Proverbs 26: answer a fool…don’t answer a fool…what? The Nelson Study Bible summarizes this apparent contradiction: “The phrase according to his folly appears twice as a play on words with two shades of meaning. On the one hand, it means ‘avoid the temptation to stoop to his level’; that is, don’t use his methods, lest you also be like him. On the other hand, it means, ‘avoid the temptation to ignore him altogether’; that is, respond in some way, or else he will become wise in his own eyes and his folly will get worse.”