Last week I discussed the power and significance of our words and how they can be a fountain of life to others. We have another expression of this truth in 10:21: “The lips of the righteous nourish many.” The second line of the proverb adds, “but fools die for lack of judgement”. The meaning here is that we can get ourselves into a lot of trouble by what we say. We can talk our way into some very bad attitudes and situations if we are not careful. One of my favourite proverbs is found here in verse 19: “When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise.” It is with our words that we are most likely to indulge our pride. It is with our words that we are most likely to offend others. It is also with our words that we are most likely to spread misinformation. Truthfulness was a major concern of biblical writers. Most of the untruth that comes out of our mouths is not from deliberate lies. It comes from an overconfidence in our own knowledge. We should be careful about making bold pronouncements about complex hot topics, particularly when this is likely to injure relationships. Strong opinions tend to be a marker of ignorance mixed with pride. A wise person will be more cautious. A wise person will be more likely to say, “I don’t know”. There would be more truth in that than in a strongly expressed view. We know what we need to live godly lives. So, let’s talk about that.
Ask God to make you more conscious of your talk patterns today.
Read Proverbs 10:19-32
