Proverbs 17:28
New Living Translation
28 Even fools are thought wise when they keep silent;
with their mouths shut, they seem intelligent.
Proverbs 17:28
Living Bible
27-28 The man of few words and settled mind is wise; therefore, even a fool is thought to be wise when he is silent. It pays him to keep his mouth shut.
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Proverbs 18:2
New Living Translation
2 Fools have no interest in understanding;
they only want to air their own opinions.
Proverbs 18:2
Living Bible
2 A rebel doesn’t care about the facts. All he wants to do is yell.[a]
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- Proverbs 18:2 yell, literally, “express his opinion.”
Proverbs 18:6-7
New Living Translation
6 Fools’ words get them into constant quarrels;
they are asking for a beating.
7 The mouths of fools are their ruin;
they trap themselves with their lips.
Proverbs 18:6-7
Living Bible
6-7 A fool gets into constant fights. His mouth is his undoing! His words endanger him.
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Proverbs 19:1
New Living Translation
19 Better to be poor and honest
than to be dishonest and a fool.
Proverbs 19:1
Living Bible
19 Better to be poor and honest than rich[a] and dishonest.
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- Proverbs 19:1 rich, literally, “a fool.”
Proverbs 19:10
New Living Translation
10 It isn’t right for a fool to live in luxury
or for a slave to rule over princes!
Proverbs 19:10
Living Bible
10 It doesn’t seem right for a fool to succeed or for a slave to rule over princes!
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Proverbs 19:29
New Living Translation
29 Punishment is made for mockers,
and the backs of fools are made to be beaten.
Proverbs 20:3
New Living Translation
3 Avoiding a fight is a mark of honor;
only fools insist on quarreling.
Proverbs 20:3
Living Bible
3 It is an honor for a man to stay out of a fight. Only fools insist on quarreling.
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Proverbs 23:9
New Living Translation
9 Don’t waste your breath on fools,
for they will despise the wisest advice.
Proverbs 23:9
Living Bible
9 Don’t waste your breath on a rebel. He will despise the wisest advice.
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Proverbs 24:7
New Living Translation
7 Wisdom is too lofty for fools.
Among leaders at the city gate, they have nothing to say.
Proverbs 24:7
Living Bible
7 Wisdom is too much for a rebel. He’ll not be chosen as a counselor!
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Proverbs 26:1
New Living Translation
26 Honor is no more associated with fools
than snow with summer or rain with harvest.
Proverbs 26:1
Living Bible
26 Honor doesn’t go with fools any more than snow with summertime or rain with harvesttime!
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Proverbs 26:3-12
New Living Translation
3 Guide a horse with a whip, a donkey with a bridle,
and a fool with a rod to his back!
4 Don’t answer the foolish arguments of fools,
or you will become as foolish as they are.
5 Be sure to answer the foolish arguments of fools,
or they will become wise in their own estimation.
6 Trusting a fool to convey a message
is like cutting off one’s feet or drinking poison!
7 A proverb in the mouth of a fool
is as useless as a paralyzed leg.
8 Honoring a fool
is as foolish as tying a stone to a slingshot.
9 A proverb in the mouth of a fool
is like a thorny branch brandished by a drunk.
10 An employer who hires a fool or a bystander
is like an archer who shoots at random.
11 As a dog returns to its vomit,
so a fool repeats his foolishness.
12 There is more hope for fools
than for people who think they are wise.
Proverbs 26:3-12
Living Bible
3 Guide a horse with a whip, a donkey with a bridle, and a rebel with a rod to his back!
4-5 When arguing with a rebel, don’t use foolish arguments as he does, or you will become as foolish as he is! Prick his conceit with silly replies![a]
6 To trust a rebel to convey a message is as foolish as cutting off your feet and drinking poison!
7 In the mouth of a fool a proverb becomes as useless as a paralyzed leg.
8 Honoring a rebel will backfire like a stone tied to a slingshot!
9 A rebel will misapply an illustration so that its point will no more be felt than a thorn in the hand of a drunkard.
10 The master may get better work from an untrained apprentice than from a skilled rebel!
11 As a dog returns to his vomit, so a fool repeats his folly.
12 There is one thing worse than a fool, and that is a man who is conceited.
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- Proverbs 26:4 Prick his conceit with silly replies, implied; literally, “Reply to a fool as his folly requires.”
Proverbs 27:3
New Living Translation
3 A stone is heavy and sand is weighty,
but the resentment caused by a fool is even heavier.
Proverbs 27:3
Living Bible
3 A rebel’s frustrations are heavier than sand and rocks.
Read full chapterHoly Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.