Pro 20:3 | NETfull | STEP | It is an honor for a person to cease from strife, but every fool quarrels.

Proverbs 20:3

3 It is an honor for a person ^{▼▼ Heb “man.”} to cease ^{▼▼ Heb “cessation” (שֶׁבֶת, shevet); NAB “to shun strife”; NRSV “refrain from strife.”} ^{▼▼ One cannot avoid conflict altogether; but the proverb is instructing that at the first sign of conflict the honorable thing to do is to find a way to end it.} from strife,
but every fool quarrels. ^{▼▼ Heb “breaks out.” The Hitpael of the verb גָּלַע (gala’, “to expose; to lay bare”) means “to break out; to disclose oneself,” and so the idea of flaring up in a quarrel is clear. But there are also cognate connections to the idea of “showing the teeth; snarling” and so quarreling viciously.}