Proverbs 21:23

WEB

²³Whoever guards his mouth and his tongue keeps his soul from troubles.

KJV

²³Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from troubles.

BSB

²³He who guards his mouth and tongue keeps his soul from distress.

FBV

²³If you watch what you say, you can save yourself a lot of trouble.

Extra References

Proverbs 13:3

³He who guards his mouth guards his soul. One who opens wide his lips comes to ruin.

Proverbs 18:21

²¹Death and life are in the power of the tongue; those who love it will eat its fruit.

²⁷He who spares his words has knowledge. He who is even tempered is a man of understanding. ²⁸Even a fool, when he keeps silent, is counted wise. When he shuts his lips, he is thought to be discerning.

James 1:26

²⁶If anyone among you thinks himself to be religious while he doesn’t bridle his tongue, but deceives his heart, this man’s religion is worthless.

Proverbs 12:13

¹³An evil man is trapped by sinfulness of lips, but the righteous shall come out of trouble.

Proverbs 10:19

¹⁹In the multitude of words there is no lack of disobedience, but he who restrains his lips does wisely.

James 3:2-13

²For we all stumble in many things. Anyone who doesn’t stumble in word is a perfect person, able to bridle the whole body also. ³Indeed, we put bits into the horses’ mouths so that they may obey us, and we guide their whole body. ⁴Behold,^[+] the ships also, though they are so big and are driven by fierce winds, are yet guided by a very small rudder, wherever the pilot desires. ⁵So the tongue is also a little member, and boasts great things. See how a small fire can spread to a large forest! ⁶And the tongue is a fire. The world of iniquity among our members is the tongue, which defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature, and is set on fire by Gehenna.⁷^[+] For every kind of animal, bird, creeping thing, and sea creature is tamed, and has been tamed by mankind; ⁸but nobody can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. ⁹With it we bless our God and Father, and with it we curse men who are made in the image of God. ¹⁰Out of the same mouth comes blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. ¹¹Does a spring send out from the same opening fresh and bitter water? ¹²Can a fig tree, my brothers, yield olives, or a vine figs? Thus no spring yields both salt water and fresh water.

¹³Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by his good conduct that his deeds are done in gentleness of wisdom.