Ecclesiastes 12

Thomson(i) 1 Because youth and thoughtlessness is vanity, therefore remember thy Creator in the days of thy youth; before the evil days come and the years draw nigh in which thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them. 2 So long as the sun and the light and the moon and the stars are not involved in darkness, the clouds will return after rain. 3 When once the guards of the house are shaken, and the men of valour put to flight, and the grinding maids are idle, because reduced to a few, then shall the maids who look out at the windows be darkened, 4 and the doors of the market place will be shut at the feebleness o the voice of the grinding maid, which will be raised to the plaintive tone of the young ostrich; and all the daughters of the song will be brought low; 5 and they will look up to the height and there are terrors in the way. Though the almond tree shall have bloomed and the locust hath been fattened and the caper bush is shed, because the man is gone to his long home, therefore the mourners have made a circuit in the market place. 6 Until the silver cord can be wound up no more, and the golden bowl be broken, and the bucket broken at the well, and the wheel on the well shall run down with it, 7 and dust return to dust as it was, and the spirit return to God who gave it; 8 vanity of vanities, said the preacher; all things are vanity. 9 And moreover, because the preacher was wise, because he taught mankind wisdom; that the ear might find what is comely from parables, 10 the preacher made diligent search to find pleasing words and a writing of rectitude; words of truth. 11 The words of the wise are like goads and nails ready made, which have been laid up in repositories from one shepherd to another. 12 What remaineth of them, my son, keep thou. There is no end of making many books. And much study is a weariness to the flesh. 13 As a conclusion of the discourse, hear thou the whole sum and substance: Fear God and keep his commandments: for this conclusion every man should draw, 14 That God will bring the whole work into judgment in every case not taken notice of, whether it be good or whether it be evil.