A whip is for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, And a rod for the back of fools.
Parallel translations
- WEB A whip is for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, and a rod for the back of fools!
- KJV A whip for the horse, a bridle for the ass, and a rod for the fool’s back.
- BSB A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, and a rod for the backs of fools!
- NKJV A whip for the horse, A bridle for the donkey, And a rod for the fool’s back.
- NLT Guide a horse with a whip, a donkey with a bridle, and a fool with a rod to his back!
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
A fool needs discipline just as a horse needs a whip and a donkey a bridle. Folly is corrected by appropriate restraint.
Overview
The proverb soberly observes that those who reject reason may only respond to discipline, as animals respond to guidance and the rod. It is descriptive of fallen folly rather than an endorsement of harshness. It underscores the value of correction, which God in love also applies to his children (Heb 12:6).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Prov 10:13Wisdom is found on the lips of him who has discernment, but a rod is for the back of him who is void of understanding.
- 1 Cor 4:21What do you want? Shall I come to you with a rod, or in love and a spirit of gentleness?
- Ps 32:9Don’t be like the horse, or like the mule, which have no understanding, who are controlled by bit and bridle, or else they will not come near to you.
- Prov 19:29Penalties are prepared for scoffers, and beatings for the backs of fools.
- 2 Cor 13:2I have said beforehand, and I do say beforehand, as when I was present the second time, so now, being absent, I write to those who have sinned before now, and to all the rest, that, if I come again, I will not spare;
- 2 Cor 10:6and being in readiness to avenge all disobedience, when your obedience will be made full.
- Judg 8:5–7He said to the men of Succoth, “Please give loaves of bread to the people who follow me; for they are faint, and I am pursuing after Zebah and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian.”
- Prov 19:25Flog a scoffer, and the simple will learn prudence; rebuke one who has understanding, and he will gain knowledge.
- Prov 27:22Though you grind a fool in a mortar with a pestle along with grain, yet his foolishness will not be removed from him.
- Prov 17:10A rebuke enters deeper into one who has understanding than a hundred lashes into a fool.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Wisdom personified, with God before creation and the agent of all things, anticipates Christ 'in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom' — the wisdom of God made flesh.
How Proverbs 26:3 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.