Commentary on Ecclesiastes

Chapter I

89 CHAPTER I COMMENTARY ON THE BOOK OF ECCLESIASTES CHAPTER I 1. The words of Ecclesiastes, etc. This whole work is divided into three parts: a heading or prologue and a treatise which begins in Ecclesiastes 1:2: Vanity of vanities, etc. The third part is the epilogue which begins in Ecclesiastes 12:9: And whereas Ecclesiastes was very wise. – The heading shows the efficient cause, the treatise shows the matter and the form, and the epilogue shows the purpose . THE HEADING 2. (Verse 1) In the heading are stated the wisdom, goodness , and kingly power of the author. – Referring to wisdom verse one says: The words of Ecclesiastes, and the reader has to understand that the following words are words of Ecclesiastes, because he is called a preacher.And one cannot be a preacher without wisdom because Proverbs 26:9 says: “As if a thorn should grow in the hand of a drunkard, so is a parable in the mouth of a fool.”Also Proverbs 17:7 states: “Eloquent words do not become a fool.”1 – Referring to goodness the verse continues: Son of David. 1 Proverbs 17:7 concludes: “. . . nor lying lips a prince.” 90 ST. BONAVENTURE’S COMMENTARY ON ECCLESIASTES For David was holy, and descendents who imitate him are holy. In Scripture his name is kindness and clemency. Matthew 15:22 has: “Have mercy on me . . . Son of David.” – Referring to kingly power the verse concludes: King of Jerusalem since Jerusalem was a most noble city and head of the entire kingdom. Ecclesiastes 1:12 below has: I, Ecclesiastes, was king over Israel in Jerusalem, because he lived most of the time there. QUESTIONS 2 I. A question arises here: As Solomon wrote three books, why did he use a heading containing his name for the book of Proverbs and for this book, but put no heading on The Song of Songs? I reply: In the book of Proverbs Solomon is introduced as a wise person instructing a disciple, and so he refers to the listener as his son. Similarly in the present book he is introduced as a person experienced in many things, while in The Song of Songs a bride and bridegroom speak. The Song of Songs should not be read as words of Solomon to his wife – rather they are words of Christ to his Church – and so he does not begin the work with his own name. But because in the present book and in Proverbs he speaks often in his own name, he uses an introductory heading in which he points out and identifies his own name.2 2 In his commentary on Ecclesiastes 1:1 Jerome addresses this same question and responds in CCSL lxxii, 251: “Now in The Song of Songs neither son of David nor king of Israel or Jerusalem occur in the first verse, but merely The Song of Songs of Solomon. As Proverbs is aimed at teaching the ignorant, it is directed to the twelve tribes and to the whole of Israel. And likewise, contempt for the world (the theme of Ecclesiastes) is only a fitting theme for city dwellers, that is, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. The Song of Songs is properly directed to those whose sole desire is heavenly things. Paternal dignity and the authority of one’s king are rightly claimed for beginners and those who 91 CHAPTER I II. It is also asked why in Proverbs he uses parables,3 but in this book he uses words?4 If you say that in Proverbs he is speaking in parables and figuratively, while in Ecclesiastes he is speaking openly, then I ask: Why does he use these different ways of speaking? I reply: There is a way of speaking that is in one’s own words and open while another way is to speak in parables and this in a twofold manner. One speaks in parables and open comparisons or by hidden and deep comparisons. Since Solomon in Proverbs is speaking to young and unlearned people, he speaks in parables and openly. In Ecclesiastes he is speaking to the proficient, and so he speaks openly and in his own words. But in the Canticle addressed to the perfect who enjoy solid food,5 he speaks in parables and in hidden ways. III. Another question is: Why did he use his own name in the heading of Proverbs, but in Ecclesiastes he...