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Ecclesiastes 9 Introduction
英文原文
In Ecclesiastes 9:1-12 reasons are adduced for the universal conclusion Ecclesiastes 8:17 that no person can understand the works of God. This does not, however, prevent the assertion of the practical advantage in this life of that wisdom which includes the fear of God (Ecclesiastes 9:13 ff). Compare Ecclesiastes 9:1-10 with Wisd. 2:1-9.
1
Ecclesiastes 9:1
善人对神的信靠，被提出来作为我们对于护理之道无知一事的平衡砝码。
“在神手中”——意即：作为义人，他们在他特别的保护之下（Deuteronomy 33:3 及以下）；作为人，他们在他的指挥之下（Proverbs 21:1）。
“无人知道”——字面意思是：“爱与恨，人都不知道；一切都在他们面前。”这里的爱与恨，指神恩宠或不悦的寻常外在标记，即顺境与逆境。“人不知道”的意思大概是：“人不知道从神那里当期待顺境还是逆境；他在世上的整个前途都隐而不明。”
英文原文
A good man's trust in God is set forth as a counterpoise to our Ignorance of the ways of Providence.
In the hand of God - Under His special protection (Deuteronomy 33:3 ff) as righteous, and under His direction Proverbs 21:1 as people.
No man ... - literally, both love and also hatred man knoweth not: all are before them. Love and hatred here mean the ordinary outward tokens of God's favor or displeasure, i. e., prosperity and adversity. "Man knoweth not" probably means: "man knows not whether to expect prosperity or adversity from God; all his earthly future is in obscurity."
2
Ecclesiastes 9:2
“遭遇的事”（event）——见 Ecclesiastes 2:14 注释。
“好起誓的”（sweareth）——即轻率地或亵渎地起誓的人。
英文原文
Event - See Ecclesiastes 2:14 note.
Sweareth - i. e., Swears lightly or profanely.
3
Ecclesiastes 9:3
参 Ecclesiastes 8:11。世事的进程表面看来似乎善恶不分，这种情形往往使性情邪恶之人在其愚妄中变本加厉。
英文原文
Compare Ecclesiastes 8:11. The seeming indiscriminateness of the course of events tends to encourage evil-disposed men in their folly.
4
Ecclesiastes 9:4
“因为对他”（For to him）——更宜作“然而对他”。尽管有种种恶事，生命仍有其益处，与死亡相比时尤其如此。
“狗”（Dog）——对希伯来人来说，这是一切可鄙之物的象征（1 Samuel 17:43）。
英文原文
For to him - Rather: "Yet to him." Notwithstanding evils, life has its advantage, and especially when compared with death.
Dog - To the Hebrews a type of all that was contemptible 1 Samuel 17:43.
5
Ecclesiastes 9:5
见 Ecclesiastes 8:12 注；Ecclesiastes 8:14 注。活人意识到自己面前还有将来；死人却毫无知觉：他们不再赚取什么，也不再领受什么，甚至对他们的记念也很快消逝；他们不再被属于今生之人的情感所激动；他们在今生活动中的份已告终止。所罗门在此描述的是他所看见的，不是他所信的；此处并未论及灵魂在另一个世界存在的事实或方式——那些乃是信心之事。
Ecclesiastes 9:6 的末句表明，作者将他对死者的观察，局限于他们在今世的份，或说他们与今世的关系。
英文原文
See Ecclesiastes 8:12, note; Ecclesiastes 8:14, note. The living are conscious that there is a future before them: but the dead are unconscious; they earn nothing, receive nothing, even the memory of them soon disappears; they are no longer excited by the passions which belong to people in this life; their share in its activity has ceased. Solomon here describes what he sees, not what he believes; there is no reference here to the fact or the mode of the existence of the soul in another world, which are matters of faith.
The last clause of Ecclesiastes 9:6 indicates that the writer confines his observations on the dead to their portion in, or relation to, this world.
6
Ecclesiastes 9:6
“如今”（Now）——更宜作“早已”。
英文原文
Now - Rather: "long ago."
7
Ecclesiastes 9:7
要连贯地读这六节经文，才能领会作者的意思；并参 Ecclesiastes 2:1-12。
在描述了死人无份无业的境况（Ecclesiastes 9:5-6）之后，随之而来的下一个想法是：那通达而活跃的人，尽可在此生中单纯地享受自己的份（Ecclesiastes 9:7-10）；接着在 Ecclesiastes 9:11-12，是照常以“我又转念”引出的纠正性思想（见 Ecclesiastes 3:1-15 注；Ecclesiastes 2:12；Ecclesiastes 4:1、Ecclesiastes 4:7），即：世事的进程乃由另一个意志——不是人的意志——所安排和调节。
受话之人，其劳碌的一生已经讨神喜悦，并且身上带着神恩眷的可见记号。
Ecclesiastes 9:7
“现在悦纳”（Now accepteth）——更宜作“早已喜悦”。喜乐（见旁注相关注释）被视为神悦纳与恩眷的记号。
英文原文
Read these six verses connectedly, in order to arrive at the meaning of the writer; and compare Ecclesiastes 2:1-12.
After the description Ecclesiastes 9:5-6 of the portionless condition of the dead, the next thought which occurs is that the man who is prosperous and active should simply enjoy his portion all through this life Ecclesiastes 9:7-10; and then Ecclesiastes 9:11-12 follows the correcting thought (see Ecclesiastes 3:1-15 note), introduced as usual Ecclesiastes 2:12; Ecclesiastes 4:1, Ecclesiastes 4:7 by "I returned," namely, that the course of events is disposed and regulated by another will than that of man.
The person addressed is one whose life of labor is already pleasing to God, and who bears visible tokens of God's favor.
Ecclesiastes 9:7
Now accepteth - Rather: "already has pleasure in." Joy (the marginal reference note) is regarded as a sign of the approbation and favor of God.
8
Ecclesiastes 9:8
白衣与膏油，不过是表达喜乐的醒目记号。
英文原文
White garments and perfume are simply an expressive sign of joy.
10
Ecclesiastes 9:10
我们在此以身体与灵魂联合之力所推进的工作，在死亡的时刻便告终结；那时灵魂进入新的存在领域，身体与灵魂不再一同活动。参 John 9:4。
“谋算”（Device）——见 Ecclesiastes 7:25 注。
英文原文
The works which we carry on here with the combined energies of body and soul come to an end in the hour of death, when the soul enters a new sphere of existence, and body and soul cease to act together. Compare John 9:4.
Device - See Ecclesiastes 7:25 note.
11
Ecclesiastes 9:11
“机会”（Chance）——或作“偶发之事”，即从外界临到我们的事物，是 Ecclesiastes 3 所描述的那些外在事件之一。参 Ecclesiastes 2:14 注。
英文原文
Chance - Or, "incident," that which comes to us from without, one of the external events described in Ecclesiastes 3. Compare Ecclesiastes 2:14 note.
12
Ecclesiastes 9:12
“定时”（Time）——见 Ecclesiastes 3:1 及以下。
英文原文
Time - See Ecclesiastes 3:1 ff.
13
Ecclesiastes 9:13
或作：“我也见过这样的事——日光之下的智慧，在我看来甚大。”
从本节直到 Ecclesiastes 10 章末，作者以一连串箴言反复叮咛与愚妄相对的智慧，视之为今生应对虚空之恶的最佳解方。
英文原文
Or, Also this have I seen - wisdom under the sun, and great it seemed to me.
From this verse to the end of Ecclesiastes 10, the writer inculcates, in a series of proverbs, wisdom in contrast to folly, as the best remedy in the present life to the evil of vanity.
14
Ecclesiastes 9:14
这个比喻大概并没有事实根据。主张本书出于晚期的批评学者们所能提出的最好猜测，也不过是说这“小城”或许是主前480年借地米斯托克利（Themistocles）的智慧脱离薛西斯（Xerxes）大军的雅典，或是主前218年被安提阿库大王（Antiochus the Great）围困的多拉。
Ecclesiastes 9:16-17 是对 Ecclesiastes 9:15 所述两件事实——城的获救与城对救城者的遗忘——的评注。
英文原文
A parable probably without foundation in fact. Critics who ascribe this book to a late age offer no better suggestion than that the "little city" may be Athens delivered 480 b.c. from the host of Xerxes through the wisdom of Themistocles, or Dora besieged 218 b.c. by Antiochus the Great.
Ecclesiastes 9:16-17 are comments on the two facts - the deliverance of the city and its forgetfulness of him who delivered it - stated in Ecclesiastes 9:15.
18
Ecclesiastes 9:18
“罪人”（Sinner）——原文这个词不仅指道德上的错谬，也指心智上的错谬。
英文原文
Sinner - The word in the original indicates intellectual as well as moral error.
在 Ecclesiastes 9:1-12 中，为 Ecclesiastes 8:17 那普世性的结论——即没有人能明白神的作为——提出了种种根据。然而，这并不妨碍肯定那包含敬畏神在内的智慧在今生所具有的实际益处（Ecclesiastes 9:13 及以下）。可将 Ecclesiastes 9:1-10 与 Wisd. 2:1-9 加以比较。