Ecclesiastes 12
12
1And remember thy Creator in the days of thy youth, before the evil days come, and the years draw nigh, of which thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them; 2before the sun, and the light, and the moon, and the stars, be darkened, and the clouds return after the rain; 3in the day when the keepers of the house tremble, and the strong men bow themselves, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those that look out of the windows are darkened, 4and the doors are shut toward the street; when the sound of the grinding is subdued, and they rise up at the voice of the bird, and all the daughters of song are brought low; 5they are also afraid of what is high, and terrors are in the way, and the almond is despised, and the grasshopper is a burden, and the caper-berry is without effect; (for man goeth to his age-long home, and the mourners go about the streets;) 6— before the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be shattered at the fountain, or the wheel be broken at the cistern; 7and the dust return to the earth as it was, and the spirit return unto God#GodHebrew: Elohim who gave it.
8Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher: all is vanity. 9And moreover, because the Preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge; and he pondered, and sought out, and set in order many proverbs. 10The Preacher sought to find out acceptable words; and that which was written is upright, words of truth. 11The words of the wise are as goads, and the collections of them as nails fastened in: they are given from one shepherd. 12And besides, my son, be warned by them: of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh.
13Let us hear the end of the whole matter: Fear God#GodHebrew: Elohim and keep his commandments; for this is the whole of man. 14For God#GodHebrew: Elohim shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good or whether it be evil.
Currently Selected:
Ecclesiastes 12: DARBY
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
First published in 1890. This edition is maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society.
Ecclesiastes 12
12
The Problems of Old Age
1Remember your Creator while you are young.
Your old age is coming
when you will have many troubles.
When that time comes,
you won’t have much to enjoy.
2When you become old,
the light from the sun, moon and stars will seem dark to you.
It will seem as if the rain clouds never go away.
3At that time your arms will lose their strength.
Your strong legs will become weak and bent.
Your teeth will fall out so you cannot chew.
Your eyes will not see clearly.
4Your ears will be deaf to the noise in the streets.
You will barely hear singing.
The sound of the millstone grinding your grain will seem very quiet.
But you’ll wake up when a bird first starts singing!
5You will fear high places.
And you will be afraid to go for a walk because you may fall.
Your hair will become white like the flowers on an almond tree.
You will limp along like a grasshopper when you walk.
Your desires will be gone.
Then you will go to your everlasting home.
And people will go to your funeral.
6Remember God before your life is snapped like a silver chain.
Remember God before your life is broken like a golden bowl.
It will be as useless as a broken bucket at the spring.
It will be no good, like a broken wheel at a water well.
7Your body will become part of the dust of the earth again.
But your spirit will return to God who gave it.
8Everything is useless!
The Teacher says that everything is useless.
Conclusion
9The Teacher was very wise. He taught the people what he knew. The Teacher very carefully thought about, studied and set in order many wise teachings. 10The Teacher looked for just the right words. He wrote teachings that are dependable and true.
11Words from wise men are like sharp sticks used to guide animals. These words are like nails that have been driven in firmly. They are wise teachings that come from God the Shepherd. 12So be careful, my son, about other teachings. People are always writing books. And too much study will make you very tired.
13Now, everything has been heard.
Here is my final advice:
Honor God and obey his commands.
This is the most important thing people can do.
14God knows everything people do,
even the things done in secret.
He knows all the good and all the bad.
He will judge everything people do.
Ecclesiastes 11
Currently Selected:
:
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Copyright © 2015 by Tommy Nelson™, a Division of Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.