Ecclesiastes 5:1-7
Draw Near to Listen
Read the passage
1Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. Draw near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools, who do not know that they do wrong.
2Do not be quick to speak, and do not be hasty in your heart to utter a word before God. For God is in heaven and you are on earth. So let your words be few.
3As a dream comes through many cares, so the speech of a fool comes with many words.
4When you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it, because He takes no pleasure in fools. Fulfill your vow.
5It is better not to vow than to make a vow and not fulfill it.
6Do not let your mouth cause your flesh to sin, and do not tell the messenger that your vow was a mistake. Why should God be angry with your words and destroy the work of your hands?
7For as many dreams bring futility, so do many words. Therefore, fear God.
Berean Standard Bible
Read aloud
The Teacher turns to worship. He says to guard your steps when you go to the house of God and draw near to listen rather than offer the sacrifice of fools. The fool does not know he is doing wrong, so religious activity can become a way to avoid self-awareness.
The instruction is direct: do not be quick to speak or hasty in your heart before God. God is in heaven and people are on earth, so words should be few. The point is not that God dislikes prayer. It is that reverence does not need a performance of many words.
Dreams can come from many cares, and a fool's speech can come from many words. Anxiety often produces talk that feels busy but does not become obedience.
The Teacher then addresses vows. If you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it. It is better not to make a vow than to make one and fail to keep it. Do not use a careless mouth to create an obligation and then call the promise a mistake.
Samuel tells Saul that obeying is better than sacrifice. Jesus teaches His disciples to pray without theatrical display and to ask for daily bread, forgiveness, and deliverance. Worship becomes false when eloquent promises cover disobedience. Reverence begins with listening and doing what God has said.
Children can learn that prayer is not a contest for impressive words. Listening, telling the truth, keeping promises, and changing behavior are part of drawing near to God.
The final warning is simple: many dreams and many words can become futility. Fear God. Reverence gives worship its proper place.
How We Know
1 Samuel 15:22-23 teaches that obedience is better than sacrifice when Saul has rejected the LORD's command. Matthew 6:5-13 warns against performative prayer and gives a simple pattern of dependence on God. Ecclesiastes joins careful worship to listening and faithful vows.
Questions
1 What should a person do at the house of God?
AnswerThe person should draw near to listen rather than offer the sacrifice of fools, who act religiously while refusing to recognize their wrong.
2 How should people speak before God?
AnswerThey should not be quick with their mouths or hasty in their hearts, because God is in heaven and they are on earth.
3 What should happen after a vow is made?
AnswerIt should be fulfilled without delay, because a promise made before God is not a speech that can be forgotten when obedience becomes inconvenient.
4 What is better than making and breaking a vow?
AnswerIt is better not to make a vow than to make one and fail to fulfill it, since careless promises turn worship into empty words.
What This Means for Us
Let worship make you truthful and obedient. Use fewer impressive words if necessary, and keep the promises you make to God and people.
The Teacher warns against rushing into God’s presence with many words and careless vows. Before your household promises something in prayer, speak honestly, listen humbly, and keep the commitments you make.
Prayer
LORD, teach us to listen before speaking. Make our prayers honest, our promises dependable, and our worship an expression of obedience rather than performance. Amen.