The Bible has much to say about a believer’s speech and the effects that it can have on others. For example, Proverbs 18:21a says “Death and life are in the power of the tongue,” and in Matthew 15:11 the Lord Jesus says, “It is not that which enters into the mouth that defiles the man; but that which proceeds out of the mouth [referring to our speech], this defiles the man.” On the one hand, our words can build others up and give grace to those who hear (Eph. 4:29). On the other hand, they can be like a deadly contagion transmitting death from one person to the next. The following article at Shepherding Words describes how we can protect ourselves and others from such unhealthy words and ultimately break the chain of transmission to stop the spread of death.