Ecclesiastes 7:1 (YLT)

Passage

Better <FI>is<Fi> a name than good perfume, And the day of death than the day of birth.

Nearby Context

Ecclesiastes 7:1 Better <FI>is<Fi> a name than good perfume, And the day of death than the day of birth.

Ecclesiastes 7:2 Better to go unto a house of mourning, Than to go unto a house of banqueting, For that is the end of all men, And the living layeth <FI>it<Fi> unto his heart.

Ecclesiastes 7:3 Better <FI>is<Fi> sorrow than laughter, For by the sadness of the face the heart becometh better.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "better", "name", "than", "good", "perfume", "death", and "birth". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "better" and "name", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The next verse adds "Better to go unto a house of...", so "better" and "name" should be read forward into that movement. In Ecclesiastes context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "better" and "name" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.