TEXT [Commentary]

  16.   The “accidents” of life (10:8-11)

8 When you dig a well,

you might fall in.

When you demolish an old wall,

you could be bitten by a snake.

9 When you work in a quarry,

stones might fall and crush you.

When you chop wood,

there is danger with each stroke of your ax.

10 Using a dull ax requires great strength,

so sharpen the blade.

That’s the value of wisdom;

it helps you succeed.

11 If a snake bites before you charm it,

what’s the use of being a snake charmer?

NOTES

10:8 you might fall in. When reading this verse, one cannot help but think of a common expression for retribution in the Psalms, typified by Ps 7:15: “They dig a deep pit to trap others, then fall into it themselves.” This is a common and vivid metaphor for the idea that those who create a problem will reap the consequences. However, Qoheleth’s proverb, whether he created it or is simply quoting it, reverses this idea. It is an innocent person, who is simply doing a job, who falls prey to the dangers of the hole.

10:9 The NLT appropriately makes explicit what is implicit in the Heb. text: “The one who quarries stones may be injured by them; the one who splits trees may be endangered by them.” The Heb. only suggests how those who quarry stones and split trees might be injured, but the NLT introduces the idea of getting crushed by the stones or being struck by the ax.

10:10 Using a dull ax requires great strength, so sharpen the blade. That’s the value of wisdom; it helps you succeed. Charles Wright (1888:423) admitted that “this, linguistically speaking, is confessedly the most difficult passage in the Book of Qoheleth.” The problems are ancient, as the translations of even the various ancient versions attest. The Gr. of the LXX, for instance, might be rendered: “If the ax falls and it troubles a face, then he will strengthen his strength. The advantage of man is wisdom.” The NLT follows the suggestion of Frendo (1981) that there is a genitive relationship between words that are not next to each other, and this insight helps yield the translation and understanding of the verse presented here.

COMMENTARY [Text]

Qoheleth has repeatedly acknowledged the providence of God. God knows the times (3:1-15). He is in charge of how events work themselves out. On the human side, however, we are ignorant. Time and chance rule all (9:11). We do not know what God has in store for us now or in the future (9:1). In such a world (“under the sun”), our good, constructive intentions can turn disastrous, and wisdom is of limited value as we struggle with the “accidents” of life.

Ecclesiastes 10:8-9 offers four examples for our consideration. As we dig a well, we may fall in and hurt ourselves. As we take down an old wall, we could reach in and be bitten by a snake and be injured or even die. Quarry work might lead to death by crushing, while chopping wood may well result in a severed foot.

These are just people doing their occupation, and they end up getting hurt. This may well be a further comment on the fairness of the world and of God. These people have done nothing wrong; they do not deserve the injury.

The connection between 10:8-9 and 10:10-11 is not strong. Since 10:9 refers to chopping wood, it may have suggested that this would be a good place for 10:10, though it is not making the same general point. One need only read a section from Proverbs 10–31 to realize that collections of proverbs and wise sayings often have a rather random structure.

In any case, the point of the proverb seems to be the value of wisdom. To paraphrase: “If you’re smart, you’ll sharpen the edge of an ax before you start chopping wood—it will save your strength.” Qoheleth has nowhere in the book abandoned the idea that wisdom has some value; he has only insisted on its limited usefulness. It does not help one with the big problems of life such as death. In light of this, it is not surprising that, again, what he gives with one hand, he takes away with the other. Verse 10:11 points out the limits of wisdom and knowledge in the face of death.

A snake charmer is someone who knows how to handle snakes. The charmer keeps the potentially dangerous animal mesmerized so it can do no injury. This is a great skill, requiring sophisticated wisdom. By a simple question, however, Qoheleth undermines the wisdom of snake charmers, showing their limits. In effect he says, “Fine and good, but once bitten the charmer can do nothing. Snake charming has its obvious limitations.” Of course, Qoheleth’s point about danger and limitations is not restricted to snake charming; he intends to apply it to the use of any type of wisdom.

Thus, this section, though difficult to interpret in detail, makes two very clear points. Life is dangerous and prey to accidents. Though wisdom has some limited value, it does not ultimately help the one who possesses it.