1Pamatuj na svého stvořitele ve dnech svého jinošství, dříve nežli přijdou zlé dny a dorazí léta, o kterých řekneš: Nemám v nich zalíbení; 2dříve nežli ztemní slunce a světlo, měsíc a hvězdy, a vrátí se mračna po dešti; 3v den, kdy se budou strachem třást strážci domu a udatní muži se budou křivit, mlečky přestanou pracovat, protože ubyly, a ty kdo se dívají skrze průduchy, budou temné 4a zavřou se dveře do ulice, až se ztiší zvuk mlýnu. Bude se vstávat za hlasu ptactva a všechny popěvky budou přidušeny. 5Lidé se budou bát i výšek a postrachu na cestě; rozkvete mandlovník, kobylka se sotva povleče a kapara už nebude působit. Vždyť člověk se ubírá do svého věčného domu a ulicí budou obcházet ti, kdo naříkají. 6Dříve nežli se přetrhne stříbrný provaz a praskne zlatá mísa, bude roztříštěn džbán nad zřídlem a zlomí se kolo u studny. 7Až se navrátí prach na zem tak, jak dříve byl, a duch se navrátí k Bohu, který jej dal. 8Marnost všech marností, řekl ten kazatel, všechno je to marnost. 9A dodatek: Že byl kazatel moudrý, stále učil lid poznání, uvažoval a bádal, uspořádal mnohá přísloví. 10Kazatel se snažil nalézt žádoucí slova; je zapsáno to, co je přímé, pravdivá slova. 11Slova moudrých jsou jako bodce a jako hřebíky zatlučené sběrateli. Byla vydána jedním pastýřem. 12A dodatek: Můj synu, nech se jimi varovat. Tvořit mnohé knihy, to nemá konce, a mnohé dumání působí únavu těla. 13Slovo na závěr všeho, co bylo řečeno: Boha se boj a jeho příkazy zachovávej, protože toto se týká každého člověka. 14Vždyť Bůh každé dílo přivede na soud se vším, co je skryto, ať dobrým nebo zlým.
Jamieson Fausset Brown Bible Commentary 1 (
Eccl 12:1-
Eccl 12:14)
As
Eccl 11:9-
Eccl 11:10 showed what youths are to shun, so this verse shows what they are to follow.
Creator--"Remember" that thou art not thine own, but God's property; for He has created thee (
Ps 100:3). Therefore serve Him with thy "all" (
Mark 12:30), and with thy best days, not with the dregs of them (
Pro 8:17;
Pro 22:6;
Jer 3:4;
Lam 3:27). The Hebrew is "Creators," plural, implying the plurality of persons, as in
Gen 1:26; so Hebrew, "Makers" (
Isa 54:5).
while . . . not--that is, before that (
Pro 8:26) the evil days come; namely, calamity and old age, when one can no longer serve God, as in youth (
Eccl 11:2,
Eccl 11:8).
no pleasure--of a sensual kind (
2Sam 19:35;
Ps 90:10). Pleasure in God continues to the godly old (
Isa 46:4).
2 Illustrating "the evil days" (
Jer 13:16). "Light," "sun," &c., express prosperity; "darkness," pain and calamity (
Isa 13:10;
Isa 30:26).
clouds . . . after . . . rain--After rain sunshine (comfort) might be looked for, but only a brief glimpse of it is given, and the gloomy clouds (pains) return.
3 keepers of the house--namely, the hands and arms which protected the body, as guards do a palace (
Gen 49:24;
Job 4:19;
2Cor 5:1), are now palsied.
strong men . . . bow-- (
Judg 16:25,
Judg 16:30). Like supporting pillars, the feet and knees (
Song 5:15); the strongest members (
Ps 147:10).
grinders--the molar teeth.
cease--are idle.
those that look out of the windows--the eyes; the powers of vision, looking out from beneath the eyelids, which open and shut like the casement of a window.
4 doors--the lips, which are closely shut together as doors, by old men in eating, for, if they did not do so, the food would drop out (
Job 41:14;
Ps 141:3;
Mic 7:5).
in the streets--that is, toward the street, "the outer doors" [MAURER and WEISS].
sound of . . . grinding--The teeth being almost gone, and the lips "shut" in eating, the sound of mastication is scarcely heard.
the bird--the cock. In the East all mostly rise with the dawn. But the old are glad to rise from their sleepless couch, or painful slumbers still earlier, namely, when the cock crows, before dawn (
Job 7:4) [HOLDEN]. The least noise awakens them [WEISS].
daughters of music--the organs that produce and that enjoy music; the voice and ear.
5 that which is high--The old are afraid of ascending a hill.
fears . . . in the way--Even on the level highway they are full of fears of falling, &c.
almond . . . flourish--In the East the hair is mostly dark. The white head of the old among the dark-haired is like an almond tree, with its white blossoms, among the dark trees around [HOLDEN]. The almond tree flowers on a leafless stock in winter (answering to old age, in which all the powers are dormant), while the other trees are flowerless. GESENIUS takes the Hebrew for flourishes from a different root, casts off; when the old man loses his gray hairs, as the almond tree casts its white flowers.
grasshoppers--the dry, shrivelled, old man, his backbone sticking out, his knees projecting forwards, his arms backwards, his head down, and the apophyses enlarged, is like that insect. Hence arose the fable, that Tithonus in very old age was changed into a grasshopper [PARKHURST]. "The locust raises itself to fly"; the old man about to leave the body is like a locust when it is assuming its winged form, and is about to fly [MAURER].
a burden--namely, to himself.
desire shall fail--satisfaction shall be abolished. For "desire," Vulgate has "the caper tree," provocative of lust; not so well.
long home-- (
Job 16:22;
Job 17:13).
mourners-- (
Jer 9:17-
Jer 9:20), hired for the occasion (
Matt 9:23).
6 A double image to represent death, as in
Eccl 12:1-
Eccl 12:5, old age: (1) A lamp of frail material, but gilded over, often in the East hung from roofs by a cord of silk and silver interwoven; as the lamp is dashed down and broken, when the cord breaks, so man at death; the golden bowl of the lamp answers to the skull, which, from the vital preciousness of its contents, may be called "golden"; "the silver cord" is the spinal marrow, which is white and precious as silver, and is attached to the brain. (2) A fountain, from which water is drawn by a pitcher let down by a rope wound round a wheel; as, when the pitcher and wheel are broken, water can no more be drawn, so life ceases when the vital energies are gone. The "fountain" may mean the right ventricle of the heart; the "cistern," the left; the pitcher, the veins; the wheel, the aorta, or great artery [SMITH]. The circulation of the blood, whether known or not to Solomon, seems to be implied in the language put by the Holy Ghost into his mouth. This gloomy picture of old age applies to those who have not "remembered their Creator in youth." They have none of the consolations of God, which they might have obtained in youth; it is now too late to seek them. A good old age is a blessing to the godly (
Gen 15:15;
Job 5:26;
Pro 16:31;
Pro 20:29).
7 dust--the dust-formed body.
spirit--surviving the body; implying its immortality (
Eccl 3:11).
8 A summary of the first part.
Vanity, &c.--Resumption of the sentiment with which the book began (
Eccl 1:2;
1John 2:17).
9 gave good heed--literally, "he weighed." The "teaching the people" seems to have been oral; the "proverbs," in writing. There must then have been auditories assembled to hear the inspired wisdom of the Preacher. See the explanation of Koheleth in the Introduction, and chapter 1 (
1Kgs 4:34).
that which is written, &c.--rather, (he sought) "to write down uprightly (or, 'aright') words of truth" [HOLDEN and WEISS]. "Acceptable" means an agreeable style; "uprightly . . . truth," correct sentiment.
11 goads--piercing deeply into the mind (
Acts 2:37;
Acts 9:5;
Heb 4:12); evidently inspired words, as the end of the verse proves.
fastened--rather, on account of the Hebrew genders, (The words) "are fastened (in the memory) like nails" [HOLDEN].
masters of assemblies--rather, "the masters of collections (that is, collectors of inspired sayings,
Pro 25:1), are given ('have published them as proceeding' [HOLDEN]) from one Shepherd," namely, the Spirit of Jesus Christ [WEISS], (
Ezek 37:24). However, the mention of "goads" favors the English Version, "masters of assemblies," namely, under-shepherds, inspired by the Chief Shepherd (
1Pet 5:2-4). SCHMIDT translates, "The masters of assemblies are fastened (made sure) as nails," so
Isa 22:23.
12 (See on
Eccl 1:18).
many books--of mere human composition, opposed to "by these"; these inspired writings are the only sure source of "admonition."
(over much) study--in mere human books, wearies the body, without solidly profiting the soul.
13 The grand inference of the whole book.
Fear God--The antidote to following creature idols, and "vanities," whether self-righteousness (
Eccl 7:16,
Eccl 7:18), or wicked oppression and other evils (
Eccl 8:12-
Eccl 8:13), or mad mirth (
Eccl 2:2;
Eccl 7:2-
Eccl 7:5), or self-mortifying avarice (
Eccl 8:13,
Eccl 8:17), or youth spent without God (
Eccl 11:9;
Eccl 12:1).
this is the whole duty of man--literally, "this is the whole man," the full ideal of man, as originally contemplated, realized wholly by Jesus Christ alone; and, through Him, by saints now in part, hereafter perfectly (
1John 3:22-24;
Rev 22:14).
14 For God shall bring every work into judgment--The future judgment is the test of what is "vanity," what solid, as regards the chief good, the grand subject of the book.