24/6/22. Study 28. Ecclesiastes 12:1-8

  Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near of which you will say, “I have no pleasure in them”; ² before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars are darkened and the clouds return after the rain, ³ in the day when the keepers of the house tremble, and the strong men are bent, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those who look through the windows are dimmed, ⁴ and the doors on the street are shut—when the sound of the grinding is low, and one rises up at the sound of a bird, and all the daughters of song are brought low— ⁵ they are afraid also of what is high, and terrors are in the way; the almond tree blossoms, the grasshopper drags itself along, and desire fails, because man is going to his eternal home, and the mourners go about the streets— ⁶ before the silver cord is snapped, or the golden bowl is broken, or the pitcher is shattered at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern, ⁷ and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it. ⁸ Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher; all is vanity. (Ecc 12:1-8)

1. Qoheleth has warned us against "the days of darkness" (11:8) that come from living "many days". Now, what does he ask us to do in view of aging and death (v.1)?

He asks us to 'remember'. To be specific, he asks us to remember our 'Creator'. The fact that we were made by God's hand should cause us to live and focus ourselves in a certain way. If we are created and not evolved, then we are both not the pinnacle of creation, and we are not free from accountability and judgment (cf. 11:9)

 

Remembering speaks not only of the action, but of the fact that we are prone to forget what we should be doing. In the injustices, uncertainties and unpredictable difficulties of this world, it is easy to forget that God is in fact the sovereign Creator who still holds everything in His hands.

 

To remember is to live our lives before God as if He was never out of the picture, always keeping His will in mind. We should be giving the best of our body and mind while we still can. 

2. Looking at the entire passage, why does Qoheleth say it important to do what he has suggested?

We should remember God when we are young - when  we still have full possession of physical and mental strength, before we die. There is a suggestion that when we are old, we will not be able to remember God in the way we should. It will be too late to do so. This suggests that some parts of remembering involve the giving of the best of our physical and mental endeavour to God.

We will all age and die.

3. What about aging is suggested in v.2?

Qoheleth has spoken about the 'sweetness' of the light of life and how good it is to see the sun. Here our pleasure in life will diminish. The heavenly bodies that provide light seem dark. Aging involves loss of health, appetites, activities and relationships.

 

In the same way, clouds return after the rain. This is contrary to what we expect after a shower - that there will be sunshine. In aging, there are fewer and fewer breaks in the clouds.

These 2 metaphors may suggest the coming of a storm.

4. What overaching metaphor of aging is used to describe the detrioration of aging in v.3-5? What specific aspects of aging seem to be mentioned here?

The picture here is of a house

• The keepers = ?hands trembling
  
• The strong men = knees bent
  
• The grinders  = teeth few
  
• Those who look through the windows = eyes dimmed
  
• Doors on the street = ?lips shut
  
• The sound of grinding is low  =  hearing
• One rises up at the sound of a bird = poor sleep
• Daughters of song are brought low  = ?voice changes ?inability to appreciate music
  
• Afraid of what is high = fears of falling
• Terrors are in the way = general anxieties and worries.
• Almond tree blossoms = ?white hair
• Grasshopper drags itself along = slow gait
• Desire fails  = the 'caper berry' = loss of libido

5. What metaphors in v.6-7 are used to describe death? What do some of these seem to have in common?

A silver cord snapping, a golden bowl broken, a shattered pitcher at the fountain, a wheel broken at the cistern. There is a finality to these metaphors.

There may be a reference to loss of life-giving water.

6. How should we prepare ourselves for our eventual aging and death?.

 I thinik of investment: in health, in younger people, in finances., in mental stimulation 

And I think we invest also by laying up treasures in heaven, since we are accountable for our lives and look to eternity.