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Eccl.12:1–3. 8 And remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the hard days come and the years come about which you will say: “I have no pleasure in them!” until the sun and the light and the moon and the stars were darkened, and new clouds were found after the rain. On that day when those who guard the house will tremble and the men of strength will bow down; and the grinders will stop grinding, because there are few of them left; and those looking out the window will be darkened; Rejoice, young man, in your youth, and may your heart be well in the days of your youth, and walk in the ways of your heart and in the vision of your eyes. And know that for all this God will bring you to judgment, and remove anger from your heart, and take away evil from your flesh, because youth and stupidity are vanity. And remember your Creator in the days of your youth, until the days of evil come and the years draw near in which you say: “I have no pleasure in them.” In the explanation of this section, all interpreters disagree among themselves, and there are almost as many views as there are persons. Therefore, since it would be long to analyze the opinions of all of them and to provide the evidence with which they wanted to confirm their opinions would be the work of almost an entire book: then for the prudent, let it be enough only to outline these views, present them in a condensed abbreviation and, as if on a small map, draw the location of countries, the breadth of the entire universe and the limits of the ocean. The Jews think that the instruction refers to Israel, who is commanded to use their wealth until the time of captivity comes for them and their youth gives way to old age; It is commanded that whatever he sees as sweet and pleasing to the heart or to the eyes, he should use it while it is at his disposal - so, however, that he remember that for all this he will be judged, and avoid both evil thoughts and lusts, knowing that foolishness is associated with youth, and always remember his Creator until the days of Babylonian and Roman captivity come, in which he will not have the pleasure of. And this whole passage from the words: “until the sun, and the moon, and the stars were darkened,” to the place where Scripture says: “and the dust will return to its earth as it was, and the spirit will return to the Lord who gave it,” they explain in relation to the destinies of their historical life. Since these interpretations, as we said above, are complex and extensive, we will touch on them briefly and concisely. So, rejoice, Israel, in your youth and do this or that which has already been said, until captivity comes, until your honor and glory depart from you and your saints are taken away (which they want to mean by the sun, moon and stars); until Nebuchadnezzar or Titus, the son of Vespasian, came, called by the prophets, and until their prophecies were fulfilled - they were not fulfilled on that day when the angels, the guardians of the church, will depart, and all the strongest in your army will be confused, when the words of the teachers will fall silent and the prophets, who usually received the light of their visions from heaven, will fade, when the doors of the church will be closed and Jerusalem will be humiliated, and the Chaldean will come, called upon with the voice of Jeremiah, like the singing of a bird, and the daughters of song - the choirs of those singing in the church - will fall silent; at a time when those who come to Jerusalem, even the most enemies, will fear the majesty of God and fear the destruction of Sennacherib on the doubtful path (Is. 37); for they understand this in what is said: “And from the heights they will fear and be afraid on the way” (Eccl. 12:5). In those days “the almond tree will blossom”—that staff or rod that Jeremiah saw at the beginning of his prophecy, and “the grasshopper will become heavy and the caper will crumble”—the commonwealth of God with Israel. We’ll explain what “capers” mean in more detail when we talk about everything separately. All this will happen to Israel because a person will go to his eternal house and with the help of God will return to heaven, and when he departs to his home, he will be surrounded in the street by those crying and sobbing, surrounded by an enemy siege. So, rejoice, O Israel, in your youth, “until the silver chain is broken,” that is, while your glory is with you, “until the golden band is torn,” - until, that is, the ark of the covenant is taken away; until “the pitcher broke at the fountain and the wheel over the reservoir fell” - until, that is, in the Holy of Holies there are the commandments of the law and the grace of the Holy Spirit, until you return to Babylon, from where you came out in the loins of Abraham, until you are under the yoke in Mesopotamia, from where you once came, and until all the grace of prophecy, with which you were once inspired, returns to its Giver. This is how the Jews still explain it, applying the meaning of this section to themselves. And we, returning to the previous order of interpretation, will try to explain everything separately. “Rejoice, young man, in your youth, and let your heart be well in the days of your youth, and walk in the ways of your heart and in the vision of your eyes. And know that for all this God will bring you to judgment.” He said that the light of this world is very sweet, that a person should rejoice in the days of his life and with all care pluck away pleasures, because the night of eternal death will come, when it is impossible to use what has been collected, and because everything that we have comes as a shadow. With the same admonition, he now turns to a person and says: O young man, before old age and death come for you, rejoice in your youth and take and use as you please the objects of the world, everything that seems good to you in your heart and pleasant in appearance. But, lest they think that by saying this, he calls a person to pleasures and is inclined to the teachings of Epicurus, he rejects this assumption, adding: “and know that for all this God will bring you to judgment.” Use, he says, the objects of the world in such a way as to remember that in the end you will be judged. “And remove wrath from your heart, and put away evil from your flesh, for youth and foolishness are vanity.” In the concept of anger, it embraces all the disturbances of the spirit, and the evil of the flesh denotes all bodily pleasures. So, use, he says, the blessings of this world so as not to sin either by desire or by flesh. Leave the former vices with which you served vanity and stupidity in your youth, because youth is combined with foolishness. And remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near in which you will say, “I have no pleasure in them.” Always remember your Creator and so walk the path of your youth in order to remember the final death, until the time comes for you when various sorrows befall you. Eccl.12:2. until the sun and the light and the moon and the stars were darkened, and new clouds were found after the rain. Until the sun and the light and the moon and the stars were darkened, and the clouds returned after the rain. If we accept this in relation to the general end of the world, then this section corresponds to the words of the Lord, in which he says: “Then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, nor will it be. The sun will darken, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of heaven will move.” (Matthew 24:21–29). These heavenly powers are the guardians of the house, by which we mean this world; and the men of strength are the opposing forces that have fallen and are about to be scattered. If we are talking here about the private death of everyone at the end of this life: then the sun, the moon, the stars, the clouds, and the rains will cease to exist for the one who dies. Otherwise: have fun, young man, that is, Christian people, and enjoy the blessings that have been given to you by God: but know that in all this you will be called by the Lord to judgment. And do not think that the former branches are broken and that you are grafted into the root of the good olive tree and are therefore safe; but remove anger from your heart, and pleasure from your body, and leaving other vices, remember your Creator, before the evil and irreparable day comes for you, for which torment is prepared for sinners, remember, so that for you, who have sinned, the sun of righteousness does not set at noon, the light of knowledge does not perish, the shine of the moon, that is, the church, does not cease, and the stars about which it is written: “in them do not cease” You are like lights in the world, holding the word of a living creature” (Phil. 2:15–16). and in another place: “star differs from star in glory” (1 Cor. 15:41). Until the clouds return after the rain, so that the prophets, who water the hearts of the believers with their words and their rains, recognizing you as unworthy of their rain, return to their place, that is, to the One from whom they were sent. Eccl.12:3. On that day when those who guard the house will tremble and the men of strength will bow down; and the grinders will stop grinding, because there are few of them left; and those looking out the window will be darkened; On that day when the guards of the house will be shaken and the men of strength will perish. By the guardians of the house we mean either the sun and the moon and the other choir of stars, or angels serving the whole world. And by men of strength, or “strong”, as Symmachus translated, who will perish, or, as Aquila translated, “will go astray,” are meant demons, from the strong devil and who themselves received the name of strong. The Lord, having defeated and bound the devil, according to the parable of the Gospel, devastates his house (Luke 11:22). Otherwise: those who relate everything written here to the human body, think that the guards of the house mean bones, since they surround all the insides and protect all the soft parts of the stomach; The strong men are considered to be the legs, and by the sun, moon and stars they mean the eyes, ears, nostrils and all the senses of the head. This is because below they are forced by the necessity to relate further not to angels and demons, not to the sun, moon and stars, but to the members of men. And the grinders will cease to grind, because they are diminished, and those who look at the holes will be darkened. At the end of the world, when the love of many grows cold and the souls of teachers capable of serving heavenly food to believers are reduced in number, and when they are transferred to heaven, then those who in this world have partially seen the light of knowledge will begin to be surrounded by darkness. For if it is said to Moses: “I will lay you in a cleft of the stone, and then you will see my behind” (Ex. 33:22–23): then how much more does every soul see the truth through an opening and through certain dark holes? Otherwise: these are the two grinders about which the Gospel says that one is eaten and the other is left, which, when they decrease in number and stop working, then, of necessity, all light of knowledge is taken away from the eyes. Otherwise: they think that “the grinders will stop grinding because they have shrunk”; it is said about the teeth - that when extreme old age sets in, then the teeth, which grind the food that passes into the stomach, either wear out or fall out; and the words: “those who look through the holes will be darkened” are understood in relation to the eyes - that the eyes of elderly people become blind and their gaze becomes darkened. Eccl.12:4. and the doors to the street will be locked; when the sound of the millstone ceases, and a man rises at the crow of a rooster, and the singing of the daughters becomes silent; And they will lock the doors on the street in humiliation of the voice of the grinder; and will rise to the voice of the bird; and all the daughters of singing will be speechless. When the voice of the grinder weakens, the teaching of the teachers will cease and little by little everything will cease: then, by the way, the doors on the street will be locked, so that, according to the Gospel virgins (Matthew 25:1-13), everyone will have their doors to the street locked, and they will not be able to buy oil. Or: for the foolish virgins walking around the streets, those who enter with the groom will lock the doors of the palace; for if the path leading to life is narrow and strait, and the path leading to death is wide and broad (Matthew 7:13-14), then truly, when the love of many has cooled, the door of teaching is locked in the streets. And we will use the next verse, which says: “and he will rise at the voice of a bird” or “sparrow” at the time when we see that the sinner, according to the voice of a bishop or presbyter, rises through repentance. Regardless of the context of this section, this can also be taken in relation to the last resurrection, when, according to the voice of the archangel, the dead will be raised. And we should not be surprised if we equate the trumpet of an angel with a sparrow, when every voice, in comparison with Christ, is weak. And as far as I can remember, I don't know that I've ever read that a sparrow is taken in a bad direction. The righteous one says in the tenth psalm: “I trust in the Lord: as you say to my soul: you moved to the mountain like a sparrow” (Ps. 10:1) and in another place: “I was awake and like a lonely sparrow on the housetop” (Ps. 102:8) and in another place: “for the sparrow has found a home for itself” (Ps. 83:4). Otherwise: by the doors locked on the streets they want to mean the relaxation of the old man’s legs - that he constantly sits and cannot walk. And the humiliation of the voice of the grinder is interpreted in relation to the jaws, that the old man cannot chew food and that with constricted breathing his weak voice is barely audible. Further, by the fact that he gets up at the voice of the bird, he shows that the old man, when his blood has already cooled and the moisture has dried up, which substances support sleep, awakens at a light sound, and in the middle of the night, as soon as the rooster crows, he hastily gets up, not being able to turn his limbs in bed. The words: “they become numb”, or, as it is better in Hebrew, “the daughters of singing will become deaf”, denotes the ears - that the hearing of old people becomes heavy, that they cannot understand the differences in sounds and enjoy singing, as Barzellai also says this to David, not wanting to cross the Jordan. Eccl.12:5. and the heights will be scary to them, and there will be horrors on the road; and the almond tree will blossom, and the grasshopper will grow heavy, and the caper will crumble. For a man departs to his eternal home, and mourners are ready to surround him in the street; – But they will also be afraid of heights, and they will be afraid on the way. That is, they will not be able to pass through uncomfortable places, and with relaxed legs and uneven gait, not holding firmly even on a smooth path, they will be afraid of stumbling. “And the almond tree will blossom, and the grasshopper will grow heavy, and the caper will crumble; because a man will go to his eternal house, and those who weep will surround him in the street.” And now the speech of Ecclesiastes speaks metaphorically about the members of men, that when old age comes, the hair turns gray, the legs become swollen, lust grows cold and a person is destroyed by death, then he will return to his land and to the house of his eternity in the tomb, and when the burial is performed, a crowd of mourners will walk in front of the tomb. And the words: “the almond tree will bloom,” which we explained in the sense of gray hair, is interpreted by some in relation to the hunched position of old people - that, that is, by reducing the soft parts of the seat, they develop and intensify relaxation of the spinal ridge (sacra spina). Further, regarding what has been said: “the grasshopper will become heavy,” you should know that where in our lists it reads “grasshopper,” the Jews have “aagab,” a word that has a double meaning for them, because it can be translated both “heel” and “grasshopper.” So, just as at the beginning of the book of Jeremiah the word “soсed”, with different pronunciations, means both “nut” and “guard”, and it is said to him: “What do you see, Jeremiah? and he answered: the rod is nutty, and the Lord said to him: you have seen well, for I will watch over my word to do this or that” (Jer. 1:11), - just as in these words the fact that God will watch and reward the people according to their deserts stands in connection with the etymology of the word meaning “nut”, and this latter gives the basis for the thought: so now the double meaning of the word according to the etymology indicates swollen and heavy with moisture gout on the legs of old people, not because it happens to all old people, but because it often happens - the part is synecdochically designated as a whole. And where we have “caper”, in Hebrew there is “abiona”, which is also ambiguous and is translated: “love”, “desire”, “lust” and - “caper”: and this means, as we said above, that in old people lust cools and the organs of connection relax. This is because these words are ambiguous and literally mean “almond”, “grasshopper” and “caper”, in an indirect meaning they indicate something else, figuratively applied to concepts corresponding to old age. You also need to know that where the Seventy Interpreters put: “almond”, there is the same word “soced”, which is at the beginning of the book of Jeremiah, only there it is translated: “nut”, and here “almond”. Symmachus, I don’t know what he meant in this place, translated it significantly differently, saying: “besides this, they will see from above, and fear will be on the way, and the waking one will fall asleep, and the strength of the spirit will be destroyed. For a man will go to the house of his eternity, and they will be surrounded by mourners in the street.” The Laodicean who followed his translation cannot please either the Jews or the Christians, when he is far from the Jews and does not want to follow the Seventy Interpreters. Eccl.12:6–8. until the silver chain was broken, and the golden band was torn, and the pitcher at the spring was broken, and the wheel over the well collapsed. And the dust will return to the earth as it was; and the spirit will return to God, who gave it. Vanity of vanities, said Ecclesiastes, everything is vanity! Until the silver chain is broken, and the golden band is returned, and the pitcher at the spring is broken, and the wheel over the reservoir collapses. And the dust will return to its ground as it was, and the spirit will return to God, who gave it. Vanity of vanities, said Ecclesiastes, all is vanity. Returns to the former, and after a large digression (inserted from the place where he says: “And remember your Creator in the days of your youth: until the days of evil come and until the sun and the moon are darkened” and so on “on the day in which the watchmen of the house are shaken”), the thought that began now concludes with a similar ending, saying: “until the silver chain is broken” and it happens this and that. The silver chain means this bright life and breath that is given to us from heaven; and the return of the golden band signifies the soul, which returns to where it came from. Further, two further expressions - the breaking of a jug over a source and the breaking of a wheel over a reservoir - are metaphorical symbols of death. For just as a broken jug stops drawing, and a wheel with which water rises from a pond, reservoir and wells, if it is broken or, as the Seventy Interpreters put it, “tangled in its rope,” then the use of water is interrupted: so when the silver chain is torn and the stream of the soul returns to the source, a person will perish, or, as it is more clearly stated further: “dust will return.” to his land from where he was taken, and the spirit will return to the Lord who gave it.” From these words, those who think that souls are sown with bodies and are born not from God, but from the souls of parents, turn out to be very worthy of laughter. For if the flesh returns to the earth, and the spirit returns to God, who gave it, then it is obvious that God is the producer of souls, and not men. Having depicted human death, he beautifully repeats the opening words of his book and says: “vanity of vanities,” said Ecclesiastes, “all is vanity.” For if all the work of mortals, which has been discussed throughout this book, boils down to the fact that the dust returns to its earth, and the soul returns to where it was taken from: then to work in this age and achieve something that will not bring any benefit is a matter of great vanity. Eccl.12:9–10. In addition to the fact that Ecclesiastes was wise, he also taught the people knowledge. He tested everything, examined everything, and composed many parables. Ecclesiastes tried to find elegant sayings, and the words of truth were written by him correctly. And moreover, Ecclesiastes became wise: he also taught the people knowledge, made people listen, and by researching, he composed parables. Ecclesiastes searched a lot to find words of pleasure and to write the right word of truth. And now, at the end of his work, Solomon declares his wisdom, with which he surpassed the entire human race, - he says that he was not satisfied with the rules of the ancient law, but plunged further into deep questions and, for the instruction of the people, composed parables and allegories, some containing in the core, and others representing on the surface. And from the Gospels we learn that parables do not mean what their literal meaning says - that the Lord spoke to the people in parables and allegories, but allowed them to the apostles in private. From this it is clear that the book of Proverbs does not contain clear instructions, as the simple people think, but just as gold is found in the earth, the kernel is found in a nut, a hidden fruit is found in the rough shell of chestnuts: so one should look deeper for the divine meaning in them. In addition, he added that he wanted to comprehend the causes and essence of things, the intention and mind of God, he wanted to find out why or how everything was created, so that what David hopes to see after the release from the body and the return of the soul to heaven, saying: “I will see the heavens, the works of your finger” (Ps. 8: 4), this Solomon tried to comprehend now in this life, so that the truth known to God alone would embrace the human mind, enclosed in shell of the body. Eccl.12:11. The words of the wise are like needles and like driven nails, and their compilers are from one shepherd. The words of the wise are like pricks and like nails driven at the top; they were given to the compilers from a single Shepherd. So that it does not seem that after the law of God, he suddenly acts as a daring teacher and takes upon himself teaching, which Moses accepted not so much voluntarily, but first as a result of an angry command, and then the inspiration of God, he says that his words are the words of the wise, who punish sinners like gouges and excite the lazy steps of mortals like prickly spurs, that they are strong like nails driven into a high and hard place, and are proclaimed not in the name of the authority of one, but from the council and with the consent of all teachers. And so that human wisdom is not neglected, he says that it was given from one Shepherd, that is, that although there are many teachers, there is only one author of teaching - the Lord. This place speaks against those who recognize a different God of the Old Testament and a different God of the Gospel, testifying that one Shepherd enlightened the whole council of the wise. And the wise are both prophets and apostles. Together we should also note that it is said that the words of the wise prick, and do not caress, do not gently touch vices, but, as we said above, cause pain and wounds to those who sin and are slow to repent. So, if someone’s word does not sting, but serves to please the listeners, then this is not the word of the wise. For the words of the wise are like gouges: they call the sinner to conversion, they are firm, given from the council of saints and communicated from a single shepherd and based on a strong root. I think that it was not Paul, but also Saul, who was pierced by this prick on the path of error, who heard: “It is cruel for you to strike the prick” (Acts 9:5). Eccl.12:12. And above all this, my son, beware of this: compiling many books will never end, and reading a lot is tiring for the body. And besides this, beware of this, my son: there is no end to the compilation of many books, and much thinking is labor for the body. With the exception of those words that are given from the one Shepherd and approved by the council and the consent of the wise, do nothing, do not take on anything, follow in the footsteps of your ancestors and do not deviate from their authority. Otherwise, if you search for many things, an infinite number of books will appear, which will lead you astray and make the reader work in vain. Or he teaches that one must take care of brevity and pay attention more to thoughts than to words, teaches against the philosophers and teachers of this century, who try to prove the lies of their teachings with empty phrases and verbosity. On the contrary, Divine Scripture is limited in a narrow circle and, as broad as it is in thought, is condensed in verbal expression. For God spoke the complete and abbreviated word onto the earth, and His word is near, in our mouths and in our hearts (Rom. 10:8; Deut. 30:14). In other words: frequent reading and constant meditation are usually more work for the soul than for the body. For just as everything that is done with the hands and body is accomplished by the labor of the hand and body, so that which relates to reading is labor of more than the mind. Hence, it seems to me that what was said above about the multitude of books should be understood differently than what many people think. And the totality of many books, if they agree with each other and are written about the same subject, Scripture usually calls one book, as for example the Gospel and “the blameless law of the Lord that converts souls” (Ps. 18:8) are called in the singular, although there are many gospels and many commandments of the law. Likewise, the book spoken of in Isaiah’s speech is the entire Divine Scripture (Is. 29:18). Both Ezekiel and John eat one book (Ezek.8, Rev.10); and the Savior, foreshadowed by the voices of all the saints, said: “In the head of the books it is written about Me” (Ps. 39:8). In relation to this, I believe, the meaning is now commanded not to have many books. For whatever you say, if it refers to Him who in the beginning was with God and God was the Word (John 1:1); then all this is one book, and the countless books are called one law and one gospel; and if you talk about various opposites and direct your mind here and there with excessive curiosity, then there will be many books in one book. That is why it is said: “You cannot avoid sin by speaking too much” (Prov. 10:19). There is no end to such books; for all good and truth have a definite end, but evil and lies have no end, and the more they develop, the greater a series of evil and false things is born. Engagement and exercise in this matter is the work of the flesh; flesh, I say, and not the spirit, for the spirit also has its own labor, corresponding to what was said by the Apostle: “I have labored more than all of them: not I, but the grace of God who is with me” (1 Cor. 15:10), and by the Savior: “I have labored when I called” (Ps. 68:4). Ecclesiastes 12:13–14. Let us listen to the essence of everything: fear God and keep His commandments, because this is everything for man; For God will bring every deed into judgment, even every secret thing, whether it is good or evil. The end of the speech of the whole word is very convenient for the ear: fear God and keep his commandments. For this is every person, because God will bring every matter to judgment from all that is hidden, whether it is good or bad. The Jews say that if, among the other writings of Solomon, which are lost and have not been preserved in posterity, this book would seem worthy of destruction because it teaches about the vanity of all creatures, counts everything as nothing and prefers food, drink and passing pleasures to everything else: then for this one chapter it is worthy of the authority to be placed among the Divine books - for the fact that it united all its reasoning, the entire series of thoughts in this, so to speak, table of contents, said that the end of her speeches is easy to hear and does not contain anything difficult, that is, so that we fear God and keep His commandments. This is why man was born, so that, understanding his Creator, he would honor Him with fear, reverence and fulfillment of the commandments. For when the time of judgment comes, then everything that we have done will appear before the Judge and await a long-dubious verdict, and everyone will receive for his deed, whether he has done anything bad or good. And instead of what we put: “from everything hidden, whether it is good or bad,” Symmachus and the Seventy translated: “from everything neglected, or better from everything unknown,” in the sense that for idle words and for things done not by will, but out of ignorance, we will give an account on the day of judgment. Otherwise: since fear is characteristic of slaves, and perfect love casts out fear (1 John 4:18), and the Divine Scripture indicates fear of two kinds - beginners and perfect ones: now, I believe, it speaks of fear perfect in virtues, in relation to what was said: “there is no deprivation for those who fear Him” (Ps. 33:10). Or: since he is still a man and has not yet received the name of God, then the law of his nature is that, while in the body, he should fear God. For every deed, that is, all people, will be brought to judgment by God in everything that they presented in one way or another differently than as determined and said by Him: for “Woe to those who say evil is good, and good is evil” (Is. 5:20). In the Slavic Bible, like the Seventy, chapter XII begins two verses below with the words: “And remember your Creator.” We maintain the division of the block. Jerome.