If the serpent bites before being charmed, there is no profit for the charmer.

Words from the mouth of a wise man are gracious, while the lips of a fool consume him;

Yet the fool multiplies words. No man knows what will happen, and who can tell him what will come after him?

Woe to you, O land, whose king is a lad and whose princes feast in the morning.

Furthermore, in your bedchamber do not curse a king, and in your sleeping rooms do not curse a rich man, for a bird of the heavens will carry the sound and the winged creature will make the matter known.

Blessed are you, O land, whose king is of nobility and whose princes eat at the appropriate time—for strength and not for drunkenness.

Through indolence the rafters sag, and through slackness the house leaks.

the beginning of his talking is folly and the end of it is wicked madness.

The toil of a fool so wearies him that he does not even know how to go to a city.

Men prepare a meal for enjoyment, and wine makes life merry, and money is the answer to everything.

Dead flies make a perfumer’s oil stink, so a little foolishness is weightier than wisdom and honor.

If the ruler’s temper rises against you, do not abandon your position, because composure allays great offenses.

He who digs a pit may fall into it, and a serpent may bite him who breaks through a wall.

I have seen slaves riding on horses and princes walking like slaves on the land.

Even when the fool walks along the road, his sense is lacking and he demonstrates to everyone that he is a fool.

There is an evil I have seen under the sun, like an error which goes forth from the ruler—

He who quarries stones may be hurt by them, and he who splits logs may be endangered by them.

If the axe is dull and he does not sharpen its edge, then he must exert more strength. Wisdom has the advantage of giving success.

folly is set in many exalted places while rich men sit in humble places.

A wise man’s heart directs him toward the right, but the foolish man’s heart directs him toward the left.