The tongue —What does the Bible say about it?

The human tongue is mentioned many times in Scripture.

“Even before there is a word on my tongue,
Behold, O Lord, You know it all.” —Psalm 139:4 NASB

“…to Me every knee will bow, every tongue will swear allegiance. —Isaiah 45:23 NASB

“…every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” —Philippians 2:11 NASB

“…every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn” —Isaiah 54:17 KJV

Power of the tongue

“Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth! And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell. For every kind of beasts, and of birds, and of serpents, and of things in the sea, is tamed, and hath been tamed of mankind: But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.” —James 3:5-8 KJV

“Death and life are in the power of the tongue…” —Proverbs 18:21 KJV

“Then they said, “Come and let us devise plans against Jeremiah. …Come on and let us strike at him with our tongue…” —Jeremiah 18:18 NASB excerpt

Controlling the tongue

“I will take heed to my ways, that I sin not with my tongue:
I will keep my mouth with a bridle” —Psalm 39:1

“bridleth not his tongue” —James 1:26

“For, ‘The one who desires life, to love and see good days, Must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit.” —1 Peter 3:10 NASB

“I had held my tongue” —Esther 7:4; Job 6:24; 13:19

“…Hold thy [cursing] tongue: for we may not make mention of the name of the LORD [lest we invoke more punishment].” —Amos 6:10 KJV

Lying tongue

“a lying tongue” —Proverbs 6:17 KJV

“deceitful tongue… false tongue” —Psalm 120:2-3 KJV

“Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips…” —Romans 3:13 KJV

“…their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.” —Micah 6:12 NASB

“…a deceitful tongue…” —Zephaniah 3:13 NASB

“They bend their tongue like their bow;
Lies and not truth prevail in the land” —Jeremiah 9:3 NASB

“The getting of treasures by a lying tongue is a vanity tossed to and fro of them that seek death.” —Proverbs 21:6 KJV

“A wicked doer giveth heed to false lips;
and a liar giveth ear to a naughty tongue.” —Proverbs 17:4 KJV

“under his tongue is mischief and vanity” —Psalm 10:7 KJV

“A lying tongue hateth those that are afflicted by it…” —Proverbs 26:28 KJV / NASB: “A lying tongue hates those it crushes…” [literally: “its crushed ones”] —Proverbs 26:28 NASB

Tongues of false prophets

“Behold, I am against the prophets,” declares the Lord, “who use their tongues and declare, ‘The Lord declares.’” —Jeremiah 23:31 NASB

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Joyfully singing tongue

“my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness” —Psalm 51:14

“Then was our mouth filled with laughter, and our tongue with singing” —Psalm 126:2

“Then shall the lame man leap as an hart,
and the tongue of the dumb sing” —Isaiah 35:6

Wicked tongues

“…Your lips have spoken falsehood,
Your tongue mutters wickedness.” —Isaiah 59:3 NASB

Tongue of the crafty

“the tongue of the crafty” —Job 15:5 KJV

“though he hide it under his tongue” —Job 20:12 KJV

Sharp tongue

“Thy tongue deviseth mischiefs; like a sharp razor, working deceitfully.” —Psalm 52:2

“Hide me from the secret counsel of the wicked; from the insurrection of the workers of iniquity:
Who whet [sharpen] their tongue like a sword,
and bend their bows to shoot their arrows, even bitter words” —Psalm 64:3

“…their tongue a sharp sword…” —Psalm 57:4

Scourging tongue

“…the scourge of the tongue…” —Job 5:21

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Tongue of the proud

“The LORD shall cut off all flattering lips,
and the tongue that speaketh proud things:
Who have said, With our tongue will we prevail;
our lips are our own:
who is lord over us?” —Psalm 12:3-4

Flattering tongue

“He that rebuketh a man afterwards shall find more favour than he that flattereth with the tongue.” —Proverbs 28:23

Sticking-out tongue

“…Against whom do you open wide your mouth
And stick out your tongue?…” —Isaiah 57:4 NASB

Insolent tongue

“…the insolence of their tongue…” —Hosea 7:16 NASB

Tongue rot, as a judgment of God

“Now this will be the plague with which the Lord will strike all the peoples who have gone to war against Jerusalem …their tongue will rot in their mouth.” —Zechariah 14:12 NASB

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Tongue of the wise, the just, the true followers of God

“She openeth her mouth with wisdom;
and in her tongue is the law of kindness.” —Proverbs 31:26

“With patience, you can make anyone change their thinking, even a ruler. Gentle speech is very powerful.” —Proverbs 25:15 ERV

“The tongue of the wise useth knowledge aright:
but the mouth of fools poureth out foolishness.” —Proverbs 15:2

“My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.” —1 John 3:18

For a follower of Christ, what is love—a feeling, an emotion, or an action?

“There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword:
but the tongue of the wise is health.
The lip of truth shall be established for ever: but a lying tongue is but for a moment” —Proverbs 12:18-19

“the tongue of the just is as choice silver” —Proverbs 10:20

“My tongue shall speak of thy word:” —Psalm 119:172

“The Lord GOD hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary…” —Isaiah 50:4

Dry tongue

“The afflicted and needy are seeking water, but there is none,
And their tongue is parched with thirst…” —Isaiah 41:17 NASB

“their tongue cleaved to the roof of their mouth” —Job 29:10

“The tongue of the infant cleaves
To the roof of its mouth because of thirst…” —Lamentations 4:4 NASB

Slow tongue

“…slow of speech, and of a slow tongue…” —Exodus 4:10

Lapping tongue

Lapping up water with the tongue —Judges 7:5-7

Gnawed tongues

“they gnawed their tongues because of pain” —Rev. 16:10 NASB

Lick the dust

To “lick the dust” is a sign of abject submission.

“They that dwell in the wilderness shall bow before him; and his enemies shall lick the dust.” —Psalm 72:9 KJV

A lover’s tongue

“…honey and milk are under thy tongue…” —Song of Songs 4:11 KJV excerpt

Another language, a different tongue

“For with stammering lips and another tongue will he speak to this people.” —Isaiah 28:11

Stammering tongue

“a stammering tongue, that thou canst not understand” —Isaiah 33:19 KJV

“…the tongue of the stammerers shall be ready to speak plainly.” —Isaiah 32:4 KJV

Muted tongue

“…I will make your tongue stick to the roof [palate] of your mouth so that you will be mute…” —Ezekiel 3:26 NASB

Healed tongue

“And Jesus took him aside from the crowd, by himself, and put His fingers into his ears, and after spitting, He touched his tongue; and looking up to heaven with a sigh, He said to him, “Ephphatha!” that is, “Be opened!” And his ears were opened, and the impediment of his tongue was removed, and he began speaking plainly.” —Mark 7:33 NASB

God’s anger

“Behold, the name of the LORD cometh from far, burning with his anger, and the burden thereof is heavy: his lips are full of indignation, and his tongue as a devouring fire” —Isaiah 30:27 KJV

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Article Version: January 10, 2025