1 Like snow in summer and like rain in harvest, So honor is not fitting for a fool.
2 Like a sparrow in [its] flitting, like a swallow in [its] flying, So a curse without cause does not alight.
3 A whip is for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, And a rod for the back of fools.
4 Do not answer a fool according to his folly, Or you will also be like him.
5 Answer a fool as his folly [deserves], That he not be wise in his own eyes.
6 He cuts off [his own] feet [and] drinks violence Who sends a message by the hand of a fool.
7 [Like] the legs [which] are useless to the lame, So is a proverb in the mouth of fools.
8 Like one who binds a stone in a sling, So is he who gives honor to a fool.
9 [Like] a thorn [which] falls into the hand of a drunkard, So is a proverb in the mouth of fools.
10 [Like] an archer who wounds everyone, So is he who hires a fool or who hires those who pass by.
11 Like a dog that returns to its vomit 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 lion is in the open square!|
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 weary of bringing it to his mouth again.
16 The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes Than seven men who can give a discreet answer.
17 [Like] one who takes a dog by the ears Is he who passes by [and] meddles with strife not belonging to him.
18 Like a madman who throws Firebrands, arrows and death,
19 So is the man who deceives his neighbor, And says, |Was I not joking?|
20 For lack of wood the fire goes out, And where there is no whisperer, contention quiets down.
21 [Like] charcoal to hot embers and wood to fire, So is a contentious man to kindle strife.
