Matthew Henry Commentary Ecclesiastes 12:1-7

"Remember also thy Creator in the days of thy youth, before the evil days come, and the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them; before the sun, and the light, and the moon, and the stars, are darkened, and the clouds return after the rain; 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 shall be darkened, and the doors shall be shut in the street; when the sound of the grinding is low, and one shall rise up at the voice of a bird, and all the daughters of music shall be brought low; yea, they shall be afraid of [that which is] high, and terrors [shall be] in the way; and the almond-tree shall blossom, and the grasshopper shall be a burden, and desire shall fail; because man goeth to his everlasting home, and the mourners go about the streets: before the silver cord is loosed, or the golden bowl is broken, or the pitcher is broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern, and the dust returneth to the earth as it was, and the spirit returneth unto God who gave it." — Ecclesiastes 12:1-7 (ASV)

We should remember our sins against our Creator, repent, and seek forgiveness. We should also remember our duties and set about them, looking to him for grace and strength. This should be done early, while the body is strong and the spirits are active.

When a man painfully reviews a misspent life, his failure to give up sin and worldly vanities until he is forced to say, I have no pleasure in them, renders his sincerity very questionable.

Then follows a figurative description of old age and its infirmities, which presents some difficulties; however, the meaning is plain: to show how generally uncomfortable the days of old age are. As the four verses, Ecclesiastes 12:2–5, are a figurative description of the infirmities that usually accompany old age, Ecclesiastes 12:6 addresses the circumstances that take place at the hour of death.

If sin had not entered the world, these infirmities would not have been known. Surely then, the aged should reflect on the evil of sin.