Ecclesiastes 7 English Standard Version (ESV) The Contrast of Wisdom and Folly

The Contrast of Wisdom and Folly

A good name is better than precious ointment,

    and the day of death than the day of birth.

It is better to go to the house of mourning

    than to go to the house of feasting,

for this is the end of all mankind,

    and the living will lay it to heart.

Sorrow is better than laughter,

    for by sadness of face the heart is made glad.

The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning,

    but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.

It is better for a man to hear the rebuke of the wise

    than to hear the song of fools.

For as the crackling of thorns under a pot,

    so is the laughter of the fools;

    this also is vanity.[a]

Surely oppression drives the wise into madness,

    and a bribe corrupts the heart.