Text -- Proverbs 15:4 (NET)

15:4 Speech that heals is like a life-giving tree, but a perverse tongue breaks the spirit.

Commentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes

NET Notes: Pro 15:4

¹ tn Heb “a tongue.” The term “tongue” is a metonymy of cause for what is produced: speech.

² tn Heb “a tongue of healing.” A healing tongue refers to speech that is therapeutic or soothing. It is a source of vitality.

³ tn The comparative “like” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the metaphor; it is supplied for the sake of clarity.

⁴ tn Heb “tree of life.”

⁵ tn Heb “perversion in it.” The referent must be the tongue, so this has been supplied in the translation for clarity. A tongue that is twisted, perverse, or deceitful is a way of describing deceitful speech. Such words will crush the spirit (e.g., Isa 65:14).