Honor Is Not Fitting for a Fool

26 As snow in summer (A)and rain in harvest,
So honor is not fitting for a fool.

Like a flitting sparrow, like a flying swallow,
So (B)a curse without cause shall not alight.

(C)A whip for the horse,
A bridle for the donkey,
And a rod for the fool’s back.
Do not answer a fool according to his folly,
Lest you also be like him.
(D)Answer a fool according to his folly,
Lest he be wise in his own eyes.
He who sends a message by the hand of a fool
Cuts off his own feet and drinks violence.
Like the legs of the lame that hang limp
Is a proverb in the mouth of fools.
Like one who binds a stone in a sling
Is he who gives honor to a fool.
Like a thorn that goes into the hand of a drunkard
Is a proverb in the mouth of fools.
10 [a]The great God who formed everything
Gives the fool his hire and the transgressor his wages.
11 (E)As a dog returns to his own vomit,
(F)So a fool repeats his folly.
12 (G)Do you see a man wise in his own eyes?
There is more hope for a fool than for him.

13 The lazy man says, “There is a lion in the road!
A fierce lion is in the [b]streets!”
14 As a door turns on its hinges,
So does the lazy man on his bed.
15 The (H)lazy man buries his hand in the [c]bowl;
It wearies him to bring it back to his mouth.
16 The lazy man is wiser in his own eyes
Than seven men who can answer sensibly.

17 He who passes by and meddles in a quarrel not his own
Is like one who takes a dog by the ears.

18 Like a madman who throws firebrands, arrows, and death,
19 Is the man who deceives his neighbor,
And says, (I)“I was only joking!”

20 Where there is no wood, the fire goes out;
And where there is no [d]talebearer, strife ceases.
21 (J)As charcoal is to burning coals, and wood to fire,
So is a contentious man to kindle strife.
22 The words of a [e]talebearer are like [f]tasty trifles,
And they go down into the [g]inmost body.

23 Fervent lips with a wicked heart
Are like earthenware covered with silver dross.

24 He who hates, disguises it with his lips,
And lays up deceit within himself;
25 (K)When [h]he speaks kindly, do not believe him,
For there are seven abominations in his heart;
26 Though his hatred is covered by deceit,
His wickedness will be revealed before the assembly.

27 (L)Whoever digs a pit will fall into it,
And he who rolls a stone will have it roll back on him.

28 A lying tongue hates those who are crushed by it,
And a flattering mouth works (M)ruin.

My Son, Be Wise

27 Do(N) not boast about tomorrow,
For you do not know what a day may bring forth.

(O)Let another man praise you, and not your own mouth;
A stranger, and not your own lips.

A stone is heavy and sand is weighty,
But a fool’s wrath is heavier than both of them.

Wrath is cruel and anger a torrent,
But (P)who is able to stand before jealousy?

(Q)Open rebuke is better
Than love carefully concealed.

Faithful are the wounds of a friend,
But the kisses of an enemy are (R)deceitful.

A satisfied soul [i]loathes the honeycomb,
But to a hungry soul every bitter thing is sweet.

Like a bird that wanders from its nest
Is a man who wanders from his place.

Ointment and perfume delight the heart,
And the sweetness of a man’s friend gives delight by [j]hearty counsel.

10 Do not forsake your own friend or your father’s friend,
Nor go to your brother’s house in the day of your calamity;
(S)Better is a neighbor nearby than a brother far away.

11 My son, be wise, and make my heart glad,
(T)That I may answer him who reproaches me.

12 A prudent man foresees evil and hides himself;
The simple pass on and are (U)punished.

13 Take the garment of him who is surety for a stranger,
And hold it in pledge when he is surety for a seductress.

14 He who blesses his friend with a loud voice, rising early in the morning,
It will be counted a curse to him.

15 A (V)continual dripping on a very rainy day
And a contentious woman are alike;
16 Whoever [k]restrains her restrains the wind,
And grasps oil with his right hand.

17 As iron sharpens iron,
So a man sharpens the countenance of his friend.

18 (W)Whoever [l]keeps the fig tree will eat its fruit;
So he who waits on his master will be honored.

19 As in water face reflects face,
So a man’s heart reveals the man.

20 (X)Hell[m] and [n]Destruction are never full;
So (Y)the eyes of man are never satisfied.

21 (Z)The refining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold,
And a man is valued by what others say of him.

22 (AA)Though you grind a fool in a mortar with a pestle along with crushed grain,
Yet his foolishness will not depart from him.

23 Be diligent to know the state of your (AB)flocks,
And attend to your herds;
24 For riches are not forever,
Nor does a crown endure to all generations.
25 (AC)When the hay is removed, and the tender grass shows itself,
And the herbs of the mountains are gathered in,
26 The lambs will provide your clothing,
And the goats the price of a field;
27 You shall have enough goats’ milk for your food,
For the food of your household,
And the nourishment of your maidservants.

Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 26:10 Heb. difficult in v. 10; ancient and modern translators differ greatly
  2. Proverbs 26:13 Or plazas, squares
  3. Proverbs 26:15 LXX, Syr. bosom; Tg., Vg. armpit
  4. Proverbs 26:20 gossip or slanderer, lit. whisperer
  5. Proverbs 26:22 gossip or slanderer
  6. Proverbs 26:22 A Jewish tradition wounds
  7. Proverbs 26:22 Lit. rooms of the belly
  8. Proverbs 26:25 Lit. his voice is gracious
  9. Proverbs 27:7 tramples on
  10. Proverbs 27:9 Lit. counsel of the soul
  11. Proverbs 27:16 Lit. hides
  12. Proverbs 27:18 protects or tends
  13. Proverbs 27:20 Or Sheol
  14. Proverbs 27:20 Heb. Abaddon

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