Death and life are in the power of the tongue; And they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.
Proverbs 18:21 American Standard Version
I don’t think much about my tongue, Do you? I mean, I brush it, enjoy salt and sweet by it, but that’s about it. It’s just there. And it doesn’t quite make any sounds like the voice box does or any form of communication. It aids in communication for sure but to match up the tongue with power on a one to one scale, not so much. Was the writer in proverbs off somehow, or just reporting what he had observed over the years?
Words come from someplace in our throat and mouth, we all know that. And we instinctively know that words have power. I track with the writer so far. I think that’s what he means really, about power. But then he just has to add life and death.
Now you’ve gone and added something we can argue about. Remember the Sticks and Stones thing, can never hurt me thing? Turns out, the Proverbs author would like to pick a Bone With You, as another Proverbial personage in my life liked to say. My mother seemed to have a lot of bone picking to do with me, in reality, we would take the wishbone of the chicken and see which way it split as we pulled on it. We did that once a week maybe. But she had a lot of symbolical bones to pick with me it seems, usually over words.
Language and words produce longer life or quicker death it seems. I suppose if you want to do more good than you are already doing, you might have to get better at using words. If you want to be more destructive in some way, the same is true, you might want to use words. I think the center of human power then is derived from our words. Sure, there are more obvious forms of energy in our minds and bodies, from our mitochondria to our muscles to our minds to our movement in any direction. But the words are the projectiles that heal or injure. They have power that pushes them out of our mouth and power when they hit their intended target.
I am fascinated by those that have taken words and changed the world. Paul Harvey for good with his moral stories. John F. Kennedy with his calm and reasoned approach to facing Russian and Cuban aggression. I could add 20 names to this list in a few minutes. All are imperfect but when it really counts, they somehow get out the important and life changing words.
I would not like to say that the opposite people, like Hitler or Stalin fascinate me, or anybody for that matter. But we all know that their words and their actions have been studied and talked about for nearly a century now. Sadly, that’s because they had power as well. And that power started in the same place. Words. Their words brought incredible death and destruction.
I pray every day for a word of life. We have such great freedoms in our world today, many of us anyhow. That freedom brings with it a similar power, to bring life or death. People are free to do almost anything, not that they should, but they have that freedom. And they are free to say just about anything, not that they should.
It’s the training and the taming of the tongue and its sources of input that the Wisdom writers are trying to get us to think about.
Here is a passage from another man of wisdom, likely the brother of Jesus. It should be read as a whole and learned from. It can be depressing because it doesn’t seem to have much hope that we will ever get or tongue under control, but it does offer an alternative to destruction. Read it for yourself and try to follow the last words of the chapter.
James 3
New International Version
Taming the Tongue
3 Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. 2 We all stumble in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say is perfect, able to keep their whole body in check.
3 When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. 4 Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. 5 Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. 6 The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.
7 All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind, 8 but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.
9 With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. 10 Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. 11 Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? 12 My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.
Two Kinds of Wisdom
13 Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. 14 But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. 15 Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. 16 For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.
17 But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.18 Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness.