Ecclesiastes 7:1-9 ▼

1 A GOOD name is better than a precious ointment; and the day of one's death than the day of his birth.

2 It is better to go to the house of mourning than to the house of feasting; for this is the end of all men; and the living will lay it to his heart.

3 Sorrow is better than laughter; for by the sadness of the countenance the heart is made better.

4 The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning; but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.

5 It is better for a man to hear the rebuke of the wise than to hear the song of fools.

6 For as the crackling of thorns burning under a pot, so is the laughter of fools; this is also vanity.

7 Surely slander destroys a wise man; and a bribe destroys the heart.

8 Better is the end of a thing than its beginning; and the patient man in humbleness is better than the proud in spirit.

9 Be not hastily angry, for anger rests in the bosom of the fools.