A Good Name Outlasts Good Oil in Midrash Shmuel

"A good name is better than good oil" (Ecclesiastes 7:1). Good oil goes down, a good name goes up, as it is said, "(And I will make your name great) and I will make you a great nation [and I will make your name great]" (Genesis 12:2). Good oil comes to an end, a good name does not come to an end, [as it is said,] "an everlasting name I will give him, that shall not be cut off" (Isaiah 56:5). Good oil is by money, a good name is for nothing. Good oil is for the rich, a good name is for the poor and for the rich. Good oil travels from the chamber to the hall, a good name travels from one end of the world to its other end. Good oil falls upon the dead and it makes a stench, [as it is said,] "dead flies make the perfumer's oil stink and ferment" (Ecclesiastes 10:1). A good name falls upon the dead and it does not make a stench, [as it is said,] "and he went up and bent over him and the lad sneezed (until) seven times (and the flesh of the child grew warm)" (II Kings 4:33). Good oil falls upon the water and it is washed away, a good name falls upon the water and it is not washed away, [as it is said,] "And the LORD spoke to the fish" (Jonah 2:1). Good oil falls upon the fire and it is burned up, a good name falls upon the fire and it is not burned up, [as it is said,] "Then came forth Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego out of the midst of the fire" (Daniel 3:26). Rabbi Yehuda b'Rabbi Simon said: [We find that] the possessors of good oil entered a place of the living and came out dead; the possessors of a good name entered a place of the dead and came out alive.