Ecclesiastes
Chapter 12
1 Remember your Creator while you are young, before bad days arrive and the years come when you will find no joy in them.
2 Before the sun, light, moon, or stars grow dark, and the clouds come back after the rain:
3 On the day when the guards of the house shake, the strong people bend, the grinders stop because there are only a few, and the ones looking out the windows can’t see clearly.
4 The doors on the streets will close when the grinding noise is quiet, someone will wake up at the bird’s call, and all the music will fade away.
5 People will fear high places and be scared on the road. The almond tree will bloom, the grasshopper will drag, and desire will fade away. This is because everyone dies and people mourn in the streets.
6 Before the silver cord snaps, or the gold bowl cracks, or the jug shatters at the spring, or the wheel breaks at the well.
7 The dust will go back to the earth where it came from, and the spirit will return to God who gave it.
8 Everything is meaningless, says the teacher; all is meaningless.
9 The teacher was wise and continued to teach the people knowledge. He paid attention and collected many wise sayings, arranging them well.
10 The teacher tried to find pleasing words; what was written was honest and true.
11 The wise people’s words are like prods, and like nails set down by leaders of groups, given by one God.
12 Also, my child, be warned: writing many books has no limit; and studying a lot is tiring for the body.
13 Listen to the final point: Respect God and follow his rules, because this is everyone’s main job.
14 God will judge everything we do, even the things we keep secret, whether they are good or bad.