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Ecclesiastes 5:6

King James Version (KJV)

“In our prayers we talk to God, in our Bible study God talks to us, and we had better let God do most of the talking.”
— D.L. Moody

Ecclesiastes 5:6

Verse 6 of 20

Scripture focus

Suffer not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin; neither say thou before the angel, that it [was] an error: wherefore should God be angry at thy voice, and destroy the work of thine hands?

Ecclesiastes 5:6 — KJV

Commentary

Commentary on Ecclesiastes 5:6

Theological / Devotional

Flesh to sin. The first clause of v. 6 reads, literally, “Do not allow your mouth to bring sin upon your flesh.” Failure to fulfill a vow is a sin of omission.

The angel. The LXX and the Syriac read, “God.” It has been suggested that the word “angel” may sometimes have been used in making reference to God, out of a desire to avoid using the sacred name. Judaism is known to have developed various expressions as synonyms for the divine name.

God be angry. On God’s being “angry,” see on Judges 2:20; 2 Kings 13:3 ; 17:11. Why should a man needlessly incur God’s displeasure?

Fear thou God. A godly fear should be the guiding force in life (see Eccl. 7:18; 8:12; 12:13; Hab. 2:20); see on Deut. 4:10 ; 6:2).

By SdaBc