King Solomons Solace, Book · Chapter 33
CAP. XXXIII.
The works and labours of men, which Solomon condemneth in his Eccleſiaſtes.
AFter this, Abiather procéeding in his reply, ſaid againe. By thoſe your anſwers (moſt reuerende father) wherin ye hauehave ſo well expounded and explayned the Kings wordes, we may know the neceſſitie and end of good interpretations, without the which,The neceſſitie and ende of good expoſitions of the ſcriptures. the ignorant and common people (beeing not ſo wel learned in thoſe ſentences and phraſes of holy ſcriptures) may too ſoone (as blindfolded perſons) fall into the pit of errors and preuarication. They therfore which endeuor to with-draw or hold backe this good helpe from the holy Church, do what in thē lyeth to hinder the people of the true vnderſtāding of Gods will, of walking in that light of righteouſnes, and conſequently from the happy apprehenſion of the true felicitie, by Faith in the holy Meſſiah. But it may pleaſe you to heare me further:Another obiection, that he ſhold diſſuade men from their lawfull labors. Gen. 3. Exod. 20. Deut. 28. I hauehave heard the K. to vtter another ſentence, wherof (at ye firſt ſhew) appeareth to ſpring a very dangerous doctrine, and ſuch (indéede) as might eaſily diſcourage all men that ſhall it heare from thoſe laudable labours, and trauailes which are to them enioyned in this world, commanded thē in the law of God, and hauehave the promiſes of bleſſing & proſperity in this life. For the K. ſpeaking of vanitie, expoſtulated and ſaid by and by, (as I well remember his words) What els hath a man of all his labors, Eccles. 1.3.wherin he laboureth vnderunder the Sun? as who ſhould ſay: a man getteth nothing by all his labors in this world: and if it be ſo: to what end thē ſhould he labor ſweat, & worke? nay rather let him fold together his hands with the foole, eſtéeming one morſell with quietnes, better then both the hands full with labor & vexation of the ſpirit: let him be idle, and take his eaſe, & not ſtriue to get his liuing in the ſweat of his face and toyle of body and minde, nor to doe his neceſſarie workes in thoſe ſixe dayes, wherein the Lorde hath commanded him to labour in his vocation!
zadoks anſwer.To this zadok anſwering, ſaid: As yee commend (as well worthy) good Interpretations: ſo neither would yee diſlike this ſentence of the King, if ye either vnderſtood it aright, or at the leaſt, noted well what I had ſaid before touching thoſe things,The works of a mans vocatiō are not condemned &c. which the King would comprehend within Vanities kingdome. It is not his meaning (by that his expoſtulation) to condemne the lawfull workes of any mans vocation in this life, which are to him either enioyned or commended with a promiſe of bleſſing: nor to diſcourage any perſon from his ſtudie and labours in the ſame. I neede not to tell you againe, that as the king is moſt wiſe: ſo he beſt knoweth what a man is, what hee is to ſuſteine in his life, and wherein hee may finde peace and reſt for his ſoule: and that after his wiſedome and experience, he knoweth well, what the Lawe, what the Prophets, what the Pſalmes, and wiſe men before him, hauehave therein both taught and commanded: neither hath hee euer giuen that ſemblance, or ſhewe of prophanitie or impietie, to oppoſe himſelfe in his Doctrine and wordes againſt thoſe holy Oracles ſo receiued, and well approued of the chiefe Maiſters of the Aſſemblyes.Eccles 12.11. Eccles. 4.5. and 5.11. But in this, the King ſpeaketh not of thoſe laudable workes and actions of a man: nor of all kindes of labours and workes vntounto him enioyned and incident, the which (truely) I hauehave heard him many times to commend: yea, and to praiſe them which are diligent in doing and effecting them well: Againe, I hauehave heard him vehemently to reprooue ſuch perſons, as giuegive ouer themſelues to idleneſſe in the neglect of the works of their lawfull vocations.What things are condemned. But the K. (in this place) pointeth at the vaine and miſerable ſtudies counſayles, deuiſes & endeuors of man, after the which, in concluſion, enſueth the practize of that which hee neither can, nor may lawfully compaſſe and performe. And this is made plaine by the due conſideration of the Kings wordes of the ſame expoſtulation: in the which wee conſider this, that the King ſpeaking of mans labours,Nota Exod. 20.9. taketh not any of thoſe three wordes vſed by the Lorde, in the Law, where hee ſaith:foreign foreign Thou ſhalt labour: and thou ſhalt doe all thy worke. The firſt worde foreign ſignifieth, any kinde of ſeruice,foreign or ſeruile labours, ſuch as are not to be done on the Sabboth or Feſtiuall dayes: but on other dayes they are to bee done without deniall, by this warrant:Levit. 23.2 Exo. 20.9. Sixe dayes thou ſhalt labour: But that kinde of labour the king meaneth not, in thoſe his wordes: What getteth a man els of all his labours. The ſecond worde of the Lawe,foreign is foreign which ſignifieth to doe or to make any thing, and herence is that worde foreign a deede, or worke done or wrought: or the effecting of any thing by any action or worke. This worde hath that place of Iob, whereas it is ſaid to God concerning him:Iob. 1.10. Exod. 18.20. Thou haſt bleſſed the worke or labour of his hands: & ſo ſaid Iethro to Moſes, Shew them the way wherein they muſt walke, and the worke or labour that they muſt doe. But the King hath not vſed this word of the Law in his ſentence. The third word is foreign which noteth eueryevery thing, which ſerueth to to the vſe and miniſterie of man, whether Artes, or Workes, or Flockes, or whatſoeuer elſe which are gotten and obtained by the labour and induſtry of man. This Labour, Levit. 23.2. Exod. 12.16. and 20.9.is a worke neceſſarie to mans life, and is not forbidden to bee done, but on the Saboth dayes, and holy convocations: elſe they are both lawfull and commendable: for in ſixe dayes (ſaith the Lorde) thou ſhalt doe all thy worke, which is neceſſarie to bee done.foreign Neither hath the King that worde foreign which ſignifieth that worke, which is done with an earneſt affection and deſire to be effected, and is both lawfull and laudable in them that ſtudie and endeuour to doe, and performe the worke of the Lorde with diligence. This truely obſerued the kings father, in the Lorde himſelfe, to whom he thus ſang.
Our eares hauehave heard our Fathers tell,pſal. 44.1.
and reverently record:
The wonderous workes that thou haſt done,
in elder times (O Lorde).
But the worde which the King here vſeth and applyeth to this his purpoſe is (as yee know) foreign which ſignifieth a labour with wearineſſe, and not with pleaſure or delight.foreign (as are thoſe other labours, wherein a man expecteth the ende of his workes with ſacietie.) For it hath tediouſneſſe and no relevation, it hath ſorrowfull deſpare, and no hope of comfort, in reſpect either of the horrible loathſomnes, or of the vnhappy euent thereof: for it is wonderfull tedious, and yet in the ende effecteth nothing to content or pleaſe the minde. This is that worke whereof ſpake Iob, Iob. 3.10.ſaying, He hid not ſorrow from mine eyes: and the ſame which the Kings father hath concerning that vngodly ſinner, ſinging thus.
Behold, he labours in the throwes of miſchiefes:
He hath conceived ſorrow, and brought forth impieties.
Gen. 2.But this is not that or ſuch a kinde of labour as Adam had in Paradize: or that which men ſhould hauehave laboured in, if that Adam had not fallen from that his bleſſed eſtate: but rather that,The effect of Adams fall. which all men are conſtrained to feele as an effect of Adams fall: hauing an affinitie with thoſe 2. words which (beyond all other) expreſſe and ſet forth the vanitie of man: the firſt whereof is foreign which hath the ſame letters,foreign but being inverted or other wiſe placed, it varieth onelyonly the manner of ſignification, and is interpreted (as ye know) tranſgreſſion, preuarication, a voluntary tranſcenſion againſt the conſcience: a contempt, contumacie or raſhnes: and namely, the treſpaſſe of a ſubiect againſt his Prince, of a wife againſt her huſband, of a ſeruant againſt his maiſter, of a ſonne againſt his father, according as we find it in Levit. 5.17. and in Iob. 21.34. and ſome other places of the holy Scriptures. *The other worde which is ſo neere allyed to this in ſignification, is foreign Aven, that euill concupiſcence of our firſt parents,foreign by the which they (hauing liſtened to the Serpent) tranſgreſſed the commandement of God.Iob. 31.3. This is that, whereof the ſame Iob ſpake: Is not destruction (ſaid he) vntounto the wicked and ſome strange thing to the workers of concupiſcence? againſt the ſame ſang the Pſalmiſt.
Pſal. 119.133.Direct a right my ſteps, to walke within thy way:
Then ſhall not vile Concupiſcence within me beare the ſway.
And this word, is oftentimes applyed to Idolatrie, as Samuel ſayde to Saul, 1. Sam. 15.23.who rebelled againſt the Lorde: Rebellion is as the ſinne of witchcraft, and concupiſcence and Idolatrye breakes out. By this then it appeareth, that the king meaneth chiefly this kinde of affliction of man, and that whereof himſelfe was weary as hee ſaide I am weary of my labours.
Next, hee calleth thoſe labours, his labours wherein hee confirmeth that which was ſaide before touching the abridging of Col. For in this hee ſpeaketh onelyonly of mans labours, foreign Mans labors ſo named for 3 cauſes.and hee calleth them ſo, for three cauſes: firſt becauſe they bee occaſioned through mans owne malice and concupiſcence. Secondly, for that they bee impoſed on him for a iuſt puniſhment of his rebellion and ſinne in this life. Thirdly, becauſe they bee the ſame, wherein a man is moſt exerciſed and buſied in this worlde. And by this difference hee excludeth from this vanity all the workes of God, and all thoſe labours which are wrought by man according to the will and worde of God.Deut. 32. For as a man is cōtrary to God in his nature: ſo is he alſo contrary to him in all his works, labours, thoughts, waies and deuiſes. Thirdly, the King hath ſhewed the place of theſe labours, which is (as ye heard him to ſay) vnderneath the Sunne: that is, within the limites of Vanities kingdome: among worldly men,The place of mans labors. which in the world are of a lewd mind, and without God. For the things that are wrought in mans heart and diſpoſed by the diuine ſpirit: are not called either the works of man, or the labours of man vnderunder the Sunne: but they be called properly (as they be indéed) the Workes of God deuiſed, decreede and wrought in heauen, by him that ſpake the worde, and all thinges were done. To bee briefe, the King hath here brought in two generall argumentes to proue his former generall propoſition (vanitye of vanities):2 Arguments againſt mans vanitie. the firſt whereof is taken from the condition of man in this life, in the which, howſoeuer hee ſearch hee findeth nought els of himſelfe but labour and toyle. The ſecond argument is taken from the effects and fruites of his labours, wherein when hee hath vexed him ſelfe, hee findeth no contentation, no ſacietie, and ſo no felicity: but altogether vanitie and vexation of the ſpirite. And that the king might more fully expreſſe the greatneſſe of this Ʋanitye and confirme with the more emphaſis that which he had ſaide he expoſtulateth with this interrogation, what els hath a man? In which manner of ſpeach, there is a greater force, then if he had ſaid, A man gaineth nought els. For this is ſo vehement an affirmation of the thing propoſed, as if it coulde not bee denied: and is ſo much to ſay; as, yee cannot in any wiſe denie, that a man getteth nothing but vanitie, of all thoſe labours wherein he afflicteth himſelfe vnderunder the Sunne.