Ecclesiastes 11

1 Send thy bread [up]on waters passing forth, for after many times thou shalt find it. (Send thy bread upon the water, and after a time, thou shalt receive it back, and more along with it.)

2 Give thou (thy) parts (to) seven, and also (to) eight, (that is, do not put all thy eggs in one basket); for thou knowest not, what evil shall come [up]on (the) earth.

3 If clouds be filled, they shall shed out rain on the earth; if a tree falleth down to the south, either to the north, in whatever place it falleth down, there it shall be.

4 He that espieth the wind, soweth not; and he that beholdeth the clouds, shall never reap. (He who looketh for the wind, soweth not; and he who watcheth the clouds, shall never reap, or bring in the harvest.)

5 As thou knowest not, which is the way of the spirit, and by what reason bones be joined together in the womb of a woman with child, so thou knowest not the works of God, which is maker of all things (who is the Maker of all things).

6 Early sow thy seed, and thine hand cease not in the eventide; for thou knowest not, what shall come forth more, this either that; and if ever either come forth together, it shall be the better. (Sow thy seed early, and do not stop thy work in the evening/and do not stop thy work until the evening; for thou knowest not, what shall come forth more, this or that; or if both will come forth together, and it shall be the better.)

7 The light is sweet, and delightable to the eyes to see the sun. (The light is sweet, and it is delightful, or pleasant, for thine eyes to see the sun.)

8 If a man liveth many years, and is glad in all these, he oughteth to have mind of [the] dark time, and of (those) many days (yet to come); and when those shall come, [the] things passed (away) shall be reproved of vanity. (If a person liveth many years, and is happy in all of them, he still ought to remember the dark time, and the many days yet to come; and when they do come, the things passed away shall be rebuked as but empty and futile.)

9 Therefore, thou young man, be glad in thy youth, and thine heart be in goodness in the days of thy youth, and go thou in the ways of thine heart, and in the beholding of thine eyes; and know thou, that for all these things God shall bring thee into doom. (And so, O young man, be happy in thy youth, and let thy heart be in goodness in the days of thy youth, and go thou in the ways of thy heart, and in the beholding of thine eyes; but know thou, that for all these things God shall bring thee to the judgement.)

10 Do thou away ire from thine heart, and remove thou malice from thy flesh; for why youth and lust be vain things, or vanity. (Do thou away anger from thy heart, and remove thou malice from thy flesh; because youth and lust be but empty and futile.)

Ecclesiastes 11 Commentary

Chapter 11

Exhortation to liberality. (1-6) An admonition to prepare for death, and to young persons to be religious. (7-10)

Verses 1-6 Solomon presses the rich to do good to others. Give freely, though it may seem thrown away and lost. Give to many. Excuse not thyself with the good thou hast done, from the good thou hast further to do. It is not lost, but well laid out. We have reason to expect evil, for we are born to trouble; it is wisdom to do good in the day of prosperity. Riches cannot profit us, if we do not benefit others. Every man must labour to be a blessing to that place where the providence of God casts him. Wherever we are, we may find good work to do, if we have but hearts to do it. If we magnify every little difficulty, start objections, and fancy hardships, we shall never go on, much less go through with our work. Winds and clouds of tribulation are, in God's hands, designed to try us. God's work shall agree with his word, whether we see it or not. And we may well trust God to provide for us, without our anxious, disquieting cares. Be not weary in well-doing, for in due season, in God's time, you shall reap, ( Galatians 6:9 ) .

Verses 7-10 Life is sweet to bad men, because they have their portion in this life; it is sweet to good men, because it is the time of preparation for a better; it is sweet to all. Here is a caution to think of death, even when life is most sweet. Solomon makes an effecting address to young persons. They would desire opportunity to pursue every pleasure. Then follow your desires, but be assured that God will call you into judgment. How many give loose to every appetite, and rush into every vicious pleasure! But God registers every one of their sinful thoughts and desires, their idle words and wicked words. If they would avoid remorse and terror, if they would have hope and comfort on a dying bed, if they would escape misery here and hereafter, let them remember the vanity of youthful pleasures. That Solomon means to condemn the pleasures of sin is evident. His object is to draw the young to purer and more lasting joys. This is not the language of one grudging youthful pleasures, because he can no longer partake of them; but of one who has, by a miracle of mercy, been brought back in safety. He would persuade the young from trying a course whence so few return. If the young would live a life of true happiness, if they would secure happiness hereafter, let them remember their Creator in the days of their youth.

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO ECCLESIASTES 11

This chapter begins with an exhortation to liberality to the poor, enforced by several reasons and arguments, and the objections to it removed; and the whole illustrated by various similes, Ec 11:1-6; and then it is observed, that a life attended with outward prosperity and inward peace, and spent in doing good, is very delightful, and very desirable it is to have it continued; yet it should be remembered this will not be always, that many days of darkness in the grave will come; and after all the whole of a man's life is vanity, as is often inculcated, Ec 11:7,8; and the chapter is closed with an ironic address to young men, designed to show them the folly and danger of sinful courses, to reform them from them, and to put them in mind of a future judgment, Ec 11:9,10.