11 A fool will travail in pain with a word, as a woman in labor with a child. (WEB) 12 As an arrow that sticks in the flesh of the thigh, so is gossip in a fool. (WEB) 13 Question a friend; it may be he didn’t do it. If he did something, it may be that he may do it no more. (WEB)
Sirach 19:11–13
Semantically similar passages
Proverbs 18:5–7
5 Showing partiality to the wicked is not good, nor is depriving the innocent of justice. 6 A fool’s lips bring him strife, and his mouth invites a beating. 7 A fool’s mouth is his ruin, and his lips are a snare to his soul.
Proverbs 25:17–19
17 Seldom set foot in your neighbor’s house, lest he grow weary and hate you. 18 Like a club or sword or sharp arrow is a man who bears false witness against his neighbor. 19 Like a broken tooth or a foot out of joint is confidence in a faithless man in time of trouble.
Sirach 8:16–18
16 Don’t fight with a wrathful man. Don’t travel with him through the desert, for blood is as nothing in his sight. Where there is no help, he will overthrow you. (WEB) 17 Don’t consult with a fool, for he will not be able to keep a secret. (WEB) 18 Do no secret thing before a stra… (WEB)
Proverbs 26:18–20
18 Like a madman shooting firebrands and deadly arrows, 19 so is the man who deceives his neighbor and says, “I was only joking!” 20 Without wood, a fire goes out; without gossip, a conflict ceases.
Proverbs 20:18–20
18 Set plans by consultation, and wage war under sound guidance. 19 He who reveals secrets is a constant gossip; avoid the one who babbles with his lips. 20 Whoever curses his father or mother, his lamp will be extinguished in deepest darkness.
Proverbs 10:9–11
9 He who walks in integrity walks securely, but he who perverts his ways will be found out. 10 He who winks the eye causes grief, and foolish lips will come to ruin. 11 The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.
Proverbs 29:19–21
19 A servant cannot be corrected by words alone; though he understands, he will not respond. 20 Do you see a man who speaks in haste? There is more hope for a fool than for him. 21 A servant pampered from his youth will bring grief in the end.
Proverbs 27:21–23
21 A crucible for silver and a furnace for gold, but a man is tested by the praise accorded him. 22 Though you grind a fool like grain with mortar and a pestle, yet his folly will not depart from him. 23 Be sure to know the state of your flocks, and pay close attention…
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