Ecclesiastes — Chapter 11

Mitte panem tuum super transeuntes aquas, quia in multitudine dierum invenies illum.

Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again. Lapide interprets this primarily as an exhortation to generous almsgiving: give freely even to strangers and the seemingly undeserving (symbolized by the waters), for God will return it multiplied. He cites numerous patristic authorities including SS. Jerome, Ambrose, and Gregory, and gives multiple interpretations: literal (trade and commerce), moral (charity to the poor), and mystical (the preaching of the Gospel cast broadly upon the nations).

Da partem septem, nec non et octo, quia ignoras quid futurum sit mali super terram.

Give a portion to seven, and also to eight, for you know not what evil may come upon the earth. Lapide explains that seven and eight signify giving generously to many, without restricting charity to a fixed number. Since the future is uncertain, one should accumulate merit through almsgiving as a safeguard against coming adversity. He provides tropological interpretations linking the seven to the gifts of the Holy Spirit and the eight to the Beatitudes.

Si repletae fuerint nubes, imbrem super terram effundent. Si ceciderit lignum ad austrum aut ad aquilonem, in quocumque loco ceciderit, ibi erit.

If the clouds are full of rain, they empty themselves on the earth; if a tree falls to the south or the north, where it falls there it will lie. Lapide treats the two halves separately. The clouds represent the wealthy who should pour out their abundance in alms. The fallen tree represents the irrevocability of death: wherever the soul is found at the moment of death, in grace or in sin, so it remains for eternity. This is a powerful admonition to repent before death, since after death there is no change of state.

Qui observat ventum, non seminat; et qui considerat nubes, numquam metet.

He who watches the wind will not sow, and he who regards the clouds will not reap. Lapide warns against excessive caution and procrastination in doing good. Those who wait for perfect conditions before giving alms or undertaking virtuous works will never act at all. He applies this to preachers who delay proclaiming the Gospel, and to penitents who defer conversion, always waiting for a more convenient season.

Quomodo ignoras quae sit via spiritus, et qua ratione compingantur ossa in ventre praegnantis, sic nescis opera Dei, qui fabricator est omnium.

Just as you do not know the path of the wind or how bones form in a mother's womb, so you cannot understand the work of God who makes all things. Lapide uses this verse to humble human presumption: God's providence is inscrutable, and man should trust in divine wisdom rather than his own calculations. He connects this to the preceding verse, arguing that since we cannot fathom God's designs, we should not hesitate to do good based on our own limited foresight.

Mane semina semen tuum, et vespere ne cesset manus tua, quia nescis quid magis oriatur, hoc aut illud.

In the morning sow your seed, and in the evening do not let your hand be idle, for you do not know which will prosper. Lapide urges constant diligence in good works and almsgiving at every stage of life. Morning and evening signify youth and old age, or different opportunities for charity. Since we cannot know which of our good works will bear the most fruit, we should multiply them without ceasing.

Dulce lumen, et delectabile est oculis videre solem.

Sweet is the light, and pleasant for the eyes to see the sun. Lapide explains this as a transition: the sweetness of life and light should not make us forget death. He interprets the sun both literally and as a figure of divine grace, noting that the enjoyment of temporal goods should lead to gratitude toward God rather than attachment to the world.

Si annis multis vixerit homo, et in his omnibus laetatus fuerit, meminisse debet tenebrosi temporis et dierum multorum.

If a man lives many years, let him rejoice in them all; but let him remember the days of darkness, for they will be many. Lapide warns that however long and prosperous life may be, one must remember death, judgment, and the possibility of eternal punishment. The days of darkness signify both the time in the grave and, for the wicked, the eternal darkness of hell. This verse is a sobering corrective to the preceding celebration of life's sweetness.

Laetare ergo iuvenis in adulescentia tua, et in bono sit cor tuum in diebus iuventutis tuae.

Rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth; but know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment. Lapide explains this as holy irony: Salomon speaks as if permitting youthful pleasure, but immediately adds the sting of coming judgment. The verse is a powerful admonition that every act of youth will be examined at the divine tribunal. He applies it especially against youthful lust and intemperance, urging the young to direct their joy toward God.

Aufer iram a corde tuo, et amove malitiam a carne tua, quoniam adulescentia et voluptas vana sunt.

Remove anger from your heart and put away evil from your flesh, for youth and the dawn of life are vanity. Lapide interprets ira broadly as all disordered passions of the irascible appetite, and malitia as concupiscence and bodily vice. He urges the young to mortify both interior and exterior vices, since youth itself is fleeting vanity that quickly passes into the miseries of old age.