Ecclesiastes 12

Sermon Bible Commentary - Ecclesiastes 12:1-7

Ecclesiastes 8:16-12:7 I. The Preacher commences this section by carefully defining his position and equipment as he starts on his last course. (1) His first conclusion is that wisdom, which of all temporal goods still stands foremost with him, is incapable of yielding a true content. Much as it can do for man, it cannot solve the moral problems which daily task and afflict his heart, the problems which he must solve before he can be at peace (8:16-9:6). (2) He reviews the pretensions of Wisdom... read more

William Nicoll

Sermon Bible Commentary - Ecclesiastes 12:5

Ecclesiastes 12:5 It is not at his death only that it may be said of any man, "He goeth to his long home." It is a continual present tense. Every moment, every step he takes, he is always on the road, getting nearer and nearer. I. Eternity is an abyss in which the mind loses itself in a moment; and the more we try to realise, the more impossible it grows. And because we have never seen it or conceived it, we call some earthly thing, some work, some waiting-time, some sorrow, some suffering,... read more

William Nicoll

Sermon Bible Commentary - Ecclesiastes 12:6

Ecclesiastes 12:6 What, we ask, is that view of man's present condition implied in the language which speaks of death and decay as a loosening of the silver cord and a breaking of the golden bowl? I. It has been made an argument against the book of Ecclesiastes being the genuine writing of Solomon that it speaks so unmistakably of the immortality of the soul and of a judgment to come. It is asserted that these great doctrines were not revealed until after the age of Solomon. Now it must be... read more

William Nicoll

Sermon Bible Commentary - Ecclesiastes 12:7

Ecclesiastes 12:7 I. Nothing is more difficult than to realise that every man has a distinct soul, that every one of all the millions who live or have lived is as whole and independent a being in himself as if there were no one else in the whole world but he. We class men in masses, as we might connect the stones of a building. Survey some populous town; crowds are pouring through the streets; every part of it is full of life. Hence we gain a general idea of splendour, magnificence, opulence,... read more

William Nicoll

Sermon Bible Commentary - Ecclesiastes 12:8-14

Ecclesiastes 12:8-14 I. Koheleth has achieved the quest. He has solved the problem and given us his solution of it. He is about to repeat that solution. To give emphasis and force to the repetition, that he may carry his readers more fully with him, he dwells on his claims to their respect, their confidence, their affection. He is all that they most admire; he has the very authority to which they most willingly defer. It is not out of any personal conceit, therefore, nor any pride of learning,... read more

William Nicoll

Sermon Bible Commentary - Ecclesiastes 12:13

Ecclesiastes 12:13 In its happy influence religion, or a filial compliance with the will of God, includes "the whole duty of man." It is self-contained felicity. I. A new heart itself is happiness. When gifts are so good as the Gospel and its promises, so good as our kindred and friends, so good as the flowers of the field and the breath of new summer, it only needs an honest heart which takes them as they come, and which tastes unaltered the goodness of God that is in them. This is what the... read more

William Nicoll

Sermon Bible Commentary - Ecclesiastes 12:13-14

Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 I. Among the causes of a sceptical spirit I may assign the first place to that natural reaction against authority which results when the understanding is first emancipated from the control that restrained its free exercise during the years of earlier youth. Authority is the guide of childhood. There is in the child no prejudice, no reluctance to be taught. He is quite content to take his opinions upon trust. But the time arrives when reasoning at second hand no longer... read more

William Nicoll

Sermon Bible Commentary - Ecclesiastes 12:14

Ecclesiastes 12:14 I. These words show, not only that each of us will be judged, but that each of us will be judged for each action of his life; not for his general character whether (taken altogether) he was on the whole a worldly or a pious man, or the like, but for every single act, good or bad, of which his entire life was made up. Each separate thing done, thought, or said, will be brought up again in due order exactly as it was done, thought, or said weighed, sifted, and judged; for... read more

Charles Simeon

Charles Simeon's Horae Homileticae - Ecclesiastes 12:1

DISCOURSE: 846REMEMBERING GOD IN OUR YOUTHEcclesiastes 12:1. Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them.INSTRUCTION may profitably be given in a variety of ways: indeed, in order to be effectual, it must be accommodated in some measure to the dispositions and habits of the persons addressed. To one who is wayward and self-willed, the pungency of irony may be well applied; whilst with... read more

Charles Simeon

Charles Simeon's Horae Homileticae - Ecclesiastes 12:13-14

DISCOURSE: 847THE SUM OF ALL TRUE RELIGIONEcclesiastes 12:13-14. Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter; Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall briny every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.IN this book are many things difficult to be understood, and capable of being perverted by any one who desires to justify himself in an undue attachment to the world. But a reference to the condition... read more

Sermon Bible Commentary - Ecclesiastes 12:1-7

Sermon Bible Commentary - Ecclesiastes 12:5

Sermon Bible Commentary - Ecclesiastes 12:6

Sermon Bible Commentary - Ecclesiastes 12:7

Sermon Bible Commentary - Ecclesiastes 12:8-14

Sermon Bible Commentary - Ecclesiastes 12:13

Sermon Bible Commentary - Ecclesiastes 12:13-14

Sermon Bible Commentary - Ecclesiastes 12:14

Charles Simeon's Horae Homileticae - Ecclesiastes 12:1

Charles Simeon's Horae Homileticae - Ecclesiastes 12:13-14

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