Ecclesiastes 12:6 (GNV)

Passage

Whiles the siluer coarde is not lengthened, nor the golden ewer broken, nor the pitcher broken at the well, nor the wheele broken at the cisterne:

Nearby Context

Ecclesiastes 12:4 And the doores shall be shut without by the base sound of the grinding, and he shall rise vp at the voice of the birde: and all the daughters of singing shall be abased.

Ecclesiastes 12:5 Also they shalbe afraide of the hie thing, and feare shalbe in the way, and the almond tree shall flourish, and the grassehopper shall be a burden, and concupiscence shall be driuen away: for man goeth to the house of his age, and the mourners goe about in the streete.

Ecclesiastes 12:6 Whiles the siluer coarde is not lengthened, nor the golden ewer broken, nor the pitcher broken at the well, nor the wheele broken at the cisterne:

Ecclesiastes 12:7 And dust returne to the earth as it was, and the spirit returne to God that gaue it.

Ecclesiastes 12:8 Vanitie of vanities, saieth the Preacher, all is vanitie.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "whiles", "siluer", "coarde", "lengthened", "golden", "ewer", "broken", and "pitcher". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "whiles" and "siluer", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 5's "Also they shalbe afraide of the hie..." into verse 7's "And dust returne to the earth as...", so "whiles" and "siluer" belong inside that flow. In Ecclesiastes context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "whiles" and "siluer" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.