Book of Common Prayer

Taming the tongue

3 Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters; you know that we will be judged more severely. ² All of us make many mistakes, after all. If anyone makes no mistakes in what they say, such a person is a fully complete human being, capable of keeping firm control over the whole body as well. ³ We put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, and then we can direct their whole bodies. ⁴ Consider, too, the case of large ships; it takes strong winds to blow them along, but one small rudder will turn them whichever way the helmsman desires and decides. ⁵ In the same way, the tongue is a little member but boasts great things. See how small a fire it takes to set a large forest ablaze! ⁶ And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is a world of injustice, with its place established right there among our members. It defiles the whole body; it sets the wheel of nature ablaze, and is itself set ablaze by hell. ⁷ Every species of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, you see, can be tamed, and has been tamed, by humans. ⁸ But no single human is able to tame the tongue. It is an irrepressible evil, full of deadly poison. ⁹ By it we bless the Lord and father; and by it we curse humans who are made in God’s likeness! ¹⁰ Blessing and curses come out of the same mouth! My dear family, it isn’t right that it should be like that. ¹¹ Does a spring put out both sweet and bitter water from the same source? ¹² Dear friends, can a fig tree bear olives, or a vine bear figs? Nor can salt water yield fresh.

Forgiveness, faith and obedience

17 Jesus said to his disciples, “There are bound to be things that trip people up; but woe betide the person who brings them about! ² It would be better to have a millstone hung around your neck, and be thrown into the sea, than to trip up one of these little ones. ³ So watch out for yourselves.

“If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he apologizes, forgive him. ⁴ Even if he sins against you seven times, and turns round seven times and says ‘sorry’ to you, you must forgive him.”

⁵ The apostles said to the master, “Give us greater faith!”

⁶ “If you had faith,” replied the master, “as a grain of mustard seed, you would say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.

⁷ “Supposing one of you has a slave ploughing or keeping sheep out in the field. When he comes in, what will you say? ‘Come here at once, and sit down for a meal?’ ⁸ No; you will be far more likely to say, ‘Get something ready for me to eat! Get properly dressed, and wait on me while I eat and drink! After that you can have something to eat and drink yourself.’ ⁹ Will you thank the slave because he did what you told him?

¹⁰ “That’s how it is with you. When you’ve done everything you’re told, say this: ‘We’re just ordinary slaves. All we’ve done is what we were supposed to do.’ ”