Solomon's World View

[Olde Tymer]

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● Ecc 10:11 . . If the snake bites because no spell was uttered, no advantage is
gained by the trained charmer.

That continues the thought from verse 10: "Thus the advantage of a skill [depends
on the exercise of] prudence."

Trained snake charmers lose control over cobras when they fail to exercise the
snake charming skills they learned in training. Charmers can't just sit there and do
nothing. The snake might strike and end the show before the charmer gets any
money from his audience. That principle obviously applies in just about any area of
life where skills (and prudence) are required to produce results; like driving a car,
SCUBA diving, banking, typing, sewing, cooking, rock climbing, welding . .
whatever. Trainings and skills are only valuable when they're applied and put to
use.

● Ecc 10:12-14a . . A wise man's talk brings him favor, but a fool's lips are his
undoing. His talk begins as silliness and ends as disastrous madness. Yet the fool
talks and talks!

There are some talk shows on television that I simply cannot endure because the
hosts are so rude and disorderly. Those people continually interrupt each other and
hardly let the others complete a sentence before blurting out their own thoughts;
and many times all are talking at once with a din that reminds me of a chicken
house with all the birds clucking and squawking an incoherent cacophony.

For some people, every conversation is a venue for monologue: they do all the
talking. I used to work with a young man who not only talked very fast, but with a
pretty fair amount of animated arm waving and head tossing to go with it. He had a
maddening habit of never finishing one topic at a time. In mid sentence he would
branch off to another; leaving the first incomplete. His conversation was like that
continually and the effect was nerve jangling because your mind was constantly
shifting gears trying to keep up with each new train of his erratic thoughts.

People's words are like pools of water. Some are very deep; yet so clear that you
can see all the way down. Others are shallow, but alas, so murky that we cannot
see even one inch below the surface.

● Ecc 10:14b . . A man cannot know what will happen; who can tell him what the
future holds?

Well . . some people seem to know a little something about everything. No matter
what topic comes up in conversation, they have something to share about it as if
you were the student, and they the master; and they are prolific with rash
predictions about this and about that, e.g. "just you wait and see" and/or "mark my
words."

● Ecc 10:15 . . A fool's exertions tire him out, for he doesn't know how to get to a
town.

(chuckle) There's a modern colloquialism similar to that one: So and so is so dumb
that he doesn't know his right hand from his left. Or: He wouldn't be able to find his
nose if it wasn't attached to his face. That's the general impression bucket-mouths
make upon their victims.

"Sooner meet a bereaved she-bear than a fool with his nonsense." (Pro 17:12)

"A knowledgeable man is sparing with his words; a man of understanding is
reticent. Even a fool, if he keeps silent, is deemed wise-- intelligent, if he seals his
lips." (Pro 17:27-28)

It isn't necessary to be an aged wizard like Gandalf to be truly wise because
wisdom isn't really measured by a person's age. It's measured in good sense. Frodo
the Hobbit, although young and inexperienced, is wise in his own way. Some of his
friends are imbeciles. But not Frodo. Although he enjoys a good time as well as any
of his peers, Frodo is careful to avoid stupidity. Because he exercises a considerable
amount of self control, Frodo is the only inhabitant of Middle Earth who can be
trusted to bear the one ring that rules them all.
_

 

[Olde Tymer]

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● Ecc 10:16a . .Woe to you, O land, whose king is a lad

It is a very sad time in a country's progress when the young are getting their own
way. Some see lowering the USA voting age to 18 as progress and a step in the
right direction. The Bible would see it as an evidence of America's decadence. God
is known for punishing Moses' people by saddling them with immature leadership.
For example:

"He will destroy all the nation's leaders-- the heroes, soldiers, judges, prophets,
diviners, elders, army officers, honorable citizens, advisers, skilled magicians, and
expert enchanters. Then he will appoint children to rule over them, and anarchy will
prevail. People will take advantage of each other-- man against man, neighbor
fighting neighbor. Young people will revolt against authority, and nobodies will
sneer at honorable people." (Isa 3:2-5)

Children's activities, like little league baseball and cub scouts, need adult
supervision. Kids, no matter how intelligent, just haven't the maturity to rule either
themselves or others. Management of lands and peoples requires a degree of
maturity, experience, and self discipline; which is why it's totally stupid to lower the
voting age instead of raising it especially when the new 21 in America is now
somewhere around 26, and where civil disobedience is thought to be patriotic, and
where parent-demeaning sitcoms rate high in television programming.

● Ecc 10:16b-17 . . and whose princes feast in the morning. Blessed are you, O
land, whose king is of nobility and whose princes eat at the appropriate time-- for
strength, and not for drunkenness.

The word translated "princes" means: a head person of any rank or class--
captains, chiefs, generals, governors, keepers, lords, taskmasters, monarchs,
kings, magnates, barons, czars, foremen, supervisors, etc.

A hearty breakfast of pancakes, fruit, and cereal wouldn't be considered feasting.
But a banquet, replete with alcohol, so early in the day, would have to be construed
as indulgence. Here in America, where we have so much, overeating is a big
problem. Many of us don't eat because we're hungry. No, we eat for recreation:
simply because we like food.

* Overeating isn't the same as gluttony. Real gluttony is where revelers stuff
themselves then regurgitate it so they can continue. But chronic overeating can be
evidence of the possible presence of other vices. There used to be an old saying
that chubby people are the happiest people. But we now know that over-eating is
often the result of psychological problems like depression and anxiety disorders. Is
that the kind of people we need in positions of leadership? I seriously doubt it.

● Ecc 10:18-19 . .Through slothfulness the ceiling sags, through lazy hands the
house caves in. They make a banquet for revelry; wine makes life merry, and
money answers every need.

People with vices often put a higher priority upon satisfying their appetites than
taking care of business. Drug addicts often lose their jobs for non-productivity and
tardiness. Some lose their friends, and their mental health. Gamblers risk the loss
of their homes, credit ratings, and bank accounts. Binge eaters risk heart attacks,
strokes, and hardening of the arteries. Smokers risk cancer, premature aging, and
high blood pressure. And addicts on meth risk losing their teeth, ergo: the best
time to break a bad habit is before it starts.
_