Like snow in summer, and as rain in harvest, so honor is not fitting for a fool.
Parallel Translations
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Like snow in summer, and as rain in harvest, so honor is not fitting for a fool.
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As snow in summer, and as rain in harvest, so honour is not seemly for a fool.
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As snow in summer, and as rain in harvest, so honour is not seemly for a fool.
Cross-references (16)
Passages linked to Proverbs 26:1 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Proverbs 19:10 Delicate living is not appropriate for a fool, much less for a servant to have rule over princes.
- Proverbs 28:16 A tyrannical ruler lacks judgment. One who hates ill-gotten gain will have long days.
- 1 Samuel 12:17-18 Isn’t it wheat harvest today? I will call to Yahweh, that he may send thunder and rain; and you will know and see that your wickedness is great, which you have done in Yahweh’s sight, in asking for a king.” So Samuel called to Yahweh; and Yahweh sent thunder and rain that day. Then all the people greatly feared Yahweh and Samuel.
- Esther 4:6 So Hathach went out to Mordecai, to city square which was before the king’s gate.
- Psalms 12:8 The wicked walk on every side, when what is vile is exalted among the sons of men.
- Psalms 15:4 in whose eyes a vile man is despised, but who honors those who fear Yahweh; he who keeps an oath even when it hurts, and doesn’t change;
- Judges 9:7 When they told it to Jotham, he went and stood on the top of Mount Gerizim and lifted up his voice, cried out, and said to them, “Listen to me, you men of Shechem, that God may listen to you.
- Judges 9:20 but if not, let fire come out from Abimelech and devour the men of Shechem and the house of Millo; and let fire come out from the men of Shechem and from the house of Millo and devour Abimelech.”
- Judges 9:56-57 Thus God repaid the wickedness of Abimelech, which he did to his father in killing his seventy brothers; and God repaid all the wickedness of the men of Shechem on their heads; and the curse of Jotham the son of Jerubbaal came on them.
- Esther 3:1-15 After these things King Ahasuerus promoted Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, and advanced him, and set his seat above all the princes who were with him. All the king’s servants who were in the king’s gate bowed down, and paid homage to Haman; for the king had so commanded concerning him. But Mordecai didn’t bow down or pay him homage. Then the king’s servants, who were in the king’s gate, said to Mordecai, “Why do you disobey the king’s commandment?” Now it came to pass, when they spoke daily to him, and he didn’t listen to them, that they told Haman, to see whether Mordecai’s reason would stand; for he had told them that he was a Jew. When Haman saw that Mordecai didn’t bow down, nor pay him homage, Haman was full of wrath. But he scorned the thought of laying hands on Mordecai alone, for they had made known to him Mordecai’s people. Therefore Haman sought to destroy all the Jews who were throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus, even Mordecai’s people. In the first month, which is the month Nisan, in the twelfth year of King Ahasuerus, they cast Pur, that is, the lot, before Haman from day to day, and from month to month, and chose the twelfth month, which is the month Adar. Haman said to King Ahasuerus, “There is a certain people scattered abroad and dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom, and their laws are different from other people’s. They don’t keep the king’s laws. Therefore it is not for the king’s profit to allow them to remain. If it pleases the king, let it be written that they be destroyed; and I will pay ten thousand talents of silver into the hands of those who are in charge of the king’s business, to bring it into the king’s treasuries.” The king took his ring from his hand, and gave it to Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, the Jews’ enemy. The king said to Haman, “The silver is given to you, the people also, to do with them as it seems good to you.” Then the king’s scribes were called in on the first month, on the thirteenth day of the month; and all that Haman commanded was written to the king’s local governors, and to the governors who were over every province, and to the princes of every people, to every province according to its writing, and to every people in their language. It was written in the name of King Ahasuerus, and it was sealed with the king’s ring. Letters were sent by couriers into all the king’s provinces, to destroy, to kill, and to cause to perish, all Jews, both young and old, little children and women, in one day, even on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month Adar, and to plunder their possessions. A copy of the letter, that the decree should be given out in every province, was published to all the peoples, that they should be ready against that day. The couriers went out in haste by the king’s commandment, and the decree was given out in the citadel of Susa. The king and Haman sat down to drink; but the city of Susa was perplexed.
- Esther 4:9 Hathach came and told Esther the words of Mordecai.
- Psalms 52:1 Why do you boast of mischief, mighty man? God’s loving kindness endures continually.
- Proverbs 17:7 Arrogant speech isn’t fitting for a fool, much less do lying lips fit a prince.
- Proverbs 26:8 As one who binds a stone in a sling, so is he who gives honor to a fool.
- Ecclesiastes 10:5-7 There is an evil which I have seen under the sun, the sort of error which proceeds from the ruler. Folly is set in great dignity, and the rich sit in a low place. I have seen servants on horses, and princes walking like servants on the earth.
- Proverbs 26:3 A whip is for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, and a rod for the back of fools!
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John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Pro 26:1 As snow in summer, and as rain…
Pro 26:1 As snow in summer, and as rain in harvest, so honour is not seemly for a fool.
Ver. 1. So honour is not seemly for a fool.] Honour is the reward of virtue; dignity should wait upon desert. Sed dignitas in indigno est ornamentum in luto, as Salvian. Honour is as fit for a fool as a gold ring for a swine’s snout. Sedes prima et vita ima, will never suit. The order of nature is inverted when the vilest men are exalted; {Psa 12:8} it is a foul incongruity, and of very evil consequence. For thereby themselves will be hardened, and others heartened to the like prosperous folly, felix enim scelus virtus vocatur, saith Cicero. {a} The study of virtue also will be neglected when fools are preferred, and God’s heavy wrath poured out in full measure upon these uncircumcised vice-gods - as I may in the worst sense best term them - who misrepresent him to the world by their ungodly practices, as a wicked, crooked, unrighteous Judge.
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{a} Cicer., De Divinat., lib. ii.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain As snow in summer, and as rain in harvest;…
As snow in summer, and as rain in harvest; unbecoming and unseasonable.
So honour is not seemly for a fool, because he neither deserves it, nor knows how to use it, but his folly is both increased and publicly manifested by it.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Honour is not seemly in a fool. The correction…
CHAPTER XXVI
Honour is not seemly in a fool. The correction and treatment
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suitable to such. Of the slothful man. Of him who interferes
with matters which do not concern him. Contentions to be
avoided. Of the dissembler and the lying tongue.
NOTES ON CHAP. XXVI
Verse 1. As snow in summer] None of these is suitable to the time; and at this unsuitable time, both are unwelcome: so a fool to be in honour is unbecoming.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Pro 26:1. As snow in summer, &c. — Unseasonable…
Pro 26:1. As snow in summer, &c. — Unseasonable and unbecoming; so honour is not seemly for a fool — Because he neither deserves it, nor knows how to use it, and his folly is both increased and manifested by it. Bishop Patrick considers this as a tacit admonition to kings (for whose use principally, he thinks, this last part of the book of Proverbs was collected) to be very careful in disposing of preferments only to worthy persons; bad men being made worse by them, and usually doing as much hurt to others, by the abuse of their power, as snow or hail does to the fruits of the earth, when they are ripe and ready to be gathered. “So that,” says he, “we may make this aphorism out of Solomon’s words, that ‘the blending of summer and winter would not cause a greater disorder in the natural world, than the disposal of honour to bad men (and consequently throwing contempt upon the good) doth in the moral world.’”
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain In Palestine there is commonly hardly any rain from…
In Palestine there is commonly hardly any rain from the early showers of spring to October. Hence, “rain in harvest” became sometimes (see the marginal reference) a supernatural sign, sometimes, as here, a proverb for whatever was strange and incongruous.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Charles Bridges 1846 · Public Domain THE richest blessings lose their value when unsuitably bestowed.…
THE richest blessings lose their value when unsuitably bestowed. Snow is the beauteous wintry covering of the earth;†1 preserving the seed from the killing cold.†2 But in summer, it is out of season. Rain in its season is a fruitful blessing.†3 But in harvest it is an unsuitable interruption to the reaper’s work, and often a public calamity. (1Sa 12:17-18 .) Just so, honor, unsuitably bestowed on a fool, is not seemly for him. ’He neither deserves it, nor knows how to use it.’†4 Honor bestowed on Joseph and Daniel, suitably to their wisdom, was seemly to themselves, and a blessing to the land.†5 But when a fool, sometimes a scoffer at religion, is promoted to a public station, how ungracefully does his honor sit upon him? In Haman it was only the display of his pride and vain-glory, the occasion of his more public disgrace.
Learn then to adorn our profession with consistency. Seek that heavenly wisdom, which will make us worthy of any honor that may be appointed for us. "He that is faithful in that which is least, is faithful also in much." (Luk 16:10 .)
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Footnotes:
†1 Job 37:6.
†2 Isa 55:10.
†3 Isa 55:10. Job 38:26-27 . Psa 65:9-13 ; Psa 104:13-14 . Jas 5:7 .
†4 Poole. Pro 19:10 ; Pro 30:21-22 . Ecc 10:5-7 . Compare Psa 12:8 .
†5 Gen 41:38-40. Dan 6:1-3 .
Charles Bridges, An Exposition of the Book of Proverbs (1846) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Glory and power. A fool in a high office…
Glory and power. A fool in a high office will endanger himself and the public; (Calmet) while the virtuous, seeing that merit is not regarded, will not push themselves forward. (Æschines.)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures 1864 · Public Domain 2. Various Warnings, viz.:
2. Various Warnings, viz.:
a) Against dishonorable conduct,
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(especially folly, sloth and malice)
Chap. 26
1 As snow in summer and rain in harvest,
so honor befitteth not the fool.
2 As the sparrow flitting, as the swallow flying,
so the curse undeserved: it cometh not.
3 A whip for the horse, a bridle for the ass,
and a rod for the fool’s back.
4 Answer not a fool according to his folly,
lest thou be like him.
5 Answer a fool according to his folly,
lest he become wise in his own eyes.
6 He cutteth off the feet, he drinketh damage,
who sendeth a message by a fool.
7 Take away the legs of the lame,
and the proverb in the mouth of a fool.
8 As a bag of jewels on a heap of stones,
so is he that giveth honor to a fool.
9 As a thorny staff that riseth up in the hand of a drunkard,
so is a proverb in the mouth of a fool.
10 An archer that woundeth everything,
and he that hireth a fool, and hireth vagrants (are alike).
11 As a dog that returneth to his vomit,
so the fool (ever) repeateth his folly.
12 Seest thou a man wise in his own eyes,
there is more hope of a fool than of him.—
13 The slothful saith: There is a lion in the way,
a lion in the midst of the streets.
14 The door turneth on its hinges,
and the slothful on his bed.
15 The slothful thrusteth his hand in the dish;
he is too sluggish to bring it to his mouth again.
16 The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes,
than seven (men) who give wise judgment.
17 He layeth hold on the ears of a dog
who passing by is excited by strife that is not his.
18 As a madman who casteth fiery darts,
arrows and death,
19 so is the man that deceiveth his neighbor,
and saith: Am I not in sport?
20 Where the wood faileth the fire goeth out,
and where there is no talebearer the strife ceaseth.
21 Coal to burning coals and wood to fire;
so is a contentious man to kindle strife.
22 The words of the talebearer are as sportive (words),
but they go down to the innermost part of the breast.
23 Silver dross spread over a potsherd,—
(so are) glowing lips and a wicked heart.
24 With his lips the hater dissembleth,
and within him he layeth up deceit.
25 When he speaketh fair believe him not;
for seven abominations are in his heart.
26 Hatred is covered by deceit,
(yet) his wickedness shall be exposed in the assembly.
27 He that diggeth a pit falleth into it,
and he that rolleth a stone, upon himself shall it return.
28 The lying tongue hateth those that are wounded by it,
and a flattering mouth will cause offence.
GRAMMATICAL AND CRITICAL
Pro_26:3. [The form גֵו (comp. Pro_10:13; Pro_19:29) is ordinarily explained as derived from גָוָה the more common גָו (Lex., גַּו) as from גָוַו; Bött. (§ 498, 17) suggests that the form גֵו is used, as in numerous similar cases the forms with weaker, flatter vowels are employed, to convey in their very sound the idea of the weak, the suffering, the miserable; גֵו then, in every instance except perhaps one, is used to describe a back that is beaten or threatened.—לַחֲמוֹר, a form with the article, as is indicated not by the vocalization alone, but by the parallel לַסּוּם; Bött. I., p. 403, n. 1.—A.].
Pro_26:6. [מְקַצֶּה a Piel part., therefore active in its meaning, and not to be rendered by a passive, nor need it be exchanged for the Pual (pass.) part, as Ewald proposes. The emendations of מְקַצֶּה רַגְלַיִם in clause a which have been proposed by recent expositors are unnecessary; e.g., Ewald’s reading מְקֻצֶּה ר׀ “is deprived of his feet, etc.” Hitzig would read מִקְצֶה ר׀ immediately connecting the following words; “from the end of the feet he swallows injury (? !) who sends messages by a fool.”—A.].
Pro_26:7. דַּלְיוּ is taken most simply as Imper. Piel from דָּלָה, to “lift out, draw out” (Psa_30:2). [So Fuerst; Green, § 141, 1; Nordh. § 452. Bött. § 1123, 4, and § 300 b, makes it from דלל. This resolution of לּ and substitution of י for the second ל Bött. regards as a probable sign and characteristic of the Ephraimite dialect which he is inclined to find in this section of the Book of Proverbs. Gesen., Thes., was at first disposed to take it from דלל, but in the supplement brought out by Rödiger appears to have changed his view, taking it as a fuller form of דָּלוּ. The rendering of Bött., etc., would be “the legs of the lame hang useless.”—A.].
Pro_26:14. [תִּסּוֹב, illustrates Böttcher’s Fiens solitum, “is wont to turn,” and in Pro_26:20 תִּכְבֶּה and יִשְׁתֹּק his Fiens debitum: “must go out, must cease.” See Lehrb. § 950, 6, and c, ε.—A.].
Pro_26:18. מִתְלַהְלֵהַּ from להה or perhaps from a root תלה still preserved in the Arabic.
Pro_26:26. [תִּכַּסֵּה; the ת of the Hithp. prefix is elsewhere not assimilated.—A.].
Pro_26:28. [לְשׁוֹן as here use Bött. regards as one of the traces of an Ephraimite dialect, the noun with this meaning being otherwise feminine.—דַּכָּיו Gesen. derives from דַּךְ in the active sense the form being plural with suff. and the construction acc. as object. Fuerst makes it a peculiar derivative (without suffix) from דָּכָה in the sense of “bowed down, humble, pious.” Bött. pointing דָּכְיוֹ as the K’thibh, makes it from דֳּכִי with the suffix of the singular. See Exegetical notes for the various interpretations.—A.].
EXEGETICAL
1. Pro_26:1-3. Three proverbs against folly, symmetrical in their structure (in each case bringing two related ideas into comparison).—As snow in summer and rain in harvest. According to Jerome, Comm. in Amo_4:7, rain in harvest time is in Palestine a thing not heard of, and even impossible. Comp. 1Sa_12:17 sq., where a sudden thunderstorm at this season appears as a miracle from God, and also the confirmatory statements of modern observers, like Robinson, Pal. II. Pro 307: “In ordinary years no rain at all falls from the end of the spring-showers till October or November, and the sky is almost always clear,” etc.—Comp. furthermore the remarks above on Pro_25:13, as well as, for clause b, Pro_19:10; and also Pro_26:8 below.
Pro_26:2.—As the sparrow flitting, as the swallow flying: lit. “as the sparrow for fleeing or wandering, as the swallow flying,” viz. is fitted. Comp. the similar construction in Pro_25:3, and also the similar comparison in Pro_27:8. [The Inf. with לְ may be rendered by the abl. as readily as by the dative of the gerund or verbal noun; by or in respect to flying, etc.]—So the curse (that is) undeserved: it cometh not. “A curse that is in vain, that has been uttered without just ground, that is unmerited,” like that, e.g., in 2Sa_16:5 sq., or that in 1Ki_2:8. For the “in vain” comp. Pro_24:28 and the remarks on the passage.—Instead of לֹא תָבֹא K’ri calls for לוֹ תָבֹא׃ “to him, to the fool who utters it, will it return,” it will find its fulfilment in his own case (thus the Vulg. and Jarchi). But the verbal expression agrees poorly enough with this rendering, and moreover the two comparisons in a plainly favor rather the idea expressed by the K’thibh. [Such a curse is then fugitive, transient as a bird; it does not come to stay. The E. V. suggests the idea very blindly. Trapp explains: “As these may fly where they will, and nobody cares or is the worse; so here.” He would carry the comparison farther: as birds after their aimless flight return to their nest, ” so the causeless curse returns to the authors. Cursing men are cursed men.” A.].
Pro_26:3. Comp. Pro_10:13; Pro 26:29; Sir_30:25-25.—The assertion of J. D. Michaelis that the ideas “whip” “and” “bridle” in clause a are not rightly distributed between the horse and the ass, is refuted by Nah_3:2; Eze_41:9, where express mention is made of riding whips in connection with horses, as well as by Psa_32:9, where with horses mules are also mentioned as bridled animals. [Gesen. Thes., s. v., abundantly illustrates the nobler nature of the Eastern ass, and the higher estimate put upon it. See also Houghton’s article in Smith’s Dictionary of the Bible, I., 182, Am. Ed. A.]
2. Pro_26:4-12. Eight additional proverbs directed against the folly of fools (among them one consisting of two verses, Pro_26:4-5).—Answer not a fool according to his folly, i.e., speak not with him in accordance with his folly, conforming thyself to it, imitating it, and thereby becoming thyself a fool. On the other hand, Pro_26:5 : Answer a fool according to his folly, i.e., serve him in his senseless babbling with an appropriate, sharply decisive retort, use with the coarse block (blockhead) the heavy wedge that belongs to it. The proverb in Pro_26:5 does not then stand as a restriction on the meaning of Pro_26:4 (as Ewald holds), but yet adjusting it, and guarding against what might be misunderstood in the former language. [Says Andrew Fuller: The terms in the first instance mean “in a foolish manner,” as is manifest from the reason given. In the second instance they mean “in the manner which his folly requires.” This is also plain from the reason given. A foolish speech is not a rule for our imitation; nevertheless our answer must be so framed by it as to meet and repel it. ” This knot will be easily loosed,“ says Muffet, “if it be observed that there are two sorts of answers, the one in folly, the other unto folly.” A.]
Pro_26:6. He cutteth off the feet, he drinketh damage, who sendeth a message by a fool. Comp. the two figurative expressions in clause a, the first (“ he cutteth off the feet,” i.e., his own feet, amputat sibi pedes—Michaelis, Schelling, Bertheau, Elster, Stier, [Kamph. Wordsw.] etc.,) means: he deprives himself of the means of attaining the end, he puts himself into a helpless condition; [and the idea is better expressed in this way than if we adopt the explanation of H., N., S., M.; he acts as though he cut off the feet of his messenger who chooses a fool for the errand. N. errs in completing a proposition in clause a: “ he that has his feet cut off drinks damage.” A.] The second phrase “ he drinketh injury or wrong,” according to Job_21:20; Job_34:7, is equivalent to “ he suffers abuses, he experiences in the largest measure an injury self-devised.” For similar use of the term “ words ” in the sense of commands, directions, a message, comp. Exo_4:13; 2Sa_15:36. For the general meaning compare like complaints of bad and foolish messengers in Pro_10:26; Pro_25:13.
Pro_26:7. Take away the legs from the lame. The verb דלה appears to be used here with the meaning, which it is true is not to be discovered elsewhere, of tollere, to take away. For the meaning of the comparison, according to b, seems to be this: Always take from the lame his legs, (i.e., his lame legs), for they are really useless to him, just as the “proverb,” (i.e., the maxim of wisdom, the Maschal) in the mouth of the fool is useless, something that might without loss be never there; for the fool is and continues still a fool (Pro_26:9; Pro_12:16; Pro_14:24, etc.). Thus Umbreit, Bertheau, Stier [Stuart, Kamph.] correctly explain, while the rest take some one and some another way to explain the peculiarly obscure and difficult דַּלְיוּ. So Luther takes the phrase altogether arbitrarily in the sense of “to dance” (“as dancing to a cripple, so does it befit a fool to speak of wisdom”); in like manner Jarchi and Levi ben Gerson (“his legs are too long for the lame,” דליו being taken as equivalent to גָכְחוּ), and also Geier, Rosenm, J. H. Michaelis, Schelling, etc., who take דליו as a substantive equivalent to דַּלְיוּת in the sense of elevatio. [The E. V. renders “the legs of the lame are not equal”]. Ewald and Elster read דָּלָֽיוּ, “the legs of the lame are too loose ” (Aben Ezra had already given a similar rendering) [Gesen., “hang down,” so De W., N., Wordsw.; “ are weak,” H. M.]. Hitzig finally gives the Inf. abs. דלוג: “leaping of the legs on the part of a lame man—so is a proverb in the mouth of a fool,” (the same meaning, therefore, substantially as in Luther’s conception.)
Pro_26:8. As a bag of jewels on a heap of stones, so is he that giveth honor to a fool. If the noun מַרְגֵּמָה which occurs only here expresses the idea “ heap of stones,” acervus lapidum, which is altogether probable from its derivation from רגם, to stone, to heap up stones, then the צְרֹור אֶבֶן must be a parcel not of common, but of precious stones (comp. Exo_28:9; Exo_35:27, where אֶבֶן alone stands for lapis pretiosior), and this all the more since the 2d clause makes this rendering peculiarly natural. So R. Levi ben Gerson, then Luther, Geier, Schultens, Gesenius, Umbreit, Stier, Elster, [E. V. in mar-gin, De W., N., W.],—of whom Luther, Geier, Schultens, Stier [Wordsw.] think particularly of a heap of stones raised by the stoning of a malefactor, a tumulus aggestus supra corpus lapida-tum, which is certainly more natural than with Jerome, (Vulg., acervus Mercurii), several of the early Rabbis, Jarchi, V. E. Löscher (in the “ Unschuldigen Nachrichten,” Vol. 13, p. 496), and Oetinger, to think of a Hermes, a heap of stones dedicated to Mercury (λόφος ἑρμαῖον, statua mercurialis). Others (Bertheau, Ewald [Fuerst, Kamph., E. V., in text, H., S., M.] etc.,)following the LXX and Chald, take מַרְגֵמָה in the sense of “ sling,” and regard צְרוֹר as an Infin.; “ as the binding a stone fast to the sling”;—but against this may be maintained the inappositeness of the figure as compared with the idea in clause b, and the fact that such a meaning cannot be proved to belong to the noun, and the circumstance that the sling is elsewhere always called קֶלַע.—Hitzig: “as a little stone on the beam of a balance,” etc.,—for he says the noun מ׀ means, according to the Arabic, the “beam of a balance,” and צ׀ א׀ signifies a “bit or kernel of stone,” a little stone serving to bind the balance (?).
Pro_26:9. A thorny staff that riseth up in the hand of a drunkard, (so is) a (wise) proverb in the mouth of a fool. If in Pro_26:7 a Maschal, a maxim of wisdom, taken into’ the mouth of a fool was represented as something useless, destitute of all aim and effect, it here appears rather as something working absolute harm, wounding, injuring like thorns, and in particular like an instrument of correction heedlessly carried, striking in the wrong place, and so grossly misused. Comp. Luther’s marginal note, which in the main point certainly interprets correctly: when a drunkard carries and brandishes in his hand a sweet briar, he scratches more with it than he allows the roses to be smelled; so a fool with the Scriptures or a judicial maxim oft causes more harm than profit.”—Hitzig following the LXX, reads in clause b משֶׁל instead of מָשָׁל, and furthermore takes the verb of clause a in the sense of “ to shoot up,” and therefore renders: Thorns shoot up by (under) the hand of the hireling (?) and tyranny by the mouth of fools.” But we do not need to give to the verb here even as a secondary meaning the sense of growing up (as Ewald, Umbreit, Stier propose), as the simple original meaning of rising up; raising itself gives a meaning in every way satisfactory. [The rendering of the E. V., H., W., “as a thorn goeth up into the hand,” etc., wounding unconsciously, is less forcible every way than that of the author, with whom De W., K., Bertheau, N., S., M., etc., agree. A.]
Pro_26:10. An archer that woundeth everything (for this meaning comp. רַב, “an archer or dartsman,” comp. Jer. 1:29; Job 16:43; for the verb in this sense, Isa_11:9), and he that hireth a fool, and he that hireth vagrants (“passers by,” i.e., therefore untried, unreliable persons, who soon run away again)—are alike; one of the three is as foolish as another. This interpretation, which is followed by Schelling, Ewald, Bertheau, Stier, [De W., Kamph., and virtually S. and M.], involves it is true a certain hardness, especially in the relation of the figure in a to the two ideas in b; it corresponds best, however, with the simple literal meaning of the passage. Luther, Geier, See. Sciimid, [N., Wordsw.] render: “A master formeth all aright,” magister format omnia recte; in a similar way Elster: “An able man formeth all himself” (in contrast with the fool, who seeks to hire others, and even incompetent persons of all sorts, stragglers and vagrants, etc., to transact his business). [The E. V., which is followed against his will by Holden, interprets the “master” as God: “the great God,” etc.]. Umbreit and Hitzig [with another common meaning of רב]: “Much produceth all,” as though the meaning were similar to that in the ὅστις ἔχει δοθήσεται αὐτῷ, Mat_13:11; Mat_25:20. Others read וִב instead of רַב e.g., the Vulg., judicium determinat causas, and of recent expositors Ziegler, etc.
Pro_26:11. As a dog that returneth to his vomit (comp. the New Testament citation of this passage in 2Pe_2:22) so the fool (ever) repeateth his folly; lit., “so comes the fool for the second time again with his folly,” comp. Pro_17:9. Here is plainly meant not merely a constantly renewed return to foolish assertions in spite of all the rational grounds adduced against them, but a falling again into foolish courses of action after brief endeavors or beginnings at improvement (comp. Mat_12:46; Joh_5:14; Heb_6:4-8.)
Pro_26:12. Seest thou a man wise in his own eyes, i.e., who holds himself as wise, and by this very blind over-estimate of himself thoroughly and forever bars for himself the way to true wisdom (comp. Pro_30:12), like the Pharisees mentioned in Joh_9:41, who gave it out that they saw, but were in truth stone-blind.—With b compare Pro_31:20, where this 2d clause recurs literally.
3. Pro_26:13-16. Pour proverbs against sloth.
Pro_26:13. Comp. the almost identical proverb inProverbs Pro_22:13.—A lion is in the way. שַׁחַל a synonym of אֲדִי designates the lion as a roaring animal, as rugiens sive rugitor; it does not contrast the male lion with the lioness (Vulg.), or again the young lion with the full grown, (Luther),
Pro_26:14. Comp. Pro_6:10; Pro_24:33. With this figure of the door ever turning on its hinges but never moving from its place comp. the well-known words of Schiller—“ drcht sick träg und dumm wie des Färber’s Gaul im Ring herum” [turns lazy and stupid like the dyer’s nag round in its circle.]
Pro_26:15. Comp. the almost identical proverb, Pro_21:24.
Pro_26:16.—The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes (comp. Pro_26:12) than seven men who give a wise answer. The number seven stands here not because it is the sacred number, but to express the idea of plurality in a concrete and popular way. Comp. Pro_26:25; also Pro_6:31; Pro_24:16; Jer_15:9; 1Sa_2:5; Sir_37:14.—With this use of טַעַם “ taste ” in the sense of “understanding, judgment,” comp. 1 Sam. 21:14; 23:33; Psa_119:66; Job_12:20; also remarks above on Pro_11:22, where is denoted in addition a quality of the moral life. “ To give back understanding” is naturally equivalent to giving an intelligent, wise answer, as a sign of an intelligent disposition; comp. Pro_17:18.
4. Pro_26:17-19. Against delight in strife and wilful provocation.—He layeth hold on the ears of a dog (and so provokes the animal outright to harking and biting) who passing by is excited by strife that is not his, lit.,. “over a dispute not for him” (comp. Hab_2:6). For the use of this verb “to provoke or excite one’s self,” comp. the remark on Pro_20:2. This מִתְעַבֵּר with the Part. עֹבֵר forms an alliteration or polyptoton which (with Stier) may be substantially reproduced in German: “wer vorübergehend sich übergehen (sich die Oalle überlaufen) lässt,” etc. There is no occasion for Hitzig’s assumption, that instead of מִתְעַבֵּר there stood originally in the text the מִתְעָרֵב which is expressed by the Syriac and Vulg.; “he who meddleth in strife,” etc. [The E. V. has taken this doubtless under the influence of those early versions.]
Pro_26:18-19. As a madman who casteth fiery darts, arrows and death. The מִתְלַהְלֵהַּ which occurs only here, signifies, according to Symmachus, the Vers. Venet., and Aben Ezra, one beside himself or insane (ἐξεστώς, πειρώμενος). For the combination of the three ideas, fiery darts, arrows and death (i.e., deadly missiles), comp. the similar grouping in Pro_25:18 a.—So the man that deceiveth his neighbor. רִמָּה is to “deceive, to deal craftily,” not to “afflict” (Umbreit), or “overthrow” (Van Ess).—And (then) saith: Am I not in sport? The meaning of the simple “and saith” the Vulgate paraphrases correctly when it renders: “et cum deprehensus fuerit, dicit,” etc. [“ Quipping and flouting,” says Muffet, “is counted the flower and grace of men’s speech, and especially of table talk; but the hurt that cometh by this flower is as bitter as wormwood, and the disgrace which this grace casteth upon men is fouler than any dirt of the street.”—A.]
5. Pro_26:20-28. Nine proverbs against malice and deceit.—Where the wood faileth the fire goeth out, etc. Comp. the Arabic proverb expressing the same idea, aimed at slander (in Scheid, Selecta, p. 18): “He who layeth no wood on the fire keeps it from burning.” For this description of. the “slanderer” comp. Pro_16:28.
Pro_26:21. The direct opposite to the contents of the preceding verse.—Coals to burning coals; lit., black coals to burning coals. For the “man of contentions” in clause b comp. Pro_21:9; Pro_27:15.
With Pro_26:22 compare the literally identical proverb Pro_18:8.
Pro_26:23. Silver dross spread over a potsherd. “Silver of dross” is impure silver not yet properly freed from the dross, and therefore partly spurious (Vulg., argentum sordidum), and not some such thing as a glazing with the glitter of silver made of plumbago (Lithargyrus), and so imitation of silver, as many think, and as Luther seems to have expressed in his “Silber-schaum.” חֶוֶשׂ, potsherd (Isa_16:11), seems to be used intentionally instead of כְּלִי־חֶרֶשׂ “ an earthen vessel,” to strengthen the impression of the worthlessness of the object named.—(So are) burning lips, i.e. fiery protestations of friendship, or it may be warm kisses (which Bertheau understands to be the specific meaning), which in connection with a genuinely good heart on the part of the giver are a sign of true love, but with a “ wicked heart” are on the contrary repulsive demonstrations of hypocrisy, without any moral worth (comp. the kiss of Judas, Mat_26:48 sq.). It is unnecessary to read with Hitzig חֲלָקִים, “ smooth lips,” instead of דֹּלְקִים, “burning” lips.
Pro_26:24-25. With his lips the hater dissembleth. For the verb which may not here, as in Pro_20:11, be translated “is recognized” (so Luther, following the Chald. and Vulg.), comp. the Hithp. of נָכַר, which elsewhere expresses the idea of “dissembling,” e.g., Gen_13:7; 1Ki_16:5-6.—And within he prepareth deceit. Comp. Jer_9:7, and with שִׁית מִרְמָה “to set, contrive, prepare deceit,” compare the “ setting or preparing snares,” Psa_140:6.—For seven abominations are in his heart. See remarks above, on Pro_26:16, and comp. the seven devils of Mat_12:45, which represent an intensified power in present moral deformity. That there is a specific reference to the six or seven abominations mentioned in Pro_6:16-19, is an arbitrary conjecture of Aben Ezra.
Pro_26:26. Hatred is covered by deceit.מַשָּׁאוֹן from נָשָׁא, “ to deceive,” is doubtless correctly understood by the LXX, when they express the idea by δόλος (comp. also the fraudulenter of the Vulg.); here it designates specifically “ hypocrisy, the deception of friendly language used to one’s face” (Umbreit). The suffix in רָעָתוֹ refers then by an obvious construclio ad sensum to him who conceals his hatred in this hypocritical way. The second clause gives assurance then of the certain occurrence of an exposure of this flatterer “ in the assembly,” i.e. before the congregation of his people assembled for judgment, who perhaps through some judicial process that ends unfortunately for him come to the knowledge of his villanies. Hitzig partially following the LXX (ὁ κρύπτων ἔχθραν συνίστησι δόλον), renders: He who concealeth hatred, devising mischief (?), his vileness is exposed in the assembly.”
Pro_26:27. He that diggeth a pit falleth into it. Comp. Ecc_10:8; Sir_27:26; Psa_9:16, and with respect to the “falling back of the stone that has been (wickedly) rolled” in clause b, comp. Psa_7:17; Mat_21:44.
Pro_26:28. The lying tongue hateth those that are wounded by it. If the reading דַּכָּיו is correct this may be the rendering, and the “crushed” (plural of דָּךְ [E. V. the oppressed], Ps. 9:10; 10:18; 27:21), i.e. the bruised (or oppressed or wounded—see Umbreit and Stier on this passage) of the lying tongue, are then those whom this tongue has bruised or wounded, the victims of its wickedness—and not those possibly whom it proposes to wound or oppress (Umbreit, De W., Van Ess), or again those who wound, i.e. punish, it (conterentessive castigantes ipsam—Luther, Geier, Gesenius). Inasmuch, however, as the proposition is by no means universally and in every case true, that the lying tongue, or that detraction hates its own victims, and since besides the second clause seems to demand another sense, it might be justifiable to read with Ewald and Hitzig אֲדֹנָיו; accordingly “ the lying tongue hates its own master,” i.e. it hurls him into calamity, brings him to ruin—a meaning which also corresponds admirably with Pro_26:27. [See Critical notes for the three chief explanations of the form and derivation of the word. The passive rendering has this advantage, that it makes the fourth instance correspond with the other three in which the word is used; this presumption must be- decidedly overthrown. This we do not think is done; so the E. V., H., N., S., M., W., Kamph., etc.—A.] For the noun rendered “ offence,” in clause b, comp., moreover, the cognate verb in clause a of Pro_16:32.
DOCTRINAL, ETHICAL, HOMILETIC AND PRACTICAL
It is mainly three forms of dishonorably and morally contemptible conduct, against which the condemning language of the proverbs in this section is directed; foolishness or folly in the narrower sense (Pro_26:1-12;) sloth (Pro_26:13-16); and a wicked maliciousness (Pro_26:17-28), which displays itself at one time as a wilful contentiousness and disposition to annoy (17–19), and at another as an artful calumniation and hypocritical slandering (20–28). Original ethical truths, such as have not appeared in previous chapters, are expressed only to a limited extent in the proverbs which relate to these vices. The novelty is found more in the peculiarly pointed and figurative form which distinguishes in an extraordinary degree the maxims of this chapter above others. Yet there are now and then essentially new ideas; what is said in Pro_26:2 of the futility of curses that are groundless; in Pro_26:4-5 of uttering the truth staunchly to fools without becoming foolish one’s self; in Pro_26:7; Pro_26:9 of the senselessness and even harmfulness of proverbs of wisdom in the mouth of a fool; in Pro_26:12 of the incapability of improvement in conceited fools who deem themselves wise; and finally in Pro_26:27-28 of the self-destroying reflex power of malicious counsels formed against one’s neighbor.
Homily on the chapter as a whole.—Of three kinds of vices which the truly wise man must avoid: 1) folly; 2) sloth; 3) wicked artifice.—Stöcker: What kinds of people are worthy of no honor: 1) fools; 2) sluggards or idlers; 3) lovers of contention and brawling.—Starke: A (warning) lesson on folly, sloth and deceitfulness.
Pro_26:1-6. Würtemberg Bible (on Pro_26:1):—Honor is a reward of virtue and ability; wilt thou be honored, then first become virtuous and wise!—Melanchthon (on Pro_26:2): As a consolation against all calumnies and unjust detraction the assurance of the divine word serves us,—that false (groundless) curses, though they momentarily harm and wound, yet in the end appear in their nothingness, and are cast aside, in accordance with the saying: truth may indeed be repressed for a time, but not perish (Psa_94:15; 2Co_4:9). [“Truth crushed to earth shall rise again; the eternal years of God are hers.”—Lawson: The curses of such men instead of being prejudicial, will be very useful to us, if we are wise enough to imitate the conduct of David, whose meekness was approved, his prayers kindled into a flame of desires, and his hopes invigorated by them].—Geier (on Pro_26:3): One may not flatter his own unruly flesh and blood, but must seek to keep it properly in check.—Starke (on Pro_26:4-5): Great wisdom is needful to meet the different classes of our adversaries in an appropriate way.—(On Pro_26:6): Important concerns one should commit to skilful and able servants.
Pro_26:7-12. Luther. (Marginal comment on Pro_26:7): Fools ought not to be wise and yet will be always affecting wisdom.—[Trapp: If thy tongue speak by the talent, but thine hands scarce work by the ounce, thou shalt pass for a Pharisee (Mat_23:3). They spake like angels, lived like devils; had heaven commonly at their tongue ends, but the world continually at their finger ends].—Starke (on Pro_26:7; Pro_26:9): He who will teach others in divine wisdom, must first have mastered it himself (Sir_18:19); then he will not only teach with profit, but also have honor from it.—(On Pro_26:9): He who misuses God’s word does himself thereby the greatest injury.—(On Pro_26:8): Beware of all flattering of the ungodly; for one prepares himself thereby but a poor reward.—(On Pro_26:10): As is the master so is the servant. Bad masters like bad servants.—(On Pro_26:11): If all relapses in sickness are dangerous, so much more relapses into old sins.—(On Pro_26:12): Self-pleasing and self-relaxation is the prolific mother of many other follies.—Wohlfarth (on Pro_26:12): Let no one esteem himself perfect, but let every one strive for humility and cherish it as his most sacred possession.—[Lawson (on Pro_26:8): But does not God Himself often give honor to fools ? Yes. He is the judge of nations who has a right to punish men by subjecting them to the power of fools. We are to regulate our conduct not by His secret but His revealed will.—Arnot (on Pro_26:11): When the unrenewed heart and the pollutions of the world are, after a temporary separation, brought together again, the two in their unholy wedlock become “one flesh.” Man’s true need—God’s sufficient cure is “Create in me a clean heart, and renew a right spirit within me.”—J. Edwards (on Pro_26:12): Those who are wise in their own eyes are some of the least likely to get good of any in the world.—Bridges: The natural fool has only one hinderance—his own ignorance. The conceited fool has two—ignorance and self-delusion].
Pro_26:13-16. Lange: That the weeds of sin are ever getting the upper hand as well in hearts as in the Church, comes from this, that men do not enough watch and pray, but only lounge, are idle and sleepy: 1Th_5:6.—Berlebury Bible: The sluggard remains year in year out sitting on the heap of his Self-chosen convenient Christianity, reads, hears, prays, sings in the Church year after year, and makes no progress, never cornea to an inner complete knowledge of truth; just as the door always remains in one place, although it turns this way and that the whole year through, and swings on its hinges. This slothfulness is the mother of all the doctrines which encourage the old Adam, and in the matter of sanctification throw out the “cannot,” where it is a “will not” that hides behind.—Wohlfarth: The sluggard’s wisdom. Rest is to him the sole end of life; only in indolence does he feel happy, etc.
Pro_26:17-19. Starke (on Pro_26:17): To mix one’s self in strange matters from forwardnesss and with no call, has usually a bad issue.—Osiander (on Pro_26:18-19): In the sight of God the wantonness and wickedness of the heart are not hid; moreover He does not let them go unpunished.—Zeltner: Crafty friends are much more dangerous and injurious than open enemies.—Lange: It testifies of no small wickedness when one alleges quite innocent intentions in injuring another, and yet with all is only watching an opportunity to give him a blow.
Pro_26:20-28. Hasius (on Pro_26:20 sq.): There would not be so much dispute and strife among men if there were not so many base spirits who nourish and promote it in every way.—Starke: Slanders and contentions are to be regarded as a flame to which one should not supply wood, but rather water to quench them.—[Trapp (on Pro_26:23): Counterfeit friends are nought on both sides].—Von Gerlach (on Pro_26:20): Though a deceitful man may succeed in cheating individuals, yet this is not possible before the whole Church (Act_5:1-11).—(On Pro_26:27): A hypocritical tongue if it has injured any one follows him still further with lies to defend itself, and so it causes universal confusion.
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures (Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical), ed. John Peter Lange, English translation edited by Philip Schaff (1864–1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 1. As snow in summer… as rain… harvest —…
1. As snow in summer… as rain… harvest — Both of which are, in Palestine, rare at the seasons named, and their occurrence then deemed calamitous, as being damaging to the crops. So is it, too, in some parts of California, which has a similar climate.
So honour (preferment) is not seemly for a fool — Does not sit well on him, or fit him; a figure supposed to be taken from a misfitting or unbecoming garment. The ideas of grossness, stupidity, and wickedness are embraced in the Hebrew כסיל, (kesil,) which we render fool. See on Pro_1:22. Compare 1Sa_12:17.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 1. rain in harvest] “For six months in the…
1. rain in harvest] “For six months in the year no rain falls [in Palestine], and the harvests are gathered in without any of the anxiety with which we are so familiar lest the work be interrupted by unseasonable storms. In this respect at least the climate has remained unchanged since the time when Boaz slept by his heap of corn; and the sending thunder and rain in wheat harvest was a miracle which filled the people with fear and wonder (1Sa_12:16-18); and Solomon could speak of ‘rain in harvest’ as the most forcible expression for conveying the idea of something utterly out of place and unnatural (Pro_26:1).”—Smith’s Dict. of Bible, Art. Rain.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (1) As rain in harvest.—This was very unusual in…
XXVI.
(1) As rain in harvest.—This was very unusual in Palestine (comp. 1Sa_12:17, sqq.), and of course very unsuitable for carrying on the work of harvest.
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So honour is not seemly for a fool.—i.e., for a dull person, confident in his own wisdom (Pro_1:22). It only confirms him in his good opinion of himself, making him less inclined than ever to learn.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Vers. 1-12. Certain proverbs concerning the fool (kesil), with…
Vers. 1-12. Certain proverbs concerning the fool (kesil), with the exception, perhaps, of ver. 2. (see on Pro_1:22)
As snow in summer, and as rain in harvest. Snow in summer would be quite unnatural and unheard of. (see on Pro_25:13) Rain falls in the usual course of things only at stated times; whence arose the phrase of "the early and of latter rains". (see on Pro_16:15) From spring to October or November was the dry season, and a storm at harvest time was regarded, not merely as destructive or inconvenient, but as portentous and even supernatural. (see 1Sa_12:17, etc.) The two cases are types of all that is incongruous and unsuitable. The LXX, apparently regarding their experience in Egypt rather than the actual text, translate, "As dew in harvest, and as rain in summer." So honour is not seemly for a fool. (ver. 8 Pro_19:10) It is quite out of place to show respect to a stupid and ungodly man, or to raise him to a post of dignity; such conduct will only confirm him in his folly, give others a wrong impression concerning him, and afford him increased power of mischief. The Greeks had a proverb about giving honour to unsuitable objects: they called it washing an ass"s head with nitre.
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HOMILIES BY E. JOHNSON Vers. 1-3. Sayings against folly.
I THE INAPTNESS OF HONOURS TO THE FOOLISH MAN. (Ver. 1) According to Jerome, it is something unheard of or impossible to experience, rain in the harvest time. (see 1Sa_12:17, sqq.) The advancement of the fool appears to all men unseasonable, even shocking. High place reveals the more clearly the smallness of small souls. Honour is the just reward of virtue and ability. Let men be virtuous and wise, that they may be honoured, and that external distinctions may not rather invite the contempt of observers.
II THE HARMLESSNESS OF UNMERITED CURSES. (Ver. 2) Aimless as the wayward flight of sparrow or swallow, they fail to strike their object. (see that in 2Sa_16:5, sqq.; 1Ki_2:8) "I would not hesitate to say," observes Trench, "that the great glory of proverbs in their highest aspect, and that which makes them so full of blessing to those who cordially accept them, is the conviction, of which they are full, that, despite all appearances to the contrary, this world is God"s world, and not the world of the devil or of those wicked men who may be prospering for the hour. A lie has no legs." Truth may be temporarily depressed, but cannot fall to the ground. (Psa_94:15 2Co_4:9) But as for the lie; its priests may set it on its feet again after it has once fallen before the presence of the truth, yet this will all be labour in vain; it will only be, like Dagon, again to fall.
III FOLLY INVITES ITS OWN CHASTISEMENT. (Ver. 3) The instincts of flesh and blood show like untamed and unbroken-in animals, especially in idleness, and demand the like severe treatment. "Our flesh and sense must be subdued," not flattered and fed. If we do not practise self-control, God will administer his chastisements. J.
HOMILIES BY W. CLARKSON Vers. 1, 6, 9. Honouring the unworthy.
There are different ways in which we may honour men, whether the wise or the unwise. We may
(1) put them in positions of rank and dignity, in which men bow (or fall) before them; (Pro_25:26) or
(2) entrust to them offices of importance and responsibility (ver. 6); or
(3) allow them to undertake the work of public instruction (vers. 7, 9). It is only the wise and good that we should honour in these ways. Unfortunately, in the confusion and perversity which sin has wrought in the world, it often happens that it is not the wise man but the fool who is chosen for the post or the task. How foolish it is to honour the unworthy is seen if we consider
I ITS PAINFUL INCONGRUITY. "As snow in summer, and as rain in harvest, so honour is not seemly for a fool." To hear a fool attempting lamely to discourse wisdom is suggestive of the motion of a man whose "legs are not equal." For the post of honour to be occupied by one who has disgraced himself by guilty foolishness, or who has neglected his opportunities, and is empty-minded and incapable, this is something which is manifestly unfitting; it offends our sense of the appropriate and the becoming. Shamelessness and honour, stupidity and responsibility, have no sort of agreement; they are miserably and painfully ill-mated.
II ITS POSITIVE REVERSAL OF THE TRUE ORDER OF THINGS. The fool ought to be positively dishonoured. He need not be actually despised. There is too much of capacity, of indefinitely great possibility in every human spirit to make it right for us to despise our brethren. We are to "honour all men" because they are men, because they are, with us, the offspring of God, and may be his children in the highest and deepest sense. (1Pe_2:17) Yet is it our clear duty to see that folly is dishonored, that it is made to take the lowest place, that the man who does shameful things is put to shame before his fellows. Let those who dishonour God, disregard their fellows, and disgrace themselves, feel the edge of holy indignation; they should be smitten in faithfulness that they may be healed in mercy.
III ITS INJURIOUSNESS. To honour the fool by giving him rank, or responsibility, or the opportunity of speech, is:
1. To injure him. For it is to make him "think himself to be something or, "somebody when he is nothing or, "nobody." It is to fasten him in his present position of unworthiness, and thus to do him the most serious harm we can inflict upon him. The flatterer of the fool is his deadliest enemy.
2. To injure the community. It is "to drink damage," to bind a stone in a sling that is most likely to hit and hurt our neighbour, to smart with a wound from some sharp thorn. The foolish, the guilty, the wrong in heart and mind, do serious harm when they hold the reins of office or sit in the seat of honour. Their very elevation is itself an encouragement to folly and vice, and a discouragement to wisdom and virtue. They administer injustice instead of justice. They let all things down instead of raising them up. They advance those who are like-minded with themselves, and neglect those who deserve honour and promotion. Speaking from "the chair," they make falsity and foolishness to appear to be truth and wisdom, and so they mislead the minds and darken the lives and betray the souls of men. C.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain As snow in summer, and as rain in harvest,…
Pro_26:1-8
As snow in summer, and as rain in harvest, so honour is not seemly for a fool
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Honour paid to the wicked unseemly and pernicious
The respect which man pays his fellow is often grounded on reasons immoral and absurd.
Sometimes man is respected on the ground of his personal appearance, sometimes on the ground of his mental abilities, sometimes on the ground of his worldly possessions, sometimes on the ground of his lineage and social position; but respect for men on any of these grounds alone is very questionable in morality. The true and Divinely authorised ground of respect for man is moral goodness. The man who is morally good, however deficient in other things, has a Divine claim to our honour.
I. Honour paid to the wicked is unseemly. It is like snow in summer and rain in harvest. It is unseasonable and incongruous. How unseemly nature would appear in August with snow mantling our cornfields! Souls are morally constituted to reverence the good; to abhor the morally bad, wherever it is seen, whether in connection with lordly possessions, kingly power, or, what is higher still, mental genius.
II. Honour paid to the wicked is pernicious. Snow in summer and rain in harvest are in nature mischievous elements. Their tendency is to rob the agriculturist of the rewards of his labour, and to bring on a famine in the land. Far more mischievous is it when the people of a country sink so morally low as to render honour to men who are destitute of moral goodness. The perniciousness is also expressed by another figure in the text, As he that bindeth a stone in a sling, so is he that giveth honour to a fool. The word translated sling means a heap of stones, and the word stone a precious stone. Hence the margin reads, As he that putteth a precious stone in an heap of stones, so is he that giveth honour to a fool. The idea evidently is, as a precious stone amongst rubbish, so is honour given to a fool. (D. Thomas, D. D.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain MAIN HOMILETICS OF Pro_26:1
MAIN HOMILETICS OF Pro_26:1
A GIFT WRONGLY BESTOWED
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I. To honour some men is both seemly and right. The snow and the rain come from heaven by Divine command, and are indispensable to the beauty and fruitfulness of the earth. So to accord honour where it is due is a Divine command (Rom_13:7), and is indispensable to our social well-being.
II. But honour accorded to a fool (i.e., a bad man) is incongruous and hurtful. Snow in summer is an exception to the rules of nature. It would indeed be a surprise to our reapers when they were about to gather in the grain, to find the fields white with snow, and such an event would be most mischievous in its effects. And in Oriental countries rain in summer would be equally surprising, and probably as hurtful, since the rain in those lands generally descends in torrents and not in gentle showers as with us. So, although God has commanded us to “honour all men” (1Pe_2:17), the wicked man, by his wickedness, puts himself outside this rule, and to place him in a position of honour, or to give him reverence, is entirely out of place, and an act which can only produce evil consequences.
1. It does harm to the man who gives it. The heavy rain or snow falling upon the ripened cornfield, takes away all its beauty and lessens its worth—it may make it utterly valueless. And so it degrades a soul to bow down where it ought to stand erect and firm, and a man who will from cowardice or any other cause cringe before a moral fool is a man who is of no use in the world from a moral point of view. (See on this subject, on Pro_26:26 of the preceding chapter, page 711).
2. It injures the man who receives it. It makes him feel as if there was no difference between vice and virtue, when he finds himself receiving that which ought to be given to a good man only, and so he is confirmed in his wickedness. This will be the case especially if the person who does him honour is a better man than himself, if it is such a case as is described in the verse referred to above.
3. It has a bad influence upon men around them. It is an encouragement to bad men to continue in their evil courses when they see wickedness enthroned in high places, and worthless men receiving honour instead of the scorn which they deserve. Such an elevation makes all bad men more shameless and daring, and it also discourages and depresses better men. Although the truly good man’s actions spring from a deeper source, and have their origin in a higher motive than the praise or blame of their fellow-men, yet there are many who are not firmly rooted in the practice of virtue, who are much influenced by the moral atmosphere in which they live. If they see their fellow-men doing as God does, and being a respecter of persons in regard to character, and to character only, their better nature will be strengthened, and their efforts to be upright and godly will be encouraged, but if they see “the wicked walk on every side,” and “the vilest men exalted” (Psa_12:8), they may give up the struggle after a higher and better life in despair. And thus the effect upon the moral tone of the community will be as blighting and destructive as floods upon the growing corn, or as snow upon the ripening fruits. It is, therefore, the solemn duty of every man in this respect to “discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God, and him that serveth Him not.” (Mal_3:18).
OUTLINES AND SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS
Honour is unfit for a fool, in two respects especially; the one, for that punishment is properly due unto him; the other, for that he abuseth his authority, be it civil or ecclesiastical, unto the hurt of those that are subject unto him.—Muffett.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Sermon Bible 1900 · Public Domain I. There is a lion in the way? In…
Pro 26:13
I. There is a lion in the way? In what way? I answer, In the way of life, of every life. Life, if it is to be a true life, is not an easy thing. The men who live for nobler objects than those of shameful selfishness, like St. Paul, will have to fight with wild beasts at Ephesus or elsewhere. Every step of the road requires effort, courage, resolution, watchfulness; it needs the girded loins and the burning lamp; it needs the swift foot, and the sharp sword, and the stout heart, and the strong arm; it needs faith, and prayer, and the battle, and the cross; it needs the will to toil on though the feet bleed, and to fight on though the heart faint, to do all this unto death. That is the way, dim, thorny, and lion-haunted; and all the best and noblest of the earth have trodden it.
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II. "There is a lion in the way." Yes, and not one, but many lions: (1) the lion of the world’s opposition and hatred; (2) the lion of our own fleshly nature, of our own physical and mental passions; (3) our "adversary the devil."
III. These lions—the world, the flesh, and the devil—for all their seeming strength and ferocity and the passion in their throats, prove but cowardly beasts after all; and though Timorous and Mistrust may not find it out, they are but chained lions, and we stand beyond their spring But the slothful man not only says, "There is a lion in the way," but adds, "I shall be slain in the streets," and then in a reproachful and injured tone, "You well know that many have been so slain." Yes, it is quite true; they have been so slain: but to them, as to their Lord, through death and after death, if not in life, have come the glory and the victory.
F. W. Farrar, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxiii., p. 17.
References: Pro 26:20.—Clergyman’s Magazine, vol. ii., p. 41. Pro 27:1.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. ii., No. 94; W. Arnot, Laws from Heaven, 2nd series, p. 333; New Manual of Sunday-school Addresses, p. 8; F. E. Paget, Helps and Hindrances to the Christian Life, vol. ii., p. 231. Pro 27:4.—Preacher’s Monthly, vol. ii., p. 468; G. Brooks, Outlines of Sermons, p. 289; New Manual of Sunday-school Addresses, p. 37. Pro 27:7.—Spurgeon, Sermons, vol. xxi., No. 1227. Pro 27:10.—Ibid., My Sermon Notes: Genesis to Proverbs, p. 192. Pro 27:15.—S. Cox, Expositor, 2nd series, vol. vi., p. 250.
The Sermon Bible, ed. William Robertson Nicoll (1888–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
J. R. Dummelow 1909 · Public Domain Fools. Sluggards. Talkers
Fools. Sluggards. Talkers
1-12. The vv. refer chiefly to fools.
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1. The Palestinian seasons were more regular than ours (1Sa_12:17).
2. This is a contradiction of the idea that the deity invoked in a curse was bound to inflict it (Gen_27:33; Jdg_17:2). The undeserved curse is compared to the aimless movements of a bird.
4, 5. Answer or not, according to circumstances (Mat_12:30; Mar_9:39).
6. 'He that sends a fool means to follow him.'
7. A fool is no more qualified to use a proverb than a lame man his legs.
8. This may be read, 'As he that bindeth,' etc. It should not be 'bound' there. Or, 'As a bag of gems,' etc. (RV). That is not the place for them.
10. The proverb seems to be directed against employing fools and strangers, but it is impossible to be sure how the Hebrew words at the beginning of the v. originally ran.
17. RM 'A passing dog,' which does not know you.
18-28. The evil effects of much speaking.
18, 19. Sport to them is death to others.
21. For coal read 'bellows.'
23. A potsherd covered with the lead oxide which remains after silver has been refined looks valuable, but is worthless; so are 'fervent lips and a wicked heart' (RV): cp. Luk_22:47.
J. R. Dummelow, A Commentary on the Holy Bible (Macmillan, 1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Arno C. Gaebelein 1922 · Public Domain CHAPTER 26 Concerning the Fool and the Sluggard
CHAPTER 26 Concerning the Fool and the Sluggard
Eleven times we meet the word fool in this chapter. Three different words are used in the Hebrew for fool. The first is “avil” which signifies weakness. The second word “kesil” occurs nearly fifty times, means fat or dense. The third word is the Hebrew “nabal,” which is derived from the verb to fade, or to wither; it means a vulgar, bad man who has given himself over to wickedness. The natural man in his condition, his darkened mind, his sinfulness answers to much that is said about the fool in this book. As snow in summer and rain at harvest time are quiteimpossible in Palestine, so is honor for a fool. A fool may utter a curse, as they often do, and wish something evil, but being causeless, it will not be fulfilled. The fool needs correction, the stripes for his back, he deserves no answer, and if he is answered it must be according to his folly. The foolish questions mentioned in the New Testament may well be considered here Tit 3:9. The tenth verse Pro 26:10 is doubtful in its translation. A better suggested rendering is the following:
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A master workman formeth all himself aright,
But he that hireth a fool hireth a transgressor--
That is, a master does everything right; a fool spoils everything. The eleventh verse is quoted in 2Pe 2:22. The Apostle applies it to the outward professor of Christianity who turns back to the world after a period of profession and reformation. The true child of God is never described as a dog, nor could the other sentence in Peter’s Epistle mean a true believer. “The sow that was washed turned to her own wallowing in the mire.” A hog may be washed, yet in spite of the washing he is still a hog. So a sinner may profess salvation yet may never have been born again, and after a brief period of profession turn again to his old sins and habits.
The slothful man, the man that deceiveth his neighbor, the talebearer, the contentious man, the lying tongue and the flattering mouth, furnish other proverbs. How true it is “A flattering mouth worketh ruin.” Every godly man and woman should hate and avoid flattery.
Arno C. Gaebelein, The Annotated Bible (1913–1922) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain Concerning Fools and Sluggards
Concerning Fools and Sluggards
v. 1. As snow in summer and as rain in harvest, either possibility being suggested as something altogether unfitting, not to be expected, so honor is not seemly for a fool, it is not proper that he should have it, he is altogether unworthy of it.
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v. 2. As the bird by wandering, the sparrow flitting along, as the swallow by flying, the aimlessness of their ordinary flight being the point of comparison, so the curse causeless shall not come, that is, if it is undeserved, it will not be fulfilled, and the person against whom it is directed has no cause for worry.
v. 3. A whip for the horse, a bridle for the ass, both being necessary in the case of irrational brutes in order to keep them under control, and a rod for the fool’s back, for only by force can he be directed in the proper way.
v. 4. Answer not a fool according to his folly, by putting oneself on a level with him in speech and actions, lest thou also be like unto him, be placed in the same class with him by decent and intelligent people.
v. 5. Answer a fool according to his folly, a sharp and decisive answer being framed to meet foolish remarks, lest he be wise in his own conceit, filled with the notion that he really possesses wisdom.
v. 6. He that sendeth a message by the hand of a fool, expecting him to represent his interests in a proper manner, cutteth off the feet, he puts himself in a helpless condition, he harms his own cause, and drinketh damage, harms, or injures, himself, he is bound to suffer abuse.
v. 7. The legs of the lame are not equal, they drag or dangle, they render him helpless in his walk; so is a parable in the mouth of fools, it is altogether awkward for him to use a proverb or maxim, as he cannot apply it properly.
v. 8. As he that bindeth a stone in a sling, as we might say, as one who plays with a loaded gun, so is he that giveth honor to a fool, for no fool is more dangerous than he who finds himself in a position of honor and authority.
v. 9. As a thorn goeth up into the hand of a drunkard, a branch of a thorn-bush in the hands of such a person being a dangerous weapon, since one never knows who will be injured in the inebriate’s uncertain striking, so is a parable in the mouth of fools, he works more harm than profit with his wrong applications.
v. 10. The great God that formed all things both rewardeth the fool and rewardeth transgressors, rather, literally, "Much produceth all, and both the reward and the rewarder of the fool pass away," that is, diligence brings reward, but folly brings destruction.
v. 11. As a dog returneth to his vomit, so a fool returneth to his folly, repeating it again and again, not aware of the loathsomeness of his action. cf Proverbs 2Pe 2:22.
v. 12. Seest thou a man wise in his own conceit, in a false estimate of his knowledge and abilities? There is more hope of a fool than of him, for a person with false self-assurance is a hopeless case.
v. 13. The slothful man saith, eagerly inventing excuses to keep himself from work, There is a lion in the way; a lion is in the streets. Pro 22:13.
v. 14. As the door turneth upon his hinges, never, however, moving from its place, so doth the slothful upon his bed, moving indeed, but not leaving his place and therefore making no progress in life.
v. 15. The slothful hideth his hand in his bosom, rather, he dips it into the large bowl on the table with the intention of getting food for himself; it grieveth him to bring it again to his mouth, he is actually too lazy to bring it up to his mouth, 19:24.
v. 16. The sluggard is wiser in his own conceit, in his own estimate of himself, than seven men that can render a reason, giving wise answers, proper information concerning questions placed before them. True humility is one of the chief Christian virtues.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 Like snow in summer or rain in harvest
Like snow in summer or rain in harvest
Normally snow does not fall during the summer and rain does not fall during the harvest. This can be stated clearly. AT: "Just as it would be very strange to have snow in summer or rain during the harvest" (See: Simile and Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
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so an undeserved curse does not alight
A curse that does not harm a person is spoken of as if it were a bird that does not land. AT: "so an undeserved curse does not land on its mark" (See: Simile)
an undeserved curse
This can be stated with an active form. AT: "a curse on a person who does not deserve it" (See: Active or Passive)
alight
land on someone or something
translationWords
harvest
fool
honor
curse
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 26:1 It is not fitting to give honor to…
26:1 It is not fitting to give honor to fools.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.