We end off this week with Eccl 10: 11-20

v11: You don’t bring the snake charmer in to charm the snake after the damage is done. Charming the snake is done before any harm can be done – not after the fact. If we want to have proper results, there is a proper order to the way we need to do things. 

v12: Words…are gracious: A wise person speaks words of favour (blessing) in a situation or words of favour over people. It’s going the “extra mile” with our words in regard to others (Matt 5:41). Don’t do the minimum, do the maximum in situations. It is a catalyst for G-d’s favour (abundance) to come into your life. 

• Lips of a fool…swallow him up: A foolish person does not speak favourably about others. He speaks selfishness. He speaks what he thinks is in his best interest. Ultimately it is going to have a negative effect upon him – instead of receiving more than he expected it is going to devour up his very being. 

v13: Raving madness: The image here is of someone who is wild and out of control – uncontrollable. When we violate the will of G-d and we behave foolishly it is going to produce uncontrollable behaviour. 

v14: Multiplies words…no man knows what is to be: He talks out of his own natural impulses or what he thinks is common sense (does and says what is right in his own eyes). This is foolishness to G-d. 

• Who can tell him what will be after him?: Who knows what our future holds? Only G-d can know this. That’s why we should rely upon His Word.

v15: Fools: It is a word that speaks about someone who knows what the right thing to do is, but they are rebellious and so do the opposite. 

• Wearies them: When we do what we know G-d wants us to do we receive an anointing and we feel invigorated. But if we behave in foolishness, it is going to exhaust us. 
• Do not even know how to go to the city: Foolish brings about confusion in our lives. It brings about a lack of that which we should basically know. The foolish man doesn’t know that he is behaving blindly.

v16: Your king is a child: ie inexperienced. 

• Your princes feast in the morning: Biblically, before anything was done in the morning, prayers were the first order of the day – not eating. Their priorities are wrong. 

v17: Your king is the son of nobles: In the original Hebrew this is a statement that has liberty or freedom attached to it. This king is not in bondage or slavery, but he is free to serve G-d or to do G-d’s will. 

• Your princes: Cabinet officials. 
• Feast at the proper time: Things are in the right order. 
• For strength and not for drunkenness: They eat in order to carry out G-d’s will and not for their own purposes. 

v18: The home of a lazy person will reflect that the occupants are lazy. Just like their homes, lazy people are not going to be vessels that can receive but will be leaky vessels (so to speak). 

v19: A feast: The word used here in Hebrew is the word for bread. Bread is synonymous with life. Culturally, it is eaten every day and it brings satisfaction/contentment/joy on a daily basis (Phil 4:11-12)

• Wine: In this culture drinking wine was an infrequent occurrence. In our lives there are going to be special or unique times when we are going to be exceedingly glad (“merry”). 
• Money answers everything: The word translated “answers” can also be translated “afflicted”. Both allude to a response. 

v20: Thought…bedroom: Both private places. 

• Do not curse the rich: Those who have resources. This verse is warning us to keep our thoughts and secret words in check. Why? Those secret things we hold onto will always be manifested – they will be exposed. We need to be thinking good thoughts (1 Peter 3:9, Roms 12:17). If we have adverse feelings for people, and we hold on to them, it is going to affect us. We need to bring every thought into obedience to Messiah (2 Cor 10:5). Our thoughts need to be thoughts of blessing and not of cursing.