Fools lack understanding and can only be convinced by treating them as a horse or donkey. See 10.13.

“A whip for the horse, a bridle for the ass”: A “bridle” is a harness around the neck of an animal, used for guiding the animal. In translation the nouns “whip” and “bridle” must often be replaced by verbs, for example, “Whip a horse and bridle a donkey.” Where these particular animals are not known, it may be possible to say something like “We use a whip [or, stick] or harness [or, rope] to make animals do what we want. . ..”

“And a rod for the back of fools”: For help in the translation of this line see 10.13. To connect the two lines of this saying some translations begin this line “And in the same way you must. . ..”

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. and Fry, Euan McG. A Handbook on Proverbs. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .