What Does Ecclesiastes 5:4 Mean in the King James?
When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it; for he hath no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed.
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
The Hebrew word for “pay” shares its root with “wholeness”: a vow becomes whole when it is carried through.
THE MEANING
When you vow to God, the commitment remains real after the moment of speaking. Delaying its fulfillment leaves a gap between your word and your action, and the verse calls treating that gap lightly folly. God takes no pleasure in that folly.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
It dissolves the belief that sincerity in the moment makes an unfulfilled vow harmless: a vow left undone remains incomplete.
THE ROOT
שַׁלֵּם
shallem
GROWS FROM
שׁלם
to be whole or complete; to make whole, make good, or repay
The Hebrew verb for “pay” comes from the same root as שָׁלוֹם (shalom), “wholeness.” A vow is not whole when it is spoken; it is completed by carrying through what was promised.
ALSO GROWS
shalom: wholeness, completeness, well-being
שָׁלוֹם
This familiar word shares the root: fulfillment brings the vow to its complete state.
shalem: whole, complete, intact
שָׁלֵם
The adjective makes the root’s sense of completion visible inside “pay”: the obligation is brought to its finished state.
THE PATTERN
A promise takes lived form when the speaker brings it to completion.
When thou shalt vow a vow unto the LORD thy God, thou shalt not slack to pay it: for the LORD thy God will surely require it of thee; and it would be sin in thee.In whose eyes a vile person is contemned; but he honoureth them that fear the LORD. He that sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not.But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.THE THREAD
Offer unto God thanksgiving; and pay thy vows unto the most High:Psalm 50:14 uses שׁלם (sh-l-m, “make whole or repay”) for “pay.” It places the vow’s fulfillment beside thanksgiving, showing that completion is part of how the speaker honors God.
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