What is “the Power of the Tongue” in Proverbs 18:21?

Question:

I want to know more about the “power of the tongue.” What does the word “it” refer to in Proverbs 18:21? The verse says those who love “it” will eat “its” fruits.

Editor’s note: This question was first answered by Patterns of Truth in October 2021, but was updated in August 2025. We think it will be more helpful in its revised form.

Answer:

Proverbs 18:21 reads in full: “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits.”

The first point I want to make is that the question shows the reader is studying Scripture carefully, and recognizes the verse requires some thought to understand. I commend the questioner for this! So many of us read Scripture without careful thought. We have the expression that what we tell a person “goes in one ear and out the other,” meaning that the person does not really think about what he is told. Scripture must not be read that way. It is truly God’s Word to us. The apostle Paul wrote, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Tim. 3:16–17).

The second point is that translation languages do matter, but so do the original author’s intentions. When reading this verse in a typical English translation, the word “it” could refer to “death and life”, or “the power of the tongue”, or just “the tongue.” However, the first and last options seem unlikely. Death and life are the universal options put before man (Deut. 30:15). Hebrew scholars Keil and Delitzsch write “According as he [man] uses his tongue, he falls under the power of death or attains to life. All interpreters attribute [verse] 21b to the tongue…But, “to love the tongue” is a strange and obscure expression.”[1] So, the “it” must refer to the power of the tongue. This, in fact, agrees with the general warning of Scripture regarding the use of our tongue. In addition, notice the parallel structure in v.20 where the “fruit of his mouth” is mentioned. Proverbs is poetry, so we often find help in interpreting one verse by looking at the poetic structure of the verse itself, or the verses around it. In v. 21, we also find a merism, which is a figure of speech using two extremes. “Death and life” thus means “and everything in between those possibilities.”

So, this verse is one of the many passages of Scripture that warn against careless speech since it can affect every aspect of our lives, or those of others we speak to, or speak about. The apostle James wrote, “let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak” (Jas. 1:19). The verse in Proverbs is a challenge to someone who “loves” the power of the tongue, suggesting they enjoy using their tongue to get results. But in chapter 3 of James’ writing, he expanded the warning with very graphic language to describe the power of the tongue. One of his examples was a common maritime illustration: “Look at the ships also: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things” (Jas. 3:4-5a). James emphasized mainly the possible negative effects. But the verse in Proverbs mentioned “death and life.” So, our speech can affect everything in a positive or negative way.

William Kelly, a 19th-century Bible teacher, had the following comments on our verse:

The mouth indicates the heart, as the Lord tells us both of the good man and of the wicked. [See Matt. 12:34; Lk. 6:45; Matt. 15:80–20 (Ed.)] Out of its abundance the mouth speaks. Here it is the other side — a man’s inwards satisfied with the fruit of his mouth, with the increase of his lips. How weighty then our every word if we bring in God! But if this satisfies man, the child of God can be satisfied with nothing less than God’s Word and grace. Hence too are life and death said to be in the power of the tongue, and so the issues in both good and evil. All Scripture declares it; all experience confirms and illustrates it.

William Kelly, The Proverbs (Bible Truth Publishers: Addison, undated), 142-143.

One final observation is required. In addition to being poetry, as I mentioned above, Proverbs is also classified by Bible scholars as “wisdom literature” along with Job and Ecclesiastes. In wisdom literature, the purpose is usually not to provide new forms of teaching or authority. Instead, a writer will show how to understand and apply the principles God has already established. This point is very important, because some will read Proverbs 18:21 as proof that human speech has supernatural power to invoke desired (or even undesired) outcomes. There is no evidence for this elsewhere in Scripture, so it is totally inappropriate to interpret this passage in that way. On a few occasions, Old Testament prophets and New Testament apostles spoke words that supernaturally helped a person or condemned them. But these were clearly the directive power of God for specific occasions, and not an inherent quality of their speech.

In summary, there can be great benefit from careful speech. The apostle Paul quoted Isaiah (52:7) when he wrote, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” (Rom. 10:15b). And, Proverbs 25:11 states, “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in a setting of silver.” Proverbs has many warnings and encouragements regarding speech. So, the lesson from Proverbs 18:21 is that we can see the “fruit” of the use of our “tongue” either for good (“life”) or evil (“death”). My conclusion is: Use your tongue carefully!

Endnotes

1.  Kiel, Karl Fredreich and Delitzsch, Franz, Commentary on the Old Testament (Peabody: Henderson Publishers, 2011), Vol. 6, 276.