Ecclesiastes 10:17

17. Blessed art thou, O land, when thy king is the son of nobles] The epithet has been taken as instance of the Hebrew of expressing character by the phrase “the son of …,” and hence as having a meaning here like that of the Latin generosus. Probably, however, the maxim reflects the thought of Greek political writers that they “are truly noble who can point to ancestors distinguished for both excellence and wealth” (Aristot. Polit. Ecc_10:17) that if there were any one family with an hereditary character for excellence, it was just that it should be recognised as kingly, and that the king should be chosen from it (Ibid. iii. 16). Such, the writer may have meant covertly to imply, ought a true descendant of the Ptolemies to have been instead of sinking into a degenerate profligacy.

thy princes eat in due season] The word “season” reminds us of the sense in which in chap. Ecc_3:1-8 it is said that every thing, feasting included, has its proper “time.” In the case supposed the character of the king is reflected in the princes that rule under him. The words “for strength” may, perhaps, mean “in strength,” i.e. with the self-control of temperance, the ἐγκρατεία of Greek ethics, and not in the drunkenness which accompanies the morning revels.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Ecc 10:17 Blessed [art] thou, O land, when thy king [is] the son of nobles, and thy princes eat in due season, for strength, and not for drunkenness!

Ver. 17. Blessed art thou, O land, &c.] Ita nati estis ut bona malaque vestra ad Remp. pertineant. You governors are of such condition as that your good or evil deeds are of public concernment, saith he in Tacitus. {a} It is either wealth or woe with the land, as it is well or ill governed.

When thy king is the son of nobles.] Well born and yet better bred; for else they will be noti magis quam nobiles, notable or notorious, but not noble {b} Our Henry I (surnamed Beauclerc) was often heard to say that an unlearned king was no better than a crowned ass. {c} Sure it is that royalty without righteousness is but eminent dishonour, gilded rottenness, golden damnation. Godly men are the excellent ones of the earth, {Psa 16:1-11} the Beraeans were more noble, {d} or better gentlemen, than those of Thessalonica, non per civilem dignitatem, sed per spiritualem dignationem, not by civil, but by spiritual dignity; without which riches, revenue, retinue, high birth, &c., are but shadows and shapes of nobleness. "Since thou hast been precious in my sight, thou hast been honourable," saith God, {Isa 43:4} who is the top of good men’s kin, as religion is the root. But for want of this it was that Jehoiakim, though royally descended, is likened to an ass; {Jer 22:19} and Antiochus, though a mighty monarch, is called a "vile person." {Dan 11:21}

And thy princes eat in due season for strength, &c.] Being modest and moderate, not diffluent and debauched. Great men should not "cater for the flesh," {Rom 13:11-14} but so serve the body that the body politic may be served by it, and the Lord by both. Did ever any one see King Dejotarus dancing or drunken? saith Cicero, {e} and this he holds to be a singular commendation. See Pro 31:3-4. {See Trapp on "Pro 31:3"} {See Trapp on "Pro 31:3"} See my Common Place of Abstinence.

{a} Annal., lib. iv.

{b} Princeps bonis moribus et liberaliter institutus. - Jerome, in loc.

{c} Speed.

{d} ευγενεστεροι. {Act 17:11}

{e} Orat. pro Rege Deiotaro.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Meaning, when he is noble for virtue and wisdom, and with the gifts of God.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

son of nobles--not merely in blood, but in virtue, the true nobility (Sol 7:1; Isa 32:5, Isa 32:8).

in due season-- (Ecc 3:1), not until duty has first been attended to.

for strength--to refresh the body, not for revelry (included in "drunkenness").

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 17. When thy king is the son of nobles] υιος ελευθερων, the son of freemen; persons well acquainted with the principles of civil liberty, and who rule according to them.-Septuagint. Such a one as comes to the throne in a legitimate way, from an ancient regal family, whose right to the throne is incontestable. It requires such a long time to establish a regal right, that the state is in continual danger from pretenders and usurpers, where the king is not the son of nobles.

And thy princes eat in due season] All persons in places of trust for the public weal, from the king to the lowest public functionary, should know, that the public are exceedingly scandalized at repeated accounts of entertainments, where irregularity prevails, much money is expended, and no good done. These things are drawn into precedent, and quoted to countenance debauch in the inferior classes. The natural division of the day for necessary repasts is, BREAKFAST, eight, or half after; DINNER, one, or half after; SUPPER, eight, or half after. And these, or even earlier hours were formerly observed in these countries. Then we had scarcely any such thing as gout, and no nervous disorders.

In ancient nations the custom was to eat but once; and then about mid-day.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Blessed art thou, O land, when thy king is the son of nobles,.... Or "heroes" (z), called "Hhorim" in the Hebrew, which signifies "white"; either from the white garment they wore, or rather from the purity and ingenuity of their minds and manners; being illustrious persons, not only by birth and education, but in their lives and actions. Now a land is happy when it is governed by a king that is not only descended from a race of heroes and illustrious men, and has a princely and liberal education; but that imitates his ancestors, and treads in their steps, and is famous himself for wisdom, virtue, and real piety, in which true nobility consists; and so the Vulgate Latin version renders it, "whose king is noble"; who is of an ingenuous mind, has princely virtues and qualifications; who is wise and prudent, skilful in the affairs of government, and assiduous and industrious therein; for as, on the one hand, kings may, as they commonly do, descend from illustrious progenitors, and yet be base and wicked, ignoble and infamous, in their administration; and, on the other hand, persons may be raised from a low estate to royal dignity, as David and others, and yet behave with great prudence and ingenuity. The Targum applies this to the land of Israel also, and instances in Hezekiah, a man mighty in the law;

and thy princes eat in due season, for strength, and not for drunkenness; that is, eat their meals at proper times, and that after they have been at business; to refresh nature, and recruit their strength, that they may be fit for further service; and do not indulge themselves, and spend their time, in rioting and drunkenness; which would render them very unfit for public business, to sit in council, or in any court of judicature: according to the Targum, the time was four o'clock, that is, ten o'clock in the morning. Or, "not unto drinking" or "drunkenness" (a); they do not eat so as to cause an appetite, or eager desire for drinking to excess: or, not "with drinking" (b); their eating is not attended with excessive drinking; they eat and drink moderately. The Egyptians had a law, which fixed such a measure of wine to be allowed their kings daily, and no more (c); and it was Solon's law, given to the Athenians, that if a prince was found drunk, death was his punishment (d); and, with the Indians, if a woman killed a drunken king, her reward was to marry his successor (e): all which show how odious drunkenness was with the Heathens, and especially in their kings and princes; see Pro 31:4. So Plato observes (f), that

"drunkenness ought to be abstained from; and rather it should be allowed to any than to a keeper, (that is, of a city and its laws, a Civil magistrate), for it would be ridiculous for a keeper to need a keeper.''

Jerom, as before observed, interprets this figuratively, "blessed is the land", of the church; whose "King" is Christ, the son of nobles, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; and whose "princes" are the apostles, who seek not pleasure in this world, but shall eat in the world to come.

(z) "heroum", Montanus. (a) non "autem ad compotationem", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Drusius, Gejerus, Rambachius; so Broughton. (b) "Non cum ingurgitatione", Cocceius; "non eum compotatione", Schmidt. (c) Plutarch. de Iside & Osir. "in principio". Vid. Alex. ab Alex. Genial. Dier. l. 3. c. 11. (d) Laert. Vit. Solon. p. 38. (e) Strabo. Geograph. l. 15. p. 488. (f) De Republic. l. 3. p. 621.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Noble. Royal extraction, (Greek: Esthlon genesthai. Euripides, Hec.) and education, afford many advantages which others, who raise themselves to the throne, do not enjoy. Hebrew, "the son of those in white," (Calmet) or "of heroes." (Montanus) --- Eurim, (Haydock) or Chorim seems to have give rise to the word Hero. The advantages of birth only make the defects of degenerate children more observable. (Calmet) --- Heroum filii noxæ. "The sons of heroes are a nuisance," (Haydock) was an ancient proverb. --- Season. The time was not fixed; but it was deemed a mark of intemperance to eat before noon, when judges ought to have decided causes, Daniel xiii. 7., and Acts ii. 15.

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

The son of nobles; not so much by birth, as even the worst of kings commonly are, and have been, as by their noble and worthy dispositions, and endowments, and carriages; for such a one is opposed to the child in the former verse. Sons of nobles are put for noble persons, as the sons of men for men, and the sons of physicians for physicians.

Eat in due season; so as may further, and not hinder, their main business.

For strength; to refresh and strengthen their natures, that they may be fit for action and business.

Not for drunkenness; not only nor chiefly to please their palates, and indulge themselves in sensuality.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

17. A son of nobles is a strong phrase for a noble man. So uniform is the connexion between the wise control of appetite by those who have ample means for its indulgence and a proper regard for public welfare, that such abstinence fairly presumes the possession of a wise regard for the welfare of those over whom they rule.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Blessed art thou, O land, when thy king is the son of nobles! cujus rex nobilis est (Vulgate), uiJorwn, "son of free men" (Septuagint). Some would regard "son of nobles" as a periphrasis expressive of character, equivalent to the Latin generous, as "son of strength," equivalent to "strong man;" "son of wickedness," equivalent to "wicked man;" but the phrase may well be taken literally. Koheleth (ver. 7) has expressed his disgust at the exaltation of unworthy slaves to high positions; he here intimates his adherence to the idea that those who descend from noble ancestors, and have been educated in the higher ranks of society, are more likely to prove a blessing to their land than upstarts who have been placed by caprice or favoritism in situations of trust and eminence. Of course, it is not universally true that men of high birth make good rulers; but proverbs of general tenor must not be pressed in particulars, and the author must be understood to affirm that the fact of having distinguished ancestors is an incentive to right action, stirs a worthy emulation in a man, gives him a motive which is wanting in the lowborn parvenu. The feeling, noblesse oblige, has preserved many from baseness. (Joh_8:39) Thy princes eat in due season; not like those mentioned in ver. 16, but in tempore, pron, at the right time, the "season" which appertains to all mundane things. (Ecc_3:1-8) For strength, and net for drunkenness. The preposition here is taken as expressing the object they eat to gain strength, not to indulge sensuality; but it is more in accordance with usage to translate "in, or with, manly strength," i.e. as man"s strength demands, and not degenerating into a carouse. If it is thought incongruous, as Ginsburg deems, to say, "princes eat for drunkenness," we may take drunkenness as denoting excess of any kind The word in the form here used occurs nowhere else. The Septuagint, regarding rather the consequences of intoxication than the actual word in the text, renders, Kaisontai, "And they shall not be ashamed." Thus, too, St. Jerome, Et non in confusione. St. Augustine ("De Civit.," 17:20) deduces from this passage that there are two kingdoms that of Christ and that of the devil, and he explains the allegory at some length, going into details which are of homiletic utility. Another interpretation is given by St. Jerome, quoted at length by Corn. a Lapide, in his copious commentary.

Vers. 17, 18.

Ruin its forms and its sources.

A material "ruin" may be a very picturesque and even pleasant sight, when that which has answered its end loses its form and does well to disappear. But otherwise a ruin is a pitiable spectacle.

I THREE FORMS OF RUIN.

1. Health. When a man should be in his prime, with all his physical and mental forces at their best; when he should be able to work effectively and continuously, and should be the stay of his home and a strength to his Church and to his friends; and when, instead of this, he is worn, feeble, incapable, obviously declining, and clearly drawing towards the end, we have a melancholy ruin.

2. Circumstance. The once wealthy merchant, or the once powerful family, or the once strong and influential state, is brought down to poverty, helplessness, and general disregard; this also is a pitiful sight. But the worst of all is that which relates to:

3. Character. When a man once upright, pure, godly, respecting himself and living in the enjoyment of general esteem, is brought down to moral ruin and becomes a human wreck, then we see the saddest sight beneath the sun. What was once the fairest and noblest thing in the world a sound, strong, beautiful human character has lost all its excellency and become foul and ugly. How does this happen? Here are

II TWO SOURCES OF RUIN.

1. Self-indulgence. To "eat for strength and not for revelry" (drunkenness) is the right and the becoming thing; "to eat (feast) in the, morning," when the precious hours should be given to duty, this is a shameful and a fatal thing. Self-indulgence, which constantly tends to become greater and grosser, leads down fast to feebleness, to poverty, to demoralization, to shame, to death.

2. Idleness, or carelessness.

(1) The man who does not think it worth his while to study the laws of health, and to take pains to keep them, need not wonder if he becomes weak and sickly, if his life is threatened.

(2) The man who pursues his pleasure when he should be doing his work will certainly find his business "decaying," his credit falling, his prospects of success "dropping through." So also the housewife, the student, the minister, the secretary, the statesman.

(3) The man who treats his own spirit as something of secondary importance, who does not read that he may be enlightened, who does not worship that he may be edified, who does not pray that he may be guarded and sustained, who does not seek the companionship of the good and fellowship with Christ, who leaves his spiritual nature at the mercy of all the adverse forces that are circling round him and acting on him, may expect that his soul will be impaired, that his character will decay, that the most precious "house" which man can build will fall, and great and sad will be the fall of it. C. (Mat_7:27)

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Nobles - Not so much by birth, as by their noble dispositions.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

in might and not in drinking They engage in the might of wisdom and understanding and not in drinking wine.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.