Proverbs 15:4
in Proverbs 15A soothing tongue is a tree of life, but a perverse tongue crushes the spirit.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
A gentle tongue is a tree of life; But perverseness therein is a breaking of the spirit.
KJV
A wholesome tongue is a tree of life: but perverseness therein is a breach in the spirit.
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This verse in Proverbs 15
Commentary
8 notes on this verseA wholesome tongue is a tree of life,.... A tongue that delivers out salutary instructions, wholesome advice and counsel; a "healing tongue" (w), as it may be rendered, which pacifies contending parties, and heals the divisions between them; to have the benefit of such a man's company and conversation is like being in paradise. Such is the tongue of a Gospel minister, which delivers out the wholesome words of our Lord Jesus Christ; sound speech and doctrines, which cannot be condemned; healing truths to wounded consciences, such as peace, pardon, righteousness, and atonement by the blood of Christ.
This site's exposition
The eyes of the LORD are in every place
on Proverbs 15:3-4
The eyes of the Lord are in every place, beholding the evil and the good, a single verse that removes every hidden place. Gill reads it as the ground under every other proverb, since a soft answer and a wholesome tongue both matter because they are watched.
This site's exposition
A soothing tongue is a tree of life
John Gill reads the soothing tongue as a healing tongue, one that calms strife and brings peace between men. The tree of life recalls Eden, and Gill likens such a man's company to paradise. A perverse tongue crushes the spirit it touches.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
A commentator
John ChrysostomCOMMENTARY ON THE PROVERBS OF SOLOMON, FRAGMENT 15:4 · Written before 407.
proposed
"Sanity of tongue is the tree of life." The tongue which does not sin by speaking makes use of sanity: indeed the illness of the tongue is its sin. The one who can check his tongue and does not sin with it is filled with the Holy Spirit.
The Medieval Church1 voice
The soothing tongue is a tree of life, etc. The tongue of the Catholic teacher leads to the fruit of eternal life; but the one who ignores the measure of ecclesiastical rule, destroys both his own spirit and that of his hearers by speaking ill.
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
A wholesome tongue is a tree of life - Here again is an allusion to the paradisiacal tree, עץ חיים ets chaiyim, “the tree of lives.”
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
A wholesome tongue--(Compare Margin), pacifying and soothing language. tree of life-- (Pr 3:18; 11:30). perverseness therein--cross, ill-natured language. breach . . . spirit--(compare Isa 65:14, Hebrew), grieves, instead of appeasing.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
A wholesome tongue - literally, as in the margin, the same word as “sound” in Pro 14:30 (see the note). A more literal rendering would be soundness of speech. Tree of life - Compare Pro 3:18 note. Breach in the spirit - With the sense of vexation (compare Isa 65:14).
The words behind it
8 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| מַרְפֵּ֣א | marpe' | healing of | H4832 → | 16 times |
| לָ֭שׁוֹן | lashon | tongue | H3956 → | 117 times |
| עֵ֣ץ | ʾetz | [is] a tree of | H6086 → | 328 times |
| חַיִּ֑ים | chaiyim | life | H2416 → | 498 times |
| וְסֶ֥לֶף | veselef | and perverseness | H5558 → | |
| בָּ֝֗הּ | bah | with it | ||
| שֶׁ֣בֶר | shever | [is] brokenness | H7667 → | 45 times |
| בְּרֽוּחַ׃ | beruach | in spirit | H7307 → | 378 times |
מַרְפֵּ֣אhealing of
marpe'H4832 →16 times
לָ֭שׁוֹןtongue
lashonH3956 →117 times
עֵ֣ץ[is] a tree of
ʾetzH6086 →328 times
חַיִּ֑יםlife
chaiyimH2416 →498 times
וְסֶ֥לֶףand perverseness
veselefH5558 →
בָּ֝֗הּwith it
bah
שֶׁ֣בֶר[is] brokenness
sheverH7667 →45 times
בְּרֽוּחַ׃in spirit
beruachH7307 →378 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Malachi 4:2“But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings, and you will go out and leap like calves from the stall.
it leads to
- Jeremiah 33:6
Nevertheless, I will bring to it health and healing, and I will heal its people and reveal to them the abundance of peace and truth.
- Psalms 84:11
For the LORD God is a sun and a shield; the LORD gives grace and glory; He withholds no good thing from those who walk with integrity.
- Isaiah 30:26
The light of the moon will be as bright as the sun, and the light of the sun will be seven times brighter—like the light of seven days—on the day that the LORD binds…
- Luke 1:78
because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the Dawn will visit us from on high,
- John 8:12
Once again, Jesus spoke to the people and said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in the darkness, but will have the light of life.”
- Jeremiah 33:6
Through
Proverbs 16:24Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.
it leads to
- Proverbs 12:18
Speaking rashly is like a piercing sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.
- Proverbs 24:13–14
Eat honey, my son, for it is good, and the honeycomb is sweet to your taste.
- Proverbs 12:18
Through
Proverbs 12:18Speaking rashly is like a piercing sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.
it leads to
- Proverbs 16:24
Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.
- Proverbs 16:24
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies6
About Proverbs
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Bede, Commentary on Proverbs; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Chrysostom, COMMENTARY ON THE PROVERBS OF SOLOMON, FRAGMENT 15:4; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament and John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament.