of natural order — folly set in many high places, and the rich sitting in a low place; slaves on horses, and princes walking on the ground. It offers practical counsel on the risks of the court, the futility of a ruler who starts early drinking, and the laborer whose toil is wasted without the wisdom to direct it. Qoheleth is not drawing a moral lesson; he is observing a world in which the connections between virtue and outcome have come loose.
- Ecclesiastes 1The great thesis.
- Ecclesiastes 2Pleasure, works, wealth — all tried, all hevel.
- Ecclesiastes 3The seasons poem.
- Ecclesiastes 4Oppression with no comforter.
- Ecclesiastes 5How to approach God.
- Ecclesiastes 6Everything given but the power to enjoy it.
- Ecclesiastes 7The day of death better than the day of birth.
- Ecclesiastes 8Navigate the king’s court.
- Ecclesiastes 9One fate for all: righteous, wicked, clean, unclean.
- Ecclesiastes 10Dead flies ruin the perfumer’s ointment.
- Ecclesiastes 11Cast your bread on the waters.
- Ecclesiastes 12The allegory of old age.