¹³ Even in laughter the heart may ache,
    and ^(A)the end of joy may be ^(B)grief.

¹⁸ I have heard ^(A)Ephraim grieving,
‘You have disciplined me, and I was disciplined,
    like an untrained calf;
^(B)bring me back that I may be restored,
    for you are the Lord my God.
¹⁹ For after ^(C)I had turned away, I relented,
    and after I was instructed, ^(D)I struck my thigh;
^(E)I was ashamed, and I was confounded,
    because I bore the disgrace of my youth.’
^20 (F)Is Ephraim my dear son?
    ^(G)Is he my darling child?
For as often as I speak against him,
    I do remember him still.
^(H)Therefore my heart^[a] yearns for him;
    I will surely have mercy on him,
declares the Lord.

² 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 ^(A)lay it to heart.
³ Sorrow is better than laughter,
    ^(B)for by sadness of face the heart is made glad.
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 ^(C)better for a man to hear the rebuke of the wise
    than to hear the song of fools.
^6 (D)For as the crackling of ^(E)thorns under a pot,
    so is the laughter of the fools;
    this also is vanity.^[a]