| New Living Translation | Holman Christian Standard Bible |
| 1As dead flies cause even a bottle of perfume to stink, so a little foolishness spoils great wisdom and honor. | 1Dead flies make a perfumer's oil ferment and stink; so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor. |
| 2A wise person chooses the right road; a fool takes the wrong one. | 2A wise man's heart goes to the right, but a fool's heart to the left. |
| 3You can identify fools just by the way they walk down the street! | 3Even when the fool walks along the road, his heart lacks sense, and he shows everyone he is a fool. |
| 4If your boss is angry at you, don’t quit! A quiet spirit can overcome even great mistakes. The Ironies of Life | 4If the ruler's anger rises against you, don't leave your place, for calmness puts great offenses to rest. |
| 5There is another evil I have seen under the sun. Kings and rulers make a grave mistake | 5There is an evil I have seen under the sun, an error proceeding from the presence of the ruler: |
| 6when they give great authority to foolish people and low positions to people of proven worth. | 6The fool is appointed to great heights, but the rich remain in lowly positions. |
| 7I have even seen servants riding horseback like princes—and princes walking like servants! | 7I have seen slaves on horses, but princes walking on the ground like slaves. |
| 8When you dig a well, you might fall in. When you demolish an old wall, you could be bitten by a snake. | 8The one who digs a pit may fall into it, and the one who breaks through a wall may be bitten by a snake. |
| 9When you work in a quarry, stones might fall and crush you. When you chop wood, there is danger with each stroke of your ax. | 9The one who quarries stones may be hurt by them; the one who splits trees may be endangered by them. |
| 10Using a dull ax requires great strength, so sharpen the blade. That’s the value of wisdom; it helps you succeed. | 10If the ax is dull, and one does not sharpen its edge, then one must exert more strength; however, the advantage of wisdom is that it brings success. |
| 11If a snake bites before you charm it, what’s the use of being a snake charmer? | 11If the snake bites before it is charmed, then there is no advantage for the charmer. |
| 12Wise words bring approval, but fools are destroyed by their own words. | 12The words from the mouth of a wise man are gracious, but the lips of a fool consume him. |
| 13Fools base their thoughts on foolish assumptions, so their conclusions will be wicked madness; | 13The beginning of the words of his mouth is folly, but the end of his speaking is evil madness. |
| 14they chatter on and on. No one really knows what is going to happen; no one can predict the future. | 14Yet the fool multiplies words. No one knows what will happen, and who can tell anyone what will happen after him? |
| 15Fools are so exhausted by a little work that they can’t even find their way home. | 15The struggles of fools weary them, for they don't know how to go to the city. |
| 16What sorrow for the land ruled by a servant, the land whose leaders feast in the morning. | 16Woe to you, land, when your king is a youth and your princes feast in the morning. |
| 17Happy is the land whose king is a noble leader and whose leaders feast at the proper time to gain strength for their work, not to get drunk. | 17Blessed are you, land, when your king is a son of nobles and your princes feast at the proper time-- for strength and not for drunkenness. |
| 18Laziness leads to a sagging roof; idleness leads to a leaky house. | 18Because of laziness the roof caves in, and because of negligent hands the house leaks. |
| 19A party gives laughter, wine gives happiness, and money gives everything! | 19A feast is prepared for laughter, and wine makes life happy, and money is the answer for everything. |
| 20Never make light of the king, even in your thoughts. And don’t make fun of the powerful, even in your own bedroom. For a little bird might deliver your message and tell them what you said. | 20Do not curse the king even in your thoughts, and do not curse a rich person even in your bedroom, for a bird of the sky may carry the message, and a winged creature may report the matter. |
| Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. | Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. |
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