Bible Strands
Proverbs 10:14
The wise store up knowledge, but the mouth of the fool invites destruction.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The book of Proverbs presents this as wisdom instruction from a teacher to a student, contrasting the habits of the discerning with those of the undiscerning. The immediate context places it between observations about speech and wealth, framing it as practical guidance for daily conduct.
The words — יִצְפְּנוּ (yitz.pe.nu) translates literally as “they store up,” depicting knowledge as a deliberate accumulation. מְחִתָּ֥ה (me.chi.Tah) means “destruction,” paired with קְרֹבָֽה (ke.ro.Vah) “near” to indicate the immediate proximity of the fool’s downfall.
The thread — The contrast between stored wisdom and destructive speech recurs in Proverbs 10:8, which links a wise heart to receiving commandments and foolish lips to ruin. It reappears in Proverbs 13:3 and 18:7, where guarding one’s mouth or opening one’s lips directly determines survival or self-inflicted snare.
Why it lands — The text demands a deliberate choice to accumulate understanding rather than speak impulsively. It requires the reader to recognize that unguarded speech carries immediate consequences.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Wise men lay up knowledge: but the mouth of the foolish is near destruction.
Cross-references
- Proverbs 10:8 A wise heart will receive commandments, but foolish lips will come to ruin.
- Proverbs 18:7 A fool’s mouth is his ruin, and his lips are a snare to his soul.
- Proverbs 13:3 He who guards his mouth protects his life, but the one who opens his lips invites his own ruin.
- Proverbs 9:9 Instruct a wise man, and he will be wiser still; teach a righteous man, and he will increase his learning.
- Proverbs 10:10 He who winks the eye causes grief, and foolish lips will come to ruin.
- Proverbs 1:5 let the wise listen and gain instruction, and the discerning acquire wise counsel
- Proverbs 18:1 He who isolates himself pursues selfish desires; he rebels against all sound judgment.
- Proverbs 18:15 The heart of the discerning acquires knowledge, and the ear of the wise seeks it out.
- Proverbs 19:8 He who acquires wisdom loves himself; one who safeguards understanding will find success.
- Proverbs 21:23 He who guards his mouth and tongue keeps his soul from distress.