Ecclesiastes 7:3
Sorrow is better than laughter; for by the sadness of the countenance the heart is made glad.
American Standard Version
In The King James Version
Sorrow is better than laughter: for by the sadness of the countenance the heart is made better.
In Context
4The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning; but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.
Cross References
Psalms 119:67Before I was afflicted I went astray; But now I observe thy word.
Psalms 126:5They that sow in tears shall reap in joy.
Jeremiah 31:8Behold, I will bring them from the north country, and gather them from the uttermost parts of the earth, [and] with them the blind and the lame, the woman with child and her that travaileth with child together: a great company shall they return hither.
Jeremiah 50:4In those days, and in that time, saith Jehovah, the children of Israel shall come, they and the children of Judah together; they shall go on their way weeping, and shall seek Jehovah their God.
Daniel 10:2In those days I, Daniel, was mourning three whole weeks.
Zechariah 12:10And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplication; and they shall look unto me whom they have pierced; and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his first-born.
Matthew Henry on Ecclesiastes 7:2-7
The Value of a Good Name. 1 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… Read the whole commentary →