wounds another, he ought to be humble enough to swallow his pride and apologize, ask for forgiveness. He should not allow the breach to widen. He ought to heal it at the first opportunity. He should not let the sun set upon him in a provoked state. Making amends for indiscretions in speech is commendable. Not only will one be healing what might become a deep wound, but his own conscience will be clear before God and the one offended.​—Eph. 4:26; Acts 24:16; Eph. 4:31, 32; Matt. 5:22.

12, 13. (a) Why must a Christian not use “smooth lips” or a “double-tongue”? (b) What danger is there in listening to “smooth speech”?

¹² The days in which we live David prophetically pointed forward to, saying: “For faithful people have vanished from the sons of men. Untruth they keep speaking one to the other; with a smooth lip they keep speaking even with a double heart. Jehovah will cut off all smooth lips, . . . those who have said: ‘With our tongue we shall prevail. Our lips are with us. Who will be a master to us?’” (Ps. 12:1-4) Those with a “double heart” today are like the unfaithful priests and elders still remaining behind in Jerusalem after a token number had been taken captive to Babylon in 617 B.C.E. Ezekiel records their boasting and attempted justification for engaging in false, detestable heathen worship: “Jehovah is not seeing us.” (Ezekiel, chapters 8 and 9) Peter counsels against such double heart and double-tongue: “He that would love life and see good days, let him restrain his tongue from what is bad and his lips from speaking deception.” (1 Pet. 3:10) He echoed Solomon’s words at Proverbs 4:24: “Remove from yourself the crookedness of speech; and the deviousness of lips put far away from yourself.” One of the requirements of the ministerial servant in the Christian congregation is that he be not “double-tongued.” Smooth talk, complimentary speech and pious greetings are aimed at seducing or turning away the hearts of guileless or unsuspecting ones.​—1 Tim. 3:8; Rom. 16:18; Matt. 23:6, 7.

¹³ All too often today people like to have their ears tickled. They like a ‘soft religion.’ They like to hear things that give them a feeling of security and well-being, not necessarily things that would awaken them to responsibility. Paul said a time would come “when they will not put up with the healthful teaching, but, in accord with their own desires, they will accumulate teachers for themselves to have their ears tickled; and they will turn their ears away from the truth.” (2 Tim. 4:3, 4) So guard yourself from those who offer complimentary speech, who indulge in smooth double-talk, for “smoother than butter are the words of his mouth, but his heart is disposed to fight. His words are softer than oil, but they are drawn swords” that can cause incalculable damage. David could well speak those words recorded at Psalm 55:21. In Jesus’ day (as in the days of Isaiah) there was such ‘double-talk’ that he denounced, quoting what God said through the prophet Isaiah: “This people honors me with their lips, yet their heart is far removed from me. It is in vain that they keep worshiping me, because they teach commands of men as doctrines.”​—Matt. 15:8; Isa. 29:13.

USING IT POSITIVELY FOR GOOD

14. What is involved in controlling the tongue?

¹⁴ The control of the tongue is not limited to avoiding the saying of things that dishonor God and man, anymore than the approval of one’s employer is obtained by avoiding making mistakes. There is a positive side. Controlling the tongue means using it to bring honor to the Creator, to oneself and to one’s fellowmen. What a valuable use of the tongue when it is used to uphold the name, supremacy and kingdom of Jehovah God! Every Christian should resolve in his heart to set aside some time every day to do that very thing, and the resolve should be made now. There is no more opportune time.​—Col. 4:5, 6.

15. In what various ways may the tongue be used to do a healing work?

¹⁵ Today the uplifting use of the tongue can be applied to practically every phase of our lives. “As apples of gold in silver carvings is a word spoken at the right time for it.” (Prov. 25:11) True, “there exists the one speaking thoughtlessly as with the stabs of a sword, but the tongue of the wise ones is a healing.” (Prov. 12:18) Perfect control of the tongue may be beyond the reach of us in this present wicked system of things, but a greater work of healing with the tongue is possible for most people than they are accomplishing. Words from the healing tongue can be given in the home when a member is sick; when one is injured; in time of sorrow; when there are worries about health, insecurity or failures; comforting words can be offered when there is fear that others may dislike one; or even to compensate for a fear of being alone. A person of insight can tell of true values and can assist in overcoming anxieties. “Anxious care in the heart of a man is what will cause it to bow down, but the good word is what makes it rejoice.”​—Prov. 12:25.

16. When only can real comfort be given, and how then?

¹⁶ As a medical doctor is useless unless he knows how to effect a cure or at least some improvement, so unless one knows how to pass along to those in need of it the “good word,” he is, in effect, tongue-tied. So to have control of the tongue means to use it effectively. A diligent study of God’s Word, the Bible, is rewarding. The Bible is the only source of real comfort, for it is the word of the God of all comfort. It is to Jehovah God that we look so we can have a properly directed tongue and so use our tongue for good. At Isaiah 50:4 the prophet said: “The Lord Jehovah himself has given me the tongue of the taught ones, that I may know how to answer the tired one with a word.” To comfort the tired, weary ones, we need such tongue of the taught ones and should petition Jehovah for it. He welcomes a righteous one’s prayer, as James assures us: “A righteous man’s supplication, when it is at work, has much force.” So such prayer, being “at work,” must be accompanied by works.​—Jas. 5:16; 2:14-26.

17. What assures the proper direction of the tongue?

¹⁷ The educated mind is responsible for the proper direction of the tongue. So the mind must be fed on truth. It must be led by God’s active force, his holy spirit, so that it can direct the tongue to speak the “sayings of Jehovah [which] are pure sayings, as silver refined in a smelting furnace of earth, clarified [purified] seven times.” (Ps. 12:6) There is a group of people today who have prayed for such divine direction and have accepted it and dedicated their lives to serve Jehovah. They have petitioned: “Make me know your own ways, O Jehovah; teach me your own paths. Make me walk in your truth and teach me, for you are my God of salvation.” (Ps. 25:4, 5) Hence they use their time, effort and such resources as they possess to do those things that please God. They are an organization of talkers. They endeavor to exercise strict control of their tongues. They are not tongue-tied. They would be embarrassed if they could not use their tongues. More than that, they would be unfaithful to their commission. (1 Cor. 9:16) They realize, therefore, the need of rendering their praises intelligently. So they study the Bible.

18. How valuable is congregational study, but what else is a necessary part of our worship of God?

¹⁸ A study of the Bible is necessary to give acceptable worship to God. There is no substitute for personal study, but it is not sufficient. For that reason Jehovah’s witnesses throughout the earth (except in countries where demonistic anti-God authorities, political or religious, prevent it by totalitarian law) arrange for five occasions weekly to meet to study God’s Word together and also to discuss how they might best use their tongues in praising God. They realize that more than meeting together is involved in worshiping God; they must ‘obey the message’ and not ‘merely listen to it’ to have God’s approval. Thus our keeping the tongue under control and our worship of God are interlocked. The servant of God must be a daily praiser of God: at home with his family, in association with friends, at work, at school, and at play. Never may he “let down the bars” and take temporary leave from having his controlled tongue used in a proper manner. We must remember that “we have become a theatrical spectacle to the world, both to angels and to men.”​—1 Cor. 4:9; Jas. 1:22.

19, 20. (a) Describe a particularly enjoyable use of the tongue. (b) What inescapable responsibility falls on those who are assisted?

¹⁹ Not to be overlooked is the daily praising of God in the door-to-door ministry. What an enjoyable and rewarding use of the tongue! In such service the tongue, put to the test, is a real power for good. Persons of honest heart are seeking to know what they may do to have God’s favor, how they may qualify for being “men of good will” and getting life. Jehovah’s witnesses are glad for the privilege of acting as ‘lifesavers,’ taking the “word of life” to such people, sitting down with them in their homes and studying the Bible and showing them what is required in order to put themselves in line for life. No wonder they exclaim, as did the emissaries sent to arrest Jesus: “Never has another man spoken like this” man. How different from the usual things they hear!

²⁰ Such honest seekers for righteousness realize, after having been assisted to come to an accurate knowledge of truth, that they now have a responsibility; that, having received, they must now give, and they find it a joyful responsibility, as Jesus said they would. (Acts 20:35) Solomon’s statement now applies to them: “Do not hold back good from those to whom it is owing, when it happens to be in the power of your hand to do it. Do not say to your fellow man: ‘Go, and come back and tomorrow I shall give,’ when there is something with you.” (Prov. 3:27, 28) Withholding life-giving information by keeping one’s mouth shut for any reason may result in the deprivation of life, for both the one withholding the information and the one who was denied it. But the proper use of the tongue can bring life to both. “It is written: ‘As I live,’ says Jehovah, ‘to me every knee will bend down, and every tongue will make open acknowledgment to God.’ So, then, each of us will render an account for himself to God.”​—Rom. 14:11, 12.

21. What further assistance is provided?

²¹ One does not have to feel distressed today because of his inability to dig out of the Bible the truths so necessary for him to learn how to please God. Today Jehovah has his “faithful and discreet slave” organization on earth to provide spiritual food at this ‘proper time.’ (Matt. 24:45-47) That organization has associated with it 24,900 congregations throughout the earth today. There is a congregation in your neighborhood. You can identify the meeting place by the familiar sign, KINGDOM HALL OF JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES. That organization provides Bible-study aids in 166 languages for assisting persons of whatever nationality. This magazine, The Watchtower, is itself published in 71 languages and, at the last printing, the edition was 4,950,000. Additionally, that organization has associated with it over one million one hundred thousand persons busily engaged in using their tongues to magnify the Supreme Sovereign of the Universe, Jehovah God, and to exercise love of neighbor. That love is indicated by their persistent calls on people of all races, languages and religious persuasions to assist them to have a better appreciation of the heavenly Father, so that they may “be saved and come to an accurate knowledge of truth.” (1 Tim. 2:4) Welcome them when they call at your home to render such help.

22. What death-dealing mistake did Adam and Eve make, and so what should every creature today resolve to do?

²² Our common parents, Adam and Eve​—created in God’s image and likeness with the unquestioned ability to use their tongues perfectly to honor their Maker—​dishonored and defamed Him by siding in with the one who misused his tongue, the original liar, the Devil. They lost the right to future life. The privilege of using that divinely provided instrument, the tongue, in a right manner is extended to man today. All seekers for truth should acknowledge Jehovah as the giver of all good gifts, including the gift of speech, and dedicate their all to Him. We stand at the threshold of God’s new order under his everlasting kingdom of righteousness. During that new order “every breathing thing” shall praise Jehovah. (Ps. 150:6) Conversely, anyone who does not render such praise shall not be among those breathing. “Now is the especially acceptable time” to use our voices to honor our Creator, this course leading to life. (2 Cor. 6:2) The prayer of each one should be: “Let the sayings of my mouth and the meditation of my heart become pleasurable before you, O Jehovah my Rock and my Redeemer.”​—Ps. 19:14.

Appreciation for Jehovah’s Organization

AS TOLD BY JOHANNES WEBER

AS A small boy I already had a lively interest in the Bible. Secular and Bible history were among my favorite subjects in school. At the turn of the century the outstanding Bible stories were taught in our schools in Alsace, then Germany, now part of France. Religious instruction by the church minister was mostly based on the Bible. Large portions of the Hebrew Scriptures were assigned as homework, to be learned by heart or written out in the pupil’s own words. Our big old family Bible became my textbook. I found a powerful attraction in the story of Joseph and his brothers, though each time I read it I was moved to tears.

The teachers soon noted that I usually did good work on these subjects of sacred and profane history; so much so that if, by reason of negligence, I missed doing my homework, they quickly detected this and asked the reason why. In those days we memorized the names of the sixty-six books of the Bible, something that was to prove very useful to me in later years.

Even when still quite young I used to ponder the subjects of “hell” and “the