ECCLESIASTES 10.12-13

12. Words from a wise man's mouth are gracious, but a
fool is consumed [swallowed up] by his own lips.

13. At the beginning his words are folly; at the end they
are mischievous madness

Perhaps the psychological theme continues, with Solomon comparing the gracious words of the wise man to the soothing music of the snake charmer’s flute – and the potential damage of a fool’s words to the harmful bite of a poisonous snake. Words have immense potential for creating good or evil bad results.

Solomon seems to be pointing out that the careless use of words may pose a greater threat to an enterprise than random events – and an avoidable one! Conversely, listening and letting the other person talk himself out may pay big dividends.

The more successful a person becomes, the more important diplomacy, etiquette and communication skills become. The really wise man uses words that grace the ears of the hearer, create the right impression and elicit the right reaction. The fool, however, is careless and awkward with words – and so destroys or consumes his own case.

Solomon’s clever metaphor in the alternative translation has the fool’s own mouth swallowing him up, like an untamed and ferocious wild beast – with the result that lips that were intended to bring profit bring destruction instead.

Perhaps James has these verses in mind when he says, Quote: “All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and creatures of the sea are being tamed and have been tamed by man, but no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison” (James 3:7-8), like the snake in the previous section.

The fool begins his reasoning process with folly, a false premise, erroneous information or mere unchecked opinion, and so automatically arrives at faulty conclusions, resulting in trouble or mischief.

Solomon may also be implying that although the wise man’s case is not better than that of the fool, his gracious, persuasive words enables him to achieve his purpose against the odds of the situation.