26:3 A whip for the horse and a bridle for the donkey,
and a rod for the backs of fools! 1
26:4 Do not answer a fool according to his folly, 2
lest you yourself also be like him. 3
1 sn A fool must be disciplined by force like an animal – there is no reasoning. The fool is as difficult to manage as the donkey or horse.
2 sn One should not answer a fool’s foolish questions in line with the fool’s mode of reasoning (J. H. Greenstone, Proverbs, 274).
3 sn The person who descends to the level of a fool to argue with him only looks like a fool as well.