Bible Strands
Proverbs 18:21
Life and death are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — A wisdom teacher (traditionally Solomon) addresses a general audience of seekers within a collection of proverbs. The verse sits between a statement about the mouth filling the belly (v. 20) and a proverb about finding a wife (v. 22), both concerning the productive power of speech.
The words — יַד (yad, "hand") carries the image: life and death are literally "in the hand" of the tongue, a concrete image for agency. אֹהֲבֶי ('ohav, "love") is stronger than mere use — the subject is one who delights in the tongue, not just one who employs it.
The thread — Matthew 12:35 and Ephesians 4:29 develop the same principle: speech reveals and produces the inner store, either building up or corrupting. Colossians 4:6 adds the positive form — speech seasoned to answer well.
Why it lands — The verse does not threaten; it states a mechanical consequence: the tongue is a hand that holds both life and death, and the person who loves it will consume whatever it produces. It asks the reader to examine whether their speech is a tool they love or a tool they discipline.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.
Cross-references
- Ephesians 4:29 Let no unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building up the one in need and bringing grace to those who listen.
- Matthew 12:35 The good man brings good things out of his good store of treasure, and the evil man brings evil things out of his evil store of treasure.
- Colossians 4:6 Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.
- Proverbs 10:19 When words are many, sin is unavoidable, but he who restrains his lips is wise.
- James 3:6 The tongue also is a fire, a world of wickedness among the parts of the body. It pollutes the whole person, sets the course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.
- Proverbs 13:2 From the fruit of his lips a man enjoys good things, but the desire of the faithless is violence.
- Proverbs 10:31 The mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom, but a perverse tongue will be cut out.
- Proverbs 18:4 The words of a man’s mouth are deep waters; the fountain of wisdom is a bubbling brook.
- Ecclesiastes 10:12 The words of a wise man’s mouth are gracious, but the lips of a fool consume him.
- Proverbs 12:13 An evil man is trapped by his rebellious speech, but a righteous man escapes from trouble.