Proverbs 15:4 — Words!

The tongue that brings healing is a tree of life, but a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit.

While a specific “Tree of Life” is mentioned in Genesis and Revelation, Proverbs speaks of it in metaphor (3:18, 11:30, 13:12). A “tree of life” would be a good thing producing health and life.

Here a person’s words (“tongue”) which bring healing to others are compared to a tree of life. These words are contrasted in this verse with “deceitful” words (“tongue”) which “crush the spirit” of another. These are words which produce pain and sorrow for others.

Words are powerful tools for good or bad and we have the power, responsibility and choice to talk one way or the other every day. May we make good choices today.