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Ecclesiastes 10:1

Dead flies cause a perfumer's perfume To send forth a stink; The precious by reason of wisdom — By reason of honour — a little folly!

Young's Literal Translation

In The King James Version

Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savour: so doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and honour.

In Context

2The heart of the wise [is] at his right hand, And the heart of a fool at his left.

Read all of Ecclesiastes 10

Cross References

Exodus 30:25and thou hast made it a holy anointing oil, a compound mixture, work of a compounder; it is a holy anointing oil.

2 Chronicles 19:2and go out unto his presence doth Jehu son of Hanani, the seer, and saith unto king Jehoshaphat, 'To give help to the wicked, and to those hating Jehovah, dost thou love? and for this against thee [is] wrath from before Jehovah,

Nehemiah 13:26'By these did not Solomon king of Israel sin? and among the many nations there was no king like him, and beloved by his God he was, and God maketh him king over all Israel — even him did the strange women cause to sin.

Haggai 2:12Lo, one doth carry holy flesh in the skirt of his garment, and he hath come with his skirt against the bread, or against the pottage, or against the wine, or against the oil, or against any food — is it holy?' And the priests answer and say, 'No.'

Matthew 5:13'Ye are the salt of the land, but if the salt may lose savour, in what shall it be salted? for nothing is it good henceforth, except to be cast without, and to be trodden down by men.

Matthew Henry on Ecclesiastes 10:1

This chapter seems to be like Solomon's proverbs, a collection of wise sayings and observations, rather than a part of his sermon; but the preacher studied to be sententious, and "set in order many proverbs," to be brought in in his preaching. Yet the general scope of all the observations in this chapter is to recommend wisdom to us, and its precepts and rules, as of great use for the right ordering of our conversation and to caution us against folly. I. He recommends wisdom to private persons, who are in an… Read the whole commentary →

This Verse In Other Editions

King James VersionBíblia Portuguesa MundialLuther Bibel (Deutsch)Bible Louis Segond (Français)Библия (Русский)新标点和合本성경 (한국어)الكتاب المقدس باللغة العربية، فان دايكBibbia Diodati (Italiano)Kinh Thánh (Tiếng Việt)Biblia Cornilescu (Română)Polish Biblia Gdanska (1881)Statenvertaling (Nederlands)

Study Ecclesiastes 10:1

Matthew HenryJamieson-Fausset-BrownAdam ClarkeJohn WesleyJohn CalvinKeil and DelitzschScofieldFamily Bible NotesGeneva Bible Notes (1599)
Ecclesiastes 10Ecclesiastes 10:2 →