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Ecclesiastes 10:7

Old Testament Wisdom/Poetry ASV (1901)

What does Ecclesiastes 10:7 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “I have seen servants upon horses, and princes walking like servants upon the earth.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

I have seen servants upon horses, and princes walking like servants upon the earth.
Ecclesiastes 10:7 — American Standard Version

Context — Ecclesiastes 10

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
4If the spirit of the ruler rise up against thee, leave not thy place; for gentleness allayeth great offences.
5There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, as it were an error which proceedeth from the ruler:
6folly is set in great dignity, and the rich sit in a low place.
7I have seen servants upon horses, and princes walking like servants upon the earth.
8He that diggeth a pit shall fall into it; and whoso breaketh through a wall, a serpent shall bite him.
9Whoso heweth out stones shall be hurt therewith; [and] he that cleaveth wood is endangered thereby.
10If the iron be blunt, and one do not whet the edge, then must he put to more strength: but wisdom is profitable to direct.
← Ecclesiastes 10:6Ecclesiastes 10:8 →
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What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“I have seen servants upon horses, etc.] Which being scarce in Judea, were only rode upon by princes and great personages, or such as were in affluent circumstances; and therefore it was an unusual and disagreeable sight to see servants upon them, which was a token of their being advanced upon the ruin and destruction of their masters; a reigning servant is not only uncomely, but one of the things by which the earth is disquieted, and it cannot bear, (<203021>Proverbs 30:21,22); the Parthians and Persians distinguished their nobles and the vulgar, freemen and servants, by this; the servants went on foot, and the freemen rode on horsesf237; and princes walking as servants upon the earth;…”
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Jamieson, Fausset & Brown
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“servants upon horses--the worthless exalted to dignity (Jer 17:25); and vice versa (Sa2 15:30).”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“The “evil” of Ecclesiastes 10:5 is here specified as that caprice of a king by which an unworthy favorite of low origin is promoted to successive dignities, while a noble person is degraded or neglected. return to 'Top of Page'”
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Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · Modern study notes
“10:7 servants riding . . . princes walking: Cp. Prov 19:10.”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“Pro 19:10, Pro 30:22 Ecclesiastes 10:8”
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Related study paths

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Sources and verification