Bible Strands
Proverbs 6:12
A worthless person, a wicked man, walks with a perverse mouth,
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The wisdom teacher addresses a young listener within a warning sequence about the sudden arrival of poverty and need. He pauses to define the character of the troublemaker whose lifestyle triggers that consequence.
The words — בְּלִיַּעַל (Be.li.ya.'al) denotes worthlessness, and עִקְּשׁוּת (i.ke.Shut) denotes crookedness. These terms frame the subject’s moral state and the twisted nature of his communication.
The thread — The connection between inner corruption and harmful speech appears in Matthew 12:34 and Proverbs 16:27. Both passages describe how a corrupt character naturally produces destructive words.
Why it lands — The text demands recognition that speech patterns expose moral condition. A reader must examine their own communication for perversity and reject the lifestyle that invites sudden ruin.
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
A naughty person, a wicked man, walketh with a froward mouth.
Cross-references
- Matthew 12:34 You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.
- Proverbs 4:24 Put away deception from your mouth; keep your lips from perverse speech.
- Proverbs 16:27 A worthless man digs up evil, and his speech is like a scorching fire.
- 1 Timothy 5:13 At the same time they will also learn to be idle, going from house to house and being not only idle, but also gossips and busybodies, discussing things they should not mention.
- Psalms 52:2 Your tongue devises destruction like a sharpened razor, O worker of deceit.
- Psalms 59:7 See what they spew from their mouths—sharp words from their lips: “For who can hear us?”
- Proverbs 8:13 To fear the LORD is to hate evil; I hate arrogant pride, evil conduct, and perverse speech.
- Proverbs 17:4 A wicked man listens to evil lips; a liar gives ear to a destructive tongue.
- Acts 20:30 Even from your own number, men will rise up and distort the truth to draw away disciples after them.
- Titus 1:10 For many are rebellious and full of empty talk and deception, especially those of the circumcision,