AMong the Protestants, besides those who have written upon the whole Bible, Mercerus, Geir, and Cartwright, are much esteemed. The Comment of John Mercier is with that published by him upon the Proverbs; see above. That of Martin Geir was printed at Lipsick, 1691, in 4to. the fourth Edition; and in the Collection of his Works: See upon the Psalms. Cartwright has a Metaphrasis and Homilies, at Amsterdam, 1663, in 4to. the fourth Edition.
Sebastian Schmidt had a large Work upon Ecclesiastes, printed at Strasburg; including a Translation, an Analysis, a Paraphrase, and Notes.
Abraham Scultet wrote a Paraphrase and learned Analysis on the Latin Version of Ecclesiastes; put out by Antony Corran, and printed at Frankfort, 1618, in 4to. We shall mention him frequently upon the New Testament. He was of Cromberg in Silesia; a Calvinist, Professor at Heidelberg, and Counsellor to the Elector Palatine, Frederick V. He died in 1624, at 59 years of age; according to Fabricius, in the History of his Library, tom. 1. p. 324. in 1625, according to F. le Long, and M. Du Pin, who mentions his other Works in tom. 4. of his Tables, p. 971. and in his Bibliotheque des Heretiques, tom. 2. p. 465. He had read Antiquity very much, was a good Critick, an excellent Preacher, an honest Man, and a lover of Peace; very conversant in the holy Scripture, understanding the learned Languages; and very moderate in Controversy.
Francis Ycard put out an English Paraphrase of Ecclesiastes, at London, 1701, in 8vo. He does not pretend to give us here a bare Paraphrase of this Book: The critical Notes and moral Reflections, the easy and methodical manner of his unfolding obthe Subject of it is, the Order observed in it, and the manner of explaining it.
St. Gregory, in his Dialogues, explains this Passage; Unus interitus est hominis & jumentorum, l. 4. Dialog. c. 4.
In our Preface before our Comment on this Book, we confute Grotius’s Opinion, and that of other Criticks, who pretend that this Book is not Solomon’s. We examine likewise at what time he might have composed it.
F. Alexander likewise speaks of it in the third Article of his sixth Dissertation on the fifth Age of the World, p. 171. and shews, that the very Heathens borrowed several Passages out of it, ibid. p. 176.
Salom. Deyling. in Eccles. 1. 7. de Fluminum Fontiumq; Origine, tom. 3. Observ. c. 15.