September 23: Ecclesiastes 7–9; Psalm 78:1–39; John 20–21

Old Testament: Ecclesiastes 7–9 Ecclesiastes 7–9 (Listen) The Contrast of Wisdom and Folly 7   A good name is better than precious ointment,<br />    and the day of death than the day of birth.<br />2   It is better to go to the house of mourning<br />    than to go to the house of feasting,<br />  for this is the end of all mankind,<br />    and the living will lay it to heart.<br />3   Sorrow is better than laughter,<br />    for by sadness of face the heart is made glad.<br />4   The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning,<br />    but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.<br />5   It is better for a man to hear the rebuke of the wise<br />    than to hear the song of fools.<br />6   For as the crackling of thorns under a pot,<br />    so is the laughter of the fools;<br />    this also is vanity.1<br />7   Surely oppression drives the wise into madness,<br />    and a bribe corrupts the heart.<br />8   Better is the end of a thing than its beginning,<br />    and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit.<br />