Proverbs 26
26
1It shouldn’t snow in summer or rain at harvest.
Neither should a foolish person ever be honored.
2Curses will not harm someone who is innocent.
They are like sparrows or swallows that fly around and never land.
3A whip is used to guide a horse, and a harness is used for a donkey.
In the same way, a paddle is used on a foolish person to guide him.
4Don’t give a foolish person a foolish answer.
If you do, you will be just like him.
5But answer a foolish person as he should be answered.
If you don’t, he will think he is really wise.
6Don’t send a message by a foolish person.
That would be like cutting off your feet or drinking poison.
7A wise saying spoken by a fool does no good.
It is like the legs of a crippled person.
8Giving honor to a foolish person does no good.
It is like tying a stone in a slingshot.
9A wise saying spoken by a fool
is like a thorn stuck in the hand of a drunk.
10Someone might employ a foolish person or anyone just passing by.
That employer is like an archer who shoots at anything he sees.
11A dog eats what it throws up.
And a foolish person repeats his foolishness.
12Some people think they are wise.
There is more hope for a foolish person than for them.
13The lazy person says, “There’s a lion in the road.
There’s a lion in the streets!”
14The lazy person is like a door that turns back and forth on its hinges.
He stays in bed and turns over and over.
15The lazy person may put his hand in the dish.
But he’s too tired to lift the food to his mouth.
16The lazy person thinks he is wiser
than seven people who give sensible answers.
17To grab a dog by the ears is asking for trouble.
So is interfering in someone else’s quarrel if you’re just passing by.
18-19A person shouldn’t trick his neighbor
and then say, “I was just joking!”
That is like a madman shooting
deadly, burning arrows.
20Without wood, a fire will go out.
And without gossip, quarreling will stop.
21Charcoal and wood keep a fire going.
In the same way, a quarrelsome person keeps an argument going.
22The words of a gossip are like tasty bits of food.
People take them all in.
23Kind words from a wicked mind
are like a shiny coating on a clay pot.
24A person who hates you may fool you with his words.
But in his mind he is planning evil.
25His words are kind, but don’t believe him.
His mind is full of evil thoughts.
26He hides his hate with lies.
But his evil will be plain to everyone.
27Whoever digs a deep trap for others will fall into it himself.
Whoever tries to roll a boulder over others will be crushed by it.
28A liar hates the people he hurts.
And false praise can ruin others.
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Proverbs 26: ICB
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Copyright © 2015 by Tommy Nelson™, a Division of Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
Proverbs 26
26
1Like snow in summer or #[1 Sam. 12:17] rain in harvest,
so #[ver. 8] honor is #ch. 17:7; 19:10not fitting for a fool.
2Like #ch. 27:8; Ps. 84:3 a sparrow in its flitting, like a swallow in its flying,
# [Num. 23:8; Deut. 23:5; 2 Sam. 16:12] a curse that is causeless does not alight.
3 # [Ps. 32:9] A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey,
and #See ch. 19:29a rod for the back of fools.
4 # [2 Sam. 16:11; 2 Kgs. 18:36; Luke 23:9] Answer not a fool according to his folly,
lest you be like him yourself.
5 # See Matt. 16:1-4; 21:24-27 Answer a fool according to his folly,
lest he be #ch. 28:11; [Rom. 12:16]wise in his own eyes.
6Whoever sends a message by the hand of a fool
cuts off his own feet and #[ch. 13:2; Job 15:16]drinks violence.
7Like a lame man’s legs, which hang useless,
is a proverb in the mouth of fools.
8Like one who binds the stone in the sling
is #[ver. 1]one who gives honor to a fool.
9Like #[ch. 23:35]a thorn that goes up into the hand of a drunkard
is a proverb in the mouth of fools.
10Like an archer who wounds everyone
is one who hires a passing fool or drunkard.#26:10 Or hires a fool or passersby
11Like #Cited 2 Pet. 2:22 a dog that returns to his vomit
is #[Ex. 8:15]a fool who repeats his folly.
12Do you see a man who is #ch. 28:11; [Rom. 12:16] wise in his own eyes?
# ch. 29:20 There is more hope for a fool than for him.
13 # ch. 22:13 The sluggard says, “There is a lion in the road!
There is a lion in the streets!”
14As a door turns on its hinges,
so does a sluggard on his bed.
15 # ch. 19:24 The sluggard buries his hand in the dish;
it wears him out to bring it back to his mouth.
16The sluggard is #[See ver. 12 above] wiser in his own eyes
# [ver. 25; ch. 6:16]; See Job 5:19 than seven men who can answer sensibly.
17Whoever meddles in a quarrel not his own
is like one who takes a passing dog by the ears.
18Like a madman who throws #[Isa. 50:11]firebrands, arrows, and death
19is the man who deceives his neighbor
and says, “I am only joking!”
20For lack of wood the fire goes out,
and where there is no #ch. 16:28 whisperer, #ch. 22:10quarreling ceases.
21As charcoal to hot embers and wood to fire,
so is #See ch. 15:18a quarrelsome man for kindling strife.
22 # ch. 18:8 The words of #[See ver. 20 above]a whisperer are like delicious morsels;
they go down into the inner parts of the body.
23 # [Matt. 23:27; Luke 11:39] Like the #See ch. 25:4glaze#26:23 By revocalization; Hebrew silver of dross covering an earthen vessel
are fervent lips with an evil heart.
24Whoever hates disguises himself with his lips
and harbors deceit in his heart;
25 # See Ps. 28:3 when he speaks graciously, believe him not,
for there are #[ver. 16]seven abominations in his heart;
26though his hatred be covered with deception,
his wickedness will be exposed in the assembly.
27 # [ch. 28:10]; See Ps. 7:15 Whoever digs a pit will fall into it,
and a stone will come back on him who starts it rolling.
28A lying tongue hates its victims,
and a flattering mouth works ruin.
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