所羅門的最後提醒
傳道書十二章1至7節
1你趁著年幼，衰敗的日子尚未來到，就是你所說“我毫無喜樂”的那些年日未曾臨近之先，當記念造你的主！
2不要等到日頭、光明、月亮、星宿變為黑暗，雨後雲彩反回；
3看守房屋的發顫，有力的屈身，推磨的稀少就止息；從窗戶往外看的都昏暗，
4街門關閉，推磨的響聲微小，雀鳥一叫，人就起來，歌唱的女子也都衰微。
5人怕高處，路上有驚慌；杏樹開花，蚱蜢成為重擔；人所願的也都廢掉。因為人歸他永遠的家，弔喪的在街上往來。
6銀鏈折斷，金罐破裂，瓶子在泉旁損壞，水輪在井口破爛；
7塵土仍歸於地，靈仍歸於賜靈的神。
信息分享
老之將至，人便失去樂趣、變得孤獨；當他/她回顧過去，甚至還會有怨恨和苦毒。作者更以非常細緻的比喻手法，來描繪老年人的軟弱無助。
經文形容老年人四肢發顫、牙齒脫落、視力模糊、聽覺衰退、睡眠不穩、出現畏高和心臟問題等等。死亡終必臨到，人生便告結束。但信徒卻不是這樣的。信徒的身體雖然也會日漸衰敗，但對將來的盼望卻愈見增強。對信靠基督的人來 說，死亡只是棄掉衰殘的身體，永遠與主同在。
人應當在何時信靠基督呢？答案很簡單：任何時間。但最好是趁著年輕，便將一生交給基督去管理。蠟燭是極好的例子，年輕的歲月恍如一根簇新的蠟燭，你在這時奉獻給主，主便可以將你點燃，讓你一生為主發光。但是，你若到老才將自己奉獻給主，猶如蠟燭只剩下一小截，只有一段短時間發光照亮。
本書的作者設法向我們說明，沒有神的人生是虛空和沒有意義的人生。他曾經縱情享樂，但得出的結論就是本章的13節：「敬畏神，謹守祂的誡命，這是人所當盡的本分。」讓我們牢記這節經文，在你的聖經上標記出來，求主幫助你，一生在祂的管理下生活。這才是唯一的蒙福之途。
SOLOMON'S FINAL REMINDERS
Ecclesiastes 12: 1-7
1 Remember now your Creator in the days of your youth,
Before the difficult days come,
And the years draw near when you say,
“I have no pleasure in them”:
2 While the sun and the light,
The moon and the stars,
Are not darkened,
And the clouds do not return after the rain;
3 In the day when the keepers of the house tremble,
And the strong men bow down;
When the grinders cease because they are few,
And those that look through the windows grow dim;
4 When the doors are shut in the streets,
And the sound of grinding is low;
When one rises up at the sound of a bird,
And all the daughters of music are brought low.
5 Also they are afraid of height,
And of terrors in the way;
When the almond tree blossoms,
The grasshopper is a burden,
And desire fails.
For man goes to his eternal home,
And the mourners go about the streets.
6 Remember your Creator before the silver cord is loosed,
Or the golden bowl is broken,
Or the pitcher shattered at the fountain,
Or the wheel broken at the well.
7 Then the dust will return to the earth as it was,
And the spirit will return to God who gave it.
Message
It is too easy to focus on enjoying life, instead of stopping to think of eternal values. Even young people brought up in Christian homes tend to put off any real thoughts about God and the future, preferring to go along with the crowd.
Old age can be unhappy and can produce loneliness and even bitterness as the man or woman thinks back over life. It can be a time of weakness too and the description given here while being remarkably poetic is an incredible description of old age.
It mentions trembling limbs, loss of teeth, lack of eyesight, possibly deafness, inability to sleep soundly, fear of heights, heart problems, and much more. Then finally death comes and that life is ended. But that is not for the believer. Physical strength may go but the hope for the future can be stronger than ever. To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord, for those who have put their faith and trust in Christ.
When is the time to trust in Christ? The answer simply is any time. But the best time is when we are young and can give a whole life to Christ. A good illustration of this is to light a new candle - you will have all the total length of it to burn brightly. Take a stub of a candle and light that and you will have only a short time in which to benefit from its light.
The writer of this book has tried to show us the emptiness, the meaninglessness of life where God is left out. He tried every kind of pleasure or activity and came to this conclusion found in the 13th verse of this chapter, “Fear God and keep His commandment, for this is the whole duty of man.” Read that verse. Mark it in your Bible and ask God to help you live your life under His control. It is the only way of blessing.