The word tongue also refers to a people or race with a common language. "I am coming to gather the nations of every language. They shall come to witness my glory." - Is. 66:18; Rev. 11:9 - People may use the tongue to sin or to speak of the Lord's righteousness and sing praises to God.
Figuratively, speaking, the tongue can be sharpened like a sword or like a serpent - a reference to its ability to utter caustic, poisonous words. Like a bow, the tongue can project lies or like an arrow, can be shot out, striking down with its deceit. The tongue can be used as a weapon for attack, wounding like a sharp sword. The tongue can be used viciously for flattery, backbiting, deceit, unrestrained speech, lying, strife, cursing, destruction and craftiness. - Ps. 5:9, 15:3, 18:8, 31:20, 50:19, 52:2, 57:4, 64:3, 73:9, 109:2, 140:3; Prov. 25:23, 28:23; Jer. 9:3, 8; Hos. 7:16, Job 15:5 -
The tongue of the righteous is a treasure. The Sacred Scripture/Holy Bible speaks of keeping the tongue from evil, of guarding the tongue, and of bridling the tongue. In the classic New Testament passage on the tongue, Saint James warns specifically against the evil of an uncontrolled and uncharitable tongue.
Nobody must imagine that he is religious while he still goes on deceiving himself and not keeping control over his tongue; anyone who does this has the wrong idea of religion. - James 1:26 -
Only a few of you, my brothers, should be teachers, bearing in mind that those of us who teach can expect a stricter judgment. After all, everyone of us does something wrong, over and over again; the only man who could reach perfection would be someone who never said anything wrong - he would be able to control every part of himself. Once we put a bit into a horse's mouth, to make it do what we want, we have the whole animal under our control. Or think of a ships: no matter how big they are, even a gale is driving them, the man at the helm can steer them anywhere he likes by controlling a tiny rudder.
So is the tongue only a tiny part of the body, but it can proudly claim that it does great things. Think how small a flame can set fire to a huge forest; the tongue is a flame like that. Among all the parts of the body, the tongue is a whole wicked world in itself: it infects the whole body; catching fire itself from hell, it sets fire to the whole wheel of creation. Wild animals and birds, reptiles and fish can all be tamed by man, and often are; but nobody can tame the tongue - it is a pest that will not keep still, full of deadly poison. We use it to bless the Lord and Father, but we also use it to curse men who are made in God's image: the blessing and the curse come out of the same mouth. My brothers, this must be wrong - does any water supply give a flow of fresh water and salt water out of the same pipe? Can a fig tree give you olives, my brothers, or a vine give figs? No more can sea water give you fresh water. - James 3:1-12 -
The tongue is an indicator of a person's spirit: it reveals what is in the heart.
'Make a tree sound and its fruit will be sound; make a tree rotten and its fruit will be rotten. For the tree can be told by its fruit. Brood of vipers, how can your speech be good when you are evil? For a man's words flow out of what fills his heart. A good man draws good things from his store of goodness: a bad man draws bad things from his store of badness. So I tell you this, that for every unfounded word men utter they will answer on Judgment Day, since it is by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words condemned.' - Matt. 12:33-37 -
Jesus replied, 'Do even you not yet understand? Can you not see that whatever goes into the mouth passes through the stomach and is discharged into a sewer? But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and it is these that make a man unclean. For from the heart come evil intentions: murder, adultery, fornication, theft, perjury, slander. These are the things that make a man unclean. - Matt. 15:16-19 -
There is no sound tree that produces rotten fruit, nor again a rotten tree that produces sound fruit. For every tree can be told by its own fruit: people do not pick figs from thorns, nor gather grapes from brambles. A good man draws what is good from the store of goodness in his heart; a bad man draws what is bad from the store of badness. For a man's words flow out of what fills his heart. - Luke 6:43-45 -
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Sunday, May 24, 2009
I have through years of reading, pondering, reflecting and contemplating, the 3 things that last; FAITH . HOPE . LOVE and I would like to made available my sharing from the many thinkers, authors, scholars and theologians whose ideas and thoughts I have borrowed. God be with them always. Amen!
I STILL HAVE MANY THINGS TO SAY TO YOU BUT THEY WOULD BE TOO MUCH FOR YOU NOW. BUT WHEN THE SPIRIT OF TRUTH COMES, HE WILL LEAD YOU TO THE COMPLETE TRUTH, SINCE HE WILL NOT BE SPEAKING AS FROM HIMSELF, BUT WILL SAY ONLY WHAT HE HAS LEARNT; AND HE WILL TELL YOU OF THE THINGS TO COME.
HE WILL GLORIFY ME, SINCE ALL HE TELLS YOU WILL BE TAKEN FROM WHAT IS MINE. EVERYTHING THE FATHER HAS IS MINE; THAT IS WHY I SAID: ALL HE TELLS YOU WILL BE TAKEN FROM WHAT IS MINE. - JOHN 16:12-15 -
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