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The ·words [L lips] of fools ·start quarrels [or make accusations].
·They make people want to beat them [L Their mouth invites a beating].

The ·words [L mouth] of fools will ruin them;
their own ·words [L lips] will trap them.

The words of a gossip are like tasty bits of food.
·People like to gobble them up [L They go down to one’s inmost parts].

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A fool’s lips bring contention and strife,
And his mouth invites a beating.

A fool’s mouth is his ruin,
And his lips are the snare of his soul.

The words of a whisperer (gossip) are like dainty morsels [to be greedily eaten];
They go down into the innermost chambers of the body [to be remembered and mused upon].

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13 Anyone who answers without listening
is foolish and ·confused [or a disgrace].

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13 
He who answers before he hears [the facts]—
It is folly and shame to him.(A)

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