Ecclesiasteschapter 11
10 verses · BSBEcclesiastes book hub →
Speaks with:Ecclesiastes 12×2Isaiah 55×2Ecclesiastes 11×1Proverbs 19×1Hebrews 6×11 Timothy 6×1
Summary
Chapter summary
'Cast thy bread upon the waters; for thou shalt find it after many days. Give a portion to seven, yea, even unto eight; for thou knowest not what evil shall be upon the earth.' He that observeth the wind shall not sow: 'thou knowest not the work of God who doeth all.' In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thy hand. Light is sweet. 'Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth… but know thou, that for all these things God will bring thee into judgment.'
Context
Poetry · Solomon — Ecclesiastes overview
- A. 1–6 Cast Thy Bread Upon the Waters; Sow in the Morning
- B. 7–10 Rejoice, Young Man — but Know That God Will Bring Thee Into Judgment
The outline
A.Cast Thy Bread Upon the Waters; Sow in the Morningvv. 1 to 6
Read vv. 1 to 6 →B.Rejoice, Young Man — but Know That God Will Bring Thee Into Judgmentvv. 7 to 10
Read vv. 7 to 10 →
The world behind this chapter
Ecclesiastes 11The history
"Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days." The most natural reading in Solomon's era is maritime trade. His reign ran merchant fleets out of Ezion-geber on the Red Sea and partnered with Tyre on long voyages that took years to return. You loaded your goods, watched the ship leave, and waited — sometimes for three years — for a return you could not guarantee.
"Give a portion to seven, and also to eight; for thou knowest not what evil shall be upon the earth." This is risk spreading, and merchants did it: a share in several ventures rather than everything in one hull. A single storm off the coast could take one ship and leave the rest.
"He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap." Sowing was done by hand, broadcasting seed from a bag; wind scattered it wrong. Threshing needed wind but not rain. A farmer waiting for perfect conditions in a climate that never gives them will do neither job.
"Thou knowest not… how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child" states plainly what nobody in that world could see. The formation of a body was the standard example of a process entirely hidden from human observation.
What it meant to them
The chapter's advice is the opposite of the paralysis the book has been describing. You cannot know the outcome, so sow in the morning and in the evening both, and stop waiting for certainty that is not coming.
Then it turns to the young: "rejoice, O young man, in thy youth… but know thou, that for all these things God will bring thee into judgment." Both halves are meant. Enjoy it, and remember there is an accounting.
Sources cited
- Kenneth A. Kitchen, On the Reliability of the Old Testament
- John H. Walton, Victor H. Matthews, Mark W. Chavalas, The IVP Bible Background Commentary: Old Testament
The text of this chapter
This page carries no textual note on Ecclesiastes 11. Where this site has examined a place the manuscripts differ, the examination is in the manuscripts room. Every place this site examines →
This page draws on Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory; John Wesley, Notes on the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Complete Commentary.