| When you pray, don’t babble on and on as the Gentiles do. They think their prayers are answered merely by repeating their words again and again. | And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. |
| Kind words are like honey— sweet to the soul and healthy for the body. | Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones. |
|
| Give thanks to the Lord and proclaim his greatness. Let the whole world know what he has done. | Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name; make known among the nations what he has done. |
| It is the same with my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it. | So is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. |
| Fools have no interest in understanding; they only want to air their own opinions. | Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. |
| Rescue me, O Lord, from liars and from all deceitful people. | Save me, Lord, from lying lips and from deceitful tongues. |
| With their words, the godless destroy their friends, but knowledge will rescue the righteous. | With their mouths the godless destroy their neighbors, but through knowledge the righteous escape. |
| May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer. | May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer. |
| Fools’ words get them into constant quarrels; they are asking for a beating. | The lips of fools bring them strife, and their mouths invite a beating. |
| Work brings profit, but mere talk leads to poverty! | All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty. |
| If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. | If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. |
| Worry weighs a person down; an encouraging word cheers a person up. | Anxiety weighs down the heart, but a kind word cheers it up. |
| The lips of the godly speak helpful words, but the mouth of the wicked speaks perverse words. | The lips of the righteous know what finds favor, but the mouth of the wicked only what is perverse. |
| Then keep your tongue from speaking evil and your lips from telling lies! | Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from telling lies. |
| And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father. | And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. |
| Avoid all perverse talk; stay away from corrupt speech. | Keep your mouth free of perversity; keep corrupt talk far from your lips. |
| Avoiding a fight is a mark of honor; only fools insist on quarreling. | It is to one’s honor to avoid strife, but every fool is quick to quarrel. |
| Take no part in the worthless deeds of evil and darkness; instead, expose them. It is shameful even to talk about the things that ungodly people do in secret. | Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. It is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. |
| You know what I am going to say even before I say it, Lord. | Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely. |
| The words of the godly are like sterling silver; the heart of a fool is worthless. | The tongue of the righteous is choice silver, but the heart of the wicked is of little value. |
| When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long. | When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. |
| Hiding hatred makes you a liar; slandering others makes you a fool. | Whoever conceals hatred with lying lips and spreads slander is a fool. |
| If you claim to be religious but don’t control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is worthless. | Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless. |
| Yes, speak up for the poor and helpless, and see that they get justice. | Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy. |
| For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved. | For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. |
