If God is a God of words, and if Jesus and his gospel are inseparable, then how should we—those who seek to follow him—use our words?
The book of Proverbs is an excellent place to start, giving pithy statements about what godly and ungodly speech looks like. For a sampling, consider these contrasts [with thanks to Vern Poythress for the original chart]:
| Proverb | Godly Words | Ungodly Words |
| 10:32 | The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable. | The mouth of the wicked [knows] what is perverse. |
| 12:18 | The tongue of the wise brings healing. | Rash words are like sword thrusts. |
| 13:1 | A wise son hears his father’s instruction. | A scoffer does not listen to rebuke. |
| 13:3 | Whoever guards his mouth preserves his life. | He who opens wide his lips comes to ruin. |
| 13:10 | With those who take advice is wisdom. | By insolence comes nothing but strife. |
| 13:18 | Whoever heeds reproof is honored. | Poverty and disgrace come to him who ignores instruction. |
| 14:3 | The lips of the wise will preserve them. | By the mouth of a fool comes a rod for his back. |
| 14:25 | A truthful witness saves lives. | One who breathes out lies is deceitful. |
| 15:1 | A soft answer turns away wrath. | A harsh word stirs up anger. |
Here are some Pauline questions we can ask ourselves about the words we are using:
- Are these words gracious? (Col. 4:6)
- Are these words seasoned with salt? (Col. 4:6)
- Are these words corrupting? (Eph. 4:29)
- Are thee words building up the church for good? (Eph. 4:29)
- Are these words giving grace to those who hear them? (Eph. 4:29)
- Are these words fitting and appropriate? (Eph. 4:29)
- Are these words true? Are they spoken in love? (Eph. 4:15, 25)
[Adapted from Justin Taylor, “Introduction,” The Power of Words and the Wonder of God, ed. John Piper and Justin Taylor (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2009), p. 18.]
