Proverbs 18:7 (DBY)

Passage

A fool's mouth is destruction to him, and his lips are a snare to his soul.

Nearby Context

Proverbs 18:5 It is not good to accept the person of the wicked, to wrong the righteous in judgment.

Proverbs 18:6 A fool's lips enter into contention, and his mouth calleth for stripes.

Proverbs 18:7 A fool's mouth is destruction to him, and his lips are a snare to his soul.

Proverbs 18:8 The words of a talebearer are as dainty morsels, and they go down into the innermost parts of the belly.

Proverbs 18:9 He also who is indolent in his work is brother of the destroyer.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "fool's", "mouth", "destruction", "lips", "snare", and "soul". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "fool's" and "mouth", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 6's "A fool's lips enter into contention and..." into verse 8's "The words of a talebearer are as...", so "fool's" and "mouth" belong inside that flow. In Proverbs context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "fool's" and "mouth" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.