Ecclesiastes 7:1-6
Authorized (King James) Version
7 A good name is better than precious ointment;
and the day of death than the day of one’s birth.
2 It is better to go to the house of mourning,
than to go to the house of feasting:
for that 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 to hear the rebuke of the wise,
than for a man to hear the song of fools.
6 For as the crackling of thorns under a pot,
so is the laughter of the fool:
this also is vanity.
Ecclesiastes 7:1-6
New King James Version
The Value of Practical Wisdom
7 A (A)good name is better than precious ointment,
And the day of death than the day of one’s (B)birth;
2 Better to go to the house of mourning
Than to go to the house of feasting,
For that is the end of all men;
And the living will take it to (C)heart.
3 [a]Sorrow is better than laughter,
(D)For by a sad countenance the heart is made [b]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 (E)It is better to [c]hear the rebuke of the wise
Than for a man to hear the song of fools.
6 (F)For like the [d]crackling of thorns under a pot,
So is the laughter of the fool.
This also is vanity.
Footnotes
- Ecclesiastes 7:3 Vexation or Grief
- Ecclesiastes 7:3 well or pleasing
- Ecclesiastes 7:5 listen to
- Ecclesiastes 7:6 Lit. sound
KJV reproduced by permission of Cambridge University Press, the Crown’s patentee in the UK.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.