Good News Translation GNT
New International Version NIV
1 Praise for a fool is out of place, like snow in summer or rain at harvest time.
1
Like snow in summer or rain in harvest, honor is not fitting for a fool.
2 Curses cannot hurt you unless you deserve them. They are like birds that fly by and never light.
2
Like a fluttering sparrow or a darting swallow, an undeserved curse does not come to rest.
3 You have to whip a horse, you have to bridle a donkey, and you have to beat a fool.
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A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, and a rod for the backs of fools!
4 If you answer a silly question, you are just as silly as the person who asked it.
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Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you yourself will be just like him.
5 Give a silly answer to a silly question, and the one who asked it will realize that he's not as smart as he thinks.
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Answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes.
6 If you let a fool deliver a message, you might as well cut off your own feet; you are asking for trouble.
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Sending a message by the hands of a fool is like cutting off one’s feet or drinking poison.
7 A fool can use a proverb about as well as crippled people can use their legs.
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Like the useless legs of one who is lame is a proverb in the mouth of a fool.
8 Praising someone who is stupid makes as much sense as tying a stone in a sling.
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Like tying a stone in a sling is the giving of honor to a fool.
9 A fool quoting a wise saying reminds you of a drunk trying to pick a thorn out of his hand.
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Like a thornbush in a drunkard’s hand is a proverb in the mouth of a fool.
10 An employer who hires any fool that comes along is only hurting everybody concerned.
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Like an archer who wounds at random is one who hires a fool or any passer-by.
11 A fool doing some stupid thing a second time is like a dog going back to its vomit.
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As a dog returns to its vomit, so fools repeat their folly.
12 The most stupid fool is better off than those who think they are wise when they are not.
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Do you see a person wise in their own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for them.
13 Why don't lazy people ever get out of the house? What are they afraid of? Lions?
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A sluggard says, “There’s a lion in the road, a fierce lion roaming the streets!”
14 Lazy people turn over in bed. They get no farther than a door swinging on its hinges.
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As a door turns on its hinges, so a sluggard turns on his bed.
15 Some people are too lazy to put food in their own mouths.
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A sluggard buries his hand in the dish; he is too lazy to bring it back to his mouth.
16 A lazy person will think he is smarter than seven men who can give good reasons for their opinions.
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A sluggard is wiser in his own eyes than seven people who answer discreetly.
17 Getting involved in an argument that is none of your business is like going down the street and grabbing a dog by the ears.
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Like one who grabs a stray dog by the ears is someone who rushes into a quarrel not their own.
18 Someone who tricks someone else and then claims that he was only joking is like a crazy person playing with a deadly weapon.
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Like a maniac shooting flaming arrows of death
20 Without wood, a fire goes out; without gossip, quarreling stops.
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Without wood a fire goes out; without a gossip a quarrel dies down.
21 Charcoal keeps the embers glowing, wood keeps the fire burning, and troublemakers keep arguments alive.
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As charcoal to embers and as wood to fire, so is a quarrelsome person for kindling strife.
22 Gossip is so tasty! How we love to swallow it!
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The words of a gossip are like choice morsels; they go down to the inmost parts.
23 Insincere talk that hides what you are really thinking is like a fine glaze on a cheap clay pot.
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Like a coating of silver dross on earthenware are fervent lips with an evil heart.
24 A hypocrite hides hate behind flattering words.
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Enemies disguise themselves with their lips, but in their hearts they harbor deceit.
25 They may sound fine, but don't believe him, because his heart is filled to the brim with hate.
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Though their speech is charming, do not believe them, for seven abominations fill their hearts.
26 He may disguise his hatred, but everyone will see the evil things he does.
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Their malice may be concealed by deception, but their wickedness will be exposed in the assembly.
27 People who set traps for others get caught themselves. People who start landslides get crushed.
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Whoever digs a pit will fall into it; if someone rolls a stone, it will roll back on them.
28 You have to hate someone to want to hurt him with lies. Insincere talk brings nothing but ruin.
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A lying tongue hates those it hurts, and a flattering mouth works ruin.
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.
Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NIV) are from THE HOLY BIBLE: NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica. All rights reserved worldwide.