Proverbs 18:21 – Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit.
The words we speak are powerful, especially as believers in Christ (because of the authority that we carry in Christ). They can bring life when we affirm, encourage, motivate, correct in love, or quote the word of God. Or death when we curse, swear, lie, gossip, slander, backbite or complain.
When we speak, things are activated in the spirit realm, which then manifest on earth either in our own lives, the lives of others, our environments, or other places depending on who or where we direct our words. These can be good or bad things depending on what we say. Through our words, we influence our environments and the people around us (home, work, political, etc.), which in turn affect our lives.
Hence, the second part of the verse – “And those who love it will eat its fruit.” Those who love to speak, whether negatively or positively, will reap the fruit or results of their words. Think about the saying: “What you say is what you get”.
If we’re always saying: “I’m constantly in debt” or “I never have enough”, then we cannot expect abundance. If we are always saying, “I will never get this right” or “I just can’t win”, we cannot expect success. Please note the word “always”. Does this make sense? Now what about the words we speak over our spouses, children, family members, friends, and colleagues? Do we affirm or belittle them?
What about our circumstances? Do we make negative statements or speak the word of God over them? What are we declaring over our home, neighbourhood, or country? Are we blessing or cursing it? If we are always speaking negatively about ourselves, the people around us, or our environments, then we cannot expect good things to happen. Unfortunately, many Christians are unaware of this.
We can also defile ourselves by the things we say. As Jesus taught His disciples, “It’s not what goes into your mouth that defiles you; you are defiled by the words that come out of your mouth.” (Matthew 15:11 NLT). As followers of Christ, we therefore need to take heed of our words. We cannot be careless or callous about our words because we do not want to reap the negative consequences thereof or defile ourselves.