religious foundation of the fear of Yahweh and explains why the way of wisdom should be chosen over the way of folly. The proverbs in chapters 10–15 are almost all antithetical proverbs that show the contrast between the wise and the fool or the righteous and the wicked. This contrast is expressed with the conjunction ‘but’. Proverbs 10:11 is a good example: The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence. The antithetical proverbs of chapters 10–15