New American Standard Bible 1995
Ecclesiastes 10:12
Ecclesiastes 10:12 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)The words of a wise man’s mouth are gracious; but the lips of a fool will swallow up himself.
- New International Version (NIV)Words from the mouth of the wise are gracious, but fools are consumed by their own lips.
- English Standard Version (ESV)The words of a wise man's mouth win him favor, but the lips of a fool consume him.
- New King James Version (NKJV)The words of a wise man’s mouth are gracious, But the lips of a fool shall swallow him up;
Context of Ecclesiastes 10:12
10If the axe is dull and he does not sharpen its edge, then he must exert more strength. Wisdom has the advantage of giving success. 11If the serpent bites before being charmed, there is no profit for the charmer. Words from the mouth of a wise man are gracious, while the lips of a fool consume him; 13the beginning of his talking is folly and the end of it is wicked madness. 14Yet the fool multiplies words. No man knows what will happen, and who can tell him what will come after him?
Read all of Ecclesiastes 10Ecclesiastes 10:12 word by word
דִּבְרֵ֥י פִי־חָכָ֖ם חֵ֑ן וְשִׂפְת֥וֹת כְּסִ֖יל תְּבַלְּעֶֽנּוּ׃Read the interlinear
Cross-references for Ecclesiastes 10:12
- Job 4:3Behold you have admonished many, And you have strengthened weak hands.
- Job 16:5I could strengthen you with my mouth, And the solace of my lips could lessen your pain.
- Psalms 37:30The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom, And his tongue speaks justice.
- Psalms 40:9I have proclaimed glad tidings of righteousness in the great congregation; Behold, I will not restrain my lips, O Lord, You know.
- Psalms 71:15My mouth shall tell of Your righteousness And of Your salvation all day long; For I do not know the sum of them.
- Proverbs 10:13On the lips of the discerning, wisdom is found, But a rod is for the back of him who lacks understanding.
- Proverbs 12:13An evil man is ensnared by the transgression of his lips, But the righteous will escape from trouble.
- Proverbs 15:2The tongue of the wise makes knowledge acceptable, But the mouth of fools spouts folly.
- Proverbs 16:21The wise in heart will be called understanding, And sweetness of speech increases persuasiveness.
- Proverbs 22:17Incline your ear and hear the words of the wise, And apply your mind to my knowledge;
- Proverbs 25:11Like apples of gold in settings of silver Is a word spoken in right circumstances.
- Proverbs 31:26She opens her mouth in wisdom, And the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.
- Matthew 12:35The good man brings out of his good treasure what is good; and the evil man brings out of his evil treasure what is evil.
- Luke 4:22And all were speaking well of Him, and wondering at the gracious words which were falling from His lips; and they were saying, “Is this not Joseph’s son?”
- Ephesians 4:29Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear.
- Colossians 4:6Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person.
Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 10:12
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 12The words of a wise man's mouth - Every thing that proceeds from him is decent and orderly, creditable to himself, and acceptable to those who hear him. But the lips of the fool, which speak every thing at random, and have no understanding to guide them, are not only not pleasant to others, but often destructive to himself.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 11-15Verses 11-15 There is a practice in the East, of charming serpents by music. The babbler's tongue is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison; and contradiction only makes it the more violent. We must find the way to keep him gentle. But by rash, unprincipled, or slanderous talk, he brings open or secret vengeance upon himself. Would we duly consider our own ignorance as to future events, it would cut off many idle words which we foolishly multiply. Fools…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 12Fools face ruin from making foolish promises, giving false testimony, and angering the wrong people (see 5:6; Proverbs 17:20; 18:6–7; 19:5, 9).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1212. gracious--Thereby he takes precaution against sudden injury (Ec 10:11). swallow up himself--(Pr 10:8, 14, 21, 32; 12:13; 15:2; 22:11).Read the comment
Topics related to Ecclesiastes 10:12
In the dictionaries
Notes
- 1. Ecclesiastes 10:12 Prov 10:32; 22:11; Luke 4:22 ↩
- 2. Ecclesiastes 10:12 Prov 10:14; 18:7; Eccl 4:5 ↩
Commentaries on Ecclesiastes 10
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
New American Standard Bible 1995 — © 1960–1995 The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
Commentaries