Psalms 37:30

37:30 The godly speak wise words

and promote justice. ¹ 

Proverbs 12:18

12:18 Speaking recklessly ²  is like the thrusts of a sword,

but the words ³  of the wise bring ⁴  healing. ⁵ 

James 3:5-6

3:5 So too the tongue is a small part of the body, ⁶  yet it has great pretensions. ⁷  Think ⁸  how small a flame sets a huge forest ablaze. 3:6 And the tongue is a fire! The tongue represents ⁹  the world of wrongdoing among the parts of our bodies. It ¹⁰  pollutes the entire body and sets fire to the course of human existence – and is set on fire by hell. ¹¹ 

¹ tn Heb “The mouth of the godly [one] utters wisdom, and his tongue speaks justice.” The singular form is used in a representative sense; the typical godly individual is in view. The imperfect verbal forms draw attention to the characteristic behavior of the godly.

² tn The term בּוֹטֶה (boteh) means “to speak rashly [or, thoughtlessly]” (e.g., Lev 5:4; Num 30:7).

³ tn Heb “the tongue” (so NAB, NIV, NRSV). The term לָשׁוֹן (lashon, “tongue”) functions as a metonymy of cause for what is said.

⁴ tn The term “brings” does not appear in the Hebrew but is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity and smoothness.

⁵ sn Healing is a metonymy of effect. Healing words are the opposite of the cutting, irresponsible words. What the wise say is faithful and true, gentle and kind, uplifting and encouraging; so their words bring healing.

⁶ tn Grk “a small member.”

⁷ tn Grk “boasts of great things.”

⁸ tn Grk “Behold.”

⁹ tn Grk “makes itself,” “is made.”

¹⁰ tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

¹¹ sn The word translated hell is “Gehenna” (γέεννα, geenna), a Greek transliteration of the Hebrew words ge hinnom (“Valley of Hinnom”). This was the valley along the south side of Jerusalem. In OT times it was used for human sacrifices to the pagan god Molech (cf. Jer 7:31; 19:5-6; 32:35), and it came to be used as a place where human excrement and rubbish were disposed of and burned. In the intertestamental period, it came to be used symbolically as the place of divine punishment (cf. 1 En. 27:2, 90:26; 4 Ezra 7:36).