Note 650 — XXVI.

Prov. xiv. 24. This seems simpler than supposing that the clause אִוֶּלֶת אִוֶּלֶת כְּמִילִים contains a play upon the possible double meaning of אִוֶּלֶת, which, though it yields an excellent sense,—"the power of fools is only folly," i.e., when they have power they turn it only to a foolish account (cf. xxvi. 1),—must be regarded as very obscure, especially seeing that we have no positive instance of אִוֶּלֶת as a derivative of אוּל in the sense of "power."