and to record accurate words of truth.
The commitment to "record accurate words of truth" underscores the importance of truthfulness and reliability in biblical teaching. In a historical context, scribes and teachers were responsible for preserving and transmitting knowledge accurately. Solomon's dedication to truth reflects the biblical principle that God's word is truth (Psalm 119:160; John 17:17). This phrase also highlights the prophetic nature of Scripture, as it points to the ultimate truth found in Jesus Christ, who is described as "the way, the truth, and the life" (John 14:6). The emphasis on accuracy and truth in Ecclesiastes serves as a reminder of the enduring value and authority of God's word, which remains relevant and trustworthy across generations.

• Ecclesiastes opens with “These are the words of the Teacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem” (Ecclesiastes 1:1), pointing to Solomon.

• Solomon’s God-given wisdom (1 Kings 4:29-34) establishes him as a trustworthy guide.

• Ecclesiastes 12:9 adds, “Not only was the Teacher wise, but he also taught the people knowledge; he pondered, searched out, and arranged many proverbs.” His role is pastor-scholar—gathering truth for the good of others.

• The verb signals diligent, prayerful investigation—no casual glance.

– Proverbs 2:4-5 urges, “if you seek it like silver…then you will discern the fear of the LORD.”

– Acts 17:11 praises Bereans who “examined the Scriptures every day to see if these teachings were true.”

• Such careful searching models 2 Timothy 2:15: “Make every effort to present yourself approved to God…accurately [handling] the word of truth.”

• Scripture is beautiful as well as true.

– Proverbs 25:11: “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”

– Psalm 119:103: “How sweet are Your words to my taste—sweeter than honey in my mouth!”

• Solomon sought words that would draw hearts, much like Jesus’ parables that both pleased the ear and pierced the soul (Matthew 13).

• Wisdom was not left to oral tradition alone; it was written for permanence.

– Jeremiah 30:2: “Write in a book all the words that I have spoken to you.”

– Habakkuk 2:2: “Write down this vision and clearly inscribe it on tablets.”

• By recording, Solomon ensures each generation can sit at the same table of truth, echoing Romans 15:4: “For everything that was written in the past was written for our instruction.”

• Accuracy anchors delight; beauty never excuses error.

– Psalm 12:6: “The words of the LORD are flawless.”

– John 17:17: “Your word is truth.”

– Proverbs 30:5 and 2 Timothy 3:16 reinforce the inerrancy and sufficiency of Scripture.

• The Teacher’s commitment calls modern readers to the same standard—receiving, handling, and sharing God’s Word without distortion.

Ecclesiastes 12:10 sketches Solomon as a wise shepherd-scribe who diligently searched, selected pleasing expressions, and faithfully wrote down God-given truth with utmost accuracy. His example reminds us that Scripture weds beauty with reliability, urging us to treasure its sweetness, study it carefully, and pass it on unaltered to the next generation.

"Non satis est pulchra esse poemata; dulcia sunto,
Et quoeunque volent animum auditoris agunto."

"'Tis not enough that poems faultless be,
And fair; let them be tender too, and draw
The hearer by the cord of sympathy." St. Augustine is copious on this subject in his treatise, 'De Doctr. Christ.;' thus (4:26): "Proinde ilia tria, ut intelligant qui audiunt, ut delectentur, ut obediant, etiam in hoc genere agendum est, ubi tenet delectatio principatum .... Sed quis movetur, si nescit quod dicitur? Ant quis tenetur ut audiat, si non delectatur?" And that which was written was upright, even words of truth. The Authorized Version, with its interpolations, does not accurately convey the sense of the original. The sentence is to be regarded as containing phrases in apposition to the "acceptable words" of the first clause; thus: "Koheleth sought to discover words of pleasure, and a writing in sincerity, words of truth. 'The Septuagint has, καὶ γεγραμμένον εὐθύτητος, "a writing of uprightness;" Vulgate, et conscripsit sermones rectissimos. The meaning is that what he wrote had two characteristics - it was sincere, that which he really thought and believed, and it was true objectively. If any reader was disposed to cavil, and to depreciate the worth of the treatise because it was not the genuine work of the celebrated Solomon, the writer claims attention to his production on the ground of its intrinsic qualities, as inspired by the same wisdom which animated his great predecessor.

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