Discovery BoxEcclesiastes 7:10 
Context7:10 Do not say, “Why were the old days better than these days?” 1
for it is not wise to ask that. 2
Ecclesiastes 8:5
Context8:5 Whoever obeys his 3 command will not experience harm,
and a wise person 4 knows the proper time 5 and procedure.
Ecclesiastes 9:17
Context9:17 The words of the wise are heard in quiet,
more than the shouting of a ruler is heard 6 among fools.
Ecclesiastes 10:2
Context10:2 A wise person’s good sense protects him, 7
but a fool’s lack of sense leaves him vulnerable. 8
Ecclesiastes 10:12
Context1 tn Heb “these.” “Days” does not appear in the Hebrew text as second time, but is supplied in the translation for smoothness.
2 tn Heb “It is not from wisdom that you ask about this.”
3 tn The word “his” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for smoothness and clarity.
4 tn Heb “the heart of a wise man.”
5 tn The term עֵת (’et, “time”) connotes “a proper, suitable time for an event; the right moment” (HALOT 900 s.v. עֵת 6; BDB 773 s.v. עֵת 2.b); e.g., “it was the time for rain” (Ezra 10:13); “a time of judgment for the nations” (Ezek 30:3); “there is an appropriate time for every occasion” (Eccl 3:1); “the time when mountain goats are born” (Job 39:1); “the rain in its season” (Deut 11:14; Jer 5:24); “the time for the harvest” (Hos 2:11; Ps 1:3); “food in its season” (Ps 104:27).
6 tn The phrase “is heard” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity and smoothness. Note its appearance in the previous line.
7 tn Heb “a wise man’s heart is at his right hand.” The phrase “right hand” is a Hebrew idiom for the place of protection (e.g., Pss 16:8; 110:5; 121:5). In ancient warfare, the shield of the warrior on one’s right-hand side protected one’s right hand. Qoheleth’s point is that wisdom provides protection (e.g., Eccl 7:12).
8 tn Heb “and the heart of a fool is at his left hand.” The fool lacks the protection of wisdom which is at the right-hand side of the wise man (see note on “right hand” in the previous line). The wise man’s heart (i.e., good sense) protects him, but the fool is always getting into trouble.
9 tn Heb “of a wise man’s mouth.”
10 tn The phrase “win him” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
11 tn Or “are gracious.” The antithetical parallelism suggests that חֵן (khen) does not denote “gracious character” but “[gain] favor” (e.g., Gen 39:21; Exod 3:21; 11:3; 12:36; Prov 3:4, 34; 13:15; 22:1; 28:23; Eccl 9:11); cf. HALOT 332 s.v. חֵן 2; BDB 336 s.v. חֵן 2. The LXX, on the other hand, rendered חֶן with χάρις (caris, “gracious”). The English versions are divided: “are gracious” (KJV, YLT, ASV, NASB, NIV) and “win him favor” (NEB, RSV, NRSV, NAB, MLB, NJPS, Moffatt).
12 tn Heb “lips.”
13 tn Heb “consume him”; or “engulf him.” The verb I בלע (“to swallow”) creates a striking wordplay on the homonymic root II בלע (“to speak eloquently”; HALOT 134-35 s.v בלע). Rather than speaking eloquently (II בלע, “to speak eloquently”), the fool utters words that are self-destructive (I בלע, “to swallow, engulf”).
