An hypocrite with his mouth destroyeth his neighbor: but through knowledge shall the just be delivered.
– Proverbs 11:9
[T]he word for hypocrite means to be soiled or defiled. It is a word for a godless person we might describe as a reprobate, blasphemer, etc. To destroy means to decay and to corrupt, or bring to ruin. The proverb describes those who use their speech to subvert others, like the heretics Paul warned about (Romans 16:17-18). The just will be delivered from such deception through knowledge, or discernment. Such knowledge equips us to sort the things we hear and to tell whether they are truth and wisdom or not (Colossians 2:8).