28 Even a fool is considered wise when he keeps silent—
discerning, when he seals his lips.(A)

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28 Fools who keep quiet are deemed wise;
    those who shut their lips are smart.

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A fool does not delight in understanding,
but only wants to show off his opinions.[a](A)

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Footnotes

  1. 18:2 Lit to uncover his heart

Fools find no pleasure in understanding,
    but only in expressing their opinion.

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A fool’s lips lead to strife,
and his mouth provokes a beating.(A)

A fool’s mouth is his devastation,
and his lips are a trap for his life.(B)

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The lips of fools make accusations;
    their mouths elicit beatings.
The mouth of fools is their ruin;
    their lips are a trap for their lives.

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19 Better a poor person who lives with integrity(A)
than someone who has deceitful lips and is a fool.

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19 Better to be poor and walk in innocence
    than to have dishonest lips and be a fool.

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10 Luxury is not appropriate for a fool(A)
how much less for a slave to rule over princes!(B)

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10 Luxury isn’t fitting for a fool;
    even less so for a servant to rule over princes.

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29 Judgments are prepared for mockers,
and beatings for the backs of fools.(A)

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29 Punishments were made for mockers,
    and blows for the backs of fools.

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Honor belongs to the person who ends a dispute,(A)
but any fool can get himself into a quarrel.(B)

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It is honorable to back off from a fight,
    but fools jump right in.

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Don’t speak to[a] a fool,
for he will despise the insight of your words.(A)

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Footnotes

  1. 23:9 Lit in the ears of

Don’t speak in the ears of fools,
    for they will scorn your insightful words.

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Wisdom is inaccessible to[a] a fool;(A)
he does not open his mouth at the city gate.(B)

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Footnotes

  1. 24:7 Lit is too high for

Wisdom is beyond foolish people.
    They don’t open their mouths in the gate.

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26 Like snow in summer and rain at harvest,(A)
honor is inappropriate for a fool.(B)

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26 Like snow in the summer or rain at harvest,
    so honor isn’t appropriate for a fool.

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A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey,(A)
and a rod for the backs of fools.(B)
Don’t answer a fool according to his foolishness(C)
or you’ll be like him yourself.
Answer a fool according to his foolishness(D)
or he’ll become wise in his own eyes.(E)
The one who sends a message by a fool’s hand(F)
cuts off his own feet and drinks violence.(G)
A proverb in the mouth of a fool
is like lame legs that hang limp.
Giving honor to a fool
is like binding a stone in a sling.
A proverb in the mouth of a fool
is like a stick with thorns,
brandished by[a] the hand of a drunkard.
10 The one who hires a fool or who hires those passing by
is like an archer who wounds everyone indiscriminately.
11 As a dog returns to its vomit,
so also a fool repeats his foolishness.(H)
12 Do you see a person who is wise in his own eyes?(I)
There is more hope for a fool than for him.(J)

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Footnotes

  1. 26:9 Lit thorn that goes up into

A whip for a horse, a bridle for a donkey,
    and a rod for the back of fools.
Don’t answer fools according to their folly,
    or you will become like them yourself.
Answer fools according to their folly,
    or they will deem themselves wise.
Sending messages with a fool
    is like cutting off one’s feet or drinking down violence.
As legs dangle from a disabled person,
    so does a proverb in the mouth of fools.
Like tying a stone in a sling,
    so is giving respect to a fool.
Like a thorny bush in the hand of a drunk,
    so is a proverb in the mouth of fools.
10 Like an archer who wounds someone randomly,
    so is one who hires a fool or a passerby.
11 Like a dog that returns to its vomit,
    so a fool repeats foolish mistakes.
12 Do you see people who consider themselves wise?
    There is more hope for a fool than for them.

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A stone is heavy, and sand a burden,
but aggravation from a fool outweighs them both.

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A stone is heavy and sand weighs much,
    but the nuisance of fools is heavier than both.

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