Ecclesiastes 12:2 BSB

Ecclesiastes 12:2

before the light of the sun, moon, and stars is darkened, and the clouds return after the rain,

BSB

Parallel translations (2) ▾

ASV

before the sun, and the light, and the moon, and the stars, are darkened, and the clouds return after the rain;

KJV

While the sun, or the light, or the moon, or the stars, be not darkened, nor the clouds return after the rain:

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Commentary

2 voices

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

Illustrating "the evil days" (Jer 13:16). "Light," "sun," &c., express prosperity; "darkness," pain and calamity (Isa 13:10; 30:26). clouds . . . after . . . rain--After rain sunshine (comfort) might be looked for, but only a brief glimpse of it is given, and the gloomy clouds (pains) return.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

John Wesley

1703–1791

Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765)

And those expressions may be understood of the outward parts of the body, and especially of the face, the beauty of the countenance, the pleasant complexion of the cheeks, the liveliness of the eyes, which are compared to the sun, and moon, and stars, and which are obscured in old age, as the Chaldee paraphrast understands it.

Voices on this verse

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Original language & word study

12 tagged words

Original	Transliteration	Meaning	Word study
עַ֠ד	'ad	until	H5704 →
אֲשֶׁ֨ר	'a.Sher	that	H834 →
לֹֽא־	lo'-	not	H3808 →
תֶחְשַׁ֤ךְ	tech.Shakh	it will become dark	H2821 →
הַשֶּׁ֙מֶשׁ֙	ha.She.mesh	the sun	H8121 →
וְהָא֔וֹר	ve.ha.'Or	and the light	H216 →
וְהַיָּרֵ֖חַ	ve.hai.ya.Re.ach	and the moon	H3394 →
וְהַכּוֹכָבִ֑ים	ve.ha.ko.kha.Vim	and the stars	H3556 →
וְשָׁ֥בוּ	ve.Sha.vu	and they will return	H7725 →
הֶעָבִ֖ים	he.'a.Vim	the clouds	H5645 →
אַחַ֥ר	'a.Char	after	H310 →
הַגָּֽשֶׁם׃	ha.Ga.shem	the rain	H1653 →

Rare words are the text's own signal of a deliberate thread: the fewer the occurrences, the more the places it appears belong together.

The walk

The walk8

Where the connections lead

Follow this verse’s cross-references two steps out. Each card is a verse this one points to, and beneath it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several different paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it. Every stop shows its own words, and every stop is a page.

Through
Genesis 27:1
When Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he could no longer see, he called his older son Esau and said to him, “My son.” “Here I am,” Esau replied.
leads to
- Genesis 48:10
  Now Israel’s eyesight was poor because of old age; he could hardly see. Joseph brought his sons to him, and his father kissed them and embraced them.
  Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
- 1 Samuel 3:2
  And at that time Eli, whose eyesight had grown so dim that he could not see, was lying in his room.
  Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
Through
Isaiah 5:30
In that day they will roar over it, like the roaring of the sea. If one looks over the land, he will see darkness and distress; even the light will be obscured by clouds.
leads to
- Isaiah 8:22
  Then they will look to the earth and see only distress and darkness and the gloom of anguish. And they will be driven into utter darkness.
- Joel 2:10
  Before them the earth quakes; the heavens tremble. The sun and moon grow dark, and the stars lose their brightness.
Through
1 Samuel 3:2
And at that time Eli, whose eyesight had grown so dim that he could not see, was lying in his room.
leads to
- Genesis 27:1
  When Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he could no longer see, he called his older son Esau and said to him, “My son.” “Here I am,” Esau replied.
  Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
- Psalms 90:10
  The length of our days is seventy years— or eighty if we are strong— yet their pride is but labor and sorrow, for they quickly pass, and we fly away.
  Reached by 2 independent paths from here.
Through
1 Samuel 4:18
As soon as the ark of God was mentioned, Eli fell backward from his chair by the city gate, and being old and heavy, he broke his neck and died. And Eli had judged…
leads to
- 1 Samuel 4:21–22
  And she named the boy Ichabod, saying, “The glory has departed from Israel,” because the ark of God had been captured and her father-in-law and her husband had been killed.
- 1 Peter 4:17–18
  For it is time for judgment to begin with the family of God; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who disobey the gospel of God?

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About Ecclesiastes

King Solomon in Old Age — Gustave Doré, Doré's English Bible (1866), public domain

Ecclesiastes: the study guide →Read chapter 12 →The featured study →

Continue: Ecclesiastes 12 →

01Commentary

The record, by era

Voices on this verse

02Original language & word study

03The walk

Where the connections lead

04Related verses

05Featured studies on this passage

06About Ecclesiastes

The record, by era

Where the connections lead

Commentary

Original language & word study

The walk

Related verses

Featured studies on this passage

About Ecclesiastes