The conclusion of all the speech heard is this: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole of man.
The end of all the speech heard is this: Fear God. Eccl 5:7; Eccl 8:12; Gen 22:12; Deu 6:2; Deu 10:12; Ps 111:10; Ps 112:1; Ps 145:19; Ps 147:11; pro 1:7; pro 23:17; 1Pe 2:17; Rev 19:5.
because this is the whole of man. Eccl 2:3; Eccl 6:12; Job 28:28; Ps 115:13-15; pro 19:23; Luke 1:50.
Source: The Treasury of Biblical Knowledge
The fear of God is one of the most important themes in this book and in OT wisdom literature. To fear God is to react to Him with wonder, reverence, and admiration; it is serving Him with pure motives and refusing to do evil and to worship anything else in the universe created by Him.
and keep his commandments: Here we speak of the commandments of the law. Jesus summed them up as “You shall love the Lord your God” and “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Matt 22:34-40).
because this is the whole of man: We are complete beings only when we fear God and obey his commandments. What profit is there in living? If we follow what this book says we will have a relationship with God and find life in Him.
Source: New Illustrated Caribbean Bible Commentary
FEAR GOD, AND KEEP HIS COMMANDMENTS; BECAUSE THIS IS THE ALL OF MAN. The entire book of Ecclesiastes must be interpreted in the context of this penultimate verse. Solomon began with a cynical assessment of life as vanity, futility, and meaninglessness; but he ends with some serious advice as to where the meaning of life can be found. Fear of God, love of Him and His Word, and obedience to His commandments provide purpose and satisfaction that cannot be found in any other way.
Source: Full Life Study Bible
Fear God. Solomon’s last word on the issues raised in this book, as well as on life itself, centers on one’s relationship with God. All worries about a life in the sun, with its pleasures and uncertainties, were left behind for Solomon. These things seemed relatively irrelevant to her as she faced the end of his life. But death, despite the great attention he had paid to it in Ecclesiastes, was not the great equalizer. The true equalizer is judgment and retribution, because God will bring every action of every person under judgment. Unbelievers will appear for judgment before the great white throne (cf. Rev 20:11-15) and believers will do so before Christ for the judgment of the Bema (cp. 1Co 3:10-15; 2Co 5:9-10). When all is said and done, the certainty and ultimate condition of retribution give life the meaning that David’s sometimes foolish son had been searching for. Whatever one’s portion in life, responsibility before God, whose ways are often mysterious, is both eternal and irrevocable.
Source: MacArthur Study Bible
Eccl 5:7; pro 1:7+; Sir 1:11-20; Sir 1:27-30.
Source: Hispano-American Interdenominational Translation
GRADES
(1) Or, “of mankind.” Heb., ha ‘a dhham.
CROSS-REFERENCES
f498 Deu 10:12; Job 28:28; Ps 111:10; Pro 1:7; Pro 8:13; pro 9:10
g499 Deu 6:2; Ps 119:35; 1Pe 2:17; 1Jn 5:3
Source: New World Translation
fear God and keep his commandments. These two commands occur together only here in this book. By combining the ideas of fear and obedience, the author emphasizes the compatibility of Israel’s legal and wisdom traditions (cf. Deut 10:12). The fear of God is both the culmination and the origin of wisdom (see comments on Pr 1:7).
Source: The Bible of the Americas
The command to fear God is consonant with the command to keep his commandments, indicating that genuine reverence for God must be evidenced by obedience to him.
because this is the whole of man. Ie, because this is the true meaning of man.