Ecclesiastes 5:9

Moreover the profit of the earth is for all: the king himself is served by the field. THE PROFIT (PRODUCE) OF THE EARTH IS (ORDAINED) FOR (THE COMMON GOOD OF) ALL: (EVEN) THE KING (HIMSELF) IS SERVED BY (THE FRUITS OF) THE FIELD. So in the case of Uzziah (2 Chronicles 26:10). Therefore the common Lord of all, high and low, will punish at last those who rob the "poor" of their share in it (Proverbs 22:22-20; Amos 8:4); because it was designed to profit all, not merely a privileged few, who by oppression monopolized, wishing to be "alone in the midst of the earth" (Eccle...

9-17 The goodness of Providence is more equally distributed than appears to a careless observer. The king needs the common things of life, and the poor share them; they relish their morsel better than he does his luxuries. There are bodily desires which silver itself will not satisfy, much less will worldly abundance satisfy spiritual desires. The more men have, the better house they must keep, the more servants they must employ, the more guests they must entertain, and the more they will have hanging on them. The sleep of the labourer is sweet, not only because he is tired, but because he has little care to break his sleep. The sleep of the diligent Christian, and his long sleep, are sweet; having spent himself and his time in the service of God, he can cheerfully repose in God as his Rest. But those who have every thing else, often fail to secure a good night's sleep; their abundance...

Verse Ecclesiastes 5:9. _THE PROFIT OF THE EARTH IS FOR ALL_] The earth, if properly cultivated, is capable of producing food for every living creature; and without cultivation none has a right to expect bread. _THE KING_ HIMSELF _IS SERVED BY THE FIELD._] Without the field he cannot have supplies for his own house; and, unless _agriculture_ flourish, the necessary expenses of the state cannot be defrayed. Thus, God joins the _head_ and _feet_ together; for while the peasant is protected by the king as executor of the laws, the king himself is dependent on the peasant; as the wealth of the nation is the fruit of the labourer's toil....

THE KING HIMSELF IS SERVED BY THE FIELD - Rather, the king is subject to the field, i. e., is dependent on its cultivation. The higher ranks, if they oppress the lower, lose thereby their own means of subsistence....

EXPOSITION ECCLESIASTES 5:1 Section 6. Man's outward and secular life being unable to secure happiness and satisfaction, can these be found in _popular religion?_ Religious exercises need the observation of strict rules, which are far from meeting with general attention. Koheleth proceeds to give instruction, in the form of maxims, concerning public worship, prayer, and vows. ECCLESIASTES 5:1 This verse, in the Hebrew, Greek, and Latin Bibles, forms the conclusion of Ecclesiastes 4:1; and is taken independently; but the division in our version is more natural, and the connection of this with the following verses is obvious....

MOREOVER, THE PROFIT OF THE EARTH IS FOR ALL,.... Or, "the excellency of the earth in" or "above all things [is] this" y; that God most high rules over all the earth, and is higher than the kings of it, and all oppressors in it; or in all respects there is a preference, a superior excellency in the country as opposed to the city, especially in this, that there are not so many tumults, riots, and oppressions there; though this is mostly understood of the preference and superior excellency of agriculture, or tillage of the earth. So the Targum, "the excellency of the praise of tilling the earth is above all things:'' and to the same purpose Jarchi and Aben Ezra; and the profit arising from it is enjoyed by all; it is for all, even the beasts of the field have grass from hence, as well as man has bread corn, and all other necessaries; THE KING [HIMSELF] IS SERVED BY THE FIELD; his table...

3. EXHORTATIONS ON DIFFERENT VANITIES CHAPTER 5 _ 1. Concerning worship and vows (Ecclesiastes 5:1)_ 2. Concerning extortions (Ecclesiastes 5:8) 3. The vanities of wealth (Ecclesiastes 5:10) 4. The conclusion (Ecclesiastes 5:18) Ecclesiastes 5:1. The writer, King Solomon, seems to have been exhausted in his descriptions as to the things under the sun. He pauseth and turns to something different. He meditates on worship, that man aims to get in touch with the unsee

CONCERNING DESPOTISM AND WEALTH. Ecclesiastes 5:8 f. The oppression and injustice that one sees (_in_ an Oriental satrapy) are not to be wondered at when we remember the graded hierarchy of officials who are all eager simply to enrich themselves. There is no reference to God; read, One high official is watching over another, and there are higher ones (perhaps the king) over them. Yet on the whole a king, especially if he take an interest in agriculture, is an advantage to a country. So we may interpret the extremely difficult Ecclesiastes 5:9 (_cf. mg.)._ Ecclesiastes 5:10 ff. The avaricious man is always poor; though his wealth increases he lacks satisfaction, enlarged inc

IS. "it [is]. " FOR ALL. [consists] in the whole, i.e. not confined to one day....

_Moreover the profit of the earth is for all_ The verse is difficult and has been very variously interpreted. The most satisfactory renderings follow: BUT THE PROFIT OF A LAND EVERY WAY IS A KING FOR THE FIELD UNDER TILLAGE, or, as some take the words, A KING DEVOTED TO THE FIELD. In either case the main sense is the same. The writer contrasts the misery of the Oriental government of his time with the condition of Judah under the model kings who gave themselves chiefly to the development of the resources of the country by agriculture, such _e.g._as Uzziah who "loved husbandry" (2 Chronicles 26:10). This gives, it is obvious, a much better sense than the rendering that "the king is served by the field" or "is subject to the field," _i.e._dependent on it. Assuming the Alexandrian origin of the book, we may perhaps see in the maxim a gentle hint to the Ptolemy