Ecclesiastes 10:12-14 & 20 – Speak wisely

A proper evaluation of ourselves is needful to ensure that we are not proud, arrogant or boastful. No one can deny that the first step to change is self-awareness. We cannot make an effective change if there is no self-awareness. This is so because we will not know where we’d gone wrong, or what we need to change if we have no self-awareness. A periodical honest introspection will help us to be aware of where we are so that we can make the necessary change, to be conformed to the standards of God. One good way to do so is to have a personal journal so that one can keep a record of one’s progress in one’s life journey. If we are honest with ourselves we must admit that there had been times when we had acted ignorantly and foolishly. Listen to the Apostle Paul’s warning in 1 Corinthians 1o:12, “Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands to take heed lest he falls.”

In the first three verses 0f Ecclesiastes 10, we are shown the difference between wisdom and folly. Then we are counseled on how to deal with the folly of others in verses 4-7, and advice to live discerningly in verses 8-11. In the rest of Ecclesiastes 10, we are invited to practice wisdom. One area highlighted for our consideration in verse 12 is the area of speech. In this verse, we are urged to be wise with the use of our words. It says, “The words of a wise man's mouth win him favour….” Undoubtedly, out of the mouth of a wise person, one will find wisdom. We are told here that words can win favor for a person. When a person speaks wisely all the time, his reputation as a wise person will be built. The word “favor” used here is better translated as “grace.” The force of verse 12 tells us that a person who is wise is gracious in his speech towards others. We use words to communicate. We speak humor to elicit a laughter, or angrily to express our displeasure. We will use words in trying to woo a girl we are attracted to or vice versa. Words are potent instruments in our mouth. The singing band, Bee Gees, in their song, “Words”, say this: “Its only words and words are all I have, to take your heart away.”

In the last part of verse 12, we are reminded that the words of a fool will consume him. It means that foolish words are self-destructive. Unlike wise words that win favor, foolish words destroy the reputation of the speaker. Simply put, his words will eat him up. Foolish words often create tension. When words are spoken unfittingly or rashly, they create strife and elicit needless anger to destroy what is otherwise a peaceful conversation. The person who utters the foolish words finds himself being chewed up. All it takes is one crazy, unguarded foolish word, and friendship or relationship can be utterly destroyed. Verse 20 gives an illustration of this. It is risky business to unduly criticize people of power and influence e.g. your leader. When words reach your leaders’ ear you may not be treated kindly. Remember negative words spoken have an uncanny way of getting to the person you criticise. The Chinese have a saying, “once a word is ill-fittingly spoken, it is impossible to retrieve with the power of four horses.”

Ill-spoken words are not only self-destructive, verse 13 says that it is also evil. “The beginning of the words of his mouth is foolishness, and the end of his talk is evil madness.” It gives the sense of foolish words descending on a downward slide and gets from bad to worse. The situation started with foolish words but ended up becoming evil madness. It degenerates into an evil scheme that is not good for both the person who speaks to them or the people who receive them. Then verse 14 tells us that foolish words are usually presumptuous. People who speak foolish words with bravado and gusto usually cannot back their words by actions or knowledge. Ever listen to people who boast about their past but do not have even a scintilla of facts to bear up their so-called exploits? They often come cheap, a dime a dozen. We all need to exercise care in the things we say. They can be self-destructive, or worse still generate evil and nothing else, because they are presumptuously spoken. 

How do we use words? Are words used to build someone up or tear that person down? Be careful what we say. Jesus in Matthew 12:36-37 warns us, saying, ^“I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words, you will be condemned.” Know it or not, the words we utter often reveal the state of our heart. The Lord Jesus tells us in Luke 6:45 that, “The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” The wisdom of God tells us to be slow to speak. So, let’s be slow to speak. Think first before opening our mouth.