4 Do not answer a fool according to his folly,
Lest you also be like him.
5 a Answer a fool according to his folly,
Lest he be wise in his own eyes.
‡
6 He who sends a message by the hand of a fool
Cuts off
his own feet
and drinks violence.
7 Like the legs of the lame that hang limp
Is a proverb in the mouth of fools.
8 Like one who binds a stone in a sling
Is he who gives honor to a fool.
9 Like a thorn
that goes into the hand of a drunkard
Is a proverb in the mouth of fools.
10 1 The great
God who formed everything
Gives the fool
his hire and the transgressor
his wages.
‡
11 a As a dog returns to his own vomit,
b So a fool repeats his folly.
‡
12 a Do you see a man wise in his own eyes?
There is more hope for a fool than for him.
‡
13 The lazy
man says, “
There is a lion in the road!
A fierce lion
is in the
1 streets!”
‡
14 As a door turns on its hinges,
So
does the lazy
man on his bed.
New King James Version®, Copyright© 1982, Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.
