Proverb: A trite maxim; a similitude; a parable. The Hebrew word thus rendered
(mashal) has a wide signification. It comes from a root meaning "to
be like," "parable." Rendered "proverb" in
(Isaiah 14:4; Habakkuk 2:6) "dark
saying" in
(Psalms 49:4; Numbers 12:8) Ahab's defiant words in answer to the
insolent demands of Benhadad, "Let not him that girdeth on his
harness boast himself as he that putteth it off," is a well known
instance of a proverbial saying
(1 Kings 20:11)
