The Hurtful Tongue

(James 3:1–12)

¹For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.

Hear, O God, my voice of complaint;

preserve my life from dread of the enemy.

²Hide me from the scheming of the wicked,

from the mob of workers of iniquity,

³who sharpen their tongues like swords

and aim their bitter words like arrows,

⁴ambushing the innocent in seclusion,

shooting suddenly, without fear.

⁵They hold fast to their evil purpose;

they speak of hiding their snares.

“Who will see them?” they say.

⁶They devise injustice and say,

“We have perfected a secret plan.”

For the inner man and the heart are mysterious.

⁷But God will shoot them with arrows;

suddenly they will be wounded.

⁸They will be made to stumble,

their own tongues turned against them.

All who see will shake their heads.

⁹Then all mankind will fear

and proclaim the work of God;

so they will ponder what He has done.

¹⁰Let the righteous rejoice in the LORD

and take refuge in Him;

let all the upright in heart exult.