Proverbs 26
26
Don’t Be a Fool
1It is totally out of place to promote and honor a fool,
just like it’s out of place to have snow in the summer
and rain at harvest time. # 26:1 Both snow and rain are good in their proper season but harmful in the wrong season. So is it harmful to the fool if you promote and honor him prematurely.
2An undeserved curse will be powerless to harm you.
It may flutter over you like a bird,
but it will find no place to land. # 26:2 There is an implication in some Hebrew manuscripts that the curse will go back and land on the one who wrongly spoke it, like a bird going back to its nest.
3Guide a horse with a whip,
direct a donkey with a bridle,
and lead a rebellious fool with a beating on his backside!
4Don’t respond to the words of a fool with more foolish words,
or you will become as foolish as he is!
5Instead, if you’re asked a silly question,
answer it with words of wisdom # 26:5 As translated from the Aramaic.
so the fool doesn’t think he’s so clever.
6If you choose a fool to represent you,
you’re asking for trouble.
It will be as bad for you as cutting off your own feet!
7You can never trust the words of a fool,
just like a crippled man can’t trust his legs to support him. # 26:7 As translated from the Aramaic.
8Give honor to a fool and watch it backfire—
like a stone tied to a slingshot.
9The statements of a fool will hurt others # 26:9 As translated from the Aramaic.
like a thorn bush brandished by a drunk.
10Like a reckless archer shooting arrows at random
is the impatient employer
who hires just any fool who comes along—
someone’s going to get hurt! # 26:10 Implied in the context. This is a difficult verse to translate, and it reads quite differently in the Aramaic and the Septuagint. The Aramaic is “A fool suffers much, like a drunkard crossing the sea.” The Septuagint reads “Every fool endures much hardship and his fury comes to nothing.”
11Fools are famous for repeating their errors,
like dogs are known to return to their vomit.
12There’s only one thing worse than a fool,
and that’s the smug, conceited man
always in love with his own opinions.
Don’t Be Lazy
13The lazy loafer says,
“I can’t go out and look for a job—
there may be a lion out there roaming wild in the streets!”
14As a door is hinged to the wall,
so the lazy man keeps turning over, hinged to his bed!
15There are some people so lazy
they won’t even work to feed themselves.
16A self-righteous person # 26:16 Or “sluggard.” This speaks of a person who lives in fantasy and not reality. is convinced he’s smarter
than seven wise counselors who tell him the truth.
17It’s better to grab a stray dog by its ears
than to meddle in a quarrel # 26:17 Or “to become furious because of a quarrel that’s not yours.”
that’s none of your business.
Watch Your Words
18-19The one who is caught lying to his friend,
who says, “I didn’t mean it, I was only joking,”
can be compared to a madman
randomly shooting off deadly weapons.
20It takes fuel to have a fire—
a fire dies down when you run out of fuel.
So quarrels disappear when the gossip ends.
21Add fuel to the fire and the blaze goes on.
So add an argumentative man to the mix,
and you’ll keep strife alive.
22Gossip is so delicious, and how we love to swallow it!
For slander # 26:22 Or “complaining.” is easily absorbed into our innermost being.
23Smooth talk # 26:23 As translated from the Septuagint. The Hebrew is “Burning words.” can hide a corrupt heart
just like a pretty glaze covers a cheap clay pot.
24Kind words can be a cover to conceal hatred of others,
for hypocrisy loves to hide behind flattery.
25So don’t be drawn in by the hypocrite,
for his gracious speech is a charade,
nothing but a masquerade covering his hatred and evil on parade. # 26:25 The Hebrew is “seven abominations hide in his heart.” This is a figure of speech for the fullness of evil, a heart filled to the brim with darkness.
26Don’t worry—he can’t keep the mask on for long.
One day his hypocrisy will be exposed before all the world.
27Go ahead, set a trap for others—
and then watch as it snaps back on you!
Start a landslide and you’ll be the one who gets crushed.
28Hatred is the root of slander # 26:28 Or “A slanderer hates his victims.”
and insecurity the root of flattery. # 26:28 Or “A flattering mouth works ruin.” The Aramaic is “Malicious words work trouble.”
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Proverbs 26: TPT
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Learn More About The Passion TranslationProverbs 26
26
1Praise for a fool is out of place, like snow in summer or rain at harvest time.
2Curses cannot hurt you unless you deserve them. They are like birds that fly by and never settle.
3You have to whip a horse, you have to bridle a donkey, and you have to beat a fool.
4If you answer a silly question, you are just as silly as the person who asked it.
5Give a silly answer to a silly question, and the one who asked it will realize that he's not as clever as he thinks.
6If you let a fool deliver a message, you might as well cut off your own feet; you are asking for trouble.
7A fool can use a proverb about as well as crippled people can use their legs.
8Praising someone who is stupid makes as much sense as tying a stone in a sling.
9A fool quoting a wise saying reminds you of a drunk trying to pick a thorn out of his hand.
10An employer who hires any fool that comes along is only hurting everybody concerned.#26.10 Verse 10 in Hebrew is unclear.
11A fool doing some stupid thing a second time is like a dog going back to its vomit.
12The most stupid fool is better off than someone who thinks he is wise when he is not.
13Why don't lazy people ever get out of the house? What are they afraid of? Lions?
14Lazy people turn over in bed. They get no farther than a door swinging on its hinges.
15Some people are too lazy to put food in their own mouths.
16A lazy person will think he is more intelligent than seven people who can give good reasons for their opinions.
17Getting involved in an argument that is none of your business is like going down the street and grabbing a dog by the ears.
18-19Someone who misleads someone else and then claims that he was only joking is like a mad person playing with a deadly weapon.
20Without wood, a fire goes out; without gossip, quarrelling stops.
21Charcoal keeps the embers glowing, wood keeps the fire burning, and troublemakers keep arguments alive.
22Gossip is so tasty! How we love to swallow it!
23Insincere#26.23 One ancient translation Insincere; Hebrew Burning. talk that hides what you are really thinking is like a fine glaze#26.23 Probable text fine glaze; Hebrew unrefined silver. on a cheap clay pot.
24A hypocrite hides hatred behind flattering words. 25They may sound fine, but don't believe him, because his heart is filled to the brim with hate. 26He may disguise his hatred, but everyone will see the evil things he does.
27People who set traps for others get caught themselves. People who start landslides get crushed.
28You have to hate someone to want to hurt him with lies. Insincere talk brings nothing but ruin.
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Good News Bible. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.