13. I saw. The pronoun is emphatic. The one who doubted, who could not be content without personally exploring every matter, now “saw.”
Wisdom excelleth folly. Literally, “there is profit to wisdom over folly.” Solomon had satisfied himself that true wisdom is worth while.
Light excelleth darkness. Literally, “the profit of the light over the darkness.” In this figure of speech light denotes spiritual and mental development, whereas mental and moral depravity and deterioration are compared to darkness. The apostle Paul used the same metaphor in Eph. 5:8; 1 Thess. 5:5. The ways of righteousness are compared to light (Ps. 37:6; 119:105; Isa. 51:4); the ways of wickedness are portrayed as darkness (Job 37:19; Prov. 4:19). The apostle John sets forth Jesus Christ as the light of heaven shining forth in the darkness of this world (John 1:4, 5).