1: Like snow in summer, and as rain in harvest, So honor is not fitting for a fool. 2: Like a fluttering sparrow, Like a darting swallow, So the undeserved curse doesn't come to rest. 3: A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, And a rod for the back of fools! 4: Don't answer a fool according to his folly, Lest you also be like him. 5: Answer a fool according to his folly, Lest he be wise in his own eyes. 6: One who sends a message by the hand of a fool Is cutting off feet and drinking violence. 7: Like the legs of the lame that hang loose: So is a parable in the mouth of fools. 8: As one who binds a stone in a sling, So is he who gives honor to a fool. 9: Like a thornbush that goes into the hand of a drunkard, So is a parable in the mouth of fools. 10: As an archer who wounds all, So is he who hires a fool Or he who hires those who pass by. 11: As a dog that returns to his vomit, So is a fool who repeats his folly. 12: Do you see a man wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him. 13: The sluggard says, "There is a lion in the road! A fierce lion roams the streets!" 14: As the door turns on its hinges, So does the sluggard on his bed. 15: The sluggard buries his hand in the dish. He is too lazy to bring it back to his mouth. 16: The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes Than seven men who answer with discretion. 17: Like one who seizes a dog's ears Is one who passes by and meddles in a quarrel not his own. 18: Like a madman who shoots firebrands, arrows, and death, 19: Is the man who deceives his neighbor and says, "Am I not joking?" 20: For lack of wood the fire goes out; Where there is no gossip, a quarrel dies down. 21: As coals are to hot embers, And wood to fire, So is a contentious man to kindle strife. 22: The words of a whisperer are as dainty morsels, They go down into the innermost parts. 23: Like silver dross on an earthen vessel Are the lips of a fervent one with an evil heart. 24: A malicious man disguises himself with his lips, But he harbors evil in his heart. 25: When his speech is charming, don't believe him; For there are seven abominations in his heart: 26: His malice may be concealed by deception, But his wickedness will be exposed in the assembly. 27: Whoever digs a pit shall fall into it. Whoever rolls a stone, it will come back on him. 28: A lying tongue hates those it hurts; And a flattering mouth works ruin.
