February 26, 2016 Friday)
“A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver” (Proverbs 25:11 KJV) is a famous Bible quotation. Newer translations offer their own versions of the proverb. I like them all, including the King James Version, and I especially like the Revised Standard Version’s translation: “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in a setting of silver.” “The Message” translation probably comes closest to expressing the intention of the writer with, “The right word at the right time is like a custom-made piece of jewelry,” not the most poetic of the three translations.
The principal message of the proverb has to do with the way we talk with other people. Words can be constructive or destructive. Shakespeare puts these words in a character’s mouth: “I will speak daggers to him, but use none,” giving us an example of destructive words.
Constructive words are praised in Proverbs 6:24 (NLT): “Kind words are like honey–sweet to the soul and healthy for the body.”
We are responsible for the words we say, which can help or hurt others. The last two blogs before this one were about Laughter and Tears. Words can produce either. They can be kind or unkind.
The first publication of the Southern Baptist Convention was, “Kind Words for Sunday School Children” in 1866. The Sunday School Board was not founded until 1891. It has now become Lifeway Christian Resources with many publications and other services for churches and individuals.
Wasn’t it a beautiful and meangful idea to name the first publication, “Kind Words?” I know of no serious and powerful publication today with that name. Yet we probably need the message of “Kind Words” more than ever before. Our nation needs the message. Our world needs the message.
Expressions of thanks–written or spoken–in today’s world begin with, “Thank you for the kind words..” We are grateful for kind words spoken to us; we can speak kind words to others.
“Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen..Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you” (Ephesians 4:29,32 NIV).