“For their minds devise violence”: “For” introduces the reasons for observing the warnings just given. As in many other contexts, “their minds” is literally “their heart.” For a picture of what this line means, see 1.10-19. For the actual term rendered “violence”, see 21.7. The sense of the term “devise” is to “think of” (Revised English Bible) or to “plot” (New International Version). Revised English Bible “for violence is all they think of” and Good News Translation “Causing trouble is all they ever think about” express this well.

“And their lips talk of mischief”: “Their lips” refers to speech, just as “their minds” refers to thoughts. In this context where it is parallel to “violence”, the term “mischief” means causing trouble to others: “their lips talk about making trouble” (New International Version).

One way of translating this whole verse, for example, is “They think only of hurting people, and they always talk about how they can make trouble.”

Quoted with permission from Reyburn, William D. and Fry, Euan McG. A Handbook on Proverbs. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2000. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .