Ecclesiastes 5:6 BSB

Ecclesiastes 5:6

Do not let your mouth cause your flesh to sin, and do not tell the messenger that your vow was a mistake. Why should God be angry with your words and destroy the work of your hands?

BSB

Parallel translations (2) ▾

ASV

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 thy hands?

KJV

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?

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Commentary

3 voices

Jerome

Commentary on Ecclesiastes (420)

"Let not your mouth bring guilt on your flesh, and do not tell the messenger that it was an error. Why should God be angered by your speech and destroy the work of your hands? "What the Hebrew means is that if you are not able to do these things, do not promise to do them. For the words do not transgress to the spirit but are carried at once to the Lord by the angel present, who sticks to one man only as a companion.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

We must take heed that we never vow anything that is sinful, or that may be an occasion of sin, for such a vow is ill-made and must be broken. Suffer not thy mouth, by such a vow, to cause thy flesh to sin, as Herod's rash promise caused him to cut off the head of John the Baptist.

The Nineteenth Century1 voice

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible (1832)

Neither say thou before the angel, that it was an error - Nor think of saying “before the cruel angel, who shall exercise authority over thee in the judgment of the great day, that thou didst it through ignorance.” - Chaldee. I believe by the angel nothing else is intended than the priest, whose business it was to take cognizance of vows and offerings. See Lev 5:4, Lev 5:5. In Mal 2:7, the priest is called the “angel of the Lord of hosts.”

Voices on this verse

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Original language & word study

23 tagged words

Original	Transliteration	Meaning	Word study
אַל־	'al-	may not	H408 →
תִּתֵּ֤ן	ti.Ten	you permit	H5414 →
אֶת־	'et-	<obj.>	H853 →
פִּ֙יךָ֙	pi.kha	mouth your	H6310 →
לַחֲטִ֣יא	la.cha.Ti'	to cause to sin	H2398 →
אֶת־	'et-	<obj.>	H853 →
בְּשָׂרֶ֔ךָ	be.sa.Re.kha	flesh your	H1320 →
וְאַל־	ve.'al-	and may not	H408 →
תֹּאמַר֙	to.Mar	you say	H559 →
לִפְנֵ֣י	lif.Nei	<to> before	H6440 →
הַמַּלְאָ֔ךְ	ha.mal.'Akh	the messenger	H4397 →
כִּ֥י	ki	that	H3588 →
שְׁגָגָ֖ה	she.ga.Gah	[was] inadvertence	H7684 →
הִ֑יא	Hi'	it	H1931 →
לָ֣מָּה	La.mah	<to> why?	H4100 →
יִקְצֹ֤ף	yik.Tzof	will he be angry	H7107 →
הָֽאֱלֹהִים֙	ha.'E.lo.Him	<the> God	H430 →
עַל־	'al-	towards	H5921 →
קוֹלֶ֔ךָ	ko.Le.cha	voice your	H6963 →
וְחִבֵּ֖ל	ve.chi.Bel	and he will destroy	H2254 →
אֶת־	'et-	<obj.>	H853 →
מַעֲשֵׂ֥ה	ma.'a.Seh	[the] work of	H4639 →
יָדֶֽיךָ׃	ya.Dei.kha	hands your	H3027 →

Rare words are the text's own signal of a deliberate thread: the fewer the occurrences, the more the places it appears belong together.

The walk

The walk8

Where the connections lead

Follow this verse’s cross-references two steps out. Each card is a verse this one points to, and beneath it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several different paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it. Every stop shows its own words, and every stop is a page.

Through
James 3:2
We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to control his whole body.
leads to
- 1 Peter 3:10
  For, “Whoever would love life and see good days must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from deceitful speech.
  Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
- James 1:26
  If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not bridle his tongue, he deceives his heart and his religion is worthless.
- Proverbs 13:3
  He who guards his mouth protects his life, but the one who opens his lips invites his own ruin.
- Matthew 12:37
  For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”
Through
James 1:26
If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not bridle his tongue, he deceives his heart and his religion is worthless.
leads to
- Ephesians 4:29
  Let no unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building up the one in need and bringing grace to those who listen.
- Psalms 141:3
  Set a guard, O LORD, over my mouth; keep watch at the door of my lips.
- Ephesians 5:4
  Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk, or crude joking, which are out of character, but rather thanksgiving.
- Proverbs 19:1
  Better a poor man who walks with integrity than a fool whose lips are perverse.

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King Solomon in Old Age — Gustave Doré, Doré's English Bible (1866), public domain

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01Commentary

The record, by era

Voices on this verse

02Original language & word study

03The walk

Where the connections lead

04Related verses

05Featured studies on this passage

06About Ecclesiastes

The record, by era

Where the connections lead

Commentary

Original language & word study

The walk

Related verses

Featured studies on this passage

About Ecclesiastes