Dead Flies in the Ointment
1 Dead flies cause the oil of the perfumer to produce an evil odor; so does a little folly outweigh wisdom and honor. 2 A wise man’s heart is at his right hand, but a fool’s heart at his left. 3 Yes also when the fool walks by the way, his understanding fails him, and he says to everyone that he is a fool. 4 If the spirit of the ruler rises up against you, don’t leave your place; for gentleness lays great offenses to rest. 5 There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, the sort of error which proceeds from the ruler. 6 Folly is set in great dignity, and the rich sit in a low place. 7 I have seen servants on horses, and princes walking like servants on the earth. 8 He who digs a pit may fall into it; and whoever breaks through a wall may be bitten by a snake. 9 Whoever carves out stones may be injured by them. Whoever splits wood may be endangered by it. 10 If the ax is blunt, and one doesn’t sharpen the edge, then he must use more strength; but skill brings success. 11 If the snake bites before it is charmed, then is there no profit for the charmer’s tongue.
A jar of perfume ruined by a few insects opens a series of proverbs in which ordinary work turns out to be dangerous.
Verse 1 is an image of asymmetry. Dead flies cause the oil of the perfumer to produce an evil odor — a whole batch of expensive scent spoiled by a few insects — so does a little folly outweigh wisdom and honor.
The proportions are the argument. Reputation is built slowly and destroyed cheaply, which is the same imbalance the previous chapter stated without a picture: one sinner destroys much good Ecclesiastes 9:18.
Verse 3 adds a detail that is almost funny. The fool says to everyone that he is a fool — not by confessing it, but by walking down the road.
Verses 5 to 7 return to power upside down: folly is set in great dignity, and the rich sit in a low place, and servants on horses, and princes walking. The complaint is disorder rather than poverty. People are in the wrong positions, and the error is traced to its source — the sort of error which proceeds from the ruler.
Then verses 8 to 11 run a series of ordinary jobs and the accident waiting in each. Digging a pit and falling in. Breaking through a wall and meeting a snake in it. Quarrying stone and being hurt by it. Splitting wood and being injured. None of the four is a punishment; each is the hazard native to the task.
Verse 10 supplies the one piece of practical optimism: if the ax is blunt, and one doesn't sharpen the edge, then he must use more strength; but skill brings success. Preparation is worth more than effort, and it is the only advantage in the series available beforehand.
And verse 11 closes on timing. A snake charmer's skill is worth nothing if the snake bites before it is charmed — competence that arrives late is not competence.
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