Ecc 12:2 | KingComments | STEP | directly connects to the foregoing. Because the young years are over before he knows it ( ), the Preacher confronts the young man with the following: “Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth.” The young man should not only think of his well-being, but above all also of his Creator, his Maker. “Remember” is not just a reminder not to forget, but a commandment that implies a total dedication to God: to love, serve, and fear Him. God wants to see this ‘remember’ translated into the practice of life. It is about living as stewards who will be accountable to our Creator for what we have done with our life. The insight that youthfulness in itself is an empty thing, teaches young people to look for something higher and something permanent, namely their Creator. If we owe life to the Creator, it is only right that we thank Him for it and dedicate our lives to Him. Forgetting Him leads to bad choices being made, the consequences of which can remain for the rest of our life. The call to the young man to remember his Creator in the days of his youth is made by the Preacher because the days of his youth are pre-eminent to become familiar with Him and His Word. Only fellowship with Him and the knowledge of His will about life give foundation to life. Those days are quickly past. And not only that, “evil days” come and also “the years” are approaching when the young man will say he has “no delight” in them. “Before” that happens, he must have become accustomed to thinking of his Creator. The word “before” marks a change in living conditions, a change you must be prepared for ( ). That change – from being young to growing old and dying – comes irrevocably. The verses that follow show how quickly the days of youth go by. The Preacher now shows that where God is ignored, the possibility for joy will be lost. In the years to come, the inattentive reader will be led to the desperate confession – that is the meaning of “when you will say” – that for him there is no more prospect. The fact that the sun and the light, the moon and the stars are darkened by the clouds ( ) points to the general idea that as the years go by, the capacity to be happy disappears. Likewise, recurring clouds point to a recurring sequence of sadness. It is like a storm that has raged, while another storm is already showing up. In the Preacher describes the decay of man as a result of old age. Here we see the truth of the saying: old age is accompanied by ailments. The loneliness as a result of old age also plays a role which makes it clear that the role has been played out. Children have their own busy activities, and peers are scarcely there anymore, and when they are, they have to deal with the same problems. The body is comparable to a prominent residence with guards, vital residents, willing and industrious staff and people who provide entertainment, the entertainers. The young person must be thoroughly aware that as such a house can fall into dilapidation, it also happens to the human body, which now looks so sound and powerful. 1. . “The watchmen of the house” represent the hands and arms. The once powerful hands and arms are trembling now. You can see that when they drink a cup of tea or bring their fork with food to their mouths. 2. The “mighty men” represent the legs (cf. ). The legs that once were standing like pillars (cf. ), are bent. The proud, upright, has disappeared from it. 3. “The grinding ones”, the women that grind the grain into fine flour, represent the teeth and molars, the dentition. More and more teeth are falling out of the dentition. Chewing the food easily, especially the harder, tastier pieces, is no longer possible. The food has to be more and more liquid because it has to be take in with a spoon or a straw. 4. “Those who look through windows” represent the eyes. The sharp vision declines. It often starts with the fact that your arms are no longer long enough to read a book. Reading glasses have to be used. 5. . “The doors on the street” represent the ears or the lips. Concerning the ears, the hearing also declines. One becomes hard of hearing more and more, you have to ask more and more often: ‘What did you say?’ Concerning the lips, it is becoming more and more difficult to express yourself with words, perhaps because of dementia. Ears and lips are necessary for good communication and that becomes more and more difficult in old age. 6.”The sound of the grinding mill is low” can be applied to the declining interest in what’s going on in daily life. 7. That “one will arise at the sound of the bird”, may refer to getting up early in the morning, that there is no longer mention of a healthy, long sleep which one can have after a long work day. 8. That “all the daughters of song will sing softly”, refers to the vocal cords. The singing with a full, powerful voice has changed into a trembling, creaking sound, which causes that others can hardly hear us. 9. . We also see that an elder can “be afraid of a high place”. He becomes insecure on the stairs or the ladder and no longer dares to climb it. 10. “The terrors on the road” refer to the street with all its traffic. The elder is afraid to cross the road. Jumping away quickly from an imminent danger is out of the question. 11. “The almond tree blossoms” is a reference to the hair that grows grey and white. 12. Also his movement becomes slow, laborious and dragging like that of an old “grasshopper” that can no longer jump, but drags himself along. The low weight of his old body becomes a heavy burden. 13. The “caperberry”, which serves as an appetite stimulant, no longer helps to stimulate the appetite. He has no appetite anymore, there is nothing left that makes him salivate. 14. The description of the deterioration and decline of the body and physical abilities end up in death, “his eternal home”. Here this is not the hope of the believer ( ), but the terminal of man, his eternal destination. “For man goes to” his eternal home, he is on the way. The process that ends up in death can sometimes take many years. It is the way of “the body of our humble state” ( ). 15. With death also mourning and sorrow are connected. The “mourners” go about and make the announcement of the inevitable end that has come. Everybody hears it, it is announced everywhere. 16. . The word “before” connects to the “before” of . There the purpose is to initiate the stage of old age, here it is about the closing of it, which is death. The fact that ‘silver’ and ‘gold’ are mentioned, indicates the high value of the life of man. The last actions that lead to death are described visually in four expressions, divided in two pairs. The four verbs – “broken”, “crushed”, “shattered”, “crushed” – underline the finiteness of earthly life. In the first pair the body is represented in its high value in the picture of the “the golden bowl” to which “the silver cord” is attached. The silver cord represents the connection with above, which is heaven. Our life is connected to God even though we want nothing to do with Him. He has given us the breath of life. However, when the silver cord is broken, the golden bowl will fall to the earth and be shattered beyond repair. The light of life has been completely extinguished. Breaking has also the meaning of disconnecting. In the second pair the body is represented in its weakness and fragility in the picture of the “the pitcher”. We imagine someone who is drawing water with a pitcher which he lowers in the well on a rope by a wheel. Death is the crushing of the pitcher. Also that what makes the pitcher go down, “the wheel”, is crushed. The fact that it happens “by the well” and “at the cistern”, which are both symbols of life, makes the matter more dramatic. There is no longer the possibility to drink from the living well. There is an old myth about a man who made a remarkable deal with Death. He said to the Grim Reaper that he would love to accompany him when it is time to die, but on one condition: Death had to send him a messenger to warn him about it well in advance. Weeks went by and the weeks became months and months became years. Then, on a bitter winter evening, while the man was thinking of all his possessions, Death suddenly entered the room and tapped him on the shoulder. Frightened, the man exclaimed: ‘You are here so quickly and without warning! I thought we had agreed on something.’ Death answered: ‘I have done more than keeping my part of the bargain. I have sent you many messengers. Look into the mirror and you will see some of them.’ While the man was doing so, Death whispered: ‘Just look at your hair. It used to be full and black, now it is thin and white. Look at the way you hold your head to listen to me because your hearing is no longer good. See how close you have to stand to the mirror to see yourself clearly. Yes, I have sent many messengers over the years. I’m sorry you’re not ready, but the time has come to leave.’ The lesson is clear: We must learn to pay attention to ‘the messengers’ who show us that we are getting older, and we should prepare ourselves for our death. 17. . Here death is definitively determined. The two aspects of being a human come to the fore. As for his body, which is made from the “dust” of the earth, it will return to the earth from which it is also made ( ; ; ). As for his spirit, he will return to God Who also has given him ( ). The separation between body and spirit shows that the body is dead, for the body without the spirit is dead ( ). We see here the contrast between the body and the spirit (cf. ). This shows a continual existence of man, something that was a mystery for the Preacher. The fact that there is a continual existence, becomes only clear in the light of the New Testament (cf. ). We all will face the above-mentioned realities of old age, unless we die young or when Christ returns for us to pick us up. The point of the Preacher in his metaphor is crystal clear: at the old age the time for strenuous service for the Lord has passed. Does this mean that the old age cannot be wonderful? Certainly not. An elder or old believer in Jesus Christ who is on the way to his ‘eternal home’, can still live a great life being busy for Christ. We can live ‘young at heart’ for the rest of our lives. We are only old when we do not see our purpose and assignment in life anymore. A wonderful example is Caleb ( ). Let us, just as he did, ask God for a mountain. We are not ready to live before we are ready to die. Arrange the eternal matters and cast yourself in the true life.

‏ Ecclesiastes 12:2

Man Goes to His Eternal Home

Ecc 12:1 directly connects to the foregoing. Because the young years are over before he knows it (Ecc 11:10), the Preacher confronts the young man with the following: “Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth.” The young man should not only think of his well-being, but above all also of his Creator, his Maker. “Remember” is not just a reminder not to forget, but a commandment that implies a total dedication to God: to love, serve, and fear Him. God wants to see this ‘remember’ translated into the practice of life. It is about living as stewards who will be accountable to our Creator for what we have done with our life.

The insight that youthfulness in itself is an empty thing, teaches young people to look for something higher and something permanent, namely their Creator. If we owe life to the Creator, it is only right that we thank Him for it and dedicate our lives to Him. Forgetting Him leads to bad choices being made, the consequences of which can remain for the rest of our life.

The call to the young man to remember his Creator in the days of his youth is made by the Preacher because the days of his youth are pre-eminent to become familiar with Him and His Word. Only fellowship with Him and the knowledge of His will about life give foundation to life. Those days are quickly past. And not only that, “evil days” come and also “the years” are approaching when the young man will say he has “no delight” in them.

“Before” that happens, he must have become accustomed to thinking of his Creator. The word “before” marks a change in living conditions, a change you must be prepared for (Ecc 12:2 ; 6). That change – from being young to growing old and dying – comes irrevocably.

The verses that follow show how quickly the days of youth go by. The Preacher now shows that where God is ignored, the possibility for joy will be lost. In the years to come, the inattentive reader will be led to the desperate confession – that is the meaning of “when you will say” – that for him there is no more prospect.

The fact that the sun and the light, the moon and the stars are darkened by the clouds (Ecc 12:2) points to the general idea that as the years go by, the capacity to be happy disappears. Likewise, recurring clouds point to a recurring sequence of sadness. It is like a storm that has raged, while another storm is already showing up.

In Ecc 12:3-7 the Preacher describes the decay of man as a result of old age. Here we see the truth of the saying: old age is accompanied by ailments. The loneliness as a result of old age also plays a role which makes it clear that the role has been played out. Children have their own busy activities, and peers are scarcely there anymore, and when they are, they have to deal with the same problems.

The body is comparable to a prominent residence with guards, vital residents, willing and industrious staff and people who provide entertainment, the entertainers. The young person must be thoroughly aware that as such a house can fall into dilapidation, it also happens to the human body, which now looks so sound and powerful.

1. Ecc 12:3. “The watchmen of the house” represent the hands and arms. The once powerful hands and arms are trembling now. You can see that when they drink a cup of tea or bring their fork with food to their mouths.

2. The “mighty men” represent the legs (cf. Psa 147:10). The legs that once were standing like pillars (cf. Song 5:15), are bent. The proud, upright, has disappeared from it.

3. “The grinding ones”, the women that grind the grain into fine flour, represent the teeth and molars, the dentition. More and more teeth are falling out of the dentition. Chewing the food easily, especially the harder, tastier pieces, is no longer possible. The food has to be more and more liquid because it has to be take in with a spoon or a straw.

4. “Those who look through windows” represent the eyes. The sharp vision declines. It often starts with the fact that your arms are no longer long enough to read a book. Reading glasses have to be used.

5. Ecc 12:4. “The doors on the street” represent the ears or the lips. Concerning the ears, the hearing also declines. One becomes hard of hearing more and more, you have to ask more and more often: ‘What did you say?’ Concerning the lips, it is becoming more and more difficult to express yourself with words, perhaps because of dementia. Ears and lips are necessary for good communication and that becomes more and more difficult in old age.

6.”The sound of the grinding mill is low” can be applied to the declining interest in what’s going on in daily life.

7. That “one will arise at the sound of the bird”, may refer to getting up early in the morning, that there is no longer mention of a healthy, long sleep which one can have after a long work day.

8. That “all the daughters of song will sing softly”, refers to the vocal cords. The singing with a full, powerful voice has changed into a trembling, creaking sound, which causes that others can hardly hear us.

9. Ecc 12:5. We also see that an elder can “be afraid of a high place”. He becomes insecure on the stairs or the ladder and no longer dares to climb it.

10. “The terrors on the road” refer to the street with all its traffic. The elder is afraid to cross the road. Jumping away quickly from an imminent danger is out of the question.

11. “The almond tree blossoms” is a reference to the hair that grows grey and white.

12. Also his movement becomes slow, laborious and dragging like that of an old “grasshopper” that can no longer jump, but drags himself along. The low weight of his old body becomes a heavy burden.

13. The “caperberry”, which serves as an appetite stimulant, no longer helps to stimulate the appetite. He has no appetite anymore, there is nothing left that makes him salivate.

14. The description of the deterioration and decline of the body and physical abilities end up in death, “his eternal home”. Here this is not the hope of the believer (2Cor 5:1), but the terminal of man, his eternal destination. “For man goes to” his eternal home, he is on the way. The process that ends up in death can sometimes take many years. It is the way of “the body of our humble state” (Phil 3:21).

15. With death also mourning and sorrow are connected. The “mourners” go about and make the announcement of the inevitable end that has come. Everybody hears it, it is announced everywhere.

16. Ecc 12:6. The word “before” connects to the “before” of Ecc 12:2. There the purpose is to initiate the stage of old age, here it is about the closing of it, which is death. The fact that ‘silver’ and ‘gold’ are mentioned, indicates the high value of the life of man. The last actions that lead to death are described visually in four expressions, divided in two pairs. The four verbs – “broken”, “crushed”, “shattered”, “crushed” – underline the finiteness of earthly life.

In the first pair the body is represented in its high value in the picture of the “the golden bowl” to which “the silver cord” is attached. The silver cord represents the connection with above, which is heaven. Our life is connected to God even though we want nothing to do with Him. He has given us the breath of life. However, when the silver cord is broken, the golden bowl will fall to the earth and be shattered beyond repair. The light of life has been completely extinguished. Breaking has also the meaning of disconnecting.

In the second pair the body is represented in its weakness and fragility in the picture of the “the pitcher”. We imagine someone who is drawing water with a pitcher which he lowers in the well on a rope by a wheel. Death is the crushing of the pitcher. Also that what makes the pitcher go down, “the wheel”, is crushed. The fact that it happens “by the well” and “at the cistern”, which are both symbols of life, makes the matter more dramatic. There is no longer the possibility to drink from the living well.

There is an old myth about a man who made a remarkable deal with Death. He said to the Grim Reaper that he would love to accompany him when it is time to die, but on one condition: Death had to send him a messenger to warn him about it well in advance. Weeks went by and the weeks became months and months became years.

Then, on a bitter winter evening, while the man was thinking of all his possessions, Death suddenly entered the room and tapped him on the shoulder. Frightened, the man exclaimed: ‘You are here so quickly and without warning! I thought we had agreed on something.’ Death answered: ‘I have done more than keeping my part of the bargain. I have sent you many messengers. Look into the mirror and you will see some of them.’

While the man was doing so, Death whispered: ‘Just look at your hair. It used to be full and black, now it is thin and white. Look at the way you hold your head to listen to me because your hearing is no longer good. See how close you have to stand to the mirror to see yourself clearly. Yes, I have sent many messengers over the years. I’m sorry you’re not ready, but the time has come to leave.’

The lesson is clear: We must learn to pay attention to ‘the messengers’ who show us that we are getting older, and we should prepare ourselves for our death.

17. Ecc 12:7. Here death is definitively determined. The two aspects of being a human come to the fore. As for his body, which is made from the “dust” of the earth, it will return to the earth from which it is also made (Gen 2:7 ; Gen 3:19; Job 10:9; Psa 90:3 ; Psa 103:14). As for his spirit, he will return to God Who also has given him (Job 34:14-15). The separation between body and spirit shows that the body is dead, for the body without the spirit is dead (Jam 2:26a).

We see here the contrast between the body and the spirit (cf. Ecc 3:20). This shows a continual existence of man, something that was a mystery for the Preacher. The fact that there is a continual existence, becomes only clear in the light of the New Testament (cf. 2Tim 1:10).

We all will face the above-mentioned realities of old age, unless we die young or when Christ returns for us to pick us up. The point of the Preacher in his metaphor is crystal clear: at the old age the time for strenuous service for the Lord has passed. Does this mean that the old age cannot be wonderful? Certainly not. An elder or old believer in Jesus Christ who is on the way to his ‘eternal home’, can still live a great life being busy for Christ.

We can live ‘young at heart’ for the rest of our lives. We are only old when we do not see our purpose and assignment in life anymore. A wonderful example is Caleb (Jos 14:10-11). Let us, just as he did, ask God for a mountain. We are not ready to live before we are ready to die. Arrange the eternal matters and cast yourself in the true life.