From the fruit of their mouth a person’s stomach is filled;
    with the harvest of their lips they are satisfied.

The tongue has the power of life and death,
    and those who love it will eat its fruit.

He who finds a wife finds what is good
    and receives favor from the Lord.

The poor plead for mercy,
    but the rich answer harshly.

One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin,
    but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

Prov 18:20-24

Chapter 18 winds up with these 5 verses that, once again, give us insight into the nature of disputes and their avoidance. Verses 20 and 21 are all about what people choose to say. Most people today do not quite understand how powerful their words can be, and most often, what is said is so careless that their speech seldom rises beyond nonsense. Words can be as destructive as a bomb, or they can build great cities. Our author describes the result of speech as “Fruit” that can satisfy and fill a person. It is an apt metaphor, as fruit can nourish a person or sicken a person.

Verse 22 takes quite a different angle about disputes, for a person who finds a wife not only finds what is good, but he finds himself within God’s will for creating humanity (cf. Genesis 2:20-25).

The final two verses reference the friends we keep. If we really think about it, we may have a lot of friends at any given time, yet

 If we are honest, most of those are more likely acquaintances and not true friends. Sometimes there may be someone who insinuates themselves into our circle of friends and who goes to great lengths to earn our trust, only to take advantage of us and bring about our ruin. Yet a true friend will remain at our side no matter what and will always have our back.