Title Ecclesiastes 11:9-12:2
Today is a day celebrated as Youth Sunday in our general assembly. So today, we would like to listen to God's word about youth.
Verses 7-8, right before today's text, start with positive words that life is beautiful and should be lived happily. "Light is a beautiful thing, and it is a delight to see the sun with the eyes. A man will live many years, and he will always rejoice..." First of all, in verse 7, “Light is truly beautiful, and it is a delight to see the sun with your eyes”, “light” and “to see the sun with your eyes” refer to life. Even in Korean, “to be born” often means “to see the light” and “to die” means to “close your eyes.” The words “light” and “seeing the sun with your eyes” mean living or living. do. However, the author of today's text says that life is a beautiful and enjoyable thing just to live and to be alive. And in the first half of verse 8 that follows, it says, "If a man lives many years, he will always rejoice." Life should always be enjoyable.
And in verse 9 of the following text, “Young man, rejoice in your youth, and rejoice in your heart in the days of your youth, and walk in the ways of your heart and in the sight of your eyes.” Following this general declaration that life is beautiful and worthy of enjoyment, it is natural to mention the youth in particular. This is because youth is the time of greatest enthusiasm and vitality in life. Life is always worth living and enjoying, but adolescence is even more so. It is not to waste the time of this young man when he should be the most happiest and free. “Young man, rejoice in your youth, and let your heart rejoice in the days of your youth, and walk in the ways of your heart and in the sight of your eyes.” Here, we must first see that young people have the right and duty to live their time as brightly, joyfully, and freely as possible, and the generation of adults has a responsibility to create the conditions for young people to live like that.
But go up again to verse 8 and look at the second half, "But there will be many dark days, and remember those days, for all that is to come is in vain." Here, "dark day" means the time of old age, when all the preceding years can feel futile, and the time of death after that.
The description of this time of old age and death is more varied from verse 12 to verse 1 and below: 1 Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come, before the years near when you will say that I have no pleasure in you. 2 Before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars grow dark, and before the clouds rise again after the rain.
Here, the “distressed days” and “years of no pleasure” in verse 1 are descriptions of old age, and “the sun and the light and the moon and the stars are darkened” and “the clouds rise again after the rain” in verse 2 are death. It can be said to be an expression of this near time. "The clouds rise again after the rain" can be understood as an expression indicating that life has come to an end, when it is supposed to clear after the rain, but when it gets dark again, no more light can be expected.
The description of old age in verse 1 is repeated again in verses 3 to 5, first half: 3 In those days the keepers of the house will tremble, and the strong will be crooked, and the millers will cease because there are few, and they will cut out with spears. It will be darkened to those who see it, 4 The gates of the street will be shut, the millstone will be quieter, and the sound of birds will rise up, and all the women of music will perish.
5 And such shall fear the heights, and shall be amazed on the road, and the apricot tree shall blossom, and the locusts shall be a burden, and lust shall cease.
This part is understood to describe the state of old age in which each organ of the body weakens. In other words, "the guards of the house tremble" implies that the strength of both arms has weakened. "The strong are bent" refers to the loss of strength in both legs. "There are few millers, so they stop" means missing teeth and poor chewing. To "those who look out of the windows become dark" refers to the darkening of the eyes. "Street doors are closed" means deafness. "Few millstones" means fewer horses. "Wake up by the sound of a bird" means that you can't sleep well and wake up to a small sound. "Women who make music are declining" means that they have no strength to sing. To "fear high places, and be startled on the road" means that you will lose your strength and will not dare to climb high or travel long distances. "The apricot tree is blooming" means that the hair is half-white and white. “Even the grasshoppers become a burden” means that the grasshoppers become so weak that it is difficult to lift them. "The cessation of lust" means the disappearance of interest and desire for the opposite sex.
Verses 5 through 7 are again a description of death. 5 For a man returns to his eternal home, and mourners come and go into the streets 6 The silver cords are loosed, the gold vessels are broken, the jars are broken by the springs, the wheels are broken at the wells, 7 the earth still returns to the earth, and the spirit goes back to the God who gave it. remember before going back to
In verse 6, “a golden vessel tied to a silver cord” refers to the nobility of human beings, and it may also be an expression of life in a healthy age, such as the golden age. Springs and wells always symbolize life. However, the silver cord is untied, the gold bowl is broken, the jar is broken by the spring, and the wheel is broken on the well, making it impossible to draw water.
Verse 8 shows that when we grow old and die, all things can seem futile: "The evangelist said, Vanity, vanity. All things are vanity."
But the sudden change in the description of this life is repeated in verses 9-10, which glorifies the youthful days:
“Rejoice, young man, in your youth, and let your heart rejoice in the days of your youth, and walk in the ways your heart desires and in the eyes of your eyes; but know that God will judge you for all these things. Let evil withdraw from your body, for all your youth and dark hair are in vain."
Here, we question what the true intention of the evangelist is in this text. Do you want to have fun before you get older? Or are you saying that if you have fun while you are young, it will all be in vain later? Here we summarize what this text says: First, young people should be able to rejoice in their hearts and enjoy the days of youth freely. Second, however, is to be aware of the fact that there will come a wretched day when the dark-haired age will be considered vain, and there will be no pleasure in it. Third, we should be able to enjoy not only our youth, but our whole life. Fourth, in order to do this, we must remember God, who is the Creator and Judge.