58 lines
2.3 KiB
Markdown
58 lines
2.3 KiB
Markdown
# Chapter 26
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1 Like snow in summer and rain at harvest,
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honor is inappropriate for a fool.
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2 Like a flitting sparrow or a fluttering swallow,
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an undeserved curse goes nowhere.
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3 A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey,
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and a rod for the backs of fools.
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4 Don’t answer a fool according to his foolishness
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or you’ll be like him yourself.
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5 Answer a fool according to his foolishness
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or he’ll become wise in his own eyes.
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6 The one who sends a message by a fool’s hand
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cuts off his own feet and drinks violence.
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7 A proverb in the mouth of a fool
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is like lame legs that hang limp.
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8 Giving honor to a fool
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is like binding a stone in a sling.
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9 A proverb in the mouth of a fool
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is like a stick with thorns,
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brandished by the hand of a drunkard.
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10 The one who hires a fool or who hires those passing by
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is like an archer who wounds everyone indiscriminately.
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11 As a dog returns to its vomit,
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so also a fool repeats his foolishness.
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12 Do you see a person who is wise in his own eyes?
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There is more hope for a fool than for him.
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13 The slacker says, “There’s a lion in the road—
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a lion in the public square!”
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14 A door turns on its hinges,
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and a slacker, on his bed.
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15 The slacker buries his hand in the bowl;
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he is too weary to bring it to his mouth!
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16 In his own eyes, a slacker is wiser
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than seven who can answer sensibly.
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17 A person who is passing by and meddles in a quarrel that’s not his
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is like one who grabs a dog by the ears.
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18 Like a madman who throws flaming darts and deadly arrows,
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19 so is the person who deceives his neighbor
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and says, “I was only joking!”
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20 Without wood, fire goes out;
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without a gossip, conflict dies down.
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21 As charcoal for embers and wood for fire,
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so is a quarrelsome person for kindling strife.
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22 A gossip’s words are like choice food
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that goes down to one’s innermost being.
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23 Smooth lips with an evil heart
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are like glaze on an earthen vessel.
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24 A hateful person disguises himself with his speech
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and harbors deceit within.
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25 When he speaks graciously, don’t believe him,
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for there are seven detestable things in his heart.
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26 Though his hatred is concealed by deception,
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his evil will be revealed in the assembly.
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27 The one who digs a pit will fall into it,
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and whoever rolls a stone—
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it will come back on him.
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28 A lying tongue hates those it crushes,
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and a flattering mouth causes ruin. |