New King James Version
Ecclesiastes 7:4
4The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, But the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.
Ecclesiastes 7:4 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning; but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.
- New International Version (NIV)The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure.
- English Standard Version (ESV)The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.
- New Living Translation (NLT)A wise person thinks a lot about death, while a fool thinks only about having a good time.
Context of Ecclesiastes 7:4
2Better 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 heart. 3Sorrow is better than laughter, For by a sad countenance the heart is made better. The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, But the heart of fools is in the house of mirth. 5It is better to hear the rebuke of the wise Than for a man to hear the song of fools. 6For like the crackling of thorns under a pot, So is the laughter of the fool. This also is vanity.
Read all of Ecclesiastes 7Ecclesiastes 7:4 word by word
לֵ֤ב חֲכָמִים֙ בְּבֵ֣ית אֵ֔בֶל וְלֵ֥ב כְּסִילִ֖ים בְּבֵ֥ית שִׂמְחָֽה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Ecclesiastes 7:4
- Nehemiah 2:2Therefore the king said to me, “Why is your face sad, since you are not sick? This is nothing but sorrow of heart.” So I became dreadfully afraid,
- Isaiah 53:3He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.
- Matthew 8:14Now when Jesus had come into Peter’s house, He saw his wife’s mother lying sick with a fever.
- Mark 5:38Then He came to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and saw a tumult and those who wept and wailed loudly.
- Luke 7:12And when He came near the gate of the city, behold, a dead man was being carried out, the only son of his mother; and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the city was with her.
- John 11:31Then the Jews who were with her in the house, and comforting her, when they saw that Mary rose up quickly and went out, followed her, saying, “She is going to the tomb to weep there.”
- 1 Samuel 25:36Now Abigail went to Nabal, and there he was, holding a feast in his house, like the feast of a king. And Nabal’s heart was merry within him, for he was very drunk; therefore she told him nothing, little or much, until morning light.
- 1 Samuel 30:16And when he had brought him down, there they were, spread out over all the land, eating and drinking and dancing, because of all the great spoil which they had taken from the land of the Philistines and from the land of Judah.
- 2 Samuel 13:28Now Absalom had commanded his servants, saying, “Watch now, when Amnon’s heart is merry with wine, and when I say to you, ‘Strike Amnon!’ then kill him. Do not be afraid. Have I not commanded you? Be courageous and valiant.”
- 1 Kings 20:16So they went out at noon. Meanwhile Ben-Hadad and the thirty-two kings helping him were getting drunk at the command post.
- Isaiah 21:4My heart wavered, fearfulness frightened me; The night for which I longed He turned into fear for me.
- Jeremiah 51:39In their excitement I will prepare their feasts; I will make them drunk, That they may rejoice, And sleep a perpetual sleep And not awake,” says the Lord.
- Daniel 5:1Belshazzar the king made a great feast for a thousand of his lords, and drank wine in the presence of the thousand.
- Hosea 7:5In the day of our king Princes have made him sick, inflamed with wine; He stretched out his hand with scoffers.
- Nahum 1:10For while tangled like thorns, And while drunken like drunkards, They shall be devoured like stubble fully dried.
- Mark 6:21Then an opportune day came when Herod on his birthday gave a feast for his nobles, the high officers, and the chief men of Galilee.
Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 7:4
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning - A wise man loves those occasions from which he can derive spiritual advantage; and therefore prefers visiting the sick, and sympathizing with those who have suffered privations by death. But the fool - the gay, thoughtless, and giddy - prefers places and times of diversion and amusement. Here he is prevented from seriously considering either himself or his latter end. The grand fault and misfortune of…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4House of mourning house of mirth - These phrases acquire a forcible significance from the Eastern custom of prolonging both festive and mournful celebrations through several days. See Genesis 50:10; Judges 14:17. This verse indicates that a life of enjoyment, does not mean the abandonment of ourselves to pleasures, but the thankful and sober use of the beautiful things which God gives us.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3-4good for the heart: Thinking clearly about death helps us understand the seriousness of God's curse on sin and shows us the importance of enjoying life wisely (Ecclesiastes 9:10).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-29Ec 7:1-29. 1. (See on Ec 6:12). name--character; a godly mind and life; not mere reputation with man, but what a man is in the eyes of God, with whom the name and reality are one thing (Is 9:6). This alone is "good," while all else is "vanity" when made the chief end. ointment--used lavishly at costly banquets and peculiarly refreshing in the sultry East. The Hebrew for "name" and for "ointment," have a happy paronomasia, Sheem and Shemen. "Ointment" is…Read the comment
Topics related to Ecclesiastes 7:4
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 7
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
New King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries