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Proverbs of Solomon
Proverbs › Chapter 15 › Proverbs 15:7

What Does Proverbs 15:7 Mean?

The lips of the wise disperse knowledge,But the heart of the fool does not do so.Proverbs 15:7 · NKJV

Quick answer

The wise scatter what they know, the way a farmer scatters seed. The fool has nothing to sow, and the shortfall starts further in than his mouth.

Read both lines

"Disperse" carries the NKJV's footnote "spread," and the picture is broadcast sowing: knowledge thrown wide, landing where it will, without the sower controlling every outcome. Wisdom in this book is not hoarded, and the wise are not stingy with what they have learned. The second line makes an unexpected move by switching organs. You would expect lips answered by lips; instead the fool's failure is located in the heart, because the mouth can only distribute what the center actually holds. There is no technique for scattering seed you do not have.

Related: Proverbs 15:14 · Proverbs 15:28 · Proverbs 10:21

New King James Version®, Copyright © 1982, Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved. Full copyright information. Scripture provided by API.Bible.

Go Deeper

If this verse has been used to put weight on you that it was never carrying, ask about it directly.