Talking With Dictation Taken

Monday, September 26, 2022

“The tongue of the wise useth knowledge aright: but the mouth of fools poureth out foolishness” (Proverbs 15:2 KJV).

We can talk with sense—or talk nonsense….

One researcher estimated the average person spends in excess of 13 years talking overall. Roughly 18,000 words are used during daily conversation—equivalent to a 54-page book. Annually, each person generally speaks over 6.5 million words—some 66 books of 300 pages each! The most talkative men can utter more than 47,000 words a day—a staggering 17 million words every year (66 books of 770 pages each). Concerning the least talkative people, they may speak as few as 500 words daily—approximately one 550-page book a year.

Dear friends, if the above “books” of our individual days and entire lifetimes were actually printed and available for purchase, would we care to buy them and read them ourselves? Under what genres (categories) would they be listed—fiction, romance, thriller, satire, drama, spirituality, horror, mystery? Having read what we spoke that day, or even that lifetime, would we be proud of those words or ashamed and wishing a “do-over?”

The following has been rightly observed: since we have two ears and one mouth, we ought to listen twice as much as we speak. This is wise counsel that parents should especially impart to their children. We would also be prudent to take particular care that we are “using knowledge aright [properly],” not “pouring out foolishness” (today’s Scripture). Are we communicating sound Bible doctrine we read and heard (good), or something else we read and heard (evil)?

Addressing unbelieving Israel, the Lord Jesus Christ alerted: “O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things. But I say unto you, That every idle [unprofitable, useless, worthless, unhelpful] word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned” (Matthew 12:34-37). The world’s people would do quite well to remember their words are being recorded—those aforementioned “books” exist!!!

Bible Q&A #995: “What is a ‘latchet?’”