9 All this I observed, applying my mind to all that is done under the sun, while one person exercises authority over another to the other's hurt.
10 Then I saw the wicked buried; they used to go in and out of the holy place, and were praised in the city where they had done such things. This also is vanity.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Ecclesiastes 8:9-10
Commentary on Ecclesiastes 8:9-13
(Read Ecclesiastes 8:9-13)
Solomon observed, that many a time one man rules over another to his hurt, and that prosperity hardens them in their wickedness. Sinners herein deceive themselves. Vengeance comes slowly, but it comes surely. A good man's days have some substance; he lives to a good purpose: a wicked man's days are all as a shadow, empty and worthless. Let us pray that we may view eternal things as near, real, and all-important.