1 The sluggard is like a stone in the mud; everyone hisses at his disgrace.

2 The sluggard is like a lump of dung; whoever touches him wipes his hands.

3 An unruly child is a disgrace to its father; if it be a daughter she brings him to poverty.

4 A thoughtful daughter becomes a treasure to her husband, a shameless one is her father’s grief.

5 A hussy shames her father and her husband; by both she is despised.

6 2 Like a song in time of mourning is inopportune talk, but lashes and discipline are at all times wisdom.

7 Teaching a fool is like gluing a broken pot, or like disturbing a man in the depths of sleep;

8 He talks with a slumberer who talks with a fool, for when it is over, he will say, “What was that?”

9 Weep over the dead man, for his light has gone out; weep over the fool, for sense has left him.

10 Weep but a little over the dead man, for he is at rest; but worse than death is the life of a fool.

11 Seven days of mourning for the dead, but for the wicked fool a whole lifetime.

12 Speak but seldom with the stupid man, be not the companion of a brute;

13 Beware of him lest you have trouble and be spattered when he shakes himself; Turn away from him
and you will find rest and not be wearied by his lack of sense.

14 What is heavier than lead, and what is its name but “Fool”?

15 Sand and salt and an iron mass are easier to bear than a stupid man.

16 Masonry bonded with wooden beams is not loosened by an earthquake; Neither is a resolve constructed with careful deliberation shaken in a moment of fear.

17 A resolve that is backed by prudent understanding is like the polished surface of a smooth wall.