shared with poetry generally, that we often miss since we read the proverbs in translation. Notice the alliteration in “Look before you leap” and the balanced rhyme of “Haste makes waste.” More than brevity characterizes these proverbs; they are often little literary gems, filled with poetic ornamentation. With that in mind, let’s consider some different aspects of the poetry of proverbs. We begin with the idea of parallelism, then imagery, and finally other poetic devices. This will help us understand