Solomon reflects on the fact that both righteous and wicked people often experience prosperity and adversity, and concludes that while humans cannot understand God's purposes, righteous people and their actions are protected and directed by God. However, people cannot know from outward circumstances alone whether they are objects of God's love or hatred. All of one's future is uncertain and in God's hands.

1. ECCLESIASTES 9 COMME TARY
EDITED BY GLE PEASE
A Common Destiny for All
1 So I reflected on all this and concluded that the
righteous and the wise and what they do are in God's
hands, but no man knows whether love or hate awaits
him.
BAR ES, “A good man’s trust in God is set forth as a counterpoise to our Ignorance of
the ways of Providence.
In the hand of God - Under His special protection (Deu_33:3 ff) as righteous, and
under His direction Pro_21:1 as people.
No man ... - literally, both love and also hatred man knoweth not: all are before them.
Love and hatred here mean the ordinary outward tokens of God’s favor or displeasure, i.
e., prosperity and adversity. “Man knoweth not” probably means: “man knows not
whether to expect prosperity or adversity from God; all his earthly future is in
obscurity.”
CLARKE,”The righteous, and the wise, and their works, are in the hand of
God - This is a continuation of the preceding subject; and here the wise man draws a
conclusion from what he had seen, and from the well-known character of God, that the
righteous, the wise, and their conduct, were all in the hand of God, protected by his
power, and safe in his approbation: but we cannot judge from the occurrences which
take place in life who are the objects of God’s love or displeasure.
GILL, “For all this I considered in mine heart,.... What goes before, in the latter
end of the preceding chapter, concerning the various providences of God, the difficulty
of finding out the reasons of them, and the fruitlessness of attempting it; and also what
follows, the work of Providence: Solomon gave his mind unto, attended it with great
application, and strictly considered and examined it, in order to find it out, but could
not; and if he could not, no other man could. And he had a good intention in all; his
views were,
even to declare all this; for the end of search and inquiry should be, to make known
what is found for the good of others, Job_5:27; and as the wise man had done before,
Ecc_7:25; or "to purge", or "purify", as the word (p) signifies; to make dark providences
clear, and consistent with the perfections and promises of God; to free and vindicate

2. them from all charges of unrighteousness and partiality, and to set them in a clear light
to others: now though he failed in his attempt, yet having made some discoveries, he
imparted them, as follows: and the observations he made were,
that the righteous, and the wise, and their works, are in the hand of God;
that those who are truly "righteous" in the sight of God; are so, in an evangelical sense,
made so by the obedience of Christ; and who believe in him for righteousness, and live
soberly, righteously, and godly: and who are "wise", not for the things of this world but
another, who are wise unto salvation; and are concerned for the truth of grace, as well as
an outward profession, and walk wisely in the world; these, their persons, are under the
special care of divine Providence; they receive from the hand of God what is needful and
proper for them, and they are preserved and protected by him, 1Ti_4:8; and their
"works", or affairs; all events relating to them, are all appointed, ordered, and directed
by the hand of God, and all for their good. In a more evangelic sense, their persons are in
the hands of God, Father, Son, and Spirit; in the hands of the Father of Christ, being
engraven there: he looks at them, and upon them; with delight and pleasure, and never
forgets them; he has a high and honourable esteem of them, they are a crown of glory,
and a royal diadem in his hand; he directs and guides them, holds them, and upholds
them with his right hand; and keeps them, by his power, through faith unto salvation,
Joh_10:29. They are in the hands of Christ; put there by his Father, as the effect of his
love, care, and wisdom; where they are in his possession, the objects of his delight; and
are under his guidance and direction, his care and protection, Deu_33:3. And they are in
the hands of the Spirit, who begins and carries on his own work in them; leads them to
Christ, and into all truth, and guides them safe to glory, Joh_16:8. And so their "works"
also are in the hands of God; the work of grace upon the soul is in the hand of the Spirit,
to carry it on and finish it; good works done by them are done by the assistance of divine
grace, the strength of Christ, and the aid of the blessed Spirit; are received and accepted
with God through Christ; and will not be forgotten, but are retained, and will be
remembered another day; see Ecc_9:7;
no man knoweth either love or hatred by all that is before them; no man
knows his own love and hatred, his passions are so fickle and inconstant; what he loves
now, he presently hates, as may be seen in the instances of Ammon, Ahasuerus, and
others: or he knows not that what he loves and hates shall befall him, all depending on
divine Providence; or he does not know the love and hatred of others, who are his
friends or his foes, there is such deceitfulness in men: or rather, he does not know the
love and hatred of God, with respect to himself or others, by the outward conduct of
Providence; since the same things happen to one as to another; as health and strength,
wealth and riches, honour and fame, wisdom and learning, long life, and the like: good
men may know that they are loved of God, by his love being shed abroad in them, by the
blessings of grace bestowed on them, and the witnessings of the Spirit to them; and
know that sin is abominable to God, and wicked men are hated by him; and living and
dying in sin, will be eternally damned; but who is an elect person, and who a reprobate,
is not to be known by the outward estate of men, as to the things of life. Some render it,
"even love and hatred" (q), in connection with the preceding clause; that is, these are in
the hands of God also; his love to his people is purely sovereign, according to his own
will; not through any motives in them, as their love, loveliness, or good works; and his
hatred of others, or the punishment of them for sin, and appointment of them to it; for
the same is also as he pleases; see Rom_9:11; or the love and hatred of men; for God has
the hearts and passions of all men in his hand, and at his command, and can raise or
restrain them at his pleasure, Pro_21:1; the love and hatred of good men; he works in

3. them love to himself and all divine things, and hatred of that which is evil; and also of
bad men, he can make them love his people, and he can restrain their wrath when he
pleases, Pro_16:7; and then the last clause is rendered, "no man knoweth all that is
before them" (r); either before Elohim, the three divine Persons, to whom all things are
manifest, or that were before decreed, as Aben Ezra; the purposes and decrees of God,
which are the secret and deep things of God, and cannot be known but by his promises
or providences: or man is so short sighted, that he cannot discern the things that are
plain and manifest before him; and much less things future, that are yet to come. But the
words, according to the accents, may be better rendered, as by Munster, "neither love
nor hatred man knows"; whether the love professed to him is sincere, and what secret
hatred is bore to him: "but all things are before him"; Elohim, the three divine Persons.
HE RY, “
It has been observed concerning those who have pretended to search for the
philosophers' stone that, though they could never find what they sought for, yet in the
search they have hit upon many other useful discoveries and experiments. Thus
Solomon, when, in the close of the foregoing chapter, he applied his heart to know the
work of God, and took a great deal of pains to search into it, though he despaired of
finding it out, yet he found out that which abundantly recompensed him for the search,
and gave him some satisfaction, which he here gives us; for therefore he considered all
this in his heart, and weighed it deliberately, that he might declare it for the good of
others. Note, What we are to declare we should first consider; think twice before we
speak once; and what we have considered we should then declare. I believed, therefore
have I spoken.
The great difficulty which Solomon met with in studying the book of providence was the
little difference that is made between good men and bad in the distribution of comforts
and crosses, and the disposal of events. This has perplexed the minds of many wise and
contemplative men. Solomon discourses of it in these verses, and, though he does not
undertake to find out this work of God, yet he says that which may prevent its being a
stumbling-block to us.
I. Before he describes the temptation in its strength he lays down a great and
unquestionable truth, which he resolves to adhere to, and which, if firmly believed, will
be sufficient to break the force of the temptation. This has been the way of God's people
in grappling with this difficulty. Job, before he discourses of this matter, lays down the
doctrine of God's omniscience (Job_24:1), Jeremiah the doctrine of his righteousness
(Jer_12:1), another prophet that of his holiness (Hab_1:13), the psalmist that of his
goodness and peculiar favour to his own people (Psa_73:1), and that is it which Solomon
here fastens upon and resolves to abide by, that, though good and evil seem to be
dispensed promiscuously, yet God has a particular care of and concern for his own
people: The righteous and the wise, and their works, are in the hand of God, under his
special protection and guidance; all their affairs are managed by him for their good; all
their wise and righteous actions are in his hand, to be recompensed in the other world,
though not in this. They seem as if they were given up into the hand of their enemies, but
it is not so. Men have no power against them but what is given them from above. The
events that affect them do not come to pass by chance, but all according to the will and
counsel of God, which will turn that to be for them which seemed to be most against
them. Let this make us easy, whatever happens, that all God's saints are in his hand,
Deu_33:3; Joh_10:29; Psa_31:15.
II. He lays this down for a rule, that the love and hatred of God are not to be measured
and judged of by men's outward condition. If prosperity were a certain sign of God's

4. love, and affliction of his hatred, then it might justly be an offence to us to see the
wicked and godly fare alike. But the matter is not so: No man knows either love or
hatred by all that is before him in this world, by those things that are the objects of
sense. These we may know by that which is within us; if we love God with all our
heart, thereby we may know that he loves us, as we may know likewise that we are
under his wrath if we be governed by that carnal mind which is enmity to him. These
will be known by that which shall be hereafter, by men's everlasting state; it is certain
that men are happy or miserable according as they are under the love or hatred of
God, but not according as they are under the smiles or frowns of the world; and
therefore if God loves a righteous man (as certainly he does) he is happy, though the
world frown upon him; and if he hates a wicked man (as certainly he does) he is
miserable, though the world smile upon him. Then the offence of this promiscuous
distribution of events has ceased.
JAMISO , “declare — rather, explore; the result of my exploring is this, that “the
righteous, etc., are in the hand of God. No man knoweth either the love or hatred (of
God to them) by all that is before them,” that is, by what is outwardly seen in His
present dealings (Ecc_8:14, Ecc_8:17). However, from the sense of the same words, in
Ecc_9:6, “love and hatred” seem to be the feelings of the wicked towards the righteous,
whereby they caused to the latter comfort or sorrow. Translate: “Even the love and
hatred” (exhibited towards the righteous, are in God’s hand) (Psa_76:10; Pro_16:7). “No
man knoweth all that is before them.”
K&D, "“For all this I brought to my consciousness, and all this I sought to make clear to
me, that the righteous, and the wise, and their deeds, are in God's hands: neither love
nor hatred stands in the knowledge of man, all lies before them.” With ki follows the
verification of what is said in Ecclesiastes 8:17 , “is unable to find out,” from the fact of
men, even the best and the wisest of men, being on all sides conditioned. This
conditioning is a fact which he layeth to his heart (Ecclesiastes 7:2), or (since he here
presents himself less as a feeling than as a thinking man, and the heart as reflecting)
which he has brought to his consciousness, and which he has sought to bring out into
clearness. ‫ולבּול‬ has here not the force of an inf. absol., so that it subordinates itself in an
adverbial manner (et ventilando quidem) - for it nowhere stands in the same rank with
the inf. absol.; but the inf. with ‫ל‬)‫ל‬ ) has the force of an intentional (with a tendency) fut.,
since the governing ‫,הייתי‬ as at Ecclesiastes 3:15 , ‫,היה‬ and at Habakkuk 1:17 , ‫,יהיה‬ is
to be supplied (vid., comm. on these passages, and under Isaiah 44:14): operam dedi ut
ventilarem (excuterem), or shorter: ventilaturus fui. Regarding the form ‫,לבּור‬ which is
metapl. for ‫,לבר‬ and the double idea of sifting (particularly winnowing, ventilare) of the R.
‫,בר‬ vid., under Ecclesiastes 3:18. In the post-bibl. Heb. the words ‫בוריו‬ ‫על‬ ‫להעמיד‬ would
denote the very same as is here expressed by the brief significant word ‫;לבּור‬ a matter in
the clearness of its actual condition is called ‫על‬ ‫דבר‬ ‫בוריו‬ (from ‫,לברי‬ after the form ‫,חלי‬
purity, vid., Buxtorf's Lex. Talm. col. 366). The lxx and Syr. have read ‫ולבי‬ ‫ראה‬ instead of
‫,ולבור‬ apparently because they could not see their way with it: “And my heart has seen
all this.” The expression “all this” refers both times to what follows; asher is, as at
Ecclesiastes 8:12, relat. conj., in the sense of ὃτι , quod, and introduces, as at
Ecclesiastes 7:29, cf. Ecclesiastes 8:14, the unfolding of the ‫זה‬ - an unfolding, viz., of
the conditioning of man, which Ecclesiastes 8:17 declared on one side of it, and whose
further verification is here placed in view with ki, Ecclesiastes 9:1 . The righteous, and
the wise, and their doings, are in God's hand, i.e., power (Psalm 31:16; Proverbs 21:1;
Job 12:10, etc.); as well their persons as their actions, in respect of their last cause, are
conditioned by God, the Governor of the world and the Former of history; also the

5. righteous and the wise learn to feel this dependence, not only in their being and in what
befalls them, but also in their conduct; also this is not fully attained, ‫ידם‬ ‫,לאל‬ they are
also therein not sufficient of themselves. Regarding ('avadēhěm), corresponding to the
Aram. ('ovadēhon), vid., ('avad).
The expression now following cannot mean that man does not know whether he will
experience the love or hatred of God, i.e., providences of a happy nature proceeding
from the love of God, or of an unhappy nature proceeding from the hatred of God (J. D.
Michaelis, Knobel, Vaih., Hengst., Zöckl.), for ‫אהבה‬ and ‫ׂשן‬ are too general for this, -
man is thus, as the expression denotes, not the obj., but the subj. to both. Rightly, Hitz.,
as also Ewald: “Since man has not his actions in his own power, he knows not whether
he will love or hate.” Certainly this sounds deterministic; but is it not true that personal
sympathies and antipathies, from which love and hatred unfold themselves, come within
the sphere of man, not only as to their objects, in consequence of the divine
arrangement, but also in themselves anticipate the knowledge and the will of man? and
is it less true that the love which he now cherishes toward another man changes itself,
without his previous knowledge, by means of unexpected causes, into hatred, and, on
the other hand, the hatred into love? Neither love nor hatred is the product of a man's
self-determination; but self-determination, and with it the function of freedom, begins for
the first time over against those already present, in their beginnings. In ‫לף‬ ‫,הּכל‬ “by all
that is before him,” that is brought to a general expression, in which ‫לפני‬ has not the
ethical meaning proceeding from the local: before them, prae = penes eos (vid., Song,
under Song of Solomon 8:12), but the purely local meaning, and referred to time: love,
hatred, and generally all things, stand before man; God causes them to meet him (cf.
the use of ‫;)הקרה‬ they belong to the future, which is beyond his power. Thus the Targ.,
Symm., and most modern interpreters; on the contrary, Luther: “neither the love nor the
hatred of any one which he has for himself,” which is, linguistically, purely impossible;
Kleinert: “Neither the love nor the hatred of things does man see through, nor anything
else which is before his eyes,” for which we ought at least to have had the words ‫גם‬ ‫לפניו‬
‫אׁשר‬ ‫;הכל‬ and Tyler: “Men discern neither love nor hatred in all that is before them,” as if
the text were ‫בכל‬ ‫.אׁשר‬ The future can, it is true, be designated by ‫,אחרית‬ and the past by
‫,לפנים‬ but ACCORDING to the most natural way of representation (vid., Orelli's Synon.
der Zeit, p. 14) the future is that which lies before a man, and the past that which is
behind him. The question is of importance, which of the two words ‫הכל‬ ‫לף‬ has the
accent. If the accent be on ‫,לף‬ then the meaning is, that all lies before men deprived of
their freedom; if the accent be on ‫,הכל‬ then the meaning is, that all things, events of all
kinds, lie before them, and that God determines which shall happen to them. The latter
is more accordant with the order of words lying before us, and shows itself to be that
which is intended by the further progress of the thoughts. Every possible thing may
befall a man - what actually meets him is the determination and providence of God. The
determination is not according to the moral condition of a man, so that the one can
guide to no certain conclusion as to the other.
TRAPP, “Ecclesiastes 9:1 For all this I considered in my heart even to declare all this, that the
righteous, and the wise, and their works, [are] in the hand of God: no man knoweth either love or
hatred [by] all [that is] before them.
Ver. 1. For all this I considered in mine heart.] He that will rightly consider of anything, had need to
consider of many things; all that do concern it, all that do give light unto it, had need to be looked into,
or else we fail tooSHORT .
“ Sis ideo in partes circumspectissimus omnes. ”
Even to declare all this.] Or, To clear up all this to myself. Symmachus rendered it, Ut ventilarem
haec universa, that I might sift andSEARCH out all these things by much tossing and turning of the
thoughts. Truth lies low and close, and must with much industry be drawn into the open light.

6. That the righteous and the wise.] These are terms convertible. The world’s wizards shall one day cry
out, Nos insensati, We fools counted their lives madness, &c.
And their works.] Or, Their services, actions,EMPLOYMENTS , all which together with
themselves are "in the hand of God," who knows them by name, and exerciseth a singular providence
over them, so that they are "kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation." "The enemy shall
not exact upon him, nor the son of wickedness afflict him." [Psalms 89:22 ] What a sweet
providence was it, that when all the males of Israel appeared thrice in the year before the Lord at
Jerusalem, none of their neighbour nations, though professed enemies to Israel, should so much as
desire their land. [Exodus 34:24 ] And again, that after the slaughter of Gedaliah, so pleasant a
country - left utterly destitute of inhabitants, and compassed about with such warlike nations, as the
Ammonites, Moabites, Edomites, Philistines, &c. - was not invaded nor replanted by foreigners for
seventy years’ time, but theROOM kept empty till the return of the naturals.
No man knows either love or hatred, &c.] That is, The thing he either loves or hates, say some
interpreters, by reason of the fickleness of his easily alterable affections. HowSOON was Amnon’s
heart estranged from his Tamar, and Ahasuerus from his minion Haman, the Jews from John Baptist,
the Galatians from Paul, &c.! But I rather approve of those that refer this love and hatred unto God -
understanding them, θεοπρεπως, in a divine manner - and make the meaning to be, that by the
things of this life, "which come alike to all," as the next verse hath it, no man can make judgment of
God’s love or hatred towards him. The sun ofPROSPERITY shines as well upon brambles of the
wilderness, asFRUIT TREES of the orchard; the snow and hail of adversity lights upon the best
gardens, as well as upon the wild waste. Ahab’s and Josiah’s ends concur in the very circumstances.
Saul and Jonathan, though different in their deportments, yet "in their deaths they were not divided." [2
Samuel 1:23 ] How far wide then is the Church of Rome, that borrows her marks from the market,
plenty or cheapness, &c. And what an odd kind of reasoning was that of her champions with Marsh the
martyr, (a) whom they would have persuaded to leave his opinions, because all the bringers up and
favourers of that religion, as the Dukes of Northumberland and Suffolk for instance, had bad luck, and
were either put to death, or in prison, and in danger of life. Again, the favourers of the religion then
used had wondrous good luck and prosperity in all things, &c.
COKE, "Ecclesiastes 9:1. No man knoweth either love or hatred— Yet no man knoweth what he
should either love or hate. This being mentioned in an inquiry concerning the choice which a man
ought to make of a certain course of life preferably to another, the most obvious sense is that whereby
love and hatred are supposed to be metonymically taken for the objects of either; for, in making a
choice you must consider what you should love or set your affections upon. But I do not see by what
figure those words can be understood of the manner in which God stands affected towards men. His
attributes are sufficiently known for any body to conclude with certainty, that he loves the righteous,
and hates the workers of iniquity; and, as to particular persons, every man has within himself the
testimony of his own conscience, which he has a right to look upon as the evidence of God (1 John
3:21.), and whereby he may be informed whether he deserves love or hatred. But for a man who looks
no further than this earthly dispensation, and whose inducement to a choice must arise from the
prospect of happiness only here below, it may be a matter of doubt whether unhappy virtue deserves
to be chosen before seemingly PROSPEROUS vice. All that is before him is vanity; and therefore, it is
hard for him to know what he should either love or hate, as he does not find that either a virtuous or a
vicious course is constantly rewarded or punished in this world. This interpretation may be confirmed
from what is said of the dead, Ecclesiastes 9:6 that their love, hatred, and envy are perished; which
may conveniently enough be understood of the objects of those passions. Desvoeux.
COFFMAN, “This chapter actually concludes the part of Ecclesiastes which is the most difficult to
understand and interpret. Up to this point Solomon has written a lot of things which, to a Christian, do
not make any sense at all. What is the explanation of this? Scholars vary in their explanations; but the
conclusion must be; (1) that Solomon is rehearsing the allegations of materialistic unbelievers with a
view to refuting them in his conclusion (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 ), (2) that he was writing of what
he saw `under the sun,' and not of what he believed, or (3) that, "Solomon, for the time being, had
abandoned his faith in God, altogether,"[1] and that his words throughout Ecclesiastes thus far indicate

7. that, "Man would not know that there was any fundamental difference between a man and a
beast."[2] This writer has been unable to find a convincing answer as to which of these explanations
should be adopted.
Part of the reason for this uncertainty lies in the enigma of Solomon's life. He was a man greatly loved
by the Lord, endowed with great wisdom, who prayed a magnificent prayer at the dedication of the
Temple, and who was the most honored and glorified person (from the human standpoint) in the
whole history of Israel. In spite of this, however, any careful student of God's Word must conclude that
the magnitude of Solomon's wickedness was immeasurable. It is this fact thatSUGGESTS the
possibility that Ecclesiastes is generally a statement of Solomon's unbelief; but if that is true, it would
mean that the conclusion in Ecclesiastes 12 was later added by an inspired writer, as some scholars
affirm (although without any proof whatever). Another explanation of the magnificent "conclusion of
the whole matter" (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 ) is that Solomon finally came to his senses and
returned to the love and service of God. This is the interpretation that seems most logical to this writer.
"The Jews generally, and also St. Jerome, hold the book to have been written by Solomon following
his repentance and restoration from the idolatry into which he had fallen through the influence of the
heathen women he had married."[3]
We find it impossible to believe that "all is vanity," a declaration that occurs dozens of times in the
book. Nor can it be true that men and animals have the same fate. Who can believe that, "Eat, drink,
and be joyful," is, in any sense whatever, the ultimate meaning andEMPLOYMENT of life? It is
impossible to believe that the "dead know nothing," except in a limited sense. Moses and Elijah stood
on the mountain of transfiguration and carried on a conversation with Jesus Christ. Of course,
Solomon lived before the magnificent revelation of life and immortality that were brought to mankind in
the life and teachings of the Christ; but Solomon's father David certainly would never have said a lot of
things that one finds in Ecclesiastes.
Also, the idea of the hopelessness and futility of life, stressed throughout Ecclesiastes, was by no
means accepted by the patriarchs. They most certainly believed in the possibility, if not the certainty, of
life after death. Abraham was willing toOFFER his son Isaac as a sacrifice, because, "He believed
that God was able to raise Isaac from the dead" (Hebrews 11:19 ).
From all these considerations, this writer favors the view that Solomon indeed repented (even as did
Manasseh), and that after his return to God, he was inspired to write this book, and that many of the
things written in Ecclesiastes represent views which Solomon once had erroneously received, and
which, when he wrote Ecclesiastes, he would reject and outlaw altogether in his conclusion
(Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 ).
We have previously mentioned Paul's description of his life under the Mosaic Law (Romans 7), which
is analogous to what was probably Solomon's life (and beliefs) prior to his repentance. In all of
Ecclesiastes, we should never forget that it was written long ages before the glorious revelation of the
New Testament was delivered to mankind, certified and sealed by the death, burial and resurrection of
the Son of God.
Ecclesiastes 9:1
ALL IS IN THE HAND OF GOD
"For all this I laid to my heart, even to explore all this: that the righteous, and the wise, and their
works, are in the hand of God; whether it be love or hatred, man knoweth it not; all is before
them."
The grand truth stated here is that God is in control. Everything that occurs, in the final analysis,
happens under the permissive will of God.
The meaning of the latter part of this verse is that, "We are unable to discern from that which we may
observe taking place in life, which men are living under God's displeasure, and which ones are those
whom he loves."
BENSON,, "Ecclesiastes 9:1. For, or therefore, as the LXX. render it, all this I considered in my heart
— All that I have said concerning the methods of divine providence, toward good and bad men; to
declare all this — To make this evident, first to myself, and then to others; that the righteous — Whom
he mentions, not exclusively, as if wicked men were not also in God’s hand, for the next clause relates

8. both to the good and bad; but eminently, because, by the course of God’s providence toward them,
they might seem to be quite neglected by God; and their works are in the hand of God — All their
actions and employments; all events which befall them are governed by his providence, and therefore,
although we cannot fully understand the reasons of all, yet we may be assured they are done
righteously. No man knoweth either love or hatred — No man can judge by their present outward
condition, whether God loves or hates them; for whom he loves he chastens, and permits those whom
he hates to PROSPER in the world.
BIBLICAL ILLUSTRATOR, “The righteous, and the wise, and their works, are in
the hand of God.
In the hand of God
This is the sober second thought of a wise man who has been sorely troubled in his mind
by dwelling on the mysteries of Providence. But the darkness begins to disappear as soon
as he allows his mind to rest on the thought of God and of His work in eternity, the end
of which no man can see. The first thought suggested is the negative one that “the
righteous and the wise and their works are in the hands of God,” and, therefore,
withdrawn from the sight of men. It is of great importance for our peace of mind firmly
to grasp the thought that we cannot at all infer what God thinks or intends concerning
any person or his works from the outward circumstances we observe. Is this man
prosperous in the world? It does not by any means follow from this that God regards
him with special favour (Luk_13:1-5). But there is a positive truth also in the words of
the text—“The righteous and the wise and their works are in the hand of God”—not only
in the sense that they are withdrawn from the sight of men, but in this far better sense,
that they are safe. Being in the hand of God they are in the best hand. It is not with the
onlookers here that the righteous and the wise have to do. It is with Him who looks on
from the side of eternity, and who makes all things work together for good to them that
love Him. Are you and your works in the hand of God? First, and most important, are
you yourselves in His hand? Are you dwelling in the secret place of the Most High,
abiding under the shadow of the Almighty? And you, who yourselves are in the hand of
God, see that your works are there also. We know on the best authority that a man may
belong to the righteous and not to the wise; he may himself be saved and yet his work be
lost. Our work, as well as ourselves, must be built on Christ. (J. M. Gibson, D. D.)
HAWKER 1-2, “For all this I considered in my heart even to declare all this, that the
righteous, and the wise, and their works, are in the hand of God: no man knoweth either
love or hatred by all that is before them. (2) All things come alike to all: there is one
event to the righteous, and to the wicked; to the good and to the clean, and to the
unclean; to him that sacrificeth, and to him that sacrificeth not: as is the good, so is the
sinner; and he that sweareth, as he that feareth an oath.
The preacher is here making a similar conclusion, to what holy melt of old, in all ages,
have done, that let what will appear of worthlessness in some, or merit in others, and the
common events which take place in all; yet the Lord is neither an inattentive, nor an
inactive observer of either; or, to use Solomon’s own words, Their works are in the hand
of God. Reader! it is one of the most profitable of all studies, to have right conceptions of
our gracious God in his providences. If we look at the state of things going on around us,
we do indeed see what Solomon saith, that there is one event to the righteous, and to the
sinner. But if we, as the prophet did, look beyond the mere surface of the wheels in God’s
government, we shall see as he did, One like the son of man, regulating, appointing,
ordering all. Eze_1:4-26. And although, as far as outward circumstances appear, all

9. things come alike to all; yet a mighty distinction takes place, even in the events
themselves, and in the effects induced by them. The sickness of the sinner, and the
sickness of a child of God, differ in their operation and consequences as wide as any
circumstances in life can differ. And, as in their effect, so in their design; in the instances
of God’s children, they are the marks of a fatherly love. They are messengers of
sanctification and wisdom. They are angels in disguise. In the instances of the ungodly,
they are tokens of displeasure, messengers of wrath, and the consequences of sin.
Reader, it is blessed to be enabled to mark the difference; to hear the rod, (as the
prophet speaks) and who hath appointed it. Mic_6:9.
SBC, “This is the sober second thought of a wise man who has been sorely troubled in
his mind by dwelling on the mysteries of Providence. His first hasty conclusion is one
which is too often drawn from such observations; viz., that, inasmuch as Providence
shows no special favour to the works of the righteous, it is scarcely worth one’s while to
trouble one’s self about them. What is the use of flying so high and missing everything,
when one might at least take life easy while it lasts, and enjoy its pleasures while he may?
But though a doubter and sorely perplexed for the moment, he is no infidel. So long as
he believes in God there is hope for him. The dark thoughts he has been thinking have all
been connected with man and his work in time, the very best of which seems so often to
come to such a lamentable end. But the darkness begins to disappear as soon as he
allows his mind to rest on the thought of God and of His work in eternity, the end of
which no man can see. Thus is the way prepared for that calm confidence expressed in
the words before us.
I. The first thought suggested is the negative one that "the righteous, and the wise, and
their works, are in the hand of God," and therefore withdrawn from the sight of men. It
is of great importance for our peace of mind firmly to grasp the thought that we cannot
at all infer what God thinks or intends concerning any person or his works from the
outward circumstances we observe.
II. But there is a positive truth also in the words of the text—"The righteous, and the
wise, and their works, are in the hand of God"—not only in the sense that they are
withdrawn from the sight of men, but in this far better sense: that they are safe. Being in
the hand of God, they are in the best hand. The Lord knoweth them that are His; and is
not that enough, though the onlooker from this side knoweth not?
III. Are you and your works in the hand of God? We know on the best authority that a
man may belong to the righteous and not to the wise; he may himself be saved and yet
his work be lost. Our work, as well as ourselves, must be built on Christ.
J. Monro Gibson, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xx., p. 211
PULPIT, “This continues the subject treated above, confirming the conclusion arrived at in Ecc_
8:17 , viz. that God's government of the world is unfathomable. For all this I considered in my heart
even to declare all this; literally, for all this laid up in my heart, and all this I have been
about (equivalent to I sought) to clear up. The reference is both to what has been said and to what is
coming. Theki, "for" (which the Vulgate omits), at the beginning gives the reason for the truth of what is
advanced; the writer has omitted no means of arriving at a conclusion. One great result of his
consideration he proceeds to state. The Septuagint connects this clause closely with the last verse of
the preceding chapter, "For I applied all this to my heart, and my heart saw all this." The righteous, and
the wise, and their works, are in the hand of God (Psa_31:15 ; Pro_21:1 ); i.e. in his power, under
his direction. Man is not independent. Even the good and wise, who might be supposed to afford the
plainest evidence of the favorable side of God's moral government, are subject to the same

10. unsearchable law. The very incomprehensibility of this principle proves that it comes from God, and
men may well be content to submit themselves to it, knowing that he is as just as he is almighty. No
man knoweth either love or hatred. God's favor or displeasure are meant. Vulgate, Et tamen nescit
homo, utrum amore an odio dignus sit. We cannot judge from the events that befall a man what is the
view which God takes of his character. We must not, like Job's friends, decide that a man is a great
sinner because calamity falls upon him, nor again suppose that outward prosperity is a proof of a life
righteous and well-pleasing to God. Outward circumstances are no criterion of inward disposition or of
final judgment. From the troubles or the comforts which we ourselves experience or witness in others
we have no right to argue God's favor or displeasure. He disposes matters as seems best to him, and
we must not expect to see every one in this world treatedACCORDING to what we should deem his
deserts (comp. Pro_1:1-33 :52 with Heb_12:6 ). Delitzsch and others think that the expressions
"love" and "hatred" are too general to admit of being interpreted as above, and they determine the
sense to be that no one can tell beforehand who will be the objects of, his love or hate, or how entirely
his feelings may change in regard of persons with whom he is brought in contact. The circumstances
which give rise to these sentiments are entirely beyond his control and foresight. This is true enough,
but it does not seem to me to be intended. The author is concerned, not with inward sentiments, but
with prosperity and adversity considered popularly as indications of God's view of things. It would be
but a meager assertion to state that you cannot know whether you are to love or hate, because God
ordains all such contingencies; whereas to warn against hasty and infidel judgments on the ground of
our ignorance of God's mysterious ways, is sound and weighty advice, and in due harmony with what
follows in the next verses. The interpretation, "No man knows whether he shall meet with the love or
hatred of his fellows," has commended itself to some critics, but is as inadmissible as the one just
mentioned. By all that is before them. The Hebrew is simply, "all [lies] before them." All that shall
happen, all that shall shape their destiny in the future, is obscure and unknown, and beyond their
control. Septuagint, Τὰ πάντα πρὸ προσώπου αὐτῶν . The Vulgate mixes this clause with the
following verse,But all things are kept uncertain for the future. St. Gregory, "As thou knowest not who
are converted from sin to goodness, nor who turn back from goodness to sin; so also thou dost not
understand what is doing towards thyself as thy merits deserve. And as thou dost not at all
comprehend another's end, so art thou also unable to foresee thine own. For thou knowest now what
progress thou hast made thyself, but what I [God] still think of thee in secret thou knowest not. Thou
now thinkest on thy deeds of righteousness; but thou knowest not how strictly they are weighed by me.
Woe even to the praiseworthy life of men if it be judged without mercy, because when strictly
examined it is overwhelmed in the presence of the Judge by the very conduct with which it imagines
that it pleases him" ('Moral.,' 29.34, Oxford transl.).
PULPIT 1-6, “All things alike to all.
I. ALL MEN EQUALLY IN THE HANDS OF GOD.
1. Their persons. The righteous and the wise (Est_9:1 ), but not less certainly the unrighteous and
the foolish. God's breath sustains all; God's providence watches over all; God's power encircles all;
God's mercy encompasses all.
2. Their works. Their actions, whether good or bad, in the sense explained in the last homily, "are
conditioned by God, the Governor of the world and the Former of history" (Delitzsch).
3. Their experiences. "All lies before them;" i.e. all possible experiences lie before men; which shall
happen to them being reserved by God in his own power.
II. ALL MEN EQUALLY IGNORANT OF THE FUTURE. "No man knoweth either love or hatred," or
"whether it be love or hatred, no man knoweth;" which may signify either that no man can tell whether

11. "providences of a happy nature proceeding from the love of God, or of an unhappy nature proceeding
from the hatred of God," are to befall him (J.W). Michaelis, Knobel, Hengstenberg, Plumptre); or that
no man can predict whether he will love or hate (Hitzig, Ewald, Delitzsch). In either case the meaning
is that no man can certainly predict what a day may bring forth. In so far as the future is in God's hand,
man can only learn what it contains by waiting the evolution of events; in so far as it is molded by
man's free determinations, no man can predict what these will be until the moment arrives for their
formation.
III. ALL MEN EQUALLY SUBJECT TO DEATH. "All things come alike to all: there is one event"
(Est_9:2 ).
1. To the righteous and to the wicked; i.e. to the inwardly and morally good and to the inwardly and
morally evil.
2. To the clean and to the unclean; i.e. to the ceremonially pure and to the ceremonially defiled.
3. To him that sacrificeth and to him that sacrificeth not; i.e. to him who observes the outward forms of
religion and to him who observes them not.
4. To him that sweareth and to him that feareth an oath; i.e. to the openly sinful and to the outwardly
reverent and devout. "All alike go to the dead" (Est_9:3 ).
IV. ALL MEN EQUALLY DEFILED BY SIN. "The heart of the sons of men is full of evil, and madness
is in their heart while they live" (Est_9:3 ). From which may be learnt:
1. That sin is a kind of madness. This will not be doubted by those who consider that sin is the
rebellion of a creature against the Creator, and that sinners generally hope both to escape punishment
on account of their sin, and to attain felicity through their sin.
2. That the seat of this madness is in the soul. It may affect the whole personality of the man, but the
perennial fountain whence it springs is the heart, in its alienation from God. "The carnal mind is enmity
against God" (Rom_8:7 ).
3. That the heart is not merely tainted with this madness, but is fall of it. In other words, it is, in its
natural condition, wholly under the power of sin. The total corruption of human nature, besides being
taught in Scripture (Gen_6:5 ; Gen_8:21 ; Job_15:14 ; Psa_14:2 , Psa_14:3 ; Ecc_7:20
; Isa_53:6 ; Mat_15:19 ; Rom_3:23 ; Eph_2:1-3 ), is abundantly confirmed by experience.
4. That, apart from Divine grace, this madnessCONTINUES unchanged throughout life. There is

12. nothing in human nature itself or in its surroundings that has power to subdue and far less to eradicate
this madness. A new birth alone can rescue the soul from its dominion (Joh_3:3 ).
V. ALL MEN EQUALLY THE SUBJECTS OF HOPE.
1. Hope aUNIVERSAL possession. "To him that is joined to all the living there is hope" (Est_9:4
); i.e. while man lives he hopes. Dum spirat, sperat (Latin proverb). "Hope springs eternal in the human
breast" (Pope). Even the most abject are never, or only seldom, abandoned by this passion. On the
contrary, "the miserable hath no other medicine, but only hope" (Shakespeare). When hope expires,
life dies.
2. Hope a potent inspiration. In ordinary life "we are kept alive by hope" (Rom_8:24 ). The pleasing
expectation of future good enables the heart to endure present ills, and nerves the resolution to
attempt further efforts. Though sometimes, when ill-grounded, "kings it makes gods, and meaner
creatures kings" (Shakespeare), yet when soundly based it
"Like a cordial, innocent though strong,
Man's heart at once inspirits and serenes."
(Young.)
Especially is this the case with that good hope through grace (2Th_2:16 ) which pertains to the
Christian (Rom_5:5 ; 2Co_3:12 ; Php_1:20 ; 1Pe_1:13 ).
VI. ALL MEN EQUALLY POSSESSED OF INTELLIGENCE. Not of equal intelligence, but equally
intelligent. In particular:
1. All know themselves to be mortal. "The living know that they shall die" (Est_9:5 ). They may
frequently ignore this fact, and deliberately shut their eyes upon it, but of the fact itself they are not
ignorant.
2. In this knowledge they are superior to the dead, who "know not anything, neither have they any
more a reward, for the memory of them is forgotten;" who in fact, having dropped out of life, have for
ever ceased to take an interest in anything that is done under the sun.
Learn:
1. The essential equality of all men.

13. 2. The inherent dignity of life.
3. The value of the present.
2 All share a common destiny-the righteous and the
wicked, the good and the bad, [1] the clean and the
unclean, those who offer sacrifices and those who do
not.
As it is with the good man,
so with the sinner;
as it is with those who take oaths,
so with those who are afraid to take them.
BAR ES, “Event - See Ecc_2:14 note.
Sweareth - i. e., Swears lightly or profanely.
CLARKE,”All things come alike to all - This is very generally true; but God often
makes a difference and his faithful followers witness many interventions of Divine
Providence in their behalf. But there are general blessings, and general natural evils, that
equally affect the just and the unjust. But in this all is right; the evils that are in nature
are the effects of the Fall of man; and God will not suspend general laws, or alter them,
to favor individual cases. Nor does he design that his approbation or disapprobation
shall be shown by any of these occurrences. Every holy man has a testimony of God’s
approbation in his own heart; and this makes him truly happy, let outward things be as
they may. And, in general, what the wicked suffer is the fruit of their own doings. But the
general state of nature as to what are called natural evils, is just as it ought to be. There
is evil enough to show that man has fallen from God, and good enough to show that God
deals with him in mercy. I cannot see that there is any rational cause for me to stumble
at the dispensations of Divine Providence on these accounts.
GILL, “All things come alike to all,.... That is, all outward things in this life, good
and bad men share in alike; which proves that neither love nor hatred can be known by
them: so the emperor Mark Antonine, in speaking of life and death, of honour and
dishonour, of pain and pleasure, riches and poverty, says (s), all these things happen
alike to good men and bad men;

14. there is one event to the righteous and to the wicked; the same prosperous ones
happen to one as to another, as riches, honour, health, wisdom and learning, fame and
reputation: if Abraham was rich in cattle, gold, and silver, so was Nabal, and the rich fool
in the Gospel; if Joseph was advanced to great dignity in Pharaoh's court, so was Haman
in the court of Ahasuerus; if Caleb was as hearty and strong at fourscore and five as ever,
it is true of many wicked men, that there are no bands in their death, and their strength
is firm to the last; if Moses, Solomon, and Daniel, were wise men, and of great learning,
so were the idolatrous Egyptians, and so are many God is not pleased to call by his grace;
if Demetrius had a good report of all men, so had the false prophets of old: and the same
adverse things happen to one as to another as the instances of Job, Lazarus, and the
good figs, the Jews carried into captivity, show; of whom the Midrash, and Jarchi from
that, interpret this and the following clauses: "to the righteous and to the wicked": to
Noah the righteous, and to Pharaoh, not Necho, as Jarchi, but he whose daughter
Solomon married, who, the Jews say, were both lame;
to the good, and to the clean, and to the unclean; who are "good", not naturally,
and in and of themselves, but by the grace of God; and who are "clean", not by nature,
nor by their own power, but through the clean water of divine grace being sprinkled on
them, and through the blood and righteousness of Christ applied to them; and who are
"unclean", through the corruption of nature, and the pollution of actual sins, they live in.
Some understand this of a ceremonial cleanness and uncleanness. The above Jews apply
these characters to Moses, who was good; to Aaron, who was clean; and to the spies, who
were unclean; and the same thing happened to them all, exclusion from the land of
Canaan;
to him that sacrificeth, and to him that sacrificeth not: that serves and worships
the Lord, and who does not, one branch of service and worship being put for all; and
whether they offer themselves, their contrite hearts and spiritual sacrifices, or not. The
Jews exemplify this Josiah, who sacrificed to the Lord; and in Ahab, who made sacrifice
to cease; and both were slain with arrows;
as is the good, so is the sinner; alike in their outward condition and circumstances,
whether as to prosperity or adversity;
and he that sweareth, as he that feareth an oath; the common swearer, or he that
is perjured, and has no reverence of God, nor regard to truth, nor any concern to make
good his oath; and he that is cautious about taking one does it with awe and reverence of
the divine Being, and is careful of keeping, it, even to his own hurt. The Jews stance in
Zedekiah and Samson; the former broke his oath with the king of Babylon, and the latter
was a religious observer of an oath; and yet both had their eyes put out; but it does not
appear that Samson ever took an oath: the opposition in the text seems to be between
one that is ready to take an oath on every occasion, without considering the solemnity of
one, and without due care of what he swore to; and one that is cautious about taking an
oath, and chooses to be excused from taking one, on any account, could he be excused;
preferring such advice as is given, Mat_5:34, "swear not at all"; the counsel about
swearing, which Isocrates (t) gives, seems worthy of notice;
"take an oath required on two accounts; either to purge thyself from a foul crime charged
with, or to save friends in danger, and deliver them out of it; but on account of money
(or goods) swear not by any deity, no, not even if thou canst take an oath safely; for by
some thou wilt be thought to be perjured, and by others to be covetous.''

15. The word in Hebrew for swearing is always passive, because a man should not swear,
unless obliged; and the same form of language is used by Latin writers (u); and the
Hebrew word for it comes from a root which signifies "seven", in allusion, as some think,
to seven witnesses required to an oath; the Arabians, when they swore, anointed "seven"
stones with blood; and, while anointing them, called on their deities (w); see Gen_21:30.
It may be observed, that all men are here divided into good and bad; this has been the
distinction from the beginning, and continues, and ever will.
HE RY, “Having laid down these principles, he acknowledges that all things come
alike to all; so it has been formerly, and therefore we are not to think it strange if it be so
now, if it be so with us and our families. Some make this, and all that follows to Psa_
31:13, to be the perverse reasoning of the atheists against the doctrine of God's
providence; but I rather take it to be Solomon's concession, which he might the more
freely make when he had fixed those truths which are sufficient to guard against any ill
use that may be made of what he grants. Observe here (Ecc_9:2),
1. The great difference that there is between the characters of the righteous and the
wicked, which, in several instances, are set the one over-against the other, to show that,
though all things come alike to all, yet that does not in the least confound the eternal
distinction between moral good and evil, but that remains immutable. (1.) The righteous
are clean, have clean hands and pure hearts; the wicked are unclean, under the
dominion of unclean lusts, pure perhaps in their own eyes, but not cleansed from their
filthiness, God will certainly put a difference between the clean and the unclean, the
precious and the vile, in the other world, though he does not seem to do so in this. (2.)
The righteous sacrifice, that is, they make conscience of worshipping God according to
his will, both with inward and outward worship; the wicked sacrifice not, that is, they
live in the neglect of God's worship and grudge to part with any thing for his honour.
What is the Almighty, that they should serve him? (3.) The righteous are good, good in
God's sight, they do good in the world; the wicked are sinners, violating the laws of God
and man, and provoking to both. (4.) The wicked man swears, has no veneration for the
name of God, but profanes it by swearing rashly and falsely; but the righteous man fears
an oath, swears not, but is sworn, and then with great reverence; he fears to take an
oath, because it is a solemn appeal to God as a witness and judge; he fears, when he has
taken a oath, to break it, because God is righteous who takes vengeance.
2. The little difference there is between the conditions of the righteous and the wicked
in this world: There is one event to both. Is David rich? So is Nabal. Is Joseph favoured
by his prince? So is Haman. Is Ahab killed in a battle? So is Josiah. Are the bad figs
carried to Babylon? So are the good, Jer_24:1. There is a vast difference between the
original, the design, and the nature, of the same event to the one and to the other; the
effects and issues of it are likewise vastly different; the same providence to the one is a
savour of life unto life, to the other of death unto death, though, to outward appearance,
it is the same.
JAMISO , “All things ... alike — not universally; but as to death. Ecc_9:2-10 are
made by Holden the objection of a skeptical sensualist. However, they may be explained
as Solomon’s language. He repeats the sentiment already implied in Ecc_2:14; Ecc_
3:20; Ecc_8:14.
one event — not eternally; but death is common to all.
good — morally.

16. clean — ceremonially.
sacrificeth — alike to Josiah who sacrificed to God, and to Ahab who made sacrifice
to Him cease.
sweareth — rashly and falsely.
K&D, "“All is the same which comes to all: one event happens to the righteous and
the wicked, to the good and the pure and the impure; to him that sacrificeth, and to
him that sacrificeth not: as with the good, so is it with the sinner; with him that
sweareth, as with him that feareth an oath.” Hitzig translates: “All are alike, one
fate comes on all,” adding the remark, that to make ‫אחד‬ ‫מקרה‬ at the same time pred.
to ‫הכל‬ and subm. to ‫לכל‬ ‫כאשר‬ was, for the punctator, too much. This translation is
indeed in matter, as well as in point of syntax, difficult to be comprehended. Rather,
with Ewald, translate: All is as if all had one fate (death) but why then this useless
(hevel haasher), only darkening the thought? But certainly, since in ‫הכּל‬
( ote: The lxx, Syr., and Aq. have read together the end of Ecclesiastes 9:1 and the
beginning of Ecclesiastes 9:2. Here Jerome also is dependent on this mode of
reading: sed omnia in futurum servantur incerta (‫).)הבל‬
the past is again resumed, it is to be supposed that it does not mean personally,
omnes, but neut., omnia; and ‫,לכּל‬ on the contrary, manifestly refers (as at
Ecclesiastes 10:3) to persons. Herein agreeing with Ewald, and, besides, with
Knobel, Zöckl., and others, we accept the interpunction as it lies before us. The
apparently meaningless clause, omnia sicut omnibus, gives, if we separate sicut into
sic and ut, the brief but pregnant thought: All is (thus) as it happens to all, i.e., there
is no distinction of their experiences nor of their persons; all of every sort happens
in the same way to all men of every sort. The thought, written in cyphers in this
manner, is then illustrated; the lameds following leave no doubt as to the meaning of
‫.לכל‬ Men are classified ACCORDI G to their different kinds. The good and the
pure stand opposite the impure; ‫טמא‬ is thus the defiled, Hosea 5:3, cf. Ezekiel 36:25,
in body and soul. That the author has here in his mind the precepts of the law
regarding the pure and the impure, is to be concluded from the following contrast:
he who offers sacrifice, and he who does not offer sacrifice, i.e., he who not only does
not bring free-will offerings, but not even the sacrifices that are obligatory. Finally,
he who swears, and he who is afraid of an oath, are distinguished. Thus, Zechariah
5:3, he who swears stands along with him who steals. In itself, certainly, swearing an
oath is not a sin; in certain circumstances (vid., Ecclesiastes 8:2) it is a necessary
solemn act (Isaiah 65:16). But here, in the passage from Zechariah, swearing of an
unrighteous kind is meant, i.e., wanton swearing, a calling upon God when it is not
necessary, and, it may be, even to confirm an untruth, Exodus 20:7. Compare
Matthew 5:34. The order of the words ‫שׁב‬ ‫יר‬ (cf. as to the expression, the Mishnic
‫ירא‬ ‫)חטא‬ is as at ahum 3:1; Isaiah 22:2; cf. above, Ecclesiastes 5:8 . One event
befalls all these men of different characters, by which here not death exclusively is
meant (as at Ecclesiastes 3:19; Ecclesiastes 2:14), but this only chiefly as the same

17. end of these experiences which are not determined according to the moral condition
of men. In the expression of the equality, there is an example of stylistic refinement
in a threefold change; ‫כּח‬ ‫כּטוב‬ denotes that the experience of the good is the
experience of the sinner, and may be translated, “wie der Gute so der Sünder” as
the good, so the sinner, as well as “so der Gute wie der Sünder” so the good as the
sinner (cf. Köhler, under Haggai 2:3). This sameness of fate, in which we perceive
the want of the inter-connection of the physical and moral order of the world, is in
itself and in its influence an evil matter.
BE SO , "Verse 2-3
Ecclesiastes 9:2-3. All things come alike to all — The good and evil things of this
world equally happen to good and bad men; as is the good, so is the sinner — As to
all outward things. This is an evil, &c. — A great trouble and temptation to a
considerate and good man; yea, also the heart of the sons of men — Of wicked men,
such as the generality of mankind are; is full of evil — Of wickedness; and madness
is in their heart — Upon this ACCOU T they go on madly and desperately in evil
courses, without any fear of an after reckoning; and after that they go to the dead —
And after all they appear to die in the same manner as the best men do. So hitherto
there is no difference. For Solomon here forbears to take into consideration the
future life: he intimates, however, that as the madness, so the happiness of the
wicked, is ended by death: which is more fully expressed in the following words.
TRAPP, “Ecclesiastes 9:2 All [things come] alike to all: [there is] oneEVENT to the
righteous, and to the wicked; to the good and to the clean, and to the unclean; to him that sacrificeth,
and to him that sacrificeth not: as [is] the good, so [is] the sinner; [and] he that sweareth, as [he] that
feareth an oath.
VER 2. All things come alike to all.] {See Trapp on "Ecclesiastes 9:1 "} Health, wealth,
honours, &c., are cast upon good men and bad men promiscuously. God makes a scatter of them, as
it were; good men gather them, bad men scramble for them. The whole Turkish empire, saith Luther,
is nothing else but a crust (a) cast by heaven’s great housekeeper to his dogs.
And he that sweareth, as he that feareth an oath.] No surer sign of a profane person, than common
and customary swearing. Neither any so good an evidence of a gracious heart, as not only to forbear
it, for so one may do byEDUCATION , and civil conversation, but to "fear an oath" out of an awful
regard to the Divine Majesty. Plato and other heathens shall rise up and condemn our common
swearers; for they, when they would swear, said no more but Ex animi sententia, (b) or if they would
swear by their Jupiter, out of the mere dread and reverence of his name, they forbare to mention him.
Clinias the Pythagorean, out of this regard, would rather undergo a mulct of three talents, than swear.
The Merindolians, those ancient French Protestants, were known by this through all the country of
Provence, that they would not swear, nor easily be brought to take an oath, except it were in judgment,
or making some solemn covenant. (c)
COFFMA , “THE SAME FATE COMES TO ALL
"All things come alike to all: there is one event to the righteous and the wicked; to the good
and to the clean and the unclean; to him that sacrificeth and to him that sacrificeth not; as is
the good, so is the sinner; and he that sweareth, as he that feareth an oath. This is an evil in all
that is done under the sun, that there is one event unto all: yea, also the heart of the sons of
men is full of evil, and madness is in their heart while they live, and after that they go to the
dead. For to him that is joined with all the living there is hope; for a living dog is better than a
dead lion. For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not anything, neither have
they any more aREWARD ; for the memory of them is forgotten. As well their love, as their

18. hatred and their envy, is perished long ago; neither have they any more a portion forever in
anything that is done under the sun."
We should preface this paragraph with imaginary words from Solomon: "This is the way I viewed
things while in rebellion against God." If this should not be considered aVALID understanding of the
paragraph, then we should limit what is said here as a declaration of the way things appear when they
are viewed purely from an earthly and materialistic viewpoint, as characteristic of what is done "under
the sun."
"All things come alike to all" (Ecclesiastes 9:2 ). There is no way that this can be strictly true.
True, the event of death comes to all; but this says, "all things" come alike to all men!
"They go to the dead" (Ecclesiastes 9:3 ). This, as it stands in the passage, is cited as the end
of everything. And, in the earthly sense, of course it is. This is an obstinate fact; but God has placed in
man's heart some equally obstinate intuitions that contradict it. "He has set eternity in their heart"
(Ecclesiastes 3:11 ). And this pushes us toward an answer that lies beyondTHE PAGES of
Ecclesiastes; and that is, "The prospect (even the certainty) ofREWARD and punishment in the
world to come."[5]
Loader interpreted what is written here as saying that, "Religious and moral qualities of man do not
have the weight of a feather in affecting his fate."[6] This might not be the correct understanding of
what is written here; but the passage surely allows that as one understanding of it. One thing is sure,
"If that is what the text says, it is a lie," and must be understood as the false teaching Ecclesiastes was
designed to refute andDENY .
"For the living know that they shall die" (Ecclesiastes 9:5 ). This knowledge on the part of the
living is here cited as the one and only reason given in the text that living is any better than being
dead. This cannot be true, because the living may still turn to God, obey the holy gospel and attain
unto eternal life, whereas thatOPPORTUNITY does not belong to the dead.
The incredible pessimism of this passage staggers one's imagination. "Such an alleged `advantage' of
living as compared with death only serves to strengthen the emphatic finality of death."[7] But death is
not final! "It is appointed unto man once to die, and after this cometh judgment" (Hebrews 9:27 ).
Solomon's conclusion (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 ) refutes what is written here.
"The dead know not anything, neither have they any more a reward" (Ecclesiastes 9:5 ). The
Seventh Day Adventists have taken this verse as the proof of their false doctrine that, "Resurrection is
a restoration to life of the non-existent dead ... No soul is conscious after death."[8] But is not this in
the Word of God? Certainly, just like the word of Satan is found in the Word of God (Genesis 3:4 ).
It is not written that God said, "The dead do not know anything," but that Solomon, one of the
wickedest men who ever lived, said it. Even if Solomon believed it, which is questionable, because he
might have been recounting his religious philosophy during the times of his apostasy, - but even if he
believed it, it could not possibly be true. The glorious one who is Greater than Solomon gave us the
story of the rich man and Lazarus; and the rich man is represented as being, not merely conscious
after death, but in terrible pain and anxiety regarding his brethren who had not yet died, but who were
living wickedly as he had lived. (See Luke 16:19-31 ). Oh yes, this is a parable, but it is not a fable;
and one of the characteristics of a parable is that it is based upon an event which either happened or
could have happened. Jesus never used parables to teach lies to his followers.
Also, in Revelation we have this, "I saw underneath the altar the souls of them that had been slain for
the Word of God, and for the testimony which they held; and they cried with a great voice, saying,
How long, O Master, the holy and true, dost not thou judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell
on the earth"?[9"TRANSLATION ="">Revelation 6:9-10 .">[9] In the light of what the Christ
has said, one may safely set aside what the wicked Solomon is here reported in God's Word to have
said.
The Seventh Day Adventist notion that the resurrection is the creation of the non-existent dead is also
an outright contradiction of Christ's declaration that "God is the God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of
Jacob, and that he is the God of the living, not of the dead." (Matthew 22:32 ). This clearly states
that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are living (even in the state of death) and that they are not non-
existent.

19. PULPIT, “All things come alike to all; literally, all things [are] like that which [happens] to all
persons. There is no difference in the treatment of persons; all people of every kind meet with
circumstances of every kind. Speaking generally, there is no discrimination, apparently, in the
distribution of good and evil. Sun and shade, calm and storm. fruitful and unfruitful seasons, joy and
sorrow, are dispensed by inscrutable laws. The Septuagint, reading differently, has, "Vanity is in all;"
the Syriac unites two readings, "All before him is vanity, all as to all" (Ginsburg). There is
oneEVENT to the righteous, and to the wicked. All men have the same lot, whether it be death or
any other contingency, without regard to their naomi condition. The classes into which men are divided
must be noted. "Righteous" and "wicked" refer to men in their conduct to others. The good. The
Septuagint, Vulgate, and Syriac add, "to the evil," which is said again almost immediately. To the
clean, and to the unclean. "The good" and "clean" are those who are not only ceremonially pure, but,
as the epithet "good" shows, are morally undefiled. To him that sacrificeth; i.e. the man who attends
to the externals of religion, offers the obligatory sacrifices, and brings his free-will offerings. The good
the sinner; in the widest senses. He that sweareth, as he that feareth an oath. He who takes an
oath lightly, carelessly, or falsely (comp. Zec_5:3 ), is contrasted with him who regards it as a holy
thing, or shrinks in awe from invoking God's Name in such a case This last idea is regarded as a late
Essenic development (see Josephus, 'Bell. Jud.,' 2.8. 6); though something like it is found in the
sermon on the mount, "I say unto you, Swear not at all," etc. (Mat_5:34-37 ). Dean Plumptre,
however, throws doubt on the above interpretation, owing to the fact that in all the other groups the
good side is placed first; and he suggests that "he who sweareth" may be one who does his duty in
this particular religiously and well (comp. Deu_6:13 ; Isa_65:16 ), and "he who fears the oath" is a
man whose conscience makes him shrink from the oath of compurgation (Exo_22:10 , Exo_
22:11 ; Num_5:19-22 ), or who is too cowardly to give his testimony in due form. The Vulgate
has, Ut perjurus, its et ille qui verum dejerat; and it seems unnecessary to present an entirely new view
of the passage in slavish expectation of a concinnity which the author cannot be proved to have ever
aimed at. The five contrasted pairs are the righteous and the wicked, the clean and the unclean, the
sacrificer and the non-sacrificer, the good and the sinner, the profane swearer and the man who
reverences an oath. The last clause is rendered by the Septuagint, "So is he who sweareth ( ὁ
ὀµνύων ) even as he who fears the oath," which is as ambiguous as the original. A cautious Greek
gnome says—
Ὅρκον δὲ φεῦγε κᾶν δικαίως ὀµνύῃς
"Avoid an oath, though justly you might swear."
BIBLICAL ILLUSTRATOR, "All things come alike to all
The impartiality of Providence
Of what service is a religious life to man since Providence treats all alike?
This statement is—
I. Phenomenally true. To all outward appearance the good and the bad are treated alike.
All are subject to the same diseases, bereavements, disappointments, all go down to the
grave alike.
1. This a perplexing fact. Antecedently one might have supposed that the God of
holiness and rectitude would, in His providence, have treated men according to their
moral character, that happiness and misery would be measured out according to the
merits and demerits of mankind.
2. This fact is significant. It shows—
(1) The unalterableness of God’s laws. They pay no deference to moral character.

20. (2) The high probability of a future state.
II. Spiritually false. “All things” do not “come alike to all.”
1. They do not come in the same character.
(1) To the wicked the trials of earth are either blind casualties or penal
inflictions. But to the godly they are chastisements of fatherly love.
(2) To the wicked the prosperity and enjoyment appear as the results of their
own skill, industry, and merit. To the godly they appear as the unmerited favours
of a merciful God.
2. They do not come with the same influence. Trials irritate the spirit of the wicked;
they purify the godly. Prosperity feeds the vanity and ambition of the wicked; but
inspires the godly with devout humility and holy gratitude. The same soils, dews, and
sunbeams that fill the hemlock with poison, fill the wheat with food for nations. And
the same events which transform some men into devils, transform others into
seraphs. (Homilies.)
Providence
I. For the same things uncertainly and indifferently to befall the righteous and the
wicked in this life is unavoidably necessary.
1. Because men have the dominion over their own actions, and do that which
themselves choose to do.
2. Because a great deal of prosperity and affliction befalls men, not as the reward or
the effect of anything done by themselves, but by descent from their parents, whose
virtues and vices have great influence upon the persons and fortunes of their
children by the providence of God, and by the laws of men, and by the course of
nature.
3. Because they are so mixed together in their persons, interests, employments, and
places of abode, that they cannot be distinguished in the events that befall them.
4. For the more evident and certain distinguishing of them one from another.
II. They who make this objection against providence are no competent judges in the
case, and suppose in their objection that which is false. It is supposed in this objection
that the righteous endure so much grief, and the wicked enjoy so much pleasure, as
cannot consist with God’s love to the righteous and anger at the wicked, if He take notice
and be concerned in that which happens. The better to judge of this supposition, let two
things be considered.
1. That by the outward estate of men we know very little of their present grief or
pleasure.
2. If we did know their present grief or pleasure, we cannot infer from thence which
is the good, and which is the bad condition.
III. However, the day of judgment is a sufficient answer to the objection. St. Paul, when
he felt the smart of his present afflictions, called them light afflictions, for a moment, not
worthy to be compared with the glory to be revealed. (Z. Cradock, D. D.)

21. The sufferings of good men
1. God permits the sufferings of good men for the advancement of the honour and
interest of religion. A passive state is the proper sphere of action for the noblest
virtues of Christianity; and for this reason the Son of God, when He took our nature
upon Him, chose to appear in such a state that His example might be of more
powerful and general influence to mankind. And indeed, next to the miracles,
whereby the truth of the Christian religion was established, nothing contributed
more to the propagation of it than the invincible patience and constancy of its
possessors.
2. God has this further wise and religious end in the sufferings of good men: that we
may learn by them to moderate our affections to this deceitful world; and to cast our
views forward upon a more durable state of happiness, and better suited to the noble
faculties and inclinations of human nature.
3. The sufferings of good men are designed to remind us both of our duty and our
danger; when it is observed that the righteous fall and no man layeth it to heart, it is
implied that this is a proper season of inquiring into the occasions of God’s public
judgments, and reforming those sins which provoked them; and this is the more
incumbent upon us in proportion to the dignity of the person and the character he
sustains.
4. There is no man so good but he is conscious to himself he deserves what he
suffers. The world perhaps cannot charge him with any visible or notorious escapes;
yet he need only put the question to his own heart concerning the reasons of his
sufferings, and it will acquit the justice of heaven in them. (R. Fiddes.)
HAWKER, "For all this I considered in my heart even to declare all this, that the
righteous, and the wise, and their works, are in the hand of God: no man knoweth either
love or hatred by all that is before them. (2) All things come alike to all: there is one
event to the righteous, and to the wicked; to the good and to the clean, and to the
unclean; to him that sacrificeth, and to him that sacrificeth not: as is the good, so is the
sinner; and he that sweareth, as he that feareth an oath.
The preacher is here making a similar conclusion, to what holy melt of old, in all ages,
have done, that let what will appear of worthlessness in some, or merit in others, and the
common events which take place in all; yet the Lord is neither an inattentive, nor an
inactive observer of either; or, to use Solomon’s own words, Their works are in the hand
of God. Reader! it is one of the most profitable of all studies, to have right conceptions of
our gracious God in his providences. If we look at the state of things going on around us,
we do indeed see what Solomon saith, that there is one event to the righteous, and to the
sinner. But if we, as the prophet did, look beyond the mere surface of the wheels in God’s
government, we shall see as he did, One like the son of man, regulating, appointing,
ordering all. Eze_1:4-26. And although, as far as outward circumstances appear, all
things come alike to all; yet a mighty distinction takes place, even in the events
themselves, and in the effects induced by them. The sickness of the sinner, and the
sickness of a child of God, differ in their operation and consequences as wide as any
circumstances in life can differ. And, as in their effect, so in their design; in the instances
of God’s children, they are the marks of a fatherly love. They are messengers of
sanctification and wisdom. They are angels in disguise. In the instances of the ungodly,

22. they are tokens of displeasure, messengers of wrath, and the consequences of sin.
Reader, it is blessed to be enabled to mark the difference; to hear the rod, (as the
prophet speaks) and who hath appointed it. Mic_6:9.
3 This is the evil in everything that happens under the
sun: The same destiny overtakes all. The hearts of men,
moreover, are full of evil and there is madness in their
hearts while they live, and afterward they join the dead.
BAR ES, “Compare Ecc_8:11. The seeming indiscriminateness of the course of
events tends to encourage evil-disposed men in their folly.
CLARKE,”The heart of the sons of men is full of evil - No wonder then that
the curse of God should be frequent in the earth.
GILL, “This is an evil among all things that are done under the sun, that
there is one event unto all,.... A very great evil, a very sore one, the worst of evils.
Not an evil, as the providence of God is concerned with it, who does no evil; nor is there
any unrighteousness in him; he is righteous in all his ways: but this is an evil, and
distressing thing, to the minds of good men; see Psa_73:2; and is what bad men make an
ill use of, to harden themselves in sin, and to despise religion as an unprofitable thing,
Job_21:14;
yea, also the heart of the sons of men is full of evil: they are naturally full of evil,
of all unrighteousness and wickedness, what comes out of them show it; and because the
same things happen to good and bad men, and the wicked pass with impunity, and are
outwardly happy as others, or more so, their hearts are fully set in them to do evil, Ecc_
8:11;
and madness is in their heart while they live; or "madnesses" (x): every sin is
madness; for who but a madman would stretch out his hand against God, and
strengthen himself against the Almighty, and run upon him? who but a madman would
rush into sin in the manner he does, and expose himself to dangers and death, even
eternal death? Wicked men are mad upon their lusts, and mad against the saints, and all
that is good; this insanity is in their hearts, and shows itself in their lives, and continues
with them as long as they live, unless called by grace;

23. and after that they go to the dead; after all the madness of their lives, they die and
go into the state of the dead, and are among which refers not so much to the interment
of bodies in the grave, as the company with which their separate spirits are; they go not
to the righteous dead, but to the wicked; see Pro_2:18; so Alshech; they go to the dead;
not to the righteous, who, in their death, or when dead are called living, but, as Jarchi
observes, at their end they go down to hell. The Targum is,
"after the end of a man, it is reserved for him that he be corrected with the dead,
according to the judgment (or desert) of sins.''
HE RY, “ He owns this to be a very great grievance to those that are wise and good:
“This is an evil, the greatest perplexity, among all things that are done under the sun
(Ecc_9:3); nothing has given me more disturbance than this, that there is one event
unto all.” It hardens atheists, and strengthens the hands of evil-doers; for therefore it is
that the hearts of the sons of men are full of evil and fully set in them to do evil, Ecc_
8:11. When they see that there is one event to the righteous and the wicked they
wickedly infer thence that it is all one to God whether they are righteous or wicked, and
therefore they stick at nothing to gratify their lusts.
V. For the further clearing of this great difficulty, as he began this discourse with the
doctrine of the happiness of the righteous (whatever they may suffer, they and their
works are in the hands of God, and therefore in good hands, they could not be in better),
so he concludes with the doctrine of the misery of the wicked; however they may
prosper, madness is in their heart while they live, and after that they go to the dead.
Envy not the prosperity of evil-doers, for, 1. They are now madmen, and all the delights
they seem to be blessed with are but like the pleasant dreams and fancies of a distracted
man. They are mad upon their idols (Jer_50:38), are mad against God's people, Act_
26:11. When the prodigal repented, it is said, He came to himself (Luk_15:17), which
intimates that he had been beside himself before. 2. They will shortly be dead men. They
make a mighty noise and bustle while they live, but after awhile, they go to the dead, and
there is an end of all their pomp and power; they will then be reckoned with for all their
madness and outrage in sin. Though, on this side death, the righteous and the wicked
seem alike, on the other side death there will be a vast difference between them.
JAMISO , “Translate, “There is an evil above all (evils) that are done,” etc., namely,
that not only “there is one event to all,” but “also the heart of the sons of men” makes
this fact a reason for “madly” persisting in “evil while they live, and after that,” etc., sin is
“madness.”
the dead — (Pro_2:18; Pro_9:18).
K&D, "“This is an evil in all that is done under the sun, that one event happeneth
to all: and also the heart of the children of men is full of evil; and madness
possesseth their heart during their life, and after it they go to the dead.” As ‫,זה‬
Ecclesiastes 9:1 , points to the asher following, in which it unfolds itself, so here
to the ki following. We do not translate: This is the worst thing (Jerome: hoc est
pessimum), which, after Joshua 14:15; Judges 6:15; Song of Solomon 1:8,
would have required the words ‫הרע‬ ‫בכל‬ - the author does not designate the

24. equality of fate as the greatest evil, but as an evil mixed with all earthly events. It
is an evil in itself, as being a contradiction to the moral order of the world; and it
is such also on ACCOUNT of its demoralizing influences. The author here
repeats what he had already, Ecclesiastes 8:11, said in a more special
reference, that because evil is not in this world visibly punished, men become
confident and bold in sinning. (Vegam) (referable to the whole clause, at the
beginning of which it is placed) stands beside (zeh ra'), connecting with that
which is evil in itself its evil influences. ‫מלא‬ might be an adj., for this (only once,
Jeremiah 6:11), like the verb, is connected with the accus., e.. Deuteronomy
33:23. But, since not a statement but a factum had to be uttered, it is finite, as at
Ecclesiastes 8:11. Thus Jerome, after Symm.: sed et cor filiorum hominum
repletur malitia et procacitate juxta cor eorum in vita sua. Keeping out of view the
false sed, this translation corresponds to the accenting which gives the
conjunctive (Kadma) to ‫.רע‬ But without doubt an independent substantival clause
begins with ‫:והו‬ and madness is in their heart (vid., Ecclesiastes 1:17) their life
long; for, without taking heed to God's will and to what is pleasing to God, or
seeking after instruction, they think only of the satisfaction of their inclinations
and lusts.
“And after that they go to the dead” - they who had so given themselves up to
evil, and revelled in fleshly lusts with SECURITY, go the way of all flesh, as do
the righteous, and the wise, and just, because they know that they go beyond all
restraining bounds. Most modern interpreters (Hitz., Ew., etc.) render aharav,
after Jeremiah 51:46, adverbially, with the suffix understood neut.: afterwards
(Jerome, post haec). but at Ecclesiastes 3:22; Ecclesiastes 6:12; Ecclesiastes
7:14, the suffix refers to man: after him, him who liveth here = after he has laid
down his life. Why should it not be thus understood also here? It is true ‫ּבחּי‬
precedes it; but in the reverse say, sing. and plur. also interchange in
Ecclesiastes 9:1; cf. Ecclesiastes 3:12. Rightly the Targ., as with Kleinert and
others, we also explain: after their (his) lifetime. A man's life finally falls into the
past, it lies behind him, and he goes forth to the dead; and along with self-
consciousness, all the pleasures and joy of life at the same time come to an end.
TRAPP, “Ecclesiastes 9:3 This [is] an evil among all [things] that are done under the sun, that
[there is] one event unto all: yea, also the heart of the sons of men is full of evil, and madness [is] in
their heart while they live, and after that [they go] to the dead.
VER 3. This is an evil.] Hoc est pessimum - so Jerome, the Vulgate, and Tremellius render it; this
is the worst evil, this is wickedness with a witness, - scil., That since "there is one event to all,"
graceless men should thence conclude that it is a bootlessBUSINESS , a course of no profit to
serve God. Hence they walk about the world with hearts as full as hell of lewd and lawless lusts.
Hence they run a-madding after the pleasures of sin, which with a restless giddiness they earnestly
pursue; yea, they live and die in so doing, saith the wise man here, noting their final impenitence, that
hate of heaven, and gate to hell.
COKE, "Ecclesiastes 9:3. This is an evil among all things— This is an evil in all that happeneth under
the sun, that the fate of all is alike; and also that the hearts of the sons of men are full of evil. Nay,
they love that while they live which hath nothing but a fair appearance, and after that they go to the
dead. They love vanities; they set their heart upon that which appears to them to be love-worthy; and
as they walk, ACCORDINGto David's phrase, Psalms 39:6 in a vain show, they may be said to love
that show, that appearance, that shadow of beauty, which strikes them as much as if it had the
greatest solidity in it. See Desvoeux, p. 390. We have from Ecclesiastes 9:15 of the preceding
chapter, to the present verse, the second instance, (see on chap. 8: Ecclesiastes 9:14.) which is that

25. of the unjust preference generally given to this life, or rather, to the condition of those who enjoy it,
above the condition of the dead. The injustice of that preference has been already proved, chap.
Ecclesiastes 6:3-6. But the sacred orator here resumes the same subject, particularly to shew that our
mistake on this point is not owing so much to our proceeding upon wrong principles, as to our not
minding the certainty of a future state. To this effect he relates the two principal reasons which may be
alleged in support of that preference, and allows both to be true in fact. In the mean time, he takes
notice that in this very life which we are so fond of, we are at a loss how to place our affections; and
we are so because we stop at what passes within our observation in this world, and go no farther. A
strong confirmation of the main argument; and a strong presumption that we were not originally made
for this world only! However, as this last observation is placed between the two reasons assigned for
the preference given to life, the thread of the reasoning is thereby made more difficult to be followed,
which induced me to give this previous notice. It is true, that earthly things can afford nothing better
than the present fruition of what our benevolent Creator puts in our power to possess. Nay, this is so
certain, that no other reason can be assigned why God Almighty should have made those things
wherein we take comfort, except as the allay of all our toil during our abode in a world wherein he hath
placed us, ch. Ecclesiastes 8:15. Men might be sufficiently convinced of this; yet so few act agreeably
to their conviction in that respect; so few allow themselves time to rest from their labour, and to enjoy
the fruit thereof, that this cannot be the only or the ultimate design of Providence. This appears farther
from the seeming confusion which prevails in the world with respect to the recompensing of virtue and
vice; Ecclesiastes 9:16-17. For, whereas one would expect from the hand of a righteous God, a
distribution of good and evil proportionable to the conduct of every individual, we find that the fate of
the virtuous man and that of the wicked is alike, to all outward appearance. Hence it is, that with
respect to moral, as well as to natural things, men, in general, scarcely know what they should either
love or hate, and are mostly determined by their CORRUPT passions with respect to the former, and
by mere appearances with respect to the latter.
This is their case during their life, and death generally overtakes them before they rectify their notions,
chap. Ecclesiastes 9:1-3.
PULPIT, “This is an evil among all things that are done under the sun. The "evil" is explained in the
following words, which speak of the common fate. The Vulgate (followed by Ginsburg and others)
lakes the first words as equivalent to a superlative: Hoc est pessimum inter omnia, "This is the
greatest evil of all that is done under the sun." But the article would have been used in this case; nor
would this accurately express Koheleth's sentiments. He looks upon death only as one of the evils
appertaining to men's career on earth—one of the phases of that identity of treatment so certain and
so inexplicable, which leads to disastrous results (Ecc_8:11 ). That there is one event unto all.
The "one event," as the end of the verse shows, is death. We have here the old strain repeated which
is found in Ecc_2:14-16 ; Ecc_3:19 ; Ecc_5:15 ; Ecc_6:12 ; "Omnes eodem cogimur"
(Horace, 'Carm.,' Ecc_2:3 . 25). Yea, also the heart of the sons of men is full of evil. In
consequence of this indiscriminating destiny men sin recklessly, are encouraged in their
wickedness. Madness is in their heart while they live. The "madness" is conduct opposed to the
dictates of wisdom and reason, as Ecc_1:17 ; Ecc_2:2 , Ecc_2:12 . All their life long men follow
their own lusts and passions, and care little for God's will and law, or their own best interests. This is
well called "want of reason. And after that they go to the dead. The verb is omitted in the Hebrew,
being implied by the preposition ëÄÌé , "to;" the omission is very forcible. Delitzsch, Wright, and others
render, "after him," i.e. after man's life is ended, which seems rather to say, "after they die, they die."
The idea, however, appears to be, both good and evil go to the same place, pass away into
nothingness, are known no more in this world. Here at present Koheleth leaves the question of the
future life, having already intimated his belief in Ecc_3:1-22 . andEcc_8:11 , etc.
CHARLES SIMEO , “THE WICKEDNESS, MADNESS, AND MISERY OF UNREGENERATE
MEN
Ecc_9:3 . The heart of the sons of men is full of evil; and madness is in their heart while they live;
and after that, they go to the dead.

26. IF we look only on the surface of things, we shall think that all things come alike to all, since all are
subject to the same afflictions, and go down to the grave in their appointed season. But the righteous,
however afflicted, “are in the hands of God [Note: ver.1.],” who ordereth and overruleth every thing for
their good; whereas the wicked, howeverPROSPEROUS , are left to run their career of sin, till
they fall into the pit of everlasting destruction. The state and end of unregenerated men
are awfully declared in the words before us; wherein is depicted,
I. Their wickedness—
[“The hearts of unregenerate men are full of evil.” Every species of filthiness, whether fleshly or
spiritual [Note: 2Co_7:1 .], abounds within them [Note: Rom_1:29-31 .]. They have not a faculty
either of body or soul that is not defiled with sin [Note: Rom_3:10-18 .]. So full of iniquity are they,
that there is no good within them [Note: Gen_6:5 . Rom_7:18 .]. And this is the state, not of a few
only, but of every child of man, till he has been renewed by the Holy Spirit [Note: Joh_3:6 . Tit_
3:3 Jer_17:9 .].]
II. Their madness—
[It may well be expected that creatures so depraved should manifest their depravity in the whole of
their conduct. And in truth they do so: for they are even mad. They pour contempt upon the greatest
good. Can any thing be compared with the salvation of the soul? And do they not disregard this! And is
not such conduct madness? They also disregard the greatest of all evils, the wrath of God. And would
not this be madness. if there were only a bare possibility of their falling under his everlasting
displeasure? How much more then, when it is as certain, as that there is a God!
Moreover, theyCONTINUE in this state, for the most part, “as long as they lire.” If they acted only
through ignorance, or were drawn aside for a little time by temptation, or if they turned from this way,
as soon as they came to the full exercise of their reason, yea, if they rectified their conduct as soon as
their own consciences condemned it, they would have some shadow of an excuse. But, when they
persist, against light and knowledge, against warnings and judgments, yea, against their own vows
and resolutions, what is it but madness itself? Let a man act in such a way with respect to the things of
this world, and no one will hesitate a moment to pronounce him mad [Note: Luk_15:17 .].]
III. Their misery—
[How pleasant soever the ways of ungodly men appear, they will soon terminate in death [Note: Job_
20:5-9 .]. But the righteous also must go the grave: no doubt therefore it is another death that is here
spoken of, even “the second death in the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone.” This is affirmed by
God in the strongest manner [Note: 1Co_6:9 . Psa_9:17 .]: and, however disbelieved by those
whom it most concerns, it shall assuredly be found true at the last. Yea, we have even now the

27. consciences of men attesting this awful truth: and if we should say, that the ungodly, after such a life,
should “go to” heaven, instead of to “the dead,” though they might be wicked enough to wish it, they
would not be mad enough to believe it. They have a presentiment, in spite of all their reasonings to the
contrary, that “their end shall beACCORDING to their works [Note: 2Co_11:15 .].”]
Infer—
1. How necessary is it to deal faithfully with the souls of men!
[Should we “prophesy smooth things” unto people who are perishing in their sins, and who before
another Sabbath may be “gone to the dead?” Should we, if we beheld a stranded vessel, seek to
amuse the sailors, instead of affording them direction and assistance? How much less then if we
ourselves were embarked with them, and were partners of their danger?. Surely then every time we
preach, we should bear in mind that both our hearers and ourselves are dying creatures, and that, if
we forbear to warn them, we ruin ourselves for ever [Note: Eze_33:8 .].]
2. How earnestly should every one seek to be born again!
[Does the notion of regeneration appear absurd [Note: Joh_3:7 ; Joh_3:9 .]? Let all hear and
understand the grounds of that doctrine. What must we think of God, if he should fill heaven with
sinners incorrigibly wicked, and incurably mad? Or what happiness could such sinners find in heaven,
even if they were admitted there? There must be a meetness for the heavenly state [Note:Col_1:12
.]: and that meetness can be obtained only by means of the new birth [Note: Joh_3:5-6 .]. A new
heart must be given us [Note: Eze_36:25-26 .], and we must be made “new creatures in Christ
Jesus [Note: 2Co_5:17 .].” Let all then seek this renewal of their hearts [Note: Eph_4:22-24 .]:
for, unless they be born again, they shall neverENTER into God’s kingdom [Note:Joh_3:3 .].]
3. How greatly are all regenerate persons indebted to the Lord Jesus Christ!
[They were once even as others: if there was any difference, it was only in their acts, and not in
their hearts [Note: Eph_2:3 .]. But they are delivered from their sins [Note: Rom_6:14 ;Rom_8:2
.], endued with soundness of mind [Note: 2Ti_1:7 .], and made heirs of everlasting life [Note: Joh_
5:24 .]: and all this they have received through the atoning blood and prevailing intercession of the
Lord Jesus. What a Benefactor then is he! And how should the hearts of all be knit to him in love! O
“let them give thanks whom the Lord hath redeemed [Note:Psa_107:1-2 .]:” and let all seek these
blessings at the hands of a gracious and almighty Saviour.]
BIBLICAL ILLUSTRATOR, "The heart of the sons of men is full of evil.
Scriptural statement of the doctrines of human corruption, and of the

28. renewal of the heart to holiness
I. Man’s natural corruption.
1. One prevailing misconception on the subject of human corruption respects the
seat of the disorder. What is the daily language of numbers? “Our lives, it is true, are
not exempt from blame. We are guilty of many indiscretions. But our heart is good.”
In opposition to this language, the text asserts that the origin of all the evil is within.
“The heart of the sons of men is full of evil.” Not the streams alone are filthy and
defiled; but the fountain is polluted (Gen_8:21; Jer_7:24; Jer_17:9; Jas_4:1; Mat_
12:34; Mat_15:19).
2. Another ground of misconception on the subject of human corruption respects the
degree and extent of the disorder. The text says that this corruption is not only
radical but total. Generosity, gratitude, fidelity, and the exercise of many other
pleasing qualities between man and man; the spontaneous applause of virtue; the
decided condemnation of immorality may all exist, without any tendency in man to
what is truly good (Isa_1:5-6; Rom_7:18; Rom_8:7; Gen_6:5).
3. The declaration in the text is also absolute. No exception is stated or implied on
account of any difference of outward dispensation under which mankind may be
placed. The Gospel uniformly proceeds on the supposition that man is born in sin;
that his corruption is not accidental, but innate; not acquired, but hereditary. “That
which is born of the flesh is flesh.”
II. The renewal of the heart to holiness. If, as the Scriptures teach, “without holiness no
man shall see the Lord,” then every text which points out the nature and extent of
human corruption, points out by implication the nature and extent of that moral change
which man must undergo.
1. Let us thankfully receive the information vouchsafed.
2. Let us also profitably use the information vouchsafed.
While the text sets before us the picture of mankind in general, let us remember that it
sets before us our picture in particular. Let us seek to acquire a deep, an experimental
conviction of the truth. Let our experience of the inveteracy of the malady lead us
earnestly to seek for help from Him who alone can heal our disordered souls. (E.
Cooper.)
The unconverted world
I. Their guilt. “The heart—full of evil” (Mar_7:21). It applies to all. The most peaceable
man alive has often probably committed murder in his heart. The man of purity and
chastity may often, in the heart, have been guilty of adultery. Passions, vile and
loathsome as the pit from which they spring, only wait their opportunity. Is the man
provoked? He is enraged. Is he admired? He is proud and puffed up. Does God afflict
him? He is rebellious. Does God cross him? He is discontented and impatient.
II. Their madness.
1. It is a well-known symptom of natural madness that the poor creature who is thus
afflicted is apt to entertain most extravagant notions of his own greatness and
importance. Whilst the chains are on his hands, whilst he is confined within the
narrow limits of his gloomy cell, he often struts about, and thinks himself a king. Is