Ecclesiastes 5:3
For a dream comes with much business, and a fool’s voice with many words.
English Standard Version (ESV)
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The verse draws a sharp parallel: just as an overloaded mind creates jumbled dreams, a fool's many words reveal their inner emptiness, particularly when they approach God. This isn't just about talking a lot, but about a quantity of words that betray a lack of genuine understanding or reverence.
Solomon is cautioning us to approach God with reverence and thoughtfulness, particularly in prayer and when making vows. He explains that just as excessive worldly concerns can lead to chaotic dreams, a flood of meaningless words reveals the foolishness and lack of genuine consideration in a person's heart, especially when speaking to the Almighty. This immediately sets the stage for his stern warning in the next verse about rash vows.
Ever felt like your days spill over into your sleep? This verse connects our waking worries to our sleeping thoughts.
The Preacher observes that just as a mind burdened with daily activities and worries can lead to jumbled, often nonsensical dreams, so too does a foolish person reveal themselves through an excess of words. The 'multitude of business' isn't just about being busy; it's about mental preoccupation. When our minds are constantly occupied, even our subconscious can become restless. This is paralleled with a fool whose mind is similarly occupied, not with wise thought, but with a torrent of words that betray their lack of discernment.
Why does the Bible so often warn against too much talking? This verse offers a powerful insight.
The second part of the verse directly contrasts with thoughtful contemplation and wise speech. A 'fool's voice' isn't recognized for its wisdom or insight, but simply for its quantity. Many words, especially when they are rushed, unconsidered, or boastful, are a clear sign of folly. This isn't about the length of a prayer, but the 'frame of mind' behind it. Think of the difference between a heartfelt, concise prayer and a rambling, superficial one. The latter, full of many words without substance, betrays a heart that doesn't truly grasp the gravity of speaking to God or the importance of thoughtful communication.
This passage directly warns against 'babbling like the Gentiles' in prayer, echoing Ecclesiastes' caution against using 'many words' and highlighting the vanity of assuming God hears simply because one speaks a lot.
Proverbs 10:19This proverb states, 'When words abound, transgression is not far from being ruined,' which aligns with Ecclesiastes' idea that a fool's voice (characterized by many words) reveals their foolishness and leads to negative consequences.
James 1:19James urges believers to be 'quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger,' directly contrasting the wisdom of restraint with the folly of speaking too much, as described in Ecclesiastes.
Ecclesiastes 5:7This verse immediately follows, mentioning that 'in many dreams and in many words there are also many vanities,' reinforcing the idea that excessive talk, like disordered dreams, is often empty and foolish.
pooleEcclesiastes 5:3: "For a dream cometh through the multitude of business; and a fool's voice is known by multitude of words."
When men’s minds are distracted and oppressed with too much business in the day, they dream of it in the night. A fool’s voice is known; it discovers the man to be a foolish, and rash, and inconsiderate man. By multitude of words; either, 1. In prayer. Or, 2. In vowing, i.e. by making many rash vows, of which he speaks in Ecclesiastes 5:4-6 , and then returns to the menti…
clarkeEcclesiastes 5:3: "For a dream cometh through the multitude of business; and a fool's voice is known by multitude of words."
For a dream cometh - That is, as dreams are generally the effect of the business in which we have been engaged during the day; so a multitude of words evidence the feeble workings of the foolish heart.
The verse draws a sharp parallel: just as an overloaded mind creates jumbled dreams, a fool's many words reveal their inner emptiness, particularly when they approach God. This isn't just about talking a lot, but about a quantity of words that betray a lack of genuine understanding or reverence.
Solomon is cautioning us to approach God with reverence and thoughtfulness, particularly in prayer and when making vows. He explains that just as excessive worldly concerns can lead to chaotic dreams, a flood of meaningless words reveals the foolishness and lack of genuine consideration in a person's heart, especially when speaking to the Almighty. This immediately sets the stage for his stern warning in the next verse about rash vows.
Solomon is cautioning us to approach God with reverence and thoughtfulness, particularly in prayer and when making vows. He explains that just as excessive worldly concerns can lead to chaotic dreams, a flood of meaningless words reveals the foolishness and lack of genuine consideration in a person's heart, especially when speaking to the Almighty. This immediately sets the stage for his stern warning in the next verse about rash vows.
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"For a dream comes with much business, and a fool’s voice with many words." — The verse draws a sharp parallel: just as an overloaded mind creates jumbled dreams, a fool's many words reveal their inner emptiness, particularly when they approach God. This isn't just about tal…
