The problem James now addresses is, who can control the tongue? Control of the tongue is one of the tests of true religion that James lists at the conclusion of his first chapter. James has already appealed to believers to live their faith by praying for wisdom, listening to the Word, and acting on it. Almost immediately James hints that it may be difficult to prove one’s faith is genuine. It is far too easy to offer kind wishes – “keep warm and well fed” (2:16) – and do nothing to help. The hints of poor performance in James 2 become a plain declaration of human inability in James 3. James 1 says a religious man must “keep a tight rein on his tongue” (1:26). Yet now James says, “No man can tame the tongue” (3:8).

James opens chapter 3 with a warning that alarms teachers everywhere (3:1). Paradoxically, every time a teacher rises to explain this verse, he invites judgment on himself. It is true that only qualified people should teach. It is also true that some people get a thrill from standing before an attentive audience. But these points are not the topic of James 3. James’s theme is that we must tame the tongue but cannot do so. Teachers make an excellent test case of the issue. They are especially vulnerable to failures of speech because their role demands that they speak so much.

James does not accuse teachers of being especially wicked: “We all stumble in many ways.” No one can control his tongue. If anyone could, he would be faultless and perfect, “able to keep his whole body in check.” The tongue daily demonstrates both our sinfulness and our inability to reform ourselves. Failures of the tongue are frequent and public, hence undeniable. Scripture has long used sins of the tongue to describe human fallenness. For most of us, our mouth is our undoing (Prov. 18:6-7).

James uses three analogies to illustrate the influence of the tongue. The tongue, he says, is like a horse’s bit, a ship’s rudder, and a fire among trees (3:3-5). The tongue rests in the human mouth mush as the bit is in the horse’s mouth. In both cases, a small thing moves and controls a large body. The tongue is like a rudder of a ship. Just as a small part of a ship turns the whole, so the tongue has great influence on the whole person. The tongue is like a spark of fire in the woods. Even as a small spark can start a great fire, so the tongue can set fire to relationships or communities.

The idea that we should work hard to master the tongue because it is the key to all self-mastery, is appealing, in one way, since it directs human effort to one central task. Unfortunately, this view runs against the rest of Scripture. Jesus does not say “control the tongue and you control all.” He says your heart controls your tongue and speech (Matt. 12:33-35). James agrees with Jesus; the heart moves the tongue. Therefore, we cannot simply decide, by a resolution of the will, to control the tongue. For the heart controls our resolutions.

James rightly says, “The tongue…is a fire” (3:6a). Its propensity to gossip and its capacity to suggest sin establish it as a source of great wickedness. It stains the whole body. It sets all of life on fire “and is itself set on fire by hell” (3:6b). James describes the tongue in three ways: Its character. The tongue is a microcosm, a concentration point of this world’s evils. James says the tongue is “a world of evil among the parts of the body” (3:6a). Its influence. It corrupts “the whole body,” that is, the whole person. James says, “It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire” (3:6b). Its allegiance. In one sense, the evils of the tongue flow from the heart. In another sense, James says Satan himself gives the tongue its destructive power. Hell sets the tongue on fire (3:6b). If we wonder why the tongue generates so much trouble, James answers that it is set on fire by hell.

James begins the next text with the word “for.” That shows he is explaining what he just said. By this we know the tongue is enflamed by hell: mankind can tame anything but the tongue. Every kind of animal “can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison” (3:7-8). The tongue is restless, unstable, and liable to break out at any time. It is half-tamed at best.

James says two things: The tongue has vast influence, so we ought to control it. Yet no human can tame the tongue. This is a paradox: James says we must do something that we cannot do. There are two ways to approach this problem. First, we can soften James’s message. He means it is almost impossible to tame the tongue, therefore we must redouble our efforts. This view says: Since the tongue is the key to holy living, we must bend every effort to control it, for if we do, we control all. James’s illustrations seem to support this view. Just as a bit turns a large horse, just as a rudder turns a large ship, so the tongue the lives of men. The second view interprets James rather literally. It says: It would be good to tame the tongue, but James says we cannot. Therefore, we must turn elsewhere for help. No one has sufficient self-control to govern his tongue: “We all stumble in many ways” (3:2). “No one” – no mere human – “can tame the tongue” (3:8).

The tongue is hopelessly inconsistent. It blesses God one minute and curses mankind the next even though God fashioned mankind in his likeness (3:9-12). Such behavior is absurd as a spring that pours out both fresh and salty water, as absurd as a single tree bears both olives and figs (3:11-12). Yet the tongue is like a spring that vacillates between salty and clear water, or like a tree that bears peaches one day and papayas the next. James says simply, “My brothers, this should not be” (3:10).

Notice that James chides our inconsistency, even though he knows no one can consistently control the tongue. He rebukes us because the duty of watching our words remains. Since a small statement can cause great harm, we must guard our speech. We must strive to bless God and mankind with our tongues. James doesn’t solve this riddle in this passage. For the moment, he leaves us in tension until sometime later, in 4:6-10. In 4:10, James resolves his riddle when he promises that God will exalt all who humble themselves before Him. That is, if we humbly admit our inability, He will graciously forgive us.

Even before we reach that moment, other Scriptures teach us this about our inability: We cannot control the tongue, but God can. Even with the Spirit’s help, the taming is only partial. Yet it is real and more potent than our efforts at self-mastery. Once we realize that God can control what we cannot, we can properly face the failures of speech that reflect the failures of the heart.

Good works and holiness please God. But God, as a faithful husband, loves His bride, flaws and all. In this supremely important way, our moral achievements count for nothing. They neither earn God’s love nor guarantee it. There is no deed, no accomplishment, that makes God suddenly notice us or favor us. He loves us for His own reasons, not for our own merits. Yet, if we love the Lord, we do aspire to holiness.

We all stumble and utter words we quickly regret (3:1). Yet we strive to please God, whom we love. We do this even if our failures do not jeopardize that love. When we fail, we petition God for grace to renew and purify us, as we appropriate His grace. We live without fear, knowing God will not disown His children for their lapses. Even in failure we remain confident that if we believe in God, He has given us life by the gospel. The gospel word, implanted in us, saves us. Our tongue may be inconsistent, but our status is not. Our “performance” does not affect God’s love for us. By God’s grace, let us use our tongues to bless the Lord and to bless mankind, whom He made in His image.

James 3:1-12 Study Questions:

James begins this passage (vv. 1-2), by issuing a warning to those who teach, before discussing the dangers of the tongue for the remaining ten verses. What is the connection between the “teacher” and the “tongue”?

Given the three specific pictures that James uses to describe the tongue in verses 3-5, what are we supposed to grasp about the tongue?

Verse 6 is packed with particularly insightful teaching about the tongue. What does this verse remind us about the tongue’s role in evil? What do we learn about the tongue’s influence? In what sense can the tongue be linked with “hell” itself?

To what in nature does James compare the tongue in verses 7-8? How is this verse convicting? What does it teach about sinful human nature and our ability to control ourselves by our own strength?

How does James call out hypocritical uses of the tongue in verses 9-12? According to James, does it seem like any human being is completely free from this kind of doublespeak? Does he offer any hints of hope, with regard to the tongue, to his readers?

In what ways does this passage call us to repentance? What truths about God has James already taught, earlier in the letter, that give guidance for how to move forward with this recognition of universal failure in our words and speech?