Many Words

"Fools multiply words" (Ecclesiastes 10:14).

"Do not revile the king even in your thoughts, or curse the rich in your bedroom, because a bird in the sky may carry your words, and a bird on the wing may report what you say" (Ecclesiastes 10:20).

Words. There are a lot of them in the world. We have twenty-four hour news channels that spew out lots and lots and lots of words. There are printed words all around us. There are sung words in the air.  The pixels on our screens form words and blogs pile up words. Words everywhere.

But just because there are a lot of words doesn't mean there is a lot of wisdom. In fact, the Teacher has come to believe that the one who uses the most words just might be the most foolish of them all.

The Teacher, ironically enough, has a lot to say about our overuse of words, even to the point of cautioning us about saying things we don't want anyone else to hear. You never know who is listening, he says. A "bird on the wing" might carry your words to the one who you are speaking about. Or we might accidentally click "send" on that email we hadn't intended anyone to read. Or the post might get forwarded to the person whom it is about. Or you might hear those dreaded words, "You know I'm his cousin, right? We get together for lunch every week." Oops. Or sometimes more than "oops." Sometimes it can be a real disaster.

Words carelessly spoken. Words without thought. That's what the Teacher is concerned about. The things we say without thinking. The things we say that are unkind. The things we say that are outside of Thumper's guidelines: "If you can't say nuthin' nice, don't say nuthin' at all."

Fools multiply words. Fools keep on talking without doing much thinking. The wise will consider their words. The wise will speak only what is necessary. They will not multiply words simply for the sake of saying a lot of words.

Hey, wait a minute...preachers use a lot of words, too, don't they?