Ecclesiastes 12

Berean Standard Bible

Chapter summary

The chapter begins by advising youth to remember their Creator before the arrival of difficult days and aging, which is described through various poetic metaphors of declining physical faculties and approaching death. It notes that dust returns to the earth and the spirit returns to God, prompting the Teacher to reiterate that everything is futile. The text then describes the Teacher as a wise figure who taught knowledge, pondered and arranged proverbs, and sought to record accurate words of truth. It compares the words of the wise to goads and firmly embedded nails given by a single Shepherd. Finally, the chapter concludes with the instruction to fear God and keep His commandments, noting that God will bring every deed and hidden thing into judgment.

Summary automatically generated from the Bible text.

Words of Jesus in red

¹Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of adversity come and the years approach of which you will say, “I find no pleasure in them,” ²before the light of the sun, moon, and stars is darkened, and the clouds return after the rain, ³on the day the keepers of the house tremble and the strong men stoop, when those grinding cease because they are few and those watching through windows see dimly, ⁴when the doors to the street are shut and the sound of the mill fades away, when one rises at the sound of a bird and all the daughters of song grow faint, ⁵when men fear the heights and dangers of the road, when the almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper loses its spring, and the caper berry shrivels— for then man goes to his eternal home and mourners walk the streets. ⁶Remember Him before the silver cord is snapped and the golden bowl is crushed, before the pitcher is shattered at the spring and the wheel is broken at the well, ⁷before the dust returns to the ground from which it came and the spirit returns to God who gave it. ⁸“Futility of futilities,” says the Teacher. “Everything is futile!” ⁹Not only was the Teacher wise, but he also taught the people knowledge; he pondered, searched out, and arranged many proverbs. ¹⁰The Teacher searched to find delightful sayings and to record accurate words of truth. ¹¹The words of the wise are like goads, and the anthologies of the masters are like firmly embedded nails driven by a single Shepherd. ¹²And by these, my son, be further warned: There is no end to the making of many books, and much study wearies the body. ¹³When all has been heard, the conclusion of the matter is this: Fear God and keep His commandments, because this is the whole duty of man. ¹⁴For God will bring every deed into judgment, along with every hidden thing, whether good or evil.

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Louis Segond 1910 and Berean Standard Bible: public domain. Cross references: open-cross-ref, Creative Commons BY 4.0.