Ecclesiastes 12:4-5

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Ecclesiastes 12:1-7

Here is, I. A call to young people to think of God, and mind their duty to him, when they are young: Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth. This is, 1. The royal preacher's application of his sermon concerning the vanity of the world and every thing in it. ?You that are young flatter yourselves with expectations of great things from it, but believe those that have tried it; it yields no solid satisfaction to a soul; therefore, that you may not be deceived by this vanity, nor too... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Ecclesiastes 12:4

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. Smith; who, by them, understands the inlets and outlets of the body; and, by the "streets", the ways and passages through which the food goes, and nourishment is conveyed; and which may be said to be shut, when they cease from their use: but it seems much better, with Aben Ezra and others, to interpret them... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Ecclesiastes 12:5

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, &c.; which aged persons are afraid to go up, because of the feebleness and weakness of their limbs, their difficulty of breathing, and the dizziness of their heads; and fears shall be in the way ; they do not care: to go abroad, being afraid of every little stone that lies in the... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Ecclesiastes 12:4

And the doors shall be shut in the streets - read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Ecclesiastes 12:5

When they shall be afraid of that which is high - read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ecclesiastes 12:4

The doors shall be shut in the streets . Hitherto the symbolism has been comparatively easy to interpret. With this verse inextricable difficulties seem to arise. Of course, in one view it is natural that in the bitter weather, or on the appearance of a tempest, the doors towards the street should be closed, and none should leave the house. But what are meant by the doors in the metaphorical house, the body of the aged man? Jewish expositors understood them to be the pores, or excretive... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Ecclesiastes 12:5

Also when they shall be afraid of that which is high . There is no "when" in the original, which runs, "Also, or yea, they fear on high." "They" are old men, or, like the French on , "people" indefinitely; and the clause says that they find difficulty in mounting an ascent, as the Vulgate renders, Excelsa quoque timebant . Shortness of breath, asthmatic tendencies, failure of muscular power, make such an exertion arduous and burdensome, just as in the previous verse a similar cause... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Ecclesiastes 12:4

And the doors ... is low - The house is viewed from without. The way of entry and exit is stopped: little or no sound issues forth to tell of life stirring within. The old man, as he grows older, has less in common with the rising generation; mutual interest and social contact decline. Some take the doors and the sound of the mill as figures of the lips and ears and of the speech.He shall rise ... - Here the metaphor of the house passes out of sight. The verb may either be taken impersonally (... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Ecclesiastes 12:5

High - The powerful and the proud, such persons as an old man in his timidity might shrink from opposing or meeting: or, high ground which old men would avoid ascending.Fears ... in the way - Compare Proverbs 26:13.The almond tree - The type of old age. Many modern critics translate “The almond shall be despised,” i. e., pleasant food shall no longer be relished.The grasshopper - Rather: “the locust.” The clause means, heaviness and stiffness shall take the place of that active motion for which... read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Ecclesiastes 12:4

Ecclesiastes 12:4. And the doors be shut in the streets Or toward the streets: which lead into the street. This may be understood, either of the outward senses, which, as doors, let in outward objects to the soul; or, rather, of the mouth, or the two lips, here expressed by a word of the dual number, which, like a door, open or shut the way that leads into the streets or common passages of the body, as the gullet, stomach, and all the bowels; as also the wind-pipe and lungs, which also... read more

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