Pondering the Principles of Proverbs
They seem to be continually trying to extricate the bottom-most portion of their body from their most troublesome portion.
It is amazingly simple to avoid this particular condition, though.
Sad.
For, too often, the speaker only adds evidence of the truthfulness of this pithy statement.
This is actually a slight tweak (maybe even a twist) on Pro 17:28 (ESV) Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent.
This verse, however, should be read in conjunction with the preceding one:
Whoever restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding.
Notice that the key here is restraint; ie, not speaking.
What a challenge!
When we are young, we find it necessary to have something to say about everything that is happening at the moment.
Research has shown for middle-schoolers, "smart" is how much you know. How much you know is measured by how much you can talk about things.
So many people have never left their middle-school mentality.
True knowledge, though, is measured by the ability to restrain one's tongue. Maturity is measured in the same way (James 3:2).
It is a simple practice that any one of us could begin today, right now. Begin by simply refusing to speak for three seconds after the other party has stopped.
It is in that place that many will discover just how much their tongue controls them, rather than their control of the tongue.
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