Proverbs 21:9. It is better to dwell in a corner of the housetop, than with a brawling woman in a wide house.
See also Proverbs 25: 24.
It is customary to build on the flat roofs of Eastern houses arbors, or booths (called “tabernacles” in Matt. 17:4) for the purpose of resting from the heat of the day during the summer. They are also occupied as sleeping-chambers at night. Some suppose that Saul slept in a place of this sort, though he may have slept on the open roof. See 1 Samuel 9:25-26. These temporary structures serve an excellent purpose at the season of the year for which they are specially designed, but as a place in which to “dwell” permanently they are, of course, very undesirable. The rain and cold would soon drive the inhabitants from them. Yet in the estimation of the wise man, a cheerless spot like this is preferable as a place of residence to a large house with plenty of room and all conveniences, provided “a brawling woman” is in it!