Proverbs Chapter 29 verse 9 Holy Bible

ASV Proverbs 29:9

If a wise man hath a controversy with a foolish man, Whether he be angry or laugh, there will be no rest.
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BBE Proverbs 29:9

If a wise man goes to law with a foolish man, he may be angry or laughing, but there will be no rest.
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DARBY Proverbs 29:9

If a wise man contendeth with a fool, whether he rage or laugh, [he] hath no rest.
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KJV Proverbs 29:9

If a wise man contendeth with a foolish man, whether he rage or laugh, there is no rest.
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WBT Proverbs 29:9


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WEB Proverbs 29:9

If a wise man goes to court with a foolish man, The fool rages or scoffs, and there is no peace.
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YLT Proverbs 29:9

A wise man is judged by the foolish man, And he hath been angry, And he hath laughed, and there is no rest.
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Pulpit Commentary

Pulpit CommentaryVerse 9. - If a wise man contendeth with a foolish man - if a wise man has a controversy, either legal or social, with a wicked fool - whether he rage (is angry) or laugh, there is no rest. It is a question whether the wise man or the fool is the subject of this clause. St. Jerome makes the former the subject, Vir sapiens, si cum stulto contenderit, sive irascatur, sive rideat, non inveniet requiem. It matters not how the wise man treats the fool; he may be stern and angry, he may be gentle and good tempered, yet the fool will be none the better, will not be reformed, will not cease from his folly, will carry on his cavilling contention. Hitzig, Delitzsch, and others, deeming that the rage and the laughter are not becoming to the character of the wise man, take the fool as the subject; so that the sense is, that after all has been said, the fool only falls into a passion or laughs at the matter, argument is wasted upon him, and the controversy is never settled. This seems to be the best interpretation, and is somewhat supported by the Septuagint, "A wise man shall judge the nations, but a worthless man, being angry, laughs and fears not [καταγελᾶται καὶ οὐ καταπτήσσει, which may also mean, 'is derided and terrifies no one']." Wordsworth notes that the irreligious fool is won neither by the austere preaching of John the Baptist nor by the mild teaching of Christ, but rejects both (Matthew 11:16-19).

Ellicott's Commentary

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(9) Whether he rage or laugh--i.e., whether the wise man treat him with sternness or good temper, yet "there is no rest," the fool will not cease from his folly; or, the sense may be, "the fool rages and laughs;" he will not listen quietly to argument, by which he might be brought to wisdom, but is either violent or supercilious.