Put away from thee a froward mouth ... (Prov. 4:24)
WTT Proverbs 4:24 הָסֵ֣ר מִ֭מְּךָ עִקְּשׁ֣וּת פֶּ֑ה וּלְז֥וּת שְׂ֜פָתַ֗יִם הַרְחֵ֥ק מִמֶּֽךָּ׃ APB Proverbs 4:24 Put away from you a crooked mouth And put devious lips far from you. crooked. This word occurs only here and in Prov. 6:12 . Its cognates ( מַעֲקָשׁ עקשׁ ) consistently describe what is not straight (Mic. 3:9). It is the opposite of blameless ( Job 9:20 tam ; Prov. 11:20 tamim ). Those whose paths are crooked do not know the way of peace and there is not justice in their paths (Isa. 59:8). To put away a crooked heart is to have nothing to do with evil ( Psa. 101:4 ). It is the worthless ( beliya‘al ) and wicked ( ’aven ) man who walks with a crooked mouth. Lady Wisdom declares that all her words are righteous ( tsedeq ); none of them are crooked or perverse. To put away a crooked mouth is to walk in integrity ( Prov. 19:1 ; 28:6 ; 28:18 ). How do you put away a crooked mouth? By refusing crooked thoughts. By leaving the company of those who are c...