26 Like snow in summer or rain in harvest,
    so honor is not fitting for a fool.^(A)
2 Like a sparrow in its flitting, like a swallow in its flying,
    an undeserved curse goes nowhere.^(B)
3 A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey,
    and a rod for the back of fools.^(C)
4 Do not answer fools according to their folly,
    lest you be a fool yourself.^(D)
5 Answer fools according to their folly,
    lest they be wise in their own eyes.^(E)
6 It is like cutting off one’s foot and drinking down violence,
    to send a message by a fool.
⁷ The legs of a lame person hang limp;
    so does a proverb in the mouth of a fool.^(F)
8 It is like binding a stone in a sling
    to give honor to a fool.^(G)
9 Like a thornbush brandished by the hand of a drunkard
    is a proverb in the mouth of a fool.^(H)
10 Like an archer who wounds everybody
    is one who hires a passing fool or drunkard.^[a]
11 Like a dog that returns to its vomit
    is a fool who reverts to his folly.^(I)
12 Do you see people wise in their own eyes?
    There is more hope for fools than for them.^(J)