This chapter begins with advice to young men, which is continued from the preceding; and particularly to remember their Creator in the days of their youth; enforced from the consideration of the troubles and inconveniences of old age, Eccles.

Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth Or “Creators” [[1]]; as “Makers”, ; for more than one were concerned, as in the creation of all things in general, so of man in particular, ; and these are neither more nor fewer than three; and are Father, Son, Spirit; the one God that has created…

While the sun, or the light, or the moon, or the stars, be not darkened The wise man proceeds to describe the infirmities of old age, and the troubles that attend it; in order to engage young men to regard God and religion, before these come upon them, which greatly unfit for his service.

In the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble By the “house” is meant the human body; which is a house of clay, the earthly house of our tabernacle, in which the soul dwells, .

And the doors shall be shut in the streets The Midrash and Jarchi interpret these of the holes of the body; in which they are followed by our learned and ingenuous countryman, Dr.

Also when they shall be afraid of that which is high Not of the most high God, before whose tribunal they must shortly appear, as some; but rather of high places, as high hills, mountains, towers which aged persons are afraid to go up, because of the feebleness and weakness of their limbs, their…

Or ever the silver cord be loosed As the above are the symptoms and infirmities of old age; these in this verse are the immediate symptoms of death, or what attend it, or certainly issue in it.

Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was The body, which is made of dust, and is no other in its present state than dust refined and enlivened; and when the above things take place, mentioned in , or at death, it returns to its original earth; it becomes immediately a clod of earth, a…

Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher The wise man, or preacher, set out in the beginning of the book with this doctrine, or proposition, which he undertook to prove; and now having proved it by an induction of particulars, instanced in the wisdom, wealth, honours, pleasures, and profit of men,…

And moreover Or “besides” [[24]] what has been said; or “as to what remains” [[0]]; or “but what is better”, or “more excellent” [[1]], is to “hear the conclusion of the whole matter”, the sum and substance of the whole book in a few words, ; to which ; are a preface; and in which the wise man…

The preacher sought to find out acceptable words Not mere words, fine and florid ones, the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, an elegant style, or eloquent language; not but that it is proper for a preacher to seek out and use words suitable and apt to convey right ideas to the minds of men of what…

The words of the wise are as goads As the goad teacheth the ox; so the Targum. Not the words of the wise philosophers of that age, or of ages before, or since; but of the inspired penmen of the Scriptures, as Moses, David, Solomon, and of others since; and of all good men, whose doctrines are…

And further, by these, my son, be admonished Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, may be intended, for whose sake, more especially, this book might be written; though it may take in every hearer of this divine preacher, every disciple of this teacher, every subject of his kingdom, as well as every reader…

Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter Or “the end” [[13]] of it. The sum and substance of it, what it all tends to and issues in; even the whole of what is contained in this book, and in all offer divinely inspired writings of Solomon or others; of all that were now written, or before, or…

For God shall bring every work into judgment Not in this life, but in the day of the great judgment, as the Targum explains it; that is, whatever has been done by men, from the beginning of the world, or will be to the end; all being observed and taken notice of by the omniscient God, who has…