If the spirit of the ruler rise up— If the anger of the ruler should be kindled against thee, do not resign thy place; for power kept in thy hands will make pacification for great offences. From the 17th verse of the preceding chapter to the present, we have the second instance. The excellency of wisdom is so well known, that, however fond the silly lovers of novelties maybe of hearing a war proclaimed, they will be still fonder of hearing the speeches of a wise man, when their pardons are cool. Wisdom is certainly preferable to the greatest exploits of the most famous warrior; yet no allowance is made for human frailties to excuse one who has so much got the better of them as to deserve the title of a wise man. A single fault of his is sufficient to spoil, in the opinion of mankind, all the good that he has done. They rank him among the fools, notwithstanding it is acknowledged on all hands, nay, declared in several proverbial sentences, that there is an essential difference between the wise and the fool: a difference which the fool betrays at every step he takes, and by his very gait; and which, therefore, ought not to be laid aside and disregarded upon a single instance of a man's deviating from his right principles, Ecclesiastes 10:2-3. Here is annexed a caution (Ecclesiastes 10:4.) given to any wise man, if he should fall under the displeasure of his prince on account of those small errors which were just before likened to a dead fly falling into a box of precious perfumes. He must not, upon the first intimation of his master's anger, give up his employments. Then he would become an inconsiderable man; whereas, whilst he is in possession of them, it may be for the prince's own interest to make up matters with him, even though he was guilty of much greater faults than what he has really committed.
Related Commentaries of Ecclesiastes 10:4
Ecclesiastes 10:4
4 If the spirit of the ruler rise up against thee, leave not thy place; for yielding pacifieth great offences.