Ecclesiastes 10:17

Blessed [art] thou, O land, when thy king is the son of nobles,.... Or "heroes" (z), called "Hhorim" in the Hebrew, which signifies "white"; either from the white garment they wore, or rather from

Blessed art thou, O land, when thy king is the son of nobles, and thy princes eat in due season, for strength, and not for drunkenness! Son of nobles - not merely in blood, but in virtue, the true nobility.

The son of nobles; not so much by birth, as even the worst of kings commonly are, and have been, as by their noble and worthy dispositions, and endowments, and carriages; for such a one is opposed to the child in the former verse. Sons of nobles are put for noble persons, as the sons of men for men, and the sons of physicians for physicians. Eat in due season; so as may further, and not hinder, their main business. For strength; to refresh and strengthen their natures, that they may be fit for action and business. Not for drunkenness; not only nor chiefly to please their palates, and indulge themselves in sensuality.

Ecclesiastes 10:17 Blessed [art] thou, O land, when thy king [is] the son of nobles, and thy princes eat in due season, for strength, and not for drunkenness!Ver. 17. Blessed art thou, O land, &c.] Ita nati estis ut bona malaque vestra ad Remp. pertineant. You governors are of such condition as that your good or evil deeds are of public concernment, saith he in Tacitus. It is either wealth or woe with the land, as it is well or ill governed. When thy king is the son of nobles.] Well born and yet better bred; for else they will be noti magis quam nobiles, notable or notorious, but not noble Our Henry I (surnamed Beauclerc) was often heard to say that an unlearned king was no better than a crowned ass. Sure it is that royalty without righteousness is but eminent dishonour, gilded rottenness, golden damnation. Godly men are the excellent ones of the earth, the Beraeans were more noble, or better gentlemen, than those of Thessalonica, non per civilem dignitatem, sed per spiritualem dignationem, not by civil, but by spiritual dignity; without which riches, revenue, retinue, high birth, &c., are but shadows and shapes of nobleness. "Since thou hast been precious in my sight, thou hast been honourable," saith God, who is the top of good men’ s kin, as religion is the root. But for want of this it was that Jehoiakim, though royally descended, is likened to an ass; and Antiochus, though a mighty monarch, is called a "vile person." And thy princes eat in due season for strength, &c.] Being modest and moderate, not diffluent and debauched. Great men should not "cater for the flesh," but so serve the body that the body politic may be served by it, and the Lord by both. Did ever any one see King Dejotarus dancing or drunken? saith Cicero, and this he holds to be a singular commendation. See Proverbs 31:3-4. See my Common Place of Abstinence. Annal., lib. iv. Princeps bonis moribus et liberaliter institutus. - Jerome, in loc. Speed. ευγενεστεροι. Orat. pro Rege Deiotaro.

Verse 17. When thy king is the son of nobles] υιοςελευθερων, the son of freemen; persons well acquainted with the principles of civil liberty, and who rule according to them.-Septuagint. Such a one as comes to the throne in a legitimate way, from an ancient regal family, whose right to the throne is incontestable. It requires such a long time to establish a regal right, that the state is in continual danger from pretenders and usurpers, where the king is not the son of nobles. And thy princes eat in due season] All persons in places of trust for the public weal, from the king to the lowest public functionary, should know, that the public are exceedingly scandalized at repeated accounts of entertainments, where irregularity prevails, much money is expended, and no good done. These things are drawn into precedent, and quoted to countenance debauch in the inferior classes. The natural division of the day for necessary repasts is, BREAKFAST, eight, or half after; DINNER, one, or half after; SUPPER, eight, or half after. And these, or even earlier hours were formerly observed in these countries. Then we had scarcely any such thing as gout, and no nervous disorders. In ancient nations the custom was to eat but once; and then about mid-day.

17. Blessed art thou, O land, when thy king is the son of nobles] The epithet has been taken as instance of the Hebrew of expressing character by the phrase “the son of …,” and hence as having a meaning here like that of the Latin generosus. Probably, however, the maxim reflects the thought of Greek political writers that they “are truly noble who can point to ancestors distinguished for both excellence and wealth” (Aristot. Polit. Ecclesiastes 10:17) that if there were any one family with an hereditary character for excellence, it was just that it should be recognised as kingly, and that the king should be chosen from it (Ibid. iii. 16). Such, the writer may have meant covertly to imply, ought a true descendant of the Ptolemies to have been instead of sinking into a degenerate profligacy. thy princes eat in due season] The word “season” reminds us of the sense in which in chap. Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 it is said that every thing, feasting included, has its proper “time.” In the case supposed the character of the king is reflected in the princes that rule under him. The words “for strength” may, perhaps, mean “in strength,” i.e. with the self-control of temperance, the ἐγκρατεία of Greek ethics, and not in the drunkenness which accompanies the morning revels.

17. A son of nobles is a strong phrase for a noble man. So uniform is the connexion between the wise control of appetite by those who have ample means for its indulgence and a proper regard for