⁴ Do not answer a fool according to his folly,
Lest you also be like him.
^5 (A)Answer a fool according to his folly,
Lest he be wise in his own eyes.
⁶ He who sends a message by the hand of a fool
Cuts off his own feet and drinks violence.
⁷ Like the legs of the lame that hang limp
Is a proverb in the mouth of fools.
⁸ Like one who binds a stone in a sling
Is he who gives honor to a fool.
⁹ 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 (B)As a dog returns to his own vomit,
^(C)So a fool repeats his folly.