← Ecclesiastes 11 | Ecclesiastes
v1
Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come, and the years draw near, when you will say, “I have no pleasure in them;“
v2
Before the sun, the light, the moon, and the stars are darkened, and the clouds return after the rain;
v3
in the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those who look out of the windows are darkened,
v4
and the doors shall be shut in the street; when the sound of the grinding is low, and one shall rise up at the voice of a bird, and all the daughters of music shall be brought low;
v5
yes, they shall be afraid of heights, and terrors will be on the way; and the almond tree shall blossom, and the grasshopper shall be a burden, and desire shall fail; because man goes to his everlasting home, and the mourners go about the streets:
v6
before the silver cord is severed, or the golden bowl is broken, or the pitcher is broken at the spring, or the wheel broken at the cistern,
v7
and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.
v8
“Vanity of vanities,” says the Preacher. “All is vanity!“
v9
Further, because the Preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge. Yes, he pondered, sought out, and set in order many proverbs.
v10
The Preacher sought to find out acceptable words, and that which was written blamelessly, words of truth.
v11
The words of the wise are like goads; and like nails well fastened are words from the masters of assemblies, which are given from one shepherd.
v12
Furthermore, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.
v13
This is the end of the matter. All has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments; for this is the whole duty of man.
v14
For God will bring every work into judgment, with every hidden thing, whether it is good, or whether it is evil.
← Ecclesiastes 11 | Ecclesiastes
My Notes
v1 notes
- ❓what does evil days mean?
v11 notes
- goad: A goad is a sharp stick used to poke a farm animal.
- Likewise, the words of the wise, sharply poke us to act differently. At times they can even be quite painful and convicting.
- nails: Nails secure and fasten things so that they are not easily moved.
- Likewise, the words of a wise man are something that you can hold to firmly, confident that they are true and are not likely to swiftly change from one day to the next.
v13-14 notes
Here we have the final conclusion and the resolution to the tension throughout the book. To recap, the tension is that everything is fleeting (i.e. all will be lost) and yet we are also told to rejoice in the days of our youth. How can these things be consistent?
The teacher concludes Fear God and keep His commandments. This is highlighted as the most important thing above all others. Note also that he does not say Fear God and keep His commandments so that you will get something. What would we get? Anything that we would get would also be fleeting (hevel). Instead, fearing God is an end in itself. It is inherently good to serve God. Why? Let’s look at the next verse.
For God will bring every work into judgment.
God will judge everything that we do, and He will do so rightly with justice. He will right every wrong. Though this book lists many wrongs and inconsistencies in the current order of the world (e.g. Ecclesiastes 10:5-7), nevertheless the author is confident that every wrong will be righted. No good deed will go unrewarding and no evil deed will go unpunished.