Ecclesiastes 10:9

Misinterpretations often reduce the verse to a blanket condemnation of all physical work, prompting idleness rather than prudence, or force unrelated allegories like stones symbolizing rigid traditions to be avoided at all costs; others treat it as a divine guarantee of harm for any disruption, ignoring its role as observational wisdom literature highlighting probable dangers without promising inevitability.

This proverb from Ecclesiastes underscores the inherent risks in everyday manual labors, warning that disturbing stones risks injury from their fall or weight, while splitting wood endangers one with the axe or flying fragments, emphasizing the wisdom of caution and foresight in handling potentially hazardous tasks as a reflection on life's predictable consequences.