Proverbs 26

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Like snow in summer and like rain in harvest,

So glory is not fitting for a fool.

Like a sparrow in its flitting, like a swallow in flying,

So a curse without cause does not come to pass.

A whip is for the horse, a bridle for the donkey,

And a rod for the back of fools.

Do not answer a fool according to his folly,

Lest you yourself also be like him.

Answer a fool according to his folly,

Lest he be wise in his own eyes.

He cuts off his own feet and drinks violence

Who sends words by the hand of a fool.

Like the legs which hang limp on the lame,

So is a proverb in the mouth of fools.

Like one who binds a stone in a sling,

So is he who gives glory to a fool.

Like a thorn which goes up into the hand of a drunkard,

So is a proverb in the mouth of fools.

Like an archer who wounds everyone,

So is he who hires a fool or who hires those who pass by.

Like a dog that returns to its vomit

Is a fool who repeats his folly.

Do you see a man wise in his own eyes?

There is more hope for a fool than for him.

The sluggard says, “There is a fierce lion in the road!

A lion is among the streets!”

As the door turns on its hinges,

So does the sluggard on his bed.

The sluggard buries his hand in the dish;

He is too weary to return it to his mouth.

The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes

Than seven men who can respond with a discreet answer.

Like one who seizes a dog by the ears

Is he who passes by and becomes passionate about strife not belonging to him.

Like a madman who shoots

Firebrands, arrows, and death,

So is the man who deceives his neighbor,

And says, “Am I not joking?”

With no wood the fire goes out,

And where there is no whisperer, strife quiets down.

Like charcoal to hot embers and wood to fire,

So is a contentious man to kindle strife.

The words of a whisperer are like dainty morsels,

And they go down into the innermost parts of the stomach.

Like an earthen vessel overlaid with silver dross

Are fiery lips and an evil heart.

He who hates disguises it with his lips,

But he sets up deceit within himself.

When he makes his voice gracious, do not believe him,

For there are seven abominations in his heart.

Though his hatred covers itself with guile,

His evil will be revealed in the assembly.

He who digs a pit will fall into it,

And he who rolls a stone, it will turn back on him.

A lying tongue hates those it crushes,

And a flattering mouth works ruin.

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