KJV ORIGINAL
Or ever the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern.
Close to the original. Clear modern English.
✦ MADE SIMPLE
Before the silver cord snaps, or the golden bowl shatters, or the water pitcher breaks at the spring, or the wheel breaks at the well.
⚡ THE BOTTOM LINE
The writer is using beautiful imagery to describe the moment when life ends and the body can no longer sustain itself.
📚 Historical Context
This verse comes from Solomon's poetic description of old age and death in Ecclesiastes. In ancient times, silver cords held up oil lamps, golden bowls contained precious oil, and wheels drew water from wells - all essential items for daily life. When these broke, daily functions ceased, just as when the body's vital systems fail, life ends.
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