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John Trapp Complete Commentary

Ecclesiastes 9:17

The words of wise [men are] heard in quiet more than the cry of him that ruleth among fools.

Ver. 17. The words of wise men are heard in quiet.] The submissive words of a poor man speaking with good understanding, are rather heard than the big and boisterous words of proud fools. Fuit Nestorius homo indoctus, superbus, audax et magnae loquentiae, saith Zanchy. a Nestorius, the heretic, was an ignorant, proud, bold, big spoken man, and prevailed very much thereby with some silly simples. How much better Chrysostom, of whom it is said that he was graviter suavis, et suaviter gravis, gravely sweet, and sweetly grave, and he was much admired for it! Gentle showers and dews that distil leisurely, comfort the earth; when dashing storms drown the seed. The words of wise men are by one well compared to the river Indus, which is said both to sow the East, and to water it; for so it may be said of the words of the wise, that they are both semina et flumina, both seeds and rivers: seeds, because they sow goodness in their hearers; rivers, because they water that which is sown to make it to grow in them. b But the cry of fools is like a violent torrent, which washeth away that which it soweth, and doth not suffer it to continue in the ground.

More than the cry of him that ruleth among fools.] Tremellius reads it, cum stolidis suis, with his fools; i.e., cum suo stulto senatu, with his foolish counsellors, who do commonly comply with him, to obtrude, with great authority, his unreasonable and tyrannical edicts and mandates.

a Zanch., Miscel.

b Indus fluvius, et serere Orientem, dicitur, et rigare. - Minut. Felix in Octav.

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See also Ecclesiastes 9:17 in other biblical comments:

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