As a thorn goeth up into the hand of a drunkard, so is a parable in the mouth of fools.
As a thorn goeth up into the hand of a drunkard, so is a parable in the mouth of fools - as he knows not how to handle a thorn, and grasps it as a staff, whereas the sober take the precaution of fencing themselves with iron in grasping it (2 Samuel 23:6-7); so a sententious maxim is hurtful to fools themselves, and to others, while they improperly handle them, making it subserve laughter and wantonness.