⁴ Say to wisdom, “You are my sister,”
And call understanding your intimate friend;
⁵ That they may keep you from an ^[a]adulteress,
From the foreigner who ^[b]flatters with her words.

²⁸ A lying tongue hates ^[a]those it crushes,
And a ^(A)flattering mouth works ruin.

²³ He who ^(A)rebukes a man will afterward find more favor
Than he who ^(B)flatters with the tongue.

⁵ A man who ^(A)flatters his neighbor
Is spreading a net for his steps.