5. Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own eyes.
6. One who sends a message by the hand of a fool is cutting off feet and drinking violence.
7. Like the legs of the lame that hang loose, so is a parable in the mouth of fools.
8. As one who binds a stone in a sling, so is he who gives honor to a fool.
9. Like a thorn bush that goes into the hand of a drunkard, so is a parable in the mouth of fools.
10. As an archer who wounds all, so is he who hires a fool or he who hires those who pass by.
11. As a dog that returns to his vomit, so is a fool who repeats his folly.
12. Do you see a man wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.
13. The sluggard says, “There is a lion in the road! A fierce lion roams the streets!”
14. As the door turns on its hinges, so does the sluggard on his bed.
15. The sluggard buries his hand in the dish. He is too lazy to bring it back to his mouth.
16. The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes than seven men who answer with discretion.
17. Like one who grabs a dog’s ears is one who passes by and meddles in a quarrel not his own.
18. Like a madman who shoots torches, arrows, and death,
19. is the man who deceives his neighbor and says, “Am I not joking?”
20. For lack of wood a fire goes out. Without gossip, a quarrel dies down.
21. As coals are to hot embers, and wood to fire, so is a contentious man to kindling strife.