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26:1  It shouldn’t snow in summer or rain at harvest. Neither should a foolish person ever be honored.
26:2  Curses ·will not harm someone who is innocent [that are undeserved never stick]; they are like ·darting [flitting] birds or flying swallows.
26:3  Whips are for horses, and ·harnesses [bridles] are for donkeys, ·so paddles are good for fools [L and rods for the backs of fools].
26:4  Don’t answer fools when they speak foolishly, or you will be just like them.
26:5  Answer fools when they speak foolishly, or they will ·think they are really wise [L be wise in their own eyes; C a wise person must read the situation to know whether to answer or not].
26:6  Sending a message by a foolish person is like cutting off your feet or drinking ·poison [L violence].
26:7  A ·wise saying spoken by [L proverb in the mouth of] a fool ·is as useless as [L dangles like] the legs of a crippled person.
26:8  Giving honor to a foolish person is like ·tying a stone [L a bag of stones] in a slingshot.
26:9  A ·wise saying spoken by [L proverb in the mouth of] a fool is like a ·thorn stuck in the hand of a drunk [L thornbush in the hand of a fool].
26:10  Hiring a foolish person or anyone just passing by is like an archer shooting ·at just anything [randomly].
26:11  A fool who repeats his ·foolishness [foolish mistakes] is like a dog that goes back to ·what it has thrown up [its vomit; 2 Pet. 2:22].
26:12  There is more hope for a foolish person than for those who ·think they are wise [L are wise in their own eyes].
26:13  The lazy person says, “There’s a lion in the ·road [path]! There’s a lion in the streets!”
26:14  Like a door turning back and forth on its hinges, the lazy person turns over and over in bed.
26:15  Lazy people may ·put [L bury] their hands in the dish, but they are ·too tired [or not able] to lift the food to their mouths.
26:16  The lazy person ·thinks he is wiser [L is wiser in his own eyes] than seven people who give sensible answers.
26:17  Interfering in ·someone else’s quarrel as you pass by [or a fight not your own] is like grabbing a dog by the ears [L as it passes by; C the idea of passing by can go with either line].
26:18  Like a madman shooting deadly, burning arrows
26:19  is the one who ·tricks [deceives] a neighbor and then says, “I was just joking.”
26:20  Without wood, a fire ·will go out [is extinguished], and without gossip, ·quarreling will stop [conflict calms down].
26:21  Just as charcoal and wood keep a fire going, a quarrelsome person ·keeps an argument going [kindles accusations].
26:22  The words of a gossip are like ·tasty bits of food [choice morsels]; ·people like to gobble them up [L they go down to the inmost parts].
26:23  ·Kind words [L Smooth lips] from a wicked ·mind [L heart] are like ·a shiny [silver] coating on a clay pot.
26:24  Those who hate you may try to ·fool [trick] you with their ·words [L lips], but ·in their minds [inside] they ·are planning evil [L set deception].
26:25  People’s ·words [L voice] may be ·kind [gracious], but don’t believe them, because ·their minds are full of evil thoughts [L seven abominations are in their heart; C seven is the number of completion].
26:26  ·Lies [Trickery; Guile] can ·hide [cover] hate, but the evil will be ·plain to everyone [L revealed in the assembly].
26:27  Whoever digs a pit for others will fall into it. Whoever tries to roll a boulder down on others will ·be crushed by it [L have it turn back on them].
26:28  ·Liars [L Lying tongues] hate the people they ·hurt [crush], and ·false praise [L a flattering tongue] can ruin others.