Verses 2-7 are full of figures of speech that picture old age and death.79
12:2-3 Solomon likened the evil days first to an approaching rainstorm (v. 2) that is fearful and uncertain (cf. 11:7-8). The Hebrews regarded any decline in a person's vital energy as a sign that death was beginning to set in (cf. 1 Kings 1:1-4; Ps. 18:4-5; 88:3-5).
The "watchmen of the house"(v. 3) probably refer to one's arms and hands, and the "mighty men"to the legs. The "grinding ones"are probably the teeth, and "those who look through windows"the eyes.
12:4 "The doors to the street"are probably the lips that are shut because of the absence of teeth in the mouth, "the grinding mill."The writer alluded to the inability of old people to sleep soundly as well as to their loss of hearing.
12:5 Aged individuals become more fearful of heights, traffic, and travel. The "almond tree"blossoms white as the hair of an old person. An elderly person is less sprightly in his or her movements. The "caperberry,"apparently an appetite stimulant, is a poor translation that the Septuagint introduced. The text should read "and desire fails,"which gives the same meaning. Man's "dark house"(rather than "eternal home") is a reference to the grave, Sheol.80
