Ecclesiastes 12:3

Before the guards of the house tremble and the strong men are bent over, the grinders stop working because there are only a few left, and the ones looking through the windows only see dimly,

Free Bible Version

In The King James Version

In the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those that look out of the windows be darkened,

In Context

2Before the light fades—sun, moon, and stars—and rain clouds return to darken the skies.

4and the doors to the street are shut. Before the sound of the grinding mill grows low, and you wake up early when the birds are singing, but you can hardly hear them.

Read all of Ecclesiastes 12

Cross References

Genesis 27:1Isaac was old and going blind. He called for Esau, his oldest son, and said, “My son.” “I'm here,” Esau replied.

1 Samuel 3:2One evening, Eli had gone to bed in his room. His eyes were now so weak that he couldn't see.

Psalms 90:9Our lives fade away under your anger, coming to an end as quickly as a sigh.

Zechariah 8:4This is what the Lord Almighty says. Old people will be able to sit again in the streets of Jerusalem, each with their walking sticks they need because of their age.

Matthew Henry on Ecclesiastes 12:2-8

The Infirmities of Old Age; The Effects of Death. 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; 2 While the sun, or the light, or the moon, or the stars, be not darkened, nor the clouds return after the rain: 3 In the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those that look out of the windows be darkened, 4… Read the whole commentary →

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Study Ecclesiastes 12:3