1  ^jA good name is better than precious ointment,

and ^kthe day of death than the day of birth.

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 lay it to heart.

3  Sorrow is better than laughter,

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 better for a man to hear the rebuke of the wise

than to hear the song of fools.

6  For as the crackling of ^lthorns under a pot,

so is the laughter of the fools;

this also is vanity.¹

7  Surely ^moppression drives the wise into madness,

and a ⁿbribe corrupts the heart.

8  Better is the end of a thing than its beginning,

and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.

9  Be not quick in your spirit to become ^oangry,

for anger lodges in the heart² of fools.

10  Say not, “Why were the former days better than these?”

For it is not from wisdom that you ask this.