Ecclesiastes 7:1-6

New American Standard Bible 1995

7 A ^(A)good name is better than a good ointment,
And the ^(B)day of one’s death is better than the day of one’s birth.
² It is better to go to a house of mourning
Than to go to a house of feasting,
Because ^[a]that is the ^(C)end of every man,
And the living ^[b](D)takes it to ^[c]heart.
^3 (E)Sorrow is better than laughter,
For ^(F)when a face is sad a heart may be happy.
⁴ The ^[d]mind of the wise is in the house of mourning,
While the ^[e]mind of fools is in the house of pleasure.
⁵ It is better to ^(G)listen to the rebuke of a wise man
Than for one to listen to the song of fools.
⁶ For as the ^[f]crackling of ^(H)thorn bushes under a pot,
So is the ^(I)laughter of the fool;
And this too is futility.