^20 (A)He deprives the trusted ones of speech,
And takes away the discernment of the elders.

^9 (A)Great^[a] men are not always wise,
Nor do the aged always understand justice.

⁴ For You have hidden their heart from ^(A)understanding;
Therefore You will not exalt them.

3 For behold, the Lord, the Lord of hosts,
^(A)Takes away from Jerusalem and from Judah
^(B)The^[a] stock and the store,
The whole supply of bread and the whole supply of water;
^2 (C)The mighty man and the man of war,
The judge and the prophet,
And the diviner and the elder;
³ The captain of fifty and the ^[b]honorable man,
The counselor and the skillful artisan,
And the expert enchanter.

^22 (A)Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord,
But those who deal truthfully are His delight.

¹⁹ The truthful lip shall be established forever,
^(A)But a lying tongue is but for a moment.

²¹ The lips of the righteous feed many,
But fools die for lack of ^[a]wisdom.

¹⁷ Because God deprived her of wisdom,
And did not ^(A)endow her with understanding.

²⁴ He takes away the ^[a]understanding of the chiefs of the people of the earth,
And ^(A)makes them wander in a pathless wilderness.