Ecclesiastes 10:1-7

10 Dead flies putrefy the perfumer’s ointment, and cause it to give off a foul odor; so does a little folly to one respected for wisdom and honor.

² A wise man’s heart is at his right hand, but a fool’s heart at his left.

³ Even when a fool walks along the way, he lacks wisdom, and he shows everyone that he is a fool.

⁴ If the spirit of the ruler rises against you, do not leave your post; for conciliation pacifies great offenses.

⁵ There is an evil I have seen under the sun, as an error proceeding from the ruler:

⁶ Folly is set in great dignity, while the rich sit in a lowly place.

⁷ I have seen servants on horses, while princes walk on the ground like servants.

From the disagreeable effect which the presence of dead flies (v.1) in precious moistures produces in the sultry climate of the East arose the Arabic proverb, “A fly is nothing, yet it produces loathsomeness.” The toleration of the slightest folly in the life of a man of reputation will soon cause his reputation to [stink]. — KJV Commentary, page 751.

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Like fine perfume, the purer one’s reputation, the greater its liability to ruin. The impact of folly is in direct proportion to one’s reputation; the greater one’s reputation for wisdom and honor, the more impact a little folly has on it. It only takes one moment to destroy a reputation that it took a lifetime to build. — Grace, page 1179.

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In the language of Scripture the right hand (v.2) suggests that which is honorable (Luke 1:11), and the left hand that which is sinister and evil (Matthew 25:41). — KJV Commentary, page 751.

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Even in the most ordinary affairs of life (“the walking by the way”), watchfulness, discretion, and intelligence are needed. The fool by his left-handed folly proclaims every day in in the ordinary affairs of life, that he is a fool (v.3). But the man of discretion, the right hand man, “Leaves not his place,” i.e., does not assert himself when attacked (v.4), but by gentleness escapes worse evils. — Williams, page 447.

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Verses 6-7 speak of the same thing: the error of a ruler in placing incompetent fools in positions of leadership and power while putting noble and qualified men in lowly positions. — Grace