¹³ As the proverb of the ancients says, ‘^(A)Out of the wicked comes forth wickedness’; but my hand shall not be against you.

^34 (A)You brood of vipers, how can you, being evil, speak ^[a]what is good? ^(B)For the mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart. ^35 (C)The good man brings out of his good treasure ^[b]what is good; and the evil man brings out of his evil treasure ^[c]what is evil.

^45 (A)The good man out of the good ^[a]treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil. ^(B)For his mouth speaks from the abundance of his heart.

¹⁸ But ^(A)the things that proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and those defile the man.

²⁹ Let no ^[a](A)unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for ^(B)building up ^[b]what is needed, so that it will give grace to those who hear.

² For we all ^(A)stumble in many ways. ^(B)If anyone does not stumble in ^[a]what he says, he is a ^(C)perfect man, able to ^(D)bridle the entire body as well. ³ Now ^(E)if we put the bits into the horses’ mouths so that they will obey us, we direct their entire body as well. ⁴ Look at the ships also, though they are so great and are driven by strong winds, they are still directed by a very small rudder wherever the inclination of the pilot wills. ⁵ So also the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it ^(F)boasts of great things.

^(G)Behold how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire! ⁶ And ^(H)the tongue is a fire, the very world of unrighteousness; the tongue is set among our members as that which ^(I)defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our ^[b]existence, and is set on fire by ^[c](J)hell. ⁷ For every kind of beasts and birds, of reptiles and creatures of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by mankind. ⁸ But no one can tame the tongue; it is a restless evil and full of ^(K)deadly poison. ⁹ With it we bless ^(L)our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, ^(M)who have been made in the likeness of God. ¹⁰ From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. ¹¹ Does a fountain pour forth from the same opening ^[d]fresh and bitter water? ^12 (N)Can a fig tree, my brothers, produce olives, or a vine produce figs? Nor can saltwater produce ^[e]fresh.