English and russian proverbs

В тихом омуте черти водятся”, literally, “In a quiet pool devils dwell.” Though the Russian version is close to the English one, the highlight there is on the turbulent desires that may be hidden beneath a placid exterior. The Russian proverb is rather a warning and teaches not to trust appearance.
4. “The early bird catches the worm.” Competitive cultures produce proverbs praising success: The one who arrives first has better chances to succeed. But does that proverb suggest that one should get up early in order to achieve the goals? Many cultures consider early wake-ups a virtue, and staying in bed late decadence, even today, in our post-agrarian and post-industrial world. The Russian version of the saying definitely promotes this idea: “Кто рано встаёт, тому Бог подаёт”, literally, “He who rises early, to him God gives.” Interestingly, the competition part disappeared in the Russian proverb completely.
5. “You can’t make an omelet without breaking a few eggs.” Some sacrifices are inevitable on the way to achieving something big. The Russian saying is quite blunt, too: “Лес рубят — щепки летят”, literally, “When they cut the forest, chips fly around.” The Russian National Corpus provides a lot of examples when politicians use this proverb to excuse collateral damage, costly or deadly mistakes, and casualties. Language rationalizes sacrifices. It should be in the “Political Rhetoric 101” textbook: Refer to the “common wisdom” and “traditional saying”, and fewer people will question your deeds.
6. “You scratch my back, and I’ll scratch yours,” a favour for a favour. Russian borrowed the saying from Latin, “manus manum lavat”, and translated it literally: “Рука руку моет”, “One hand washes another.” The saying refers to corruption and collective responsibility among corrupted individuals, normally, authorities.
7. “A friend in need is a friend indeed.” Friendship is fundamental in any human society, and many cultures have plenty of proverbs about it. While the English saying is nicely rhymed, the Russian version of it is short and straightforward: “