Ecclesiastes 9:12

For man also knoweth not his time: as the fishes that are taken in an evil net, and as the birds that are caught in the snare; so are the sons of men snared in an evil time, when it falleth suddenly upon them. KNOWETH NOT HIS TIMES - namely, of death (). Hence, the danger of delay in 'doing the work of God,' as one knows not when his opportunity will end (). EVIL NET - fatal to them. The unexpected suddenness of the capture is the point of comparison. So the second coming of Jesus Christ, "as a snare" (). EVIL TIME - as an "evil net," fatal to them. This comforts God's people when afflicted by enemies. These foes, strong as they seem now, shall suddenly be c...

11,12 Men's success seldom equals their expectations. We must use means, but not trust to them: if we succeed, we must give God the praise; if crossed, we must submit to his will. Those who put off the great concerns of their souls, are caught in Satan's net, which he baits with some worldly object, for which they reject or neglect the gospel, and go on in sin till they suddenly fall into destruction....

Verse Ecclesiastes 9:12. _AS THE BIRDS THAT ARE CAUGHT_] Man acts so heedlessly, notwithstanding all his wisdom, and all his warnings, that he is often taken, as a _fish_ is, by the baited hook; and the _bird_ by the baited snare. And thus, _an evil time_, like the snare, gin, trap, hook, falleth suddenly upon them; and they are taken in a moment, and have no means of escaping. How frequently do we see these comparisons illustrated!...

Read these six verses connectedly, in order to arrive at the meaning of the writer; and compare Ecclesiastes 2:1. After the description Ecclesiastes 9:5 of the portionless condition of the dead, the next thought which occurs is that the man who is prosperous and active should simply enjoy his portion all through this life Ecclesiastes 9:7; and then Ecclesiastes 9:11 follows the correcting thought (see Ecclesiastes 3:1 note), introduced as usual...

EXPOSITION ECCLESIASTES 9:1 One fate happens to all, and the dead are cut off from all the feelings and interests of life in the upper world. ECCLESIASTES 9:1 This continues the subject treated above, confirming the conclusion arrived at in Ecclesiastes 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. The ki,...

FOR MAN ALSO KNOWETH NOT HIS TIME,.... Though it is fixed and settled by the Lord, yet times and seasons are kept in his own power, and not known by men; not the time of his death, nor of any calamity and distress coming upon him, nor the proper season and opportunity of doing himself good, and avoiding evil; AS THE FISHES THAT ARE TAKEN IN AN EVIL NET, AND AS THE BIRDS THAT ARE CAUGHT IN THE SNARE; as fishes are suddenly taken in a net, unhappy for them, which is at once east over them, while they are sporting and playing in the water, and catching at the bait; and as birds, being decoyed, are unawares taken in a snare; that is, both of them know not the time of their being caught; SO [ARE] THE SONS OF MEN SNARED IN AN EVIL TIME, WHEN IT FALLETH SUDDENLY UPON THEM; they are no more able to guard against a time of adversity and calamity, and the evil of it, which comes at once upon the...

CHAPTER 9 _ 1. The common fate (Ecclesiastes 9:1)_ 2. Make the best of life (Ecclesiastes 9:7) 3. The great uncertainty (Ecclesiastes 9:11) Ecclesiastes 9:1. Here is another conclusion. The righteous and the wise with their works are in the hands of God. One event is in store for all, for the righteous, the wicked, the good, the clean, the unclean, the one who sacrificeth and the one who sacrificeth not--the grave is the one common goal. In that goal there is the end of all human toil and ambition. But even with this knowledge that all go one way, and the certainty of it,

ECCLESIASTES 8:16 TO ECCLESIASTES 9:16. LIFE'S RIDDLE BAFFLES THE WISEST QUEST. The parenthesis in Ecclesiastes 8:16_ b_ describes the ceaseless effort of the keen student of life, or perhaps the fate of the toiler who is too tired to sleep; with Ecclesiastes 8:17; cf. Ecclesiastes 7:24; Job 11:6, and from the Christian standpoint Romans 11:33

FOR MAN, &C. Connect this sentence with Ecclesiastes 9:11. MAN... MEN. Hebrew. _'adam_ (with Art.) App-14....

_as the fishes that are taken in an evil net_ The words paint vividly the suddenness of calamities which defeat all men's purposes and plans. The imagery was a natural one in any country, and meets us in Hosea 7; Ezekiel 12:13; Ezekiel 32:3; Proverbs 7:23; but it is interesting to note a parallel in the poetry of Greece. So Æschylus: ἥτʼ ἐπὶ Τροίας πύργοις ἔβαλες στεγανὸν δίκτυον, ὡς μήτε μέγαν μήτʼ οὗν νεαρῶν τινʼ ὑπερτελέσαι μέγα δουλείας γάγγαμον, ἄτης παναλώτου. "Who upon the towers of Troïa Castedst snare of closest meshes, So that none, full-grown or youthful, Could o'erleap the net of bond