Ecclesiastes 9:16

Ecc 9:16 Then said I, Wisdom [is] better than strength: nevertheless the poor man’s wisdom [is] despised, and his words are not heard.

Ver. 16. Then said I, Wisdom is better, &c.] This he had said before, {Ecc 7:19 Pro 21:22} {See Trapp on "Ecc 7:19"} {See Trapp on "Pro 21:22"} but now upon this new occasion. Nunquam satis dicitur, quod nunquam satis discitur. {a}

Nevertheless the poor man’s wisdom is despised.] Jerome reads it thus, Et sapientia pauperis quae despecta est, et verba eius quae non sunt audita; that is, And the wisdom of the poor man which is despised, and his words which are not heard. According to which reading, the sense is, wisdom is better than strength, yea, even the despised wisdom of the poor man, &c. The Septuagint and Vulgate read it, Quomodo ergo sapientia pauperis contempta est et verba eius non audita! How therefore is the wisdom of the wise man despised, and his words not heard! As making a wonder and a strange thing of it. Too often it befalls God’s poor ministers, either to be rejected with scorn, or if heard, yet not regarded, much less rewarded, unless it be as Micaiah was by Ahab, and Jeremiah by his countrymen of Anathoth, Jesus Christ by the proud Pharisees, {Joh 7:14-15; Joh 7:27} St Paul by the ungrateful Corinthians; {1Co 4:7} "His bodily presence," said they, "is weak," his sermons without philosophy and rhetoric. {2Co 10:10}

{a} Seneca.

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.

Resuming the sentiment (Ecc 7:19; Pro 21:22; Pro 24:5).

poor man's wisdom is despised--not the poor man mentioned in Ecc 9:15; for his wisdom could not have saved the city, had "his words not been heard"; but poor men in general. So Paul (Act 27:11).

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 16. The poor man's wisdom is despised, and his words are not heard.] I cannot help pursuing this illustration a little farther. The soldier who found Archimedes busily employed in drawing figures upon the sand, put to him some impertinent question, withal rudely obtruding himself on his operations. To whom this wonderful mathematician replied, "Stand off, soldier, and do not spoil my diagram;" on which the bloody savage struck him dead!

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

16. Wisdom is better than strength] The maxim of ch. Ecc_7:19 is reproduced, but it is traversed by the fact that the wisdom must often be content to remain unrecognised. The power of the purse too often prevails against the wisdom of the poor. At the best, often, in words already quoted (Ecc_9:11),

“Probitas laudatur et alget.”

“Virtue is praised, and left out in the cold.”

Juvenal, Sat. i. 74.

The marginal reference in the A. V. to Mar_6:2-3 is not without significance as indicating the highest illustration of the maxim, in the question which asked “Is not this the carpenter’s son? Is he not himself a carpenter?” The chief butler’s forgetfulness of Joseph (Gen_40:23) supplies another obvious parallel.

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.

Then said I, wisdom is better than strength,.... Wisdom of mind, even in a poor man, is better than strength of body, even of the, most potent prince and powerful army, as may be concluded from the above instance; since the poor wise man could do more by his wisdom than the great king with his mighty army; who was obliged to break up the siege, in consequence of the counsel given, or the methods directed to, or taken, by the poor man;

nevertheless, the poor man's wisdom is despised, and his words are not heard; notwithstanding such a flagrant instance and example as this just mentioned; yet men still retain their prejudices against a poor man, and despise his wise counsels and advice, for no other reason but because he is poor, and will not attend to what he says: or, "though the poor man's wisdom", &c. (k), as Aben Ezra; Solomon drew the above conclusion from that instance; though this is usually the case, that men despise the wisdom of a poor man, and will not listen to his advice, this did not lessen the wise man's opinion of it. The words may be rendered, "even the poor man's wisdom despised, and his words not heard" (l); these are better than outward force and strength, and more serviceable and useful; which the Septuagint version favours: the Vulgate Latin version renders it, "how is the poor man's wisdom despised!" &c. as wondering at it that so it should be, when so much profit and advantage arose to the city from it.

(k) "quamvis sapientia", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Mercerus, Gejerus, Amama; "etsi", Drusius. (l) "Et pauperis sapientiam contemptam", &c. Tigurine version.

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

Heard? Ecclesiasticus xiii. 28. Men are so unjust as to despise wisdom, if it be in a poor man. The prudence of an individual has often saved cities, as was the case at Abela, and Bethulia; (2 Kings xx. 22.; Calmet) and Syracuse was defended a long time by Archimedes against the whole Roman army. (Plut.[Plutarch?] in Marcel.)

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).

Wisdom is better than strength, as was manifest in the foregoing instance.

The poor man’s wisdom is despised, because men are generally vain and foolish, and have a greater value for outward ornaments than for true worth.

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

16. Wisdom is despised — In this instance, favour did not come to the man of skill. One can hardly avoid adding, though it is foreign to Koheleth’s present line of thought, that wisdom is largely its own conscious reward. even while it ministers, and is not ministered to.

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

Then said I, Wisdom is better than strength. The latter part of the verse is not a correction of the former, but the whole comes under the observation introduced by "I said." The story just related leads to this assertion, which reproduces the gnome of Ecc_7:19, wherein it is asserted that wisdom effects more than mere physical strength. There is an interpolation in the Old Latin Version of Wisd. 6. I which seems to have been compiled from this passage and Pro_16:13, "Melter est sapientia quam vires, et vir prudens quam fortis." Nevertheless the poor man"s wisdom is despised, etc. In the instance above mentioned the poor man"s wisdom was not despised and his words were heard and attended to; but this was an abnormal case, occasioned by the extremity of the peril. Koheleth states the result which usually attends wisdom emanating from a disesteemed source. The experience of Ben-Sire pointed to the same issue (see Ecc 13:22, Ecc 13:23). Horace, "Epist.," 1:1.57

Est animus tibi, sunt mores et lingua fidesque, Sed quadringentis sex septem millia desunt; Plebs erie.

In wit, worth, honor, one in vain abounds; If of the knight"s estate he lack ten pounds, He"s low, quite low! (Howes. )

"Is not this the carpenter"s Son?" asked the people who were offended at Christ. (Mar_6:2, 3)

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

"And I said: Better is wisdom than strength; but the wisdom of the poor is despised, and his words are not heard." With the words, "I saw," the author introduces his observations, and with "I said" his reflections. Wisdom is better than strength, since it does more for the wise man, and through him for others, than physical force, - more, as expressed in Ecc 7:19, than ten mighty men. But the respect which wisdom otherwise secures for a man, if it is the wisdom of a poor man, sinks into despect, to which his poverty exposes him, - if necessity arises, his service, as the above history shows, is valued; but as a rule his words are unheeded, for the crowd estimate the worth of him whom they willingly hear according to the outward respect in which he is held.

To the lessons gathered from experience, are now added instructive proverbs of kindred contents.

Keil & Delitzsch — Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament (1861–1891) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API. (Old Testament only.)

the poor man's wisdom is despised

This can be stated in active form. AT: "people despise the poor man's wisdom" (See: Active or Passive)

his words are not heard

this can be stated in active form. AT: "they do not listen to what he says" or "they do not take his advice" (See: Active or Passive)

translationWords

wise

strength

word

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

And I said when I saw this, “Wisdom is better than might,” for this one’s wisdom was despised by all, but now, they were all rescued through him. The Midrash Aggadah, [however, explains the verses as follows]:

[14] [There was] a small city This is the body.

with few people in it These are the limbs of a person.

a great king This is the evil inclination, which all his limbs feel.

[15] a poor man This is the good inclination.

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.