Proverbs 12:13-14 The wicked is snared by the transgression of his lips: but the just shall come out of trouble. 14 A man shall be satisfied with good by the fruit of his mouth: and the recompense of a man’s hands shall be rendered unto him.

God wants us to be careful with how we use our lips. God is particularly hard on the liar, on the person who uses deceit or tells untruths or is a false witness. Under the Mosaic Law a person was tried and found guilty only under the eyewitness verbal account of two or more witnesses. The Bible says in:

Deuteronomy 19:15 A single witness shall not suffice against a person for any crime or for any wrong in connection with any offense that he has committed. Only on the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses shall a charge be established.

This standard did not change as Christ brought in His Church under the New Covenant. God spoke through the Apostle declaring:

2 Corinthians 13:1 (ESV) … Every charge must be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses.

Hearsay was not allowed. To be a witness, you actually had to have seen the event with your own eyes, not report what another had said. When God established the Law of Lex Talionis, the Law of Tooth and Claw, it was a general law that set limits for punishment. This Law of “Eye for an eye and tooth for a tooth” was particularly applied to the false witness:

Deuteronomy 19:18-21 (ESV) The judges shall inquire diligently, and if the witness is a false witness and has accused his brother falsely, 19 then you shall do to him as he had meant to do to his brother. So you shall purge the evil from your midst. 20 And the rest shall hear and fear, and shall never again commit any such evil among you. 21 Your eye shall not pity. It shall be life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

Transgression Of The Lips Are Snares

Proverbs 12:13 The wicked is snared by the transgression of his lips: but the just shall come out of trouble.

The evil person is “snared” or caught because lies eventually are uncovered. The righteous person sticks with the truth, the Word of God, and in time is vindicated. When the Pharisees attacked Jesus (Who “committed no sin, neither was deceit found in His mouth” (1 Peter 2:22)) with slander and libel, Jesus easily proved them wrong with the Word of God. Jesus said:

John 8:44 (ESV) You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.

The devil invented the lie in the Garden of Eden, and did so to lead humanity into the Fall.

There are times when “lies” are justified.

For instance, Rahab the Prostitute told the soldiers of Jericho “the spies did come in, but they left. I do not know where they went.” But the Bible says “she brought them to the roof of her home, and hid them with stalks of flax” (Joshua 2:2-4). When Pharaoh demanded that the Hebrew midwives (Exodus 1) kill all male babies, they claimed “Hebrew women are vigorous, and give birth before we get to them” (Exodus 1:19). David’s wife Michal deceived her father, King Saul, in order to protect her husband (1 Samuel 19:13-14).

In each case where a lie is justified in Scripture, it is always to save life, not to benefit the liar. Our God honors truth. In our fallen world there may come times when we must lie – as Christians did in Nazi Germany to save Jewish lives – but never is a false witness blessed of God.

Proverbs 12:14 A man shall be satisfied with good by the fruit of his mouth: and the recompense of a man’s hands shall be rendered unto him.

The words of the Christian are to be honorable – we should be trustworthy in what we promise, and in what we do. Our mouths should speak “GOOD FRUIT”. When we came to Christ and gave Him our allegiance, God wants us to hold to our promise. Solomon wrote in another place:

Ecclesiastes 5:4-7 (ESV) When you vow a vow to God, do not delay paying it, for he has no pleasure in fools. Pay what you vow. It is better that you should not vow than that you should vow and not pay. Let not your mouth lead you into sin, and do not say before the messenger that it was a mistake.

Those who will not keep their word do not understand the Way of Christ. We are told in 1 John 2:5, “Whoever KEEPS HIS WORD, in him truly the love of God is perfected”.

If you have a tendency of making promises that you do not fulfill, in time people will come to mistrust all that you say. It will effect your business, your marriage, your home life. Keep your word!

Learn To Listen And Correct Yourself Before God Corrects You

Proverbs 12:15 The way of a fool is right in his own eyes: but he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise.

The majority is not always right.

When we speak the good that God tells us to speak, there is blessing in it. When Israel sent 12 spies into the Promised Land, 10 spies spoke against following God into Canaan:

Numbers 13:27-28 (ESV) … We came to the land to which you sent us. It flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. 28 However, the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large. And besides, we saw the descendants of Anak there.

Joshua and Caleb encouraged the people to trust God, and step out of their comfort zone and go into the land.

Numbers 13:30-33 (ESV) Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, “Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it.” 31 Then the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are.” 32 So they brought to the people of Israel a bad report of the land that they had spied out, saying, “The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people that we saw in it are of great height. 33 And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.

The faithless speech of the Ten Spies led the people to plan a coup against God and Moses, even though Joshua told them:

Numbers 14:8-9 (ESV) The land, which we passed through to spy it out, is an exceedingly good land. 8 If the Lord delights in us, he will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land that flows with milk and honey. 9 Only do not rebel against the Lord. And do not fear the people of the land, for they are bread for us. Their protection is removed from them, and the Lord is with us; do not fear them.

This foolishness brought God’s condemnation on Israel, and they wandered in the wilderness for 40 years until all died but Joshua and Caleb. Even Moses and Aaron died just short of the Promised Land. But Joshua and Caleb trusted God, and glorified Him with their tongues. They entered the Promised Land, and were well blessed even unto their old age.

The way of a fool is right in his own eyes

The person who will not heed the counsel of God, but who believes themselves right no matter what, is branded as a “FOOL” by God. But we are told:

he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise

Some people refuse to listen to counsel, and they will always be at a loss. But those who heed counsel, the counsel of God’s Word and the counsel of the Elder, are wise.

The Fool’s Tactic Is To Make A Scene

Proverbs 12:16 A fool’s wrath is presently known: but a prudent man covereth shame.

We live in a day of fools! People spew lies, then shout lies louder, becoming animal like in their voraciousness, demanding that you agree with them. Such people are “FOOLS” and their anger is called “FOOL’S WRATH”. The Bible says:

Proverbs 27:3 A stone is heavy and the sand weighty, but a fool’s wrath is heavier than them both

No one likes to be around a “certain” person, especially the “certain” person who, though wrong, will not listen to truth nor correction.

The “FOOL” explodes when challenged, or insulted. The PRUDENT PERSON ignores insults and anger, and judges that which is brought before him on the merit of God’s Word.

Our Lord Jesus often got angry, especially when He saw people mistreated. Jesus was angry when the Pharisees would have a man with a withered hand not healed just because it was the Sabbath (Mark 3:5). But angry, Jesus never allowed anger to control Him. He allowed the Word of God to control Him. Anger is NOT a sin:

Ephesians 4:26-27 (ESV) Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27 and give no opportunity to the devil.

The FOOL is controlled by anger. The PRUDENT are controlled by God.

Ecclesiastes 7:9 (AP) Control your temper, for ANGER LABELS YOU A FOOL

The shouting fool can never grow intellectually nor spiritually, for learning requires listening and following. When Jesus was angry, His anger was always CONTROLLED, and the end result was an improved situation. When Jesus was angry at the Pharisees, in the end the man with the withered hand was restored. When Jesus cleansed the Temple, He made a whip with cords, and made a scene by turning over the money changers tables. Yet at the end of the day, the Temple was cleansed.

Uncontrolled fools anger does little to contribute to progress or growth. The Prudent understand the admonition:

Colossians 4:6 (NKJV) [Let] your speech always [be] with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one.

Our speech is not to be SALTY, but SEASONED with SALT. It needs to improve the climate of the room.

Your Tongue Should Not Be A Wrecking Bar, But A Source Of Blessing

Proverbs 12:17-19 He that speaketh truth sheweth forth righteousness: but a false witness deceit. 18 There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword: but the tongue of the wise is health. 19 The lip of truth shall be established for ever: but a lying tongue is but for a moment.

In verse 17 we are reminded of the words of our Lord Jesus:

Matthew 12:34 … out of the ABUNDANCE OF THE HEART THE MOUTH SPEAKS …

Those who habitually speak lies are those who need a new heart. Their problem is spiritual. They need the new heart that only faith in Jesus Christ can bring. God promised under His “New Covenant” (Jeremiah 31:31-34) that He would put a new heart in those who believed in Him. The Bible says that:

Hebrews 12:24 … Jesus [is the] the mediator of the new covenant …

In verse 18 we are told:

There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword: but the tongue of the wise is health

Thoughtless or critical speech can hurt others, but words spoken that are endorsed by God’s Word are beneficial, “HEALTHY”. As King, David was well acquainted with evil tongued people. He wrote:

Psalm 57:4 (KJV) My soul is among lions: and I lie even among them that are set on fire, even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword.

The sharp and uncontrolled tongue can wound a person’s soul, much like the claws of a lion or the sharp sword. The Bible speaks of Doeg the Edomite (1 Samuel 22:9) who fueled King Saul’s hatred of David. We should follow the example of the Evangelist Barnabas who told the Church concerning Saul of Tarsus:

Acts 9:27-28 (ESV) Barnabas took [Paul] and brought him to the apostles and declared to them how on the road he had seen the Lord, who spoke to him, and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of Jesus. 28 So he went in and out among them at Jerusalem, preaching boldly in the name of the Lord.

Had Barnabas done less, we might never have been blessed with the ministry and writings of the Apostle Paul. In fact, the Gospel might not have went out to the Gentiles. Praise God for the Barnabas believers among us!

Blessed Are The Peacemakers!

Proverbs 12:20-21 Deceit is in the heart of them that imagine evil: but to the counselors of peace is joy. 21 There shall no evil happen to the just: but the wicked shall be filled with mischief.

I have found over the years some in the Church who, when they do not get their way, look for ways to verbally torpedo any forward movement, any growth, and any glory to God. These people are more than likely unsaved mischief makers. Our Lord Jesus said:

Matthew 5:9 (KJV) Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.

The Peacemakers are believers in Christ, Christians who follow the Lord. They want to see Christ’s Church grow, and God’s Kingdom reign. But there are those who deceive and tell lies, who mean no good to the Church, the community, nor the country.They are self puffed up pretend Christians who only want to promote themselves.The intent of the liar is to deceive others, and to promote themselves. These people are not joyful in their hearts because, as I wrote before, they are not God centered but self centered.

When King David’s son Absalom sought to overthrow his father and steal his throne, he used every deception he could to achieve his ends. Absalom did not care about the glory of God, nor the Kingdom of Israel. He just wanted to be King. He wanted to be the B.M.O.C., the “Big Man On Campus”. In the end, Absalom died a lonely death. So will all who stand against the glory of God and His Kingdom.

Yet God’s children will continue on, for God looks after His people. “to the counselors of peace is joy”. The vessel filled with joy is at peace with God and others. The wicked, however, are “filled with mischief”.

Beloved, how you live your life matters. As the Apostle Paul came toward the end of his life, he wrote:

2 Timothy 4:6-8 (ESV) For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8 Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.

Paul lived our his life honoring the Lord Who saved him on the Damascus Road. Though it was tough, Paul stood with God and with the truth. We’ll finish with these words:

Proverbs 12:22 Lying lips are abomination to the Lord: but they that deal truly are his delight.

As believers we are to speak the truth with love. Only by obeying the truth of the Gospel is a person saved (2 Thessalonians 2:10; 1 Peter 1:22). As the light of God dims in our country, let us commit to stand firm in the Word of God, following Jesus with all our hearts. God will bless those who honor Him and His Word. May God fortify us as His Church as we go forward this year. Amen.