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26 An honest answer
    is like a kiss of friendship.

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26 He kisses the lips
Who responds with right words.

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    don’t be in a hurry to go to court.
For what will you do in the end
    if your neighbor deals you a shameful defeat?

When arguing with your neighbor,
    don’t betray another person’s secret.
10 Others may accuse you of gossip,
    and you will never regain your good reputation.

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Do not go out (A)hastily to plead your case;
Lest, what will you do in [a]the end,
When your neighbor humiliates you?
(B)Plead your case with your neighbor,
And (C)do not reveal the secret of another,
10 Lest he who hears it bring disgrace upon you,
And the bad report about you will not turn away.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 25:8 Lit its

11 Timely advice is lovely,
    like golden apples in a silver basket.

12 To one who listens, valid criticism
    is like a gold earring or other gold jewelry.

13 Trustworthy messengers refresh like snow in summer.
    They revive the spirit of their employer.

14 A person who promises a gift but doesn’t give it
    is like clouds and wind that bring no rain.

15 Patience can persuade a prince,
    and soft speech can break bones.

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11 Like apples of gold in settings of silver
Is a (A)word spoken in [a]right circumstances.
12 Like [b]an (B)earring of gold and an (C)ornament of (D)fine gold
Is a wise reprover to a (E)listening ear.
13 Like the cold of snow in the [c]time of harvest
Is a (F)faithful envoy to those who send him,
For he refreshes the soul of his masters.
14 Like (G)clouds and (H)wind without rain
Is a man who boasts [d]of his gifts falsely.
15 (I)When one is slow to anger, a ruler may be persuaded,
And a soft tongue breaks the bone.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 25:11 Lit its
  2. Proverbs 25:12 Or a nose ring
  3. Proverbs 25:13 Lit day
  4. Proverbs 25:14 Lit in a gift of falsehood

20 Singing cheerful songs to a person with a heavy heart
    is like taking someone’s coat in cold weather
    or pouring vinegar in a wound.[a]

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Footnotes

  1. 25:20 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads pouring vinegar on soda.

20 Like one who takes off a garment on a cold day, or like vinegar on [a]soda,
Is he who sings songs to [b]an aching heart.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 25:20 Or natron
  2. Proverbs 25:20 Lit an evil

Don’t answer the foolish arguments of fools,
    or you will become as foolish as they are.

Be sure to answer the foolish arguments of fools,
    or they will become wise in their own estimation.

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(A)Do not answer a fool according to his folly,
Lest you yourself also be like him.
(B)Answer a fool according to his folly,
Lest he be (C)wise in his own eyes.

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17 Interfering in someone else’s argument
    is as foolish as yanking a dog’s ears.

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17 Like one who seizes a dog by the ears
Is he who passes by and becomes passionate about (A)strife not belonging to him.

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18 Just as damaging
    as a madman shooting a deadly weapon
19 is someone who lies to a friend
    and then says, “I was only joking.”

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18 Like a madman who shoots
(A)Firebrands, arrows, and death,
19 So is the man who (B)deceives his neighbor,
And says, “(C)Am I not joking?”

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23 In the end, people appreciate honest criticism
    far more than flattery.

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23 He who (A)reproves a man will afterward find more favor
Than he who (B)flatters with the tongue.

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20 There is more hope for a fool
    than for someone who speaks without thinking.

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20 Do you behold a man who is (A)hasty in his words?
There is (B)more hope for a fool than for him.

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