16 A slacker is wiser in his own eyes than seven people who answer sensibly.
17 Like one who takes a dog by the ears is a passer-by who meddles in a quarrel not his own.
18 Like a madman shooting firebrands and deadly arrows
19 so is one who deceives his friend, and says, “I was only joking.”
20 Without wood a fire goes out; without gossip quarrels cease.
21 As coals are to embers and wood to fire, so is a contentious person to kindling strife.
22 A gossip’s words are like tasty morsels— they slide down into the innermost parts of the body.