“In the multitude of words sin is not lacking, but he who restrains his lips is wise. The tongue of the righteous is choice silver; the heart of the wicked is worth little. The lips of the righteous feed many, but fools die for lack of wisdom” (Proverbs 10:19-21).
This triad of proverbs identifies three significant characteristics of a wise and righteous person.
Truth # 1: A righteous person wisely curbs his words, especially when he is among hostile and angry people. It is not sinful to be angry; the divine expectation is “be angry, and do not sin” (Ephesians 4:26). One way to help ensure your obedience to this command is curbing your words, especially when others are not. It takes one fool to argue and a second one to continue it.
Truth # 2: A righteous person wisely uses his words to bless others. A word fitly spoken is of immense value. Speech spoken with grace is a wise usage of your tongue (Colossians 4:5-6).
Truth # 3: A righteous person wisely instructs others to enrich them. Hungry and hurting souls can be blessed or blighted by your words. A righteous person seeks to enrich the hearts and lives of his/her listeners.
A righteous tongue is like salt. It has distinctive characteristics which make it valuable and useful to humanity.
How salt-like is your tongue?
