Proverbs 26 Study Notes

26:1-12 The word fool (Hb kesiyl, see note at 1:22) occurs in every verse in this section except v. 2.

26:1 Snow in summer and rain at harvest would not only be unusual; they could be catastrophic, destroying the crops and endangering society.

26:2 On undeserved, see “just for fun” in note at 1:11. Ultimately, God determines whether a blessing or curse will be fulfilled (Nm 23:8; Dt 23:5; Ps 109:28).

26:3 Like an animal, fools must be prodded and directed.

26:4-5 A person should not answer a fool by resorting to foolish methods. Yet, someone needs to expose his foolishness, even if he will not listen (23:9).

26:6 To trust a fool as a messenger is as self-destructive as self-mutilation or taking poison (1:19).

26:7 A lame person has legs but cannot use them.

26:8 A sling was a leather strap with a pouch in the middle. A stone would be placed in the pouch, then the slinger held both ends of the strap and swung it over his head two or three times. When he let go of one strap, the stone would be released. It would be ridiculous to tie the stone in the pouch. The weapon would be useless, and it could hurt the slinger.

26:9 A fool would give a proverb a wrong application, causing chaos and destruction, like a belligerent drunkard swinging a thorny stick.

26:10 The Hebrew here was difficult to understand before scholars discovered that rav could mean archer (Jb 16:13; Jr 50:29) as well as “great.” Hiring a fool or someone at random is as harmful to society as a berserk shooter (v. 18; cp. the English idiom “loose cannon”).

26:11 Because a fool does not accept correction (1:22; 23:9), he never advances, but returns to what everyone else can see is repulsive.

26:12 A fool might respond to corporal punishment or even arguments (vv. 3,5), but the self-deluded will not.

26:13 On a slacker and his excuses, see note at 22:13.

26:14 This is a sarcastic image of the only “work” a slacker does. An ancient hinge was a hole in the threshold on which the door pivoted.

26:15 In ancient times, food was eaten by hand from a communal dish. The slacker does not have the gumption to bring food to his mouth, which has physical consequences (6:9-11; 20:4; 21:25; cp. 19:15).

26:16 A sensible answer implies discernment. Seven suggests this is a complete group of counselors (Ezr 7:14).

26:17 Meddles in could be translated as “is provoked by” (20:2). Alternatively, it could be the dog that is passing by, i.e., a stray. Therefore, this could be translated, “One who gets riled up by a quarrel that is not his is like one who grabs a stray dog by the ears.” The point is the same.

26:18-19 A liar who calls himself a jester if he gets caught is as dangerous to society as a berserk warrior (v. 10).

26:20 On gossip, see note at 16:28.

26:21 As Derek Kidner claims, vv. 20-28 is about malicious talk. A quarrelsome person is a man whose speech stirs up conflict (cp. Jr 15:10).

26:22 On choice food, see note at 18:8.

26:23-28 Though vv. 23,27-28 could each stand as independent proverbs, with 24-26 they develop a single theme. The Hebrew keseph siygiym (“silver dross”; cp. 25:4) has been emended to kesaphsagiym (glaze). Silver dross—lead monoxide—was also used as a glaze on pottery, so the point is the same. A flatterer (see note at 2:16-17) with evil intentions appears nice, but it is an artificial veneer, a pretense. Though a hateful person disguises himself, the wise person perceives that his heart is detestable. His driving force is hatred, the wicked person’s passion to destroy anything good and godly. The person who hates will eventually be revealed publicly (5:14), and he will suffer the fate he wished on others (Ps 7:15-16; 9:15-16). The last line is ambiguous—the liar seeks the ruin of the godly, but he causes his own ruin.