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The lips of a fool will bring strife,
    and his mouth calls out for a flogging.
The mouth of a fool is ruin to him,
    and his lips are a snare to his soul.[a]
The words of a whisper are like delicious morsels,
    and they themselves go down to inner parts of the body.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 18:7 Or “life,” or “inner self”

A fool’s lips lead to strife,
and his mouth provokes a beating.(A)

A fool’s mouth is his devastation,
and his lips are a trap for his life.(B)

A gossip’s words are like choice food
that goes down to one’s innermost being.[a](C)

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Footnotes

  1. 18:8 Lit to the chambers of the belly

13 He who returns a word before he will hear,
    folly itself belongs to him as well as[a] shame.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 18:13 Hebrew “and”

13 The one who gives an answer before he listens—
this is foolishness and disgrace for him.(A)

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