Ecclesiastes 4:5
The fool foldeth his hands together, and eateth his own flesh.
Leeser Tanakh
In The King James Version
The fool foldeth his hands together, and eateth his own flesh.
In Context
6Better is a handful of quiet, than both the hands full of toil and torture of spirit.
Cross References
Proverbs 6:9How long, O sluggard, wilt thou lie down? when wilt thou arise out of thy sleep?
Proverbs 6:11But then will thy poverty come like a rover, and thy want as a man armed with a shield.
Proverbs 12:27The indolent roasteth not that which he hath caught in hunting; but the most precious wealth of man is diligence.
Proverbs 20:4Because it is winter's cold, will the sluggard not plough: when he therefore seeketh in the harvest time, there will be nothing.
Isaiah 9:20(9:19) And he snatcheth on the right hand, and is [yet] hungry; and he eateth on the left hand, and are not [yet] satisfied; they shall eat every man the flesh of his own arm:
Matthew Henry on Ecclesiastes 4:5-7
The Prevalence of Oppression. 4 Again, I considered all travail, and every right work, that for this a man is envied of his neighbour. This is also vanity and vexation of spirit. 5 The fool foldeth his hands together, and eateth his own flesh. 6 Better is a handful with quietness, than both the hands full with travail and vexation of spirit. Here Solomon returns to the observation and consideration of the vanity and vexation of spirit that attend the business of this world, which he had spoken of before, ch. ii.… Read the whole commentary →