Say not thou, What is the cause that the former days were better than these? for thou dost not inquire wisely concerning this.
The former days were better than these. Do not call in question God's ways in making thy former days better than thy present, as Job did (Eccl. 29:2-5); and the former days of the nation better than the present state. Compare Jude 1:16, "murmerers, complainers" (Malachi 2:17; Malachi 3:14-15).
Thou dost not inquire wisely - Hebrew, with wisdom. Wisdom would teach thee that the sufferings of God's people are designed to humble them in remembrance of sin, and that these sufferings are disciplinary and only for a time, and will eventuate in eternal glory to those who are exercised thereby. The very putting of the question argues that heavenly "wisdom" (margin) is not, as much as it ought, made the chief good with thee.