Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from troubles.
A whole life can turn on what a person says. This proverb promises that guarding your speech keeps you out of endless trouble — so what does guarding involve, and why does the Bible weigh ordinary talk so heavily?
Guarding Both Ways
The verse names both the mouth and the tongue. One commentator reads two jobs there: care over what a person takes in, and care over what a person lets out.
As valuable a faculty as good speech is, it is wise to spare the tongue as well as the mouth. The time, the tone, the way, and the end all have to be considered, in case a fair intention should not only fail but provoke. As the mouth has to beware of taking in anything beyond what is right and good, so the tongue must beware of letting out what does not build up. To keep one's mouth and tongue as in God's presence is to keep the soul from troubles without end (v. 23).
So a good motive is not enough on its own.
Why Speech Carries So Much Weight
Speech matters because it publishes the heart. What is inside a person spreads to others through the mouth, for cleansing or for damage.
The tongue is therefore regarded in Scripture as a mighty instrument which a man may wield for good or ill among his fellows. Speech is the great means of publishing the thought that arises in the heart. It also spreads that thought's influence to others, whether it cleanses them or defiles them. The mouth is the means by which a person may worship God or blaspheme His holy name. … So the one who rules his spirit is mightier than the one who takes a city, and "Whoever keeps his mouth and his tongue keeps himself out of trouble" (Prov. 16:32; Prov. 21:23). But who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? James teaches how serious this problem is. He says, "No human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil," and again, "The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body" (James 3:6, 8). Aware of this guilty contagion, Isaiah confessed that he was a man of unclean lips. That is why the coal of cleansing was laid on his mouth (Isa. 6:7).
The Real Cost of Careless Words
The trouble is not vague. Careless words cause much of the sorrow people bring on themselves and others.
I believe that where we sin much is in this very respect, in speaking rashly with our lips. As James says, "For we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body" (James 3:2). Moses spoke rashly in a moment of irritation, and Scripture records it. When I see that, I see the deep need for a bridled tongue. This is where Satan gains such an advantage over us. Unguarded talk is where God's people always need correction. No one can measure the sorrow this brings on souls.
Silence as an Act of Faith
Sometimes guarding the mouth means saying nothing at all, even under provocation. One writer points to Hezekiah, king of Judah, when an enemy army came against his capital city.
Hezekiah knew this to be true when he ordered his people not to answer the defiant words of Rabshakeh, servant of Sennacherib, when he came to surround Jerusalem intending to destroy the city (2 Kings 18:36). The Lord answered the faith of their silence and preserved them from the threatened harm.
Their silence was not weakness. It was faith.
Words Come Back as a Harvest
One writer applies the rule to himself. Careless speech can still bring God's discipline.
But even now, under the government of God, if I am not careful of my tongue, I may come under His discipline. The seed I sow will certainly bring forth its corresponding crop by and by, and so will what you sow. I speak very plainly. I get about a good deal among God's people, and I could not tell you how much harm comes from unguarded language and from letting out what is not profitable.
Summary
- Guard twice. The verse names two organs on purpose — the mouth watches what it takes in, the tongue what it lets out.
- Guard the source. Speech publishes the heart. The same mouth can worship God or blaspheme Him, and no one can tame the tongue — so the deeper need is cleansing.
- Guard the moment. Time, tone, manner and aim all count. A good intention, badly delivered, can provoke instead of help.
- Guard by silence. Hezekiah told his people not to answer their attacker. God answered their silent faith and protected the city.
- Guard, or reap. Under God's government, words sown bring their crop. Careless talk breeds sorrow; guarded speech spares you endless trouble.