夏天落雪，收割时下雨，都不相宜，照样，愚昧人得尊荣也不相宜。
Like snow in summer and like rain in harvest, / So honor is not fitting for a fool.

麻雀鼓翅，燕子翻飞，照样，无故的咒诅也不会临到。
Like the sparrow in its fluttering, like the swallow in its flying, / So a curse without cause does not alight.

鞭子是为打马，辔头是为勒驴；刑杖是为打愚昧人的背。
A whip for the horse! A bridle for the donkey! / And a rod for the back of fools!

不要照愚昧人的愚妄话回答他，免得你也与他一样。
Do not answer a fool according to his folly, / Lest you also be like him.

要照愚昧人的愚妄话回答他，免得他自以为有智慧。
Answer a fool according to his folly, / Lest he be wise in his own eyes.

借愚昧人的手传信的，是砍断自己的脚，自受损害。
He who sends a message by the hand of a fool / Cuts off his own feet and drinks violence.

瘸子的脚空悬无用，箴言在愚昧人的口中也是如此。
Like the legs of the lame which hang down, / So is a proverb in the mouth of fools.

将尊荣给愚昧人的，好像人把石子包在甩石的机弦里。
Like one who binds a stone in a sling, / So is he who gives honor to a fool.

箴言在愚昧人的口中，就像荆棘刺入醉汉的手。
Like a thorn that goes up into the hand of a drunkard, / So is a proverb in the mouth of fools.

雇愚昧人的，或雇过路人的，就像射伤众人的弓箭手。
Like an archer who wounds everyone, / So is he who hires a fool or who hires those who pass by.

愚昧人重复愚妄事，就像狗转过来吃自己所吐的。
Like a dog that returns to its vomit / Is a fool who repeats his folly.

你见过自以为有智慧的人么？愚昧人比他更有指望。
Do you see a man who is wise in his own eyes? / There is more hope for a fool than for him.

懒惰人说，路上有猛狮，街上有壮狮！
The sluggard says, There is a roaring lion on the way; / A lion is in the streets!

门在枢纽上转动，懒惰人在床上也是如此。
As the door turns upon its hinges, / So does the sluggard upon his bed.

懒惰人把手放在盘子里，就是向口撤回，也以为劳乏。
The sluggard buries his hand in the dish; / He gets weary by bringing it to his mouth again.

懒惰人看自己比七个善于应对的人更有智慧。
The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes / Than seven men who can answer discreetly.

过路的人干涉与自己无关的纷争，就像人揪狗的耳朵。
He who passes by and meddles with strife that does not belong to him, / Is like one who takes a dog by the ears.

人欺哄邻舍，却说，我岂不是戏耍么？他就像疯狂的人抛掷火把、利箭与死亡。
Like a madman who shoots firebrands, arrows, and death,

（18、19节合并。）
So is the man who deceives his neighbor, / And says, Was I not joking?

缺了柴，火就熄灭；没有传闲话的人，争论便止息。
For lack of wood the fire goes out, / And where there is no whisperer, contention quiets down.

好纷争的人煽动争竞，就如余烬加炭，火上加柴一样。
As charcoal to hot embers and wood to fire, / So is a contentious man to kindle strife.

传闲话之人的言语如同美食，进入人的深处。
The words of a whisperer are like dainty morsels, / And they go down into the innermost parts of one's being.

火热的嘴，奸恶的心，好像包了银渣的瓦器。
Burning lips and a wicked heart / Are like an earthen vessel overlaid with silver dross.

怨恨人的，用嘴掩饰，心里却存着诡诈，
He who hates disguises it with his lips, / But he lays up deceit within him;

他的言语虽然动听，你不可信他，因为他心中有七样可憎恶的。
When he speaks graciously, do not believe him; / For there are seven abominations in his heart;

他虽用诡诈遮掩自己的怨恨，他的邪恶必在会中显露。
Though his hatred covers itself with guile, / His wickedness will be revealed before the assembly.

挖陷坑的，自己必掉在其中；辊石头的，石头必反辊在他身上。
Whoever digs a pit will fall into it, / And he who rolls a stone, it will come back on him.

虚谎的舌恨自己所压伤的人，谄媚的口造成毁坏的事。
A lying tongue hates those it crushes, / And a flattering mouth works ruin.