The Wise Know When to Keep Silent

¹Certain kinds of rebuke are out of place,

and a wise person knows when to keep quiet.

²But how much better it is to rebuke someone

than to stay angry with that person.

³The person who admits a mistake

will avoid being disgraced.

⁴Like a eunuch lusting after a girl,

so is the person who does what is right only under compulsion.

⁵Some people are thought to be wise because they remain silent,

while others are despised because they are talkative.

⁶Some people keep quiet because they have no answer,

while others keep quiet because they know when to speak.

⁷A wise person keeps quiet until the right opportunity,

but an arrogant fool is completely unaware of the right moment.

⁸Whoever talks too much is hated,

and those who act as if they are important are detested.

Some Paradoxes of Life

⁹Sometimes hard times can bring good fortune,

while a windfall may turn into a loss.

¹⁰Some gifts are not profitable

and others must be paid back double.

¹¹There are losses because of honor,

and some people of lowly status have gained prestige.

¹²Some people buy much for little,

but then they pay for it seven times over.

¹³The wise gain favor with their words,

but fools waste their compliments to others.

¹⁴Gifts from fools will do you no good,

for they are looking to be repaid sevenfold.

¹⁵Fools give little and berate much.

They announce things like the town crier.

Today they lend, and tomorrow they ask for it back;

such people are detestable.

¹⁶The fool says, “I have no friends,

and no one thanks me for my good deeds.

¹⁷The very people I feed speak maliciously about me.”

How often—and by how many—will such a person be laughed at!

Shameful Speech

¹⁸A slip on the pavement is better than a slip of the tongue.

That is how fast the wicked will fall.

¹⁹An ill-mannered person is like an indiscreet story

that is continually repeated by fools.

²⁰A proverb told by a fool will be rejected

because he does not tell it at the right moment.

²¹Poverty may prevent some people from sinning;

when they try to sleep, they will not be restless with remorse.

²²People can be destroyed because they are modest

or because they look foolish.

²³A person may be shamed into making promises to a friend

and thereby gains an enemy for no good reason.

²⁴A lie is an ugly stain on a person,

and the foolish will constantly talk about it.

²⁵A thief is better than a constant liar,

but both are headed for destruction.

²⁶Lying leads to disgrace,

and such shame stays with a person constantly.

Displaying Wisdom

²⁷Wise people gain prestige by their words,

and sensible people please the powerful.

²⁸Those who till their land will harvest a good crop,

and those who please the powerful make up for injustice.

²⁹Favors and gifts blind the eyes of the wise;

like a muzzle over their mouths, they keep them from criticizing.

³⁰What profit is there in wisdom that is hidden

and in treasure that no one has discovered?

³¹Better are those who hide their foolishness

than those who hide their wisdom.