The Message Bible MSG
The Latin Vulgate VUL
1 We no more give honors to fools than pray for snow in summer or rain during harvest.
1
quomodo nix aestate et pluvia in messe sic indecens est stulto gloria
2 You have as little to fear from an undeserved curse as from the dart of a wren or the swoop of a swallow.
2
sicut avis ad alia transvolans et passer quolibet vadens sic maledictum frustra prolatum in quempiam superveniet
3 A whip for the racehorse, a tiller for the sailboat - and a stick for the back of fools!
3
flagellum equo et camus asino et virga dorso inprudentium
4 Don't respond to the stupidity of a fool; you'll only look foolish yourself.
4
ne respondeas stulto iuxta stultitiam suam ne efficiaris ei similis
5 Answer a fool in simple terms so he doesn't get a swelled head.
5
responde stulto iuxta stultitiam suam ne sibi sapiens esse videatur
6 You're only asking for trouble when you send a message by a fool.
6
claudus pedibus et iniquitatem bibens qui mittit verba per nuntium stultum
7 A proverb quoted by fools is limp as a wet noodle.
7
quomodo pulchras frustra habet claudus tibias sic indecens est in ore stultorum parabola
8 Putting a fool in a place of honor is like setting a mud brick on a marble column.
8
sicut qui mittit lapidem in acervum Mercurii ita qui tribuit insipienti honorem
9 To ask a moron to quote a proverb is like putting a scalpel in the hands of a drunk.
9
quomodo si spina nascatur in manu temulenti sic parabola in ore stultorum
10 Hire a fool or a drunk and you shoot yourself in the foot.
10
iudicium determinat causas et qui inponit stulto silentium iras mitigat
11 As a dog eats its own vomit, so fools recycle silliness.
11
sicut canis qui revertitur ad vomitum suum sic inprudens qui iterat stultitiam suam
12 See that man who thinks he's so smart? You can expect far more from a fool than from him.
12
vidisti hominem sapientem sibi videri magis illo spem habebit stultus
13 Loafers say, "It's dangerous out there! Tigers are prowling the streets!" and then pull the covers back over their heads.
13
dicit piger leaena in via leo in itineribus
14 Just as a door turns on its hinges, so a lazybones turns back over in bed.
14
sicut ostium vertitur in cardine suo ita piger in lectulo suo
15 A shiftless sluggard puts his fork in the pie, but is too lazy to lift it to his mouth. Like Glaze on Cracked Pottery
15
abscondit piger manus sub ascellas suas et laborat si ad os suum eas converterit
16 Dreamers fantasize their self-importance; they think they are smarter than a whole college faculty.
16
sapientior sibi piger videtur septem viris loquentibus sententias
17 You grab a mad dog by the ears when you butt into a quarrel that's none of your business.
17
sicut qui adprehendit auribus canem sic qui transit et inpatiens commiscetur rixae alterius
18 People who shrug off deliberate deceptions, saying, "I didn't mean it, I was only joking,"
18
sicut noxius est qui mittit lanceas et sagittas et mortem
19 Are worse than careless campers who walk away from smoldering campfires.
19
sic vir qui fraudulenter nocet amico suo et cum fuerit deprehensus dicit ludens feci
20 When you run out of wood, the fire goes out; when the gossip ends, the quarrel dies down.
20
cum defecerint ligna extinguetur ignis et susurrone subtracto iurgia conquiescunt
21 A quarrelsome person in a dispute is like kerosene thrown on a fire.
21
sicut carbones ad prunam et ligna ad ignem sic homo iracundus suscitat rixas
22 Listening to gossip is like eating cheap candy; do you want junk like that in your belly?
22
verba susurronis quasi simplicia et ipsa perveniunt ad intima ventris
23 Smooth talk from an evil heart is like glaze on cracked pottery.
23
quomodo si argento sordido ornare velis vas fictile sic labia tumentia cum pessimo corde sociata
24 Your enemy shakes hands and greets you like an old friend, all the while conniving against you.
24
labiis suis intellegitur inimicus cum in corde tractaverit dolos
25 When he speaks warmly to you, don't believe him for a minute; he's just waiting for the chance to rip you off.
25
quando submiserit vocem suam ne credideris ei quoniam septem nequitiae sunt in corde illius
26 No matter how cunningly he conceals his malice, eventually his evil will be exposed in public.
26
qui operit odium fraudulenter revelabitur malitia eius in concilio
27 Malice backfires; spite boomerangs.
27
qui fodit foveam incidet in eam et qui volvit lapidem revertetur ad eum
28 Liars hate their victims; flatterers sabotage trust.
28
lingua fallax non amat veritatem et os lubricum operatur ruinas
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.
The Latin Vulgate is in the public domain.