"It is better to dwell in grief than in widowhood," i.e. a woman prefers an unhappy married life to single bliss. The ancient Jews held marriage in very high esteem, considering it in fact a religious obligation; and men were exhorted to marry at an early age. From the passage quoted in the comment on Proverb No. 1, it will be seen that the age at which a man should marry is fixed at eighteen, whereas the age for his earning a livelihood is two years later. The explanation is that the bridegroom used to live in the house of his bride's father during the first years of his marriage. On the basis of the Biblical statement "It is not good that man should be alone" (Gen. ii. 18), the Rabbis said, "The unmarried man lives without prosperity, without a helpmate, without happiness or blessing" (Jeb. 62b; Gen. R. ch. xvii. § 2).