Bible Commentaries
Proverbs 26

Verse 1

Pro 26:1

Proverbs 26:1

"As snow in summer, and as rain in harvest, So honor is not seemly for a fool."

In Proverbs 25:13, the cold of snow during harvest time was mentioned as a welcome blessing; but here snow in summer is considered as undesirable. Why? The cold of snow in Proverbs 25:13 was from snow stored up from the previous winter; here the reference is to a snowfall in summer. See comment under Proverbs 25:13.

Proverbs 26:1. A fool receives no honor nor does he have a sense of honor. The two go together as poorly as snow and summer and as rain and harvest. How many times a fool shows that he is a fool with poor rearing or a poor set of values by not joining in with giving honor to those to whom honor is due. Such a one is a poor one to marry, for neither will he bestow honor on his wife as 1 Peter 3:7 and Proverbs 31:28-29 teach.

Verse 2

Pro 26:2

Proverbs 26:2

"As the sparrow in her wandering, as the swallow in her flying, So the curse that is causeless alighteth not."

"The point of comparison here is the aimlessness of the birds’ flight, or the uselessness of trying to catch them in their flight. So the causeless curse does not come; it spends itself in air and will not fall on the head on which it was invoked. A causeless curse is a curse uttered against one who does not deserve it.”

Proverbs 26:2. The ancients feared a curse pronounced by another. The point of the verse is, Do right, and you have nothing to fear from people’s curses. At times it seems that some birds are aimlessly flying, just for the sake of flying, actually going nowhere. Even so a false curse will aimlessly go nowhere. In keeping with this verse are two eastern proverbs: “The jackal howls: will my old buffalo die?” “The dog barks—still the caravan passes: will the barking of the dog reach the skies?”

Verses 3-12

Pro 26:3-12

Proverbs 26:3-12

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; Proverbs 10:13-14; Proverbs 10:23; Proverbs 12:1; Proverbs 12:8; Proverbs 12:15; Proverbs 12:23; Proverbs 13:15-16; Proverbs 14:6-8; Proverbs 14:15-16; Proverbs 14:18; Proverbs 14:24; Proverbs 14:33; Proverbs 15:7; Proverbs 15:14; Proverbs 15:21; Proverbs 17:10; Proverbs 17:12; Proverbs 17:24. 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.” It is significant that the sentiment of these verses appears again and again in the New Testament. Peter quoted Proverbs 26:11 a (2 Peter 2:22); and Paul quoted Proverbs 26:12 a (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.”

Proverbs 26:9. “Pulpit Commentary:” “There is here no idea of a drunkard’s hand being pierced with a thorn...but rather of his being armed with it.” “Lange:” “When a drunkard carries and brandishes in his hand a sweet briar...” Would it be dangerous for a drunkard to get a branch of a thorn bush in his hand and began hitting people with it? Is a parable in the mouth of a fool not also dangerous in another way?

Proverbs 26:10. “Pulpit Commentary:” “A careless, random way of doing business, taking into one’s service fools, or entrusting matters of importance to any chance loiterer, is as dangerous as shooting arrows about recklessly without caring whither they flew or whom they wounded.”

Proverbs 26:11. The Bible here and in 2 Peter 2:20 (which quotes it) calls upon one of the most obnoxious sights in nature to teach us a lesson: that of a dog who has just given up (vomited) what he had partaken of and then turning around and eating it again. This verse applies it to a fool returning to his acts of foolishness while 2 Peter 2:20 applies it to a backslider returning to his former sins.

Proverbs 26:12. “Pulpit Commentary:” “Nothing so shuts the door against improvement as self-conceit. ‘Woe unto them,’ says Isaiah 5:21, ‘that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight.’ Such persons, professing themselves wise, become fools (Romans 1:22)...Touching conceit, the Oriental speaks of the fox finding his shadow very large, and of the wolf when alone thinking himself a lion.” Romans 12:3 says, “I say...to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think.” Romans 12:16 : “Be not wise in your own conceits.” Galatians 6:3 : “If a man thinketh himself to be something when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself.” This verse says there is more hope for a fool than for a conceited person; Proverbs 29:20 says the same concerning a man hasty in his words.

Verses 13-16

Pro 26:13-16

Proverbs 26:13-16

MORE PROVERBS REGARDING SLUGGARDS

"The sluggard saith there is a lion in the way; A lion is in the streets.

As the door turneth upon its hinges, So does the sluggard upon his bed.

The sluggard burieth his hand in the dish; It wearieth him to bring it again to his mouth.

The sluggard is wiser in his own conceit Than seven men that can render a reason."

"A lion is in the streets" (Proverbs 26:13). See our comment under Proverbs 22:13.

"As the door turneth upon its hinges" (Proverbs 26:14). "Just as the door moves on its hinges, but does not go anywhere, the sluggard turns over and over in his bed but does not get out of it and go anywhere to do any work." See the comments under Proverbs 6:9-10, and under Proverbs 24:33.

Proverbs 26:15 is practically identical with Proverbs 19:24. See the comments there.

The meaning of Proverbs 26:16 is that, "The idle fool sets more value upon his own opinion than that of any number of wise men.”

We have already had many proverbs about the slothful or sluggards. See comments under: "Proverbs 6:6-11; Proverbs 10:26; Proverbs 11:16; Proverbs 14:4; Proverbs 15:19; Proverbs 18:9; Proverbs 19:15; Proverbs 24:30-34; Proverbs 31:27.” We are indebted to Tate for this list.

Proverbs 26:13. Proverbs 22:13 says the same thing. Proverbs has much to say about laziness: Proverbs 6:6-9; Proverbs 10:4-5; Proverbs 18:9; Proverbs 19:15; Proverbs 19:24; Proverbs 20:4; Proverbs 22:13; Proverbs 24:30-31; Proverbs 26:14; Proverbs 26:16. That is a lot of material on the subject—more than any other Bible book gives to it.

Proverbs 26:14. Just as a gate turns upon its hinges, so does the sluggard when aroused turn over (roll over onto his other side) for more sleep. Some of the other explanations given to this comparison are at least entertaining: the door turns on its hinges but goes nowhere; so does a sluggard upon his bed and goes nowhere; while the door opens to let the diligent go forth to their work, the sluggard turns upon his bed and sleeps on; the door creaks when moved, and so does the sluggard when aroused; etc.

Proverbs 26:15. Proverbs 19:24 says the same thing. It is hard for us to imagine people this lazy, but experience teaches one not to be too surprised at anything!

Proverbs 26:16. This verse sounds like what we call “park-bench authorities” and “sidewalk superintendents”—men who are doing nothing and who have no authority over a project, but who never question their judgment: they always know how it should have been done. Many times the uneducated who are lazy are cursed with the spirit of egotism. Ever try to tell them something? Quoting from your commentator’s book, “Simple, Stimulating Studies in the Proverbs:” “Those men with just enough ambition to get up town to spend the day on some benches talking, whittling, and arguing have all the answers. They can tell the President how to run this country, yet nobody ever thought enough of their insight to have them put on any political ticket. They could tell the Secretary of Agriculture (whose problems relate to the corn farmer, the cotton farmer, the fruit farmer, the wheat farmer, the nut farmer, the hay farmer, the dairy farmer, the ranches, the poultryman, the nation’s surpluses, and a hundred other large fields) just how to handle his job when they themselves cannot even have a respectable garden.”

Verse 17

Pro 26:17

Proverbs 26:17

"He that passeth by, and vexes himself with strife not belonging to him, Is like someone that taketh a dog by the ears."

There is no Christian virtue any higher than that of refraining from meddling with other men’s quarrels. If one wonders what it is like to take a dog by the ears, he should try it once. He will never try it again! It is the sure way to be bitten by the dog. There might be an exception to this in a small lap dog; but, "The dog in Palestine was not a domesticated animal; and to seize any dog was dangerous.”

Proverbs 26:17. Grabbing a dog by his ears is not recommended, for he will pull loose and turn on you. Nor is getting involved with other people’s strife a good thing. Ever hear of the passerby who stopped to take a woman’s part against her husband who was hitting her when she turned on her helper and beaned him over the head? This does not mean that one should never try to help those who are having trouble (How else could one be a peacemaker? Matthew 5:9). But this is a warning about meddling in other people’s matters (1 Peter 4:15).

Verses 18-19

Pro 26:18-19

Proverbs 26:18-19

"As a madman who casteth firebrands, Arrows, and death, So is the man that deceiveth his neighbor, And saith, am I not in jest?"

These verses expose the folly of deception as a form of entertainment. "The man who deceives his neighbor and then tries to pass it off as a joke, is like a madman, with no concern for the deadly consequences of his actions.”

Proverbs 26:18. This saying is different from others in Proverbs in that the dependent clause is in one verse and the independent in the next. The “madman” may be a man gone bersirk or an insane man who gets hold of dangerous weapons and begins throwing them around and endangering the lives of his fellowmen.

Proverbs 26:19. Just as the law will excuse an insane person for the damage he has caused (Proverbs 26:18), so some whose mischievous conduct or wicked words have brought serious damage to another try to excuse themselves by saying, “I didn’t mean to, I was just joking, etc.” Too many people try to joke their way through life, and then if something happens that shouldn’t, they say, “I didn’t mean it.”

Verses 20-22

Pro 26:20-22

Proverbs 26:20-22

"For lack of wood the fire goeth out; And where there is no whisperer contention ceaseth. As coals are to hot embers, and wood is to fire, So is a contentious man to inflame strife. The words of a whisperer are as dainty morsels, And they go down into the innermost parts."

Malicious gossip is the subject here. Many a dangerous quarrel has been fed and encouraged by talebearers and gossips who, as we might say, added fuel to the fire.

Proverbs 26:22 here is identical with Proverbs 18:8. See the comment there.

The last six verses of this chapter are labeled, "Hypocritical Words.” All of them deal with false and deceitful speech.

Proverbs 26:20. For a fire to continue it must have fuel. When wood is no longer put on the fire, it will go out as soon as its present supply is consumed. Even so whispering (derogatory talking in privacy) will keep trouble brewing. Sometimes the whisperer moves away (Woe to the place where he or she moves! It too will begin experiencing trouble.), dies, may get converted, or is cornered, confronted, and quieted, and the contention ceases. The scoffer also is a cause of continual contention until he is cast out (Proverbs 22:10 : “Cast out the scoffer, and contention will go out”).

Proverbs 26:21. The “whisperer” of Proverbs 26:20 is referred to here as a “contentious” man in this verse, which he is. He may say he doesn’t want trouble, but he is one to make trouble. He may say he loves everybody involved and is only doing his duty in trying to get things right, but he doesn’t really love (Romans 13:10), he is not doing his duty (Romans 14:19), and he isn’t getting things right but making things wrong (Proverbs 16:28). The figure of the fire is continued in this verse: note “coals”, “hot embers,” “wood to fire,” and “inflame”. Proverbs 15:18 says, “A wrathful man stirreth up contention.” The church needs to be stirred up all right, but not by contention!

Proverbs 26:22. The same statement is found in Proverbs 18:8. A “whisperer” is one who goes behind people’s backs in talking about them, saying things that are not in the best interest of the ones being spoken about. The verse brings out the sad fact that people are willing to listen to such cowardly, wrong, ruinous talk (they are “dainty morsels”). They are swallowed without question (“They go down into the innermost parts”).

Verses 23-28

Pro 26:23-28

Proverbs 26:23-28

"Fervent lips and a wicked heart Are like an earthen vessel overlaid with silver dross.

He that hateth dissembleth with his lips; But he layeth up deceit within him:

When he speaketh fair, believe him not; For there are seven abominations in his heart.

Though his hatred cover itself with guile, His wickedness shall be openly showed before the assembly.

Whoso diggeth a pit shall fall therein; And he that rolleth a stone, it shall return upon him.

A lying tongue hateth them whom it hath wounded; And a flattering mouth worketh ruin."

"Fervent lips" (Proverbs 26:23). "Lips glorying with affection, uttering warm words of love." Walls referred to Proverbs 26:17-28 here as, "A book of scoundrels"; and that is certainly what it is. Proverbs 26:24 speaks of the man who hates another, but flatters him with a view to finding some way to destroy him.

"Whoso diggeth a pit shall fall therein" (Proverbs 26:27). Haman who erected a gallows upon which he intended to hang Mordecai is the classical example of how true this proverb is. Haman himself was hanged on that gallows.

"He that rolleth a stone ... etc." (Proverbs 26:27). In ancient warfare heavy stones were rolled to the top of some eminence, where they could be released to cause damage or destruction to some attacker. Such a trap, set for others could also, under some change of circumstance, destroy the one that set it.

Proverbs 26:28 says that, "The lying tongue hates its victim"; and this pinpoints a strange perversity of human nature. One should avoid loaning money to friends; because, true to what is indicated here, the friend, if unable or unwilling to pay back the loan, invariably becomes an enemy of the man that befriended him. From this is a proverb that came not from Solomon. Loan money to a friend; and you will lose both the money and the friend. Of course, it doesn’t always turn out that way.

Proverbs 26:23. “Pulpit Commentary:” “The next proverbs are concerned with hypocrisy... Silver dross (oxide of lead) is used to put a glaze on pottery...The comparatively worthless article (earthen vessel) is thus made to assume a finer appearance. Thus lips that seem to burn with affection and give the kiss of glowing love may mask a heart filled with envy and hatred. Judas kisses and words of friendship hide the bad feelings that lurk within.”

Proverbs 26:24. “Pulpit Commentary:” “The very word here used bears the meaning ‘to make one’s self unknown’...hence ‘to make one’s self unrecognizable”... The man cloaks his hatred with honeyed words...meditating all the time treachery in his heart.” Adopting this as the mans allows the rest of the verse to flow and makes this verse go along with the other verses of this section.

Proverbs 26:25. Yes, there are some people just this wicked; their hearts are full of abominations. Jeremiah 9:8 says, “There tongue is a deadly arrow; it speaketh deceit: one speaketh peaceably to his neighbor with his mouth, but in his heart he layeth wait for him.” So we are not to believe everything some people say.

Proverbs 26:26. Ultimately his sin will find him out as Numbers 32:23 promises concerning sin (“your sin will find you out”). Somebody with influence, leadership, and wisdom will see through the “glaze” of deceit and will bring his actions out into the open, and the result is mentioned in Proverbs 26:27.

Proverbs 26:27. The pit or hole that such a one had been digging for someone else becomes the fate of the whispering, contentious deceiver himself. That this is often the deserved outcome of such perverted conduct, see Psalms 7:15-16; Psalms 9:15; Psalms 10:2; Proverbs 28:10; Ecclesiastes 10:8.

Proverbs 26:28. In summary this verse affirms that this whispering tongue was actually a “lying” tongue, actually hating those it was wounding, and that such a flattering tongue is calculated to work “ruin” to its victim. What a section of the misuse of the tongue we have just studied!

Proverbs of Solomon - Proverbs 26:1-28

Open It

1. What characters that you’re aware of from television, movies, or novels exemplify foolishness, laziness, and wickedness?

2. What is the funniest practical joke you ever played on someone?

3. How would you describe flattery?

Explore It

4. What three types of people did Solomon discuss in these proverbs? (Proverbs 26:1-28)

5. How should we answer fools? (Proverbs 26:4-5)

6. How did Solomon describe the fool? (Proverbs 26:6-11)

7. What does a fool repeat? (Proverbs 26:11)

8. What’s wrong with the person who thinks of himself or herself as wise? (Proverbs 26:12)

9. How did Solomon describe the sluggard? (Proverbs 26:13-16)

10. What caution should we observe about other people’s quarrels? (Proverbs 26:17)

11. What did Solomon say about practical jokes? (Proverbs 26:18-19)

12. How do gossip and quarrels work? (Proverbs 26:20-22)

13. Why should we be suspicious of a wicked person’s speech? (Proverbs 26:23-26)

14. What kind of damage can lying and flattery do? (Proverbs 26:28)

Get It

15. How can we help someone who is a fool?

16. What is the danger in trusting a fool to do something?

17. In what way is it worse to be wise in your own eyes than to be a fool?

18. Why might a person be tempted to get involved in someone else’s quarrel?

19. What should we do when we are concerned about other people’s quarrels?

20. Why is it dangerous to deceive someone else in fun?

21. In what ways do we need to restrain our jokes and fun so that they are respectful of others?

22. Why do people enjoy gossip?

23. When have you been misled by the deceptive words of an evil person?

24. What is the danger of flattery?

Apply It

25. What can you do to avoid spreading or listening to gossip this week?

26. What quarrelsome situations do you want to avoid at work? at home? at church?

27. What can you do to remind yourself to respect others in your fun and jokes?

28. In what one specific area of your life can you exercise greater discipline?