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Proverbs 23:9 · World English Bible

Proverbs 23:9 Meaning Don’t Speak in the Ears

Don’t speak in the ears of a fool, for he will despise the wisdom of your words.

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What does Proverbs 23:9 mean?

There is a state in the mind that has chosen not to hear, and to press love's truth upon it before it is willing is only to hand the ego something more to scorn. The refusal is not the listener's whole nature but the part still committed to fear, and that part meets wisdom with contempt because contempt keeps the truth at a distance.

From the Christian Psychology reading below.

Proverbs 23:9 through 1 lens

The same verse, read by one tradition.

CHRISTIAN PSYCHOLOGY

Christian Psychology

There is a state in the mind that has chosen not to hear, and to press love's truth upon it before it is willing is only to hand the ego something more to scorn. The refusal is not the listener's whole nature but the part still committed to fear, and that part meets wisdom with contempt because contempt keeps the truth at a distance.

A mind is not persuaded into peace against its own decision. Love waits without pressing, honoring the freedom of the one who is not ready, trusting the closed ear to open in its own hour. To withhold the word for now is not rejection but patience.

Fool: the part of the mind that has decided against hearing, the self still guarding its fear and scorning what would heal it Ears: the mind's readiness to receive, the opening through which truth is either welcomed or refused

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Christian Psychology lens

Live Proverbs 23:9 today

  1. Delete the long reply you drafted to the person online who was never going to read it. Nothing is lost.
  2. With the family member who always argues the same point, let it go this time. Ask about their week instead.
  3. When a colleague dismisses your idea in a meeting, say it once clearly and then stop. If it is good it will come back around.

Who are you still trying to convince, and what would change if you simply waited?

The same truth in other traditions

Taoism · Zhuangzi

You cannot talk about the sea with a frog in a well, or about ice with a summer insect. Not because they are lesser, but because nothing in their world has made room for it yet.

Zen

A cup already full spills whatever you pour. Wait until it empties and the same tea goes in easily.

Stoicism · Epictetus

Sheep do not bring the shepherd grass to prove how much they ate. Live it quietly and let the ones who are ready ask.

Mid-century illustration of Jesus teaching the crowd on a hillside above the sea

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