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Proverbs 13:20
One who walks with wise men grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm.
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Interpretation

Wisdom shapes a walk with wise that is worked out in relationships and commitments in Proverbs 13:20—look for "wise" and "one". Choose walk with wise in conversations that test patience—anchor courage in promise.

Context

Proverbs speaks here as poetry/wisdom writing, developing walk with wise. Read in Proverbs 13, its force becomes clearer. It also intersects wisdom & worship. Listen for “wise” alongside “one”.

Authorship & Historical Background

Early sources associate Proverbs with Solomon & sages. Academic consensus for Proverbs tends toward: Wisdom collection assembled over time.. Scholars commonly date Proverbs Developed in stages from monarchy to post‑exilic times.. Here the thread of wisdom & worship comes into view.

More details
Traditional:Solomon & sages
Modern scholarship:Wisdom anthology compiled in stages.
Date:Monarchic to post‑exilic.
Manuscripts & Textual Witnesses
In the Masoretic tradition the Hebrew text is preserved, standardized between the 6th–10th centuries CE. The Dead Sea Scrolls (1947-1956 discoveries) provide manuscripts 1000+ years older than medieval texts, generally confirming the Masoretic Text's reliability with only minor variations. The Septuagint (Greek translation, 3rd-2nd century BCE) offers an independent textual witness. Variations between manuscripts are typically minor: spelling differences, word order, or clarifications that do not alter the main meaning. Modern translations compare all available manuscripts to reconstruct the most probable original wording text.
Sources & witness notes
MT