{"id":20577,"date":"2025-05-09T04:30:00","date_gmt":"2025-05-09T08:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/christoverall.com\/?p=20577"},"modified":"2025-05-24T22:10:26","modified_gmt":"2025-05-25T02:10:26","slug":"how-proverbs-helps-us-to-speak-wisely","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/christoverall.com\/article\/concise\/how-proverbs-helps-us-to-speak-wisely\/","title":{"rendered":"How Proverbs Helps Us to Speak Wisely"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Words carry weight. In the fourth century, the boundary line between orthodoxy and heresy crossed through a single letter, as seen in homoousios <\/em>(Christ is of the \u201csame<\/em> substance\u201d as the Father, the formulation that appears in the Nicene Creed) versus homoiousios <\/em>(Christ is of \u201clike<\/em> substance\u201d as the Father).[1]<\/a><\/sup> Even more significantly, in the first century Jesus upheld the importance of each letter in every word of the Law (Matt. 5:18 and Luke 16:17).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Richard A. Muller, Dictionary of Latin and Greek Theological Terms: Drawn Principally from Protestant Scholastic Theology <\/em>(Grand Rapids: Baker, 1985), 139\u2013140. For a historical survey of the \u201cNicene Crisis\u201d in theology and its aftermath, see J. N. D. Kelly, Early Christian Doctrines<\/em>, 2nd ed. (New York: Harper & Row, 1960), 231\u2013240.<\/h6>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Words also wield power. Depiction of the wild and untamable tongue arrests every reader of James 3:5\u20138 and emphatically underscores that few Christians should aspire to be teachers (Jas. 3:1). Indeed, false teachers and false prophets \u201cspeak visions of their own minds, not from the mouth of the Lord,\u201d (Jer. 23:16) with the result that they lead people so far away from God as even to forget God\u2019s name (Jer. 23:27). In contrast to the evil effect of false teachers\u2019 use of words, words can be a powerful force for good. God\u2019s word is uniquely potent, in the Old Testament described as \u201clike fire\u201d and \u201clike a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces\u201d (Jer. 23:29), and in the New Testament described as \u201csharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.\u201d (Heb. 4:12)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In view of the weight and power of words, Christians should seek wisdom to ensure that our use of words is \u201cgracious, seasoned with salt.\u201d (Col. 4:6) It should go without saying that this word-seasoning wisdom must come from Scripture. Fear of the Lord drives readers to the book of Proverbs, which both begins (Prov. 1:7) and ends (Prov. 31:30) with reverence toward God.[2]<\/a><\/sup> Delving deeper into Proverbs, the following sections of this brief article provide a sketch of some of the book\u2019s literary devices, show how Proverbs would have us speak and not to speak, and then consider the seeming quandary of Proverbs 26:4\u20135.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Founded upon fear of the Lord, attaining biblical wisdom is not at all \u201ca great common quest with men and women of all faiths and in every land,\u201d as implied in Richard J. Clifford, Proverbs: A Commentary<\/em>, The Old Testament Library (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 1999), 33.<\/h6>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Form of Teaching in Proverbs<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

To prepare ourselves to receive the teaching of Proverbs with reverence as the biblical authors intend, Christians should become familiar with the book\u2019s literary devices.[3]<\/a><\/sup> For example, Proverbs employs metonymy, in which the mouth, lip, and tongue represent the act of talking. These speech organs themselves are not actually in view; they are stand-ins for the act of speech. Hence the warning against foolish speech is all too clear in Prov. 18:6: \u201cA fool\u2019s lips walk into a fight, and his mouth invites a beating.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Alter provides a very readable treatment of the literary devices in Proverbs in Robert Alter, The Art of Biblical Poetry<\/em> (New York: Basic Books, 1985), 163\u2013184<\/h6>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition, Proverbs figuratively employs simile (\u201chis speech is like <\/em>a scorching fire.\u201d Prov. 16:27) and metaphor (\u201cThe mouth of the righteous is<\/em> a fountain of life,\u201d Prov. 10:11) to describe the unwise or wise use of words through dramatic imagery. In these images, fire and water are not the point, but Proverbs invites readers to consider the scorching of fire and the flowing of water and then to relate these acts poetically to speech.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At times, Proverbs jarringly personifies speech such that it seems to act autonomously, as in Prov. 25:15, \u201c. . . and a soft tongue will break a bone.\u201d Personification focuses readers\u2019 attention upon the effects of speech, as in Prov. 15:1, \u201cA soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.\u201d Perhaps the most renowned personification in Proverbs is that of wisdom, whose figurative speech encourages wise behavior (see Proverbs 8).[4]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Personification is a literary device that \u201c(endows) things or abstractions with life.\u201d See John Arthos, \u201cPersonification,\u201d page 612 in Alex Preminger, ed., Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics<\/em> (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1965). Unfortunately, the modern imagination has hyper-personified a \u201cLady Wisdom\u201d character out of the abstract concept of wisdom, which has feminine grammatical gender aligning with its form as a Hebrew noun. See Geoffrey Turner, \u201c\u2018Wisdom\u2019 and the Gender Fallacy,\u201d ExpTim<\/em> 121 (2009): 121\u2013125. Some Bible translations such as the esv also unnecessarily personify folly in Prov. 9:13 as a counterpart to wisdom, while the lsb follows the Hebrew grammar of the verse and reads \u201cwoman of foolishness.\u201d<\/h6>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Readers of Proverbs should expect frequent encounters with parallelism, in which leading line ideas develop and intensify, specify, or contrast in some way in the second. One immediately notes the contrast in Prov. 13:1: \u201cA wise son hears his father\u2019s instruction, but a scoffer does not listen to rebuke.\u201d Readers should notice the \u201cgood\/bad\u201d distinction and dig deeper, noting also the intensification from \u201cinstruction\u201d to \u201crebuke.\u201d In Hebrew the semantic ranges of these terms overlap, suggesting that the \u201cwise son\u201d is on the way to becoming a \u201cscoffer\u201d if he does not heed his father\u2019s training. A similar teaching, presented in \u201cbad\/good\u201d order, is Prov. 15:5: \u201cA fool despises his father\u2019s instruction, but whoever heeds reproof is prudent.\u201d Taken together, these two sayings teach that a wise and prudent person is not only able to endure rebuke and reproof but also receives critique and contemplates its implications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking and Not Speaking<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Proverbs teaches its readers both directly and indirectly about speech in every chapter. Hence Proverbs lends itself well to a thematic study on speaking wisely. A survey of direct teaching on speaking and not speaking appears below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Speak<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/td>

\n

Don\u2019t Speak<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/td><\/tr>

\n

Right words, right time, with restraint (Prov. 10:19, 11:12, 13:2, 15:23, 16:23, 17:27\u201328, 21:23, 25:11, 26:4\u20135, 27:14, 29:11, 30:32)<\/p>\n<\/td>

\n

When action is a greater need (Prov. 3:28, 14:23, 26:13)<\/p>\n<\/td><\/tr>

\n

Honestly and with integrity (Prov. 8:6, 8:7 12:17, 16:13, 19:1, 23:16, 24:26)<\/p>\n<\/td>

\n

Lies, deceit, crooked speech, perverted speech, devious talk (Prov. 2:12; 4:24; 6:17, 19; 12:17; 15:4; 17:7, 20; 19:1, 5, 9; 24:24, 28; 25:14; 26:18\u201319, 28; 28:24; 30:20)<\/p>\n<\/td><\/tr>

\n

What is acceptable and wise (Prov. 10:32; 13:14; 15:7; 17:7; 22:18; 26:7, 9)<\/p>\n<\/td>

Unacceptable and foolish behaviors:<\/p>

Acting mischievously (Prov. 17:4)<\/p>

Acting vengefully (Prov. 24:29)<\/p>

Acting violently (Prov. 10:6, 11)<\/p>

Belittling (Prov. 11:12)<\/p>

Flattering (Prov. 26:28)<\/p>

Mocking (Prov. 17:5)<\/p>

Quarreling (Prov. 19:13; 21:9, 19; 22:10; 25:24; 26:12; 27:15)<\/p>

Scoffing (Prov. 22:10)<\/p>

Slandering (Prov. 20:19, 30:10)<\/p>

Whispering (gossiping?) (Prov. 16:28, 18:8, 26:22)<\/p><\/td><\/tr>

\n

What is from God (Prov. 16:1)<\/p>\n<\/td>

\n

If adding to God\u2019s words (Prov. 30:6)<\/p>\n<\/td><\/tr>

\n

To bless (Prov. 11:11)<\/p>\n<\/td>

\n

To curse (Prov. 20:20, 30:11)<\/p>\n<\/td><\/tr>

\n

To heal (Prov. 12:18)<\/p>\n<\/td>

\n

To wound (Prov. 12:18)<\/p>\n<\/td><\/tr>

\n

Righteous words (Prov. 8:8)<\/p>\n<\/td>

\n

Words of sin, wickedness (Prov. 8:7, 16:10)<\/p>\n<\/td><\/tr>

\n

Thoughtfully (Prov. 20:25)<\/p>\n<\/td>

\n

Babbling (Prov. 10:8, 20:19)<\/p>\n<\/td><\/tr>

\n

With kindness (Prov. 31:26)<\/p>\n<\/td>

\n

With hatred (Prov. 10:18, 26:24\u201325)<\/p>\n<\/td><\/tr>

\n

Gently, softly (Prov. 15:1, 4; 25:15)<\/p>\n<\/td>

\n

Harshly (Prov. 15:1)<\/p>\n<\/td><\/tr>

With peaceable characteristics: <\/span><\/p>

To bring gladness or good news (Prov. 12:25, 25:25)<\/p>

Graciously (Prov. 15:26, 16:24, 22:11)<\/p>

Justly (Prov. 31:8\u20139)<\/p>

Sweetly, pleasantly (16:21, 23:8)<\/p><\/td>

 <\/td><\/tr>
\n

Prayer (Prov. 15:8, 29)<\/p>\n<\/td>

 <\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When read horizontally across the columns of the table above, much of Proverbs\u2019s positive instruction about wise speech finds its corresponding opposite in the negative instruction about how not to speak, for speaking in such ways entails speaking like a fool. For example, the righteous character extolled in Proverbs 23:16\u2014\u201cMy inmost being will exult when your lips speak what is right\u201d\u2014contrasts sharply with the deficient character decried in Proverbs 4:24, \u201cPut away from you crooked speech, and put devious talk far from you.\u201d Proverbs often contrasts foolishness and wisdom within a single verse, as in Proverbs 12:18, \u201cThere is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another way to take in the teaching within this table is to read the table vertically, observing positive and negative instruction about speech separately. Accordingly, to summarize how Proverbs instructs how to speak, Christians should speak with the right words, at the right time, and with restraint. An example of this teaching is Proverbs 29:11, \u201cA fool gives full vent to his spirit, but a wise man quietly holds it back.\u201d A wise person\u2019s speech will be filled with honesty and integrity, as seen in Proverbs 19:1, \u201cBetter is a poor person who walks in his integrity than one who is crooked in speech and is a fool.\u201d Furthermore, Christians should speak what is acceptable and wise, a teaching epitomized in Proverbs 10:32, \u201cThe lips of the righteous know what is acceptable, but the mouth of the wicked, what is perverse.\u201d The wise speak what is from God (Prov. 16:1) in order to bless (Prov. 11:11) and to heal (Prov. 12:18). The wise speak righteous words (Prov. 8:8) thoughtfully (Prov. 20:25), with kindness (Prov. 31:26), gently and softly (Prov. 15:4). Their speech brings gladness or good news, as in Proverbs 25:25, \u201cLike cold water to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far country.\u201d Christians should generally speak graciously, for Proverbs 16:24 reads, \u201cGracious words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body.\u201d Proverbs demands opening one\u2019s mouth for the cause of righteousness in Proverbs 31:8\u20139. Sweetness of speech receives commendation in Proverbs 16:21, \u201cThe wise of heart is called discerning, and sweetness of speech increases persuasiveness.\u201d Finally, regarding religious behavior and speech, Proverbs 15:8 teaches, \u201cThe sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord, but the prayer of the upright is acceptable to him.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wise Response to Foolishness<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

An overwhelming impression conveyed by the chart and the following summaries above is that wise and foolish speech stand poles apart in Proverbs. Christians should study each passage in depth and in the context of the entire book of Proverbs to gain an understanding of wise speech (and how and why to avoid foolish speech) as those who live wise lives. An example of such study appears below, centering upon Proverbs 26:4\u20135, a passage that at first glance appears to contain a stark contradiction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

4<\/sup> Answer not a fool according to his folly,
lest you be like him yourself.
5<\/sup> Answer a fool according to his folly,
lest he be wise in his own eyes.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

In response, readers naturally ask themselves, \u201cWhat should a wise person do?\u201d According to a modern, defeatist approach to the passage, Prov. 26:4\u20135 teaches \u201cYou\u2019re damned if you do, and damned if you don\u2019t.\u201d There is no right response to the fool.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, offering up a no-win scenario conflicts with the pattern of instruction that Proverbs attests for itself. The book\u2019s introduction emphasizes that studying Proverbs will lead not to unresolved paradoxes but to understanding: \u201cLet the wise hear and increase in learning, and the one who understands<\/em> gain guidance, to understand<\/em> a proverb and a saying, the words of the wise and their riddles.\u201d (Prov. 1:6\u20137) Furthermore, the literary unit of Prov. 26:1\u201312 focuses almost entirely upon how properly to deal with fools. Simply put, both verses 4 and 5 must simultaneously be true.[5]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. The \u201caccording to\u201d preposition appears in the same grammatical slot in the parallelism of verses 4 and 5 but serves different purposes in each verse. This point and the insights of the following paragraph derive from Bruce K. Waltke, The Book of Proverbs: Chapters 15\u201331<\/em>, NICOT (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2005), 348\u2013349.<\/h6>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Verse 4 teaches how not <\/em>to respond to a fool. Wise response must not be \u201caccording to\u201d (in the manner of) his folly. Therefore, the wise person avoids becoming a fool himself. Yet the reader may ask, \u201cThen how must a wise person respond to a fool?\u201d Verse 5 answers. Wise response must be \u201caccording to\u201d (directed at) his folly, to avoid letting the fool believe he is wise in his own eyes. Accordingly, the chapter then (in Prov. 26:12 and 16) warns of danger whenever someone believes he is wise in his own eyes: a not-too-subtle admonishment for those who believe they have mastered wise living according to Proverbs.[6]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n

6. Interestingly, treatment of the apparent contradiction in Prov. 26:4\u20135 does not appear in Walter C. Kaiser et al., Hard Sayings of the Bible<\/em> (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 1996).<\/h6>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Conclusion<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

According to 2 Timothy 3:16\u201317, as part of \u201call Scripture,\u201d Proverbs is \u201cinspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.\u201d May Proverbs do its work today, molding us to become people of wisdom, people who speak wisely.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

How would you speak\u2014and not speak\u2014if the Book of Proverbs was your guide? And what about the seeming contradiction of Proverbs 26:4\u20135?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":20579,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"How Proverbs Helps Us to Speak Wisely \u2022 Scott Callaham","_seopress_titles_desc":"How would you speak\u2014and not speak\u2014if the Book of Proverbs was your guide? And what about the seeming contradiction of Proverbs 26:4\u20135?","_seopress_robots_index":"","inline_featured_image":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"[]","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[32,12,1971,38],"tags":[282,2047,829,156,861,678,2081,615,2082,850],"scripture-reference":[2089,2087],"post_folder":[],"ppma_author":[2088],"class_list":["post-20577","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","category-concise","category-may-2025","category-theme","tag-christ-over-all","tag-counseling","tag-discipleship","tag-preaching","tag-proverbs","tag-revelation","tag-speech","tag-teaching","tag-the-tongue","tag-wisdom","scripture-reference-264-5","scripture-reference-proverbs"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/christoverall.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/volodymyr-hryshchenko-V5vqWC9gyEU-unsplash-scaled.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-01-13 11:34:56","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"authors":[{"term_id":2088,"user_id":13,"is_guest":0,"slug":"scott-callaham","display_name":"Scott Callaham","avatar_url":{"url":"https:\/\/christoverall.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Scott-Callaham.jpeg","url2x":"https:\/\/christoverall.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Scott-Callaham.jpeg"},"author_category":"1","job_title":"","church_city_state":"","last_name":"","first_name":"","church_site":"","user_url":"","description":"Scott N. Callaham is Dean of the Institute of Public Theology. He graduated from the United States Naval Academy (B.S. in Systems Engineering) and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (M.Div and Ph.D in Old Testament). Dr. Callaham has served as a pastor, chaplain, cross-cultural international missionary, conference speaker, Bible translator, and seminary professor. He has written book chapters and journal articles spanning Hebrew grammar and syntax, biblical theology, preaching, pastoral ministry, missions, worship, and songwriting. He is the host of the Daily Dose of Aramaic podcast and a composer of Chinese worship music for congregational singing."}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/christoverall.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20577","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/christoverall.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/christoverall.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christoverall.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christoverall.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20577"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/christoverall.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20577\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20789,"href":"https:\/\/christoverall.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20577\/revisions\/20789"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christoverall.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20579"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/christoverall.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20577"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christoverall.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20577"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christoverall.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20577"},{"taxonomy":"scripture-reference","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christoverall.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/scripture-reference?post=20577"},{"taxonomy":"post_folder","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christoverall.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_folder?post=20577"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christoverall.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ppma_author?post=20577"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}