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Tuesday, July 29th, 2025
the Week of Proper 12 / Ordinary 17
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Bible in Basic English

Proverbs 14:7

Go away from the foolish man, for you will not see the lips of knowledge.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Company;   Fellowship;   Fool;   Wisdom;   The Topic Concordance - Counsel;   Hearing;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Alliance and Society with the Enemies of God;   Fools;  

Dictionaries:

- Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - Pardon;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Proverbs, Book of;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Presence;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Stay away from a foolish person;you will gain no knowledge from his speech.
Hebrew Names Version
Stay away from a foolish man, For you won't find knowledge on his lips.
King James Version
Go from the presence of a foolish man, when thou perceivest not in him the lips of knowledge.
English Standard Version
Leave the presence of a fool, for there you do not meet words of knowledge.
New American Standard Bible
Leave the presence of a fool, Or you will not discern words of knowledge.
New Century Version
Stay away from fools, because they can't teach you anything.
New English Translation
Leave the presence of a foolish person, or you will not understand wise counsel.
Amplified Bible
Leave the presence of a [shortsighted] fool, For you will not find knowledge or hear godly wisdom from his lips.
World English Bible
Stay away from a foolish man, For you won't find knowledge on his lips.
Geneva Bible (1587)
Depart from the foolish man, when thou perceiuest not in him the lippes of knowledge.
Legacy Standard Bible
Leave the presence of a fool,As you have not known lips of knowledge there.
Berean Standard Bible
Stay away from a foolish man; you will gain no knowledge from his speech.
Contemporary English Version
Stay away from fools, or you won't learn a thing.
Complete Jewish Bible
Keep clear of a fool, for you won't hear a sensible word from him.
Darby Translation
Go from the presence of a foolish man, in whom thou perceivest not the lips of knowledge.
Easy-to-Read Version
Stay away from fools, there is nothing they can teach you.
George Lamsa Translation
Everything is a hindrance to a foolish man; but the lips of a wise man are like a weapon.
Good News Translation
Stay away from foolish people; they have nothing to teach you.
Lexham English Bible
Leave the presence of a foolish man, for you will not come to know words of knowledge.
Literal Translation
Go from before a foolish man, or you will not know the lips of knowledge.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Se yt thou medle not with a foole, & do as though thou haddest no knowlege.
American Standard Version
Go into the presence of a foolish man, And thou shalt not perceive in him the lips of knowledge.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
Go from the presence of a foolish man, for thou wilt not perceive the lips of knowledge.
King James Version (1611)
Goe from the presence of a foolish man, when thou perceiuest not in him the lippes of knowledge.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
Get thee from a foolishe man, when thou perceauest not in hym the lippes of knowledge.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
All things are adverse to a foolish man; but wise lips are the weapons of discretion.
English Revised Version
Go into the presence of a foolish man, and thou shalt not perceive in him the lips of knowledge.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Go thou ayens a man a fool; and he schal not knowe the lippis of prudence.
Update Bible Version
Go into the presence of a foolish man, And you shall not perceive [in him] the lips of knowledge.
Webster's Bible Translation
Go from the presence of a foolish man, when thou perceivest not [in him] the lips of knowledge.
New King James Version
Go from the presence of a foolish man, When you do not perceive in him the lips of knowledge.
New Living Translation
Stay away from fools, for you won't find knowledge on their lips.
New Life Bible
Go away from a foolish man, for you will not find words of much learning.
New Revised Standard
Leave the presence of a fool, for there you do not find words of knowledge.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Get thee from the presence of a man that is a dullard, when thou perceivest not the lips of knowledge.
Douay-Rheims Bible
Go against a foolish man, and he knoweth not the lips of prudence.
Revised Standard Version
Leave the presence of a fool, for there you do not meet words of knowledge.
Young's Literal Translation
Go from before a foolish man, Or thou hast not known the lips of knowledge.
THE MESSAGE
Escape quickly from the company of fools; they're a waste of your time, a waste of your words.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
Leave the presence of a fool, Or you will not discern words of knowledge.

Contextual Overview

7 Go away from the foolish man, for you will not see the lips of knowledge.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Proverbs 9:6, Proverbs 13:20, Proverbs 19:27, 1 Corinthians 5:11, Ephesians 5:11

Reciprocal: Jeremiah 28:11 - Thus

Cross-References

Genesis 14:1
Now in the days of Amraphel, king of Shinar, Arioch, king of Ellasar, Chedorlaomer, king of Elam, and Tidal, king of Goiim,
Genesis 14:8
And the king of Sodom with the king of Gomorrah and the king of Admah and the king of Zeboiim and the king of Bela (that is Zoar), went out, and put their forces in position in the valley of Siddim,
Genesis 14:12
And in addition they took Lot, Abram's brother's son, who was living in Sodom, and all his goods.
Genesis 14:16
And he got back all the goods, and Lot, his brother's son, with his goods and the women and the people.
Genesis 16:14
So that fountain was named, Fountain of Life and Vision: it is between Kadesh and Bered.
Genesis 20:1
And Abraham went on his way from there to the land of the South, and was living between Kadesh and Shur, in Gerar.
Genesis 36:12
And Eliphaz, the son of Esau, had connection with a woman named Timna, who gave birth to Amalek: all these were the children of Esau's wife Adah.
Genesis 36:16
Korah, Gatam, Amalek: all these were chiefs in the land of Edom, the offspring of Eliphaz, the seed of Adah.
Numbers 13:26
And they came back to Moses and Aaron and all the children of Israel, to Kadesh in the waste land of Paran; and gave an account to them and to all the people and let them see the produce of the land.
Numbers 14:43
For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you, and you will be put to death by their swords: because you have gone back from the way of the Lord, the Lord will not be with you.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Go from the presence of a foolish man,.... A wicked one; avoid him, shun his company, depart from him, have no fellowship with him, it, being dangerous, infectious, and hurtful;

when thou perceivest not [in him] the lips of knowledge; when it is observed that his lips pour out foolishness, what is corrupt and unsavoury, unchaste and filthy; what does not minister grace to the hearers, nor is for the use of edifying, nor any ways improving in useful knowledge, but all the reverse: the Targum is,

"for there is no knowledge in his lips,''

in what is expressed by them; some understand this ironically, and render the words thus, "go right against a foolish man" f; join in company with him, "and thou shalt not know the lips of knowledge", or learn anything by him; if you have a mind to be ignorant, keep company with a foolish man; so Jarchi and Gersom: or rather to this sense the words may be rendered, "go to a foolish man, seeing thou knowest not the lips of knowledge" g, since thou dost not approve of wise and knowing men, whose lips would teach knowledge; and despisest the Gospel, and Gospel ministers the pope of Rome, as Cocceius on the text serves, and hear him, what his holiness and infallibility says; or some other false teacher.

f לכ מנגד לאיש כסיל "e regione viri stulti", De Dieu; so Gussetius, p. 495. and Schultens g "Abi ut stes cora in viro stolido", Cocceius.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Proverbs 14:7. When thou perceivest not - the lips of knowledge. — Instead of דעת daath, knowledge, several MSS. have שקר sheker, a lie. How this reading came I cannot conjecture. The meaning of the adage is plain: Never associate with a vain, empty fellow, when thou perceivest he can neither convey nor receive instruction.


 
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