Proverbs 26:1-16 Parallel Bible Translations

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	NET New English Translation	ESV English Standard Version	NIV New International Version
1	Like snow in summer or rain in harvest, so honor is not fitting for a fool.	Like snow in summer or rain in harvest, so honor is not fitting for a fool.	Like snow in summer or rain in harvest, honor is not fitting for a fool.
2	Like a fluttering bird or like a flying swallow, so a curse without cause does not come to rest.	Like a sparrow in its flitting, like a swallow in its flying, a curse that is causeless does not alight.	Like a fluttering sparrow or a darting swallow, an undeserved curse does not come to rest.
3	A whip for the horse and a bridle for the donkey, and a rod for the backs of fools!	A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, and a rod for the back of fools.	A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, and a rod for the backs of fools!
4	Do not answer a fool according to his folly, lest you yourself also be like him.	Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest you be like him yourself.	Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you yourself will be just like him.
5	Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own estimation.	Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own eyes.	Answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes.
6	Like cutting off the feet or drinking violence, so is sending a message by the hand of a fool.	Whoever sends a message by the hand of a fool cuts off his own feet and drinks violence.	Sending a message by the hands of a fool is like cutting off one’s feet or drinking poison.
7	Like legs that hang limp from the lame, so is a proverb in the mouth of fools.	Like a lame man’s legs, which hang useless, is a proverb in the mouth of fools.	Like the useless legs of one who is lame is a proverb in the mouth of a fool.
8	Like tying a stone in a sling, so is giving honor to a fool.	Like one who binds the stone in the sling is one who gives honor to a fool.	Like tying a stone in a sling is the giving of honor to a fool.
9	Like a thorn that goes into the hand of a drunkard, so is a proverb in the mouth of a fool.	Like a thorn that goes up into the hand of a drunkard is a proverb in the mouth of fools.	Like a thornbush in a drunkard’s hand is a proverb in the mouth of a fool.
10	Like an archer who wounds at random, so is the one who hires a fool or hires any passer-by.	Like an archer who wounds everyone is one who hires a passing fool or drunkard.	Like an archer who wounds at random is one who hires a fool or any passer-by.
11	Like a dog that returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his folly.	Like a dog that returns to his vomit is a fool who repeats his folly.	As a dog returns to its vomit, so fools repeat their folly.
12	Do you see a man wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.	Do you see a man who is wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.	Do you see a person wise in their own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for them.
13	The sluggard says, \|There is a lion in the road! A lion in the streets!\|	The sluggard says, “There is a lion in the road! There is a lion in the streets!”	A sluggard says, “There’s a lion in the road, a fierce lion roaming the streets!”
14	Like a door that turns on its hinges, so a sluggard turns on his bed.	As a door turns on its hinges, so does a sluggard on his bed.	As a door turns on its hinges, so a sluggard turns on his bed.
15	The sluggard plunges his hand in the dish; he is too lazy to bring it back to his mouth.	The sluggard buries his hand in the dish; it wears him out to bring it back to his mouth.	A 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 estimation than seven people who respond with good sense.	The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes than seven men who can answer sensibly.	A sluggard is wiser in his own eyes than seven people who answer discreetly.
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