I got a little ahead of myself last week including vs. 6 in the Friday devotional. I would go ahead and skip to the next verses but I think it's important enough to feature verse 6 by itself this week. Please bear with me. I trust this repetition will be an encouragement not a burden.
James 3:6
And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell.
Commentary
"tongue is a fire." Like fire, the tongue's sinful words can spread destruction rapidly, or as its accompanying smoke, those words can permeate and ruin everything around it. "defiles." This means "to pollute or contaminate"... the course of nature. Better translated "the circle of life," that underscored that the tongue's evil can extend beyond the individual to affect everything in his sphere of influence. "hell." ...A translation of the Greek word gehenna (or valley of Hinnom). In Christ's time, this valley that lay southwest of Jerusalem's walls served as the city dump and was known for its constantly burning fire. Jesus used the place to symbolize the eternal place of punishment and torment... To James, hell conjures up not just the place but the satanic host that will some day inherit it. They use the tongue as a tool for evil. The Mac Arthur Bible Commentary by John MacArthur, Pg. 1889
Blessings,
Diane
Diane Hunt is the Director of Addiction Recovery and Development at America's KESWICK. In addition to her Keswick responsibilities which keep her busy, she loves to read, write and teach, travel and laugh with her grandchildren. Diane has been married to her husband John over 26 years. She has 2 children, 3 grandchildren, 3 step-children, and 7 step-grandchildren.
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