Proverbs 26:3

MORE PROVERBS REGARDING FOOLS

"A whip for the horse, a bridle for the ass, And a rod for the back of fools.

Answer not a fool according to his folly, Lest thou also be like unto him.

Answer a fool according to his folly, Lest he be wise in his own conceit.

He that sendeth a message by a fool cutteth off his own feet, and drinketh in damage.

The legs of the lame hang loose, So is a parable in the mouth of fools.

As one that bindeth a stone in a sling, So is he that giveth honor to a fool.

As a thorn that goeth up into the hand of a drunkard, So is a parable in the mouth of fools.

As an archer that woundeth all, So is he that hireth a fool and he that hireth them that pass by.

As a dog that returneth to his vomit, So is a fool that repeateth his folly.

Seest thou a man wise in his own conceit? There is more hope of a fool than of him."

Here we have a variation in Proverbs, a collection of verses regarding a single subject. The subject here is fools. Apparently Hezekiah's men, who sought out these proverbs from the writings of Solomon (Proverbs 25:1), decided to classify them!

This subject was apparently one of Solomon's favorites, We have already discussed this subject under the following verses: Proverbs 10:8,13,14,23; 12:1,8,15,23; 13:15,16; 14:6,7,8,15,16,18,24,33; 15:7,14,21; 17:10,12,24.[2] See our comments under those references. These verses are all in the same spirit of detestation of fools as are all the others.

Proverbs 26:4 and Proverbs 26:5 should not be viewed as a contradiction, but as a statement that one's answer to a fool should be governed by the circumstances, sometimes one way, sometimes another.

"Proverbs 25:13 presents the converse of Proverbs 26:6."[3] It is significant that the sentiment of these verses appears again and again in the New Testament. Peter quoted Proverbs 26:11a (2 Peter 2:22); and Paul quoted Proverbs 26:12a (Romans 12:16). The `fool' so often vigorously denounced in Proverbs should be identified as "wicked" rather than as a mental incompetent, as we have often pointed out. However, in this particular group of proverbs, Driver wrote that, "The folly described in these verses is intellectual."[4]