The reference to Adam in 6: 10 brings us to the structural centre of the book, and the

doctrinal basis of its teaching. Chapter 2: opens with a series of answers to the question,

"What is that good?" The question is stated in 6: 12 thus:--

The question is not simply, "What is good?" (that might be answered easily), it is what

is good for a man "IN THIS LIFE?" and the problem is emphasized by the added words,

"the numbered days of his vain life as to which he spendeth as a shadow". Over against

6: 11, 12 we may write:--

Let us patiently and humbly seek to understand this sevenfold answer to the question,

"Who knoweth what is good?"

A GOOD NAME IS BETTER THAN PRECIOUS OINTMENT (7: 1).--Let us note

the literary peculiarities of this opening verse. The Hebrew sentence commences and

ends with the word tobh, "good", for the word "precious" is the same as the word "good".

Another literary figure is employed called paronomasia, where words of like sound are

used to call the reader's attention to their deeper similarity. The Hebrew word for

"name" is shem; the Hebrew word for "ointment" is shemen. The complete sentence

reads, Tobh shem mish-shemen tobh.

We must now have a clear image in our mind as to what the "precious ointment"

signifies, otherwise we shall miss the point. With us ointment generally indicates some

healing and mollifying substance. In the East it has a deeper and wider range of meaning.

First let us notice the occurrences of the word in Ecclesiastes:--