he who doesn’t slander with his tongue, nor does evil to his friend, nor casts slurs against his fellow man;
Parallel Translations
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he who doesn’t slander with his tongue, nor does evil to his friend, nor casts slurs against his fellow man;
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He that backbiteth not with his tongue, nor doeth evil to his neighbour, nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour.
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That hath no slander upon his tongue, nor doeth evil to his fellow, nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour;
Cross-references (16)
Passages linked to Psalms 15:3 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Romans 13:10 Love doesn’t harm a neighbor. Love therefore is the fulfillment of the law.
- Psalms 101:5-8 I will silence whoever secretly slanders his neighbor. I won’t tolerate one who is arrogant and conceited. My eyes will be on the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me. He who walks in a perfect way, he will serve me. He who practices deceit won’t dwell within my house. He who speaks falsehood won’t be established before my eyes. Morning by morning, I will destroy all the wicked of the land, to cut off all the workers of iniquity from Yahweh’s city.
- Matthew 7:12 Therefore whatever you desire for men to do to you, you shall also do to them; for this is the law and the prophets.
- James 4:11 Don’t speak against one another, brothers. He who speaks against a brother and judges his brother, speaks against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law, but a judge.
- Leviticus 19:16 “ ‘You shall not go around as a slanderer among your people. “ ‘You shall not endanger the life of your neighbor. I am Yahweh.
- 3 John 1:11 Beloved, don’t imitate that which is evil, but that which is good. He who does good is of God. He who does evil hasn’t seen God.
- Jeremiah 9:4-9 “Everyone beware of his neighbor, and don’t trust in any brother; for every brother will utterly supplant, and every neighbor will go around like a slanderer. Friends deceive each other, and will not speak the truth. They have taught their tongue to speak lies. They weary themselves commiting iniquity. Your habitation is in the middle of deceit. Through deceit, they refuse to know me,” says Yahweh. Therefore Yahweh of Armies says, “Behold, I will melt them and test them; for how should I deal with the daughter of my people? Their tongue is a deadly arrow. It speaks deceit. One speaks peaceably to his neighbor with his mouth, but in his heart, he waits to ambush him. Shouldn’t I punish them for these things?” says Yahweh. “Shouldn’t my soul be avenged on a nation such as this?
- Exodus 23:1-33 “You shall not spread a false report. Don’t join your hand with the wicked to be a malicious witness. “You shall not follow a crowd to do evil. You shall not testify in court to side with a multitude to pervert justice. You shall not favor a poor man in his cause. “If you meet your enemy’s ox or his donkey going astray, you shall surely bring it back to him again. If you see the donkey of him who hates you fallen down under his burden, don’t leave him. You shall surely help him with it. “You shall not deny justice to your poor people in their lawsuits. “Keep far from a false charge, and don’t kill the innocent and righteous; for I will not justify the wicked. “You shall take no bribe, for a bribe blinds those who have sight and perverts the words of the righteous. “You shall not oppress an alien, for you know the heart of an alien, since you were aliens in the land of Egypt. “For six years you shall sow your land, and shall gather in its increase, but the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, that the poor of your people may eat; and what they leave the animal of the field shall eat. In the same way, you shall deal with your vineyard and with your olive grove. “Six days you shall do your work, and on the seventh day you shall rest, that your ox and your donkey may have rest, and the son of your servant, and the alien may be refreshed. “Be careful to do all things that I have said to you; and don’t invoke the name of other gods or even let them be heard out of your mouth. “You shall observe a feast to me three times a year. You shall observe the feast of unleavened bread. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, as I commanded you, at the time appointed in the month Abib (for in it you came out of Egypt), and no one shall appear before me empty. And the feast of harvest, the first fruits of your labors, which you sow in the field; and the feast of ingathering, at the end of the year, when you gather in your labors out of the field. Three times in the year all your males shall appear before the Lord Yahweh. “You shall not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread. The fat of my feast shall not remain all night until the morning. You shall bring the first of the first fruits of your ground into the house of Yahweh your God. “You shall not boil a young goat in its mother’s milk. “Behold, I send an angel before you, to keep you by the way, and to bring you into the place which I have prepared. Pay attention to him, and listen to his voice. Don’t provoke him, for he will not pardon your disobedience, for my name is in him. But if you indeed listen to his voice, and do all that I speak, then I will be an enemy to your enemies, and an adversary to your adversaries. For my angel shall go before you, and bring you in to the Amorite, the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Canaanite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite; and I will cut them off. You shall not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor follow their practices, but you shall utterly overthrow them and demolish their pillars. You shall serve Yahweh your God, and he will bless your bread and your water, and I will take sickness away from among you. No one will miscarry or be barren in your land. I will fulfill the number of your days. I will send my terror before you, and will confuse all the people to whom you come, and I will make all your enemies turn their backs to you. I will send the hornet before you, which will drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite, from before you. I will not drive them out from before you in one year, lest the land become desolate, and the animals of the field multiply against you. Little by little I will drive them out from before you, until you have increased and inherit the land. I will set your border from the Red Sea even to the sea of the Philistines, and from the wilderness to the River; for I will deliver the inhabitants of the land into your hand, and you shall drive them out before you. You shall make no covenant with them, nor with their gods. They shall not dwell in your land, lest they make you sin against me, for if you serve their gods, it will surely be a snare to you.”
- Isaiah 56:2 Blessed is the man who does this, and the son of man who holds it fast; who keeps the Sabbath without profaning it and keeps his hand from doing any evil.”
- 1 Peter 2:1-2 Putting away therefore all wickedness, all deceit, hypocrisies, envies, and all evil speaking, as newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the Word, that with it you may grow,
- Proverbs 22:10 Drive out the mocker, and strife will go out; yes, quarrels and insults will stop.
- Proverbs 25:3 As the heavens for height, and the earth for depth, so the hearts of kings are unsearchable.
- Romans 1:30 backbiters, hateful to God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,
- 1 Samuel 24:11 Moreover, my father, behold, yes, see the skirt of your robe in my hand; for in that I cut off the skirt of your robe, and didn’t kill you, know and see that there is neither evil nor disobedience in my hand, and I have not sinned against you, though you hunt for my life to take it.
- Romans 12:17 Repay no one evil for evil. Respect what is honorable in the sight of all men.
- Titus 3:2 to speak evil of no one, not to be contentious, to be gentle, showing all humility toward all men.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (16 sources)
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain David, after having briefly set forth the virtues with…
David, after having briefly set forth the virtues with which all who desire to have a place in the Church ought to be endued, now enumerates certain vices from which they ought to be free. In the first place, he tells them that they must not be slanderers or detractors; secondly, that they must restrain themselves from doing any thing mischievous and injurious to their neighbors; and, thirdly, that they must not aid in giving currency to calumnies and false reports. Other vices, from which the righteous are free, we shall meet with as we proceed. David, then, sets down calumny and detraction as the first point of injustice by which our neighbors are injured. If a good name is a treasure, more precious than all the riches of the world, (Proverbs 22:1,) no greater injury can be inflicted upon men than to wound their reputation. It is not, however, every injurious word which is here condemned; but the disease and lust of detraction, which stirs up malicious persons to spread abroad calumnies. At the same time, it cannot be doubted that the design of the Holy Spirit is to condemn all false and wicked accusations. In the clause which immediately follows, the doctrine that the children of God ought to be far removed from all injustice, is stated more generally: Nor doeth evil to his companion. By the words companion and neighbor, the Psalmist means not only those with whom we enjoy familiar intercourse, and live on terms of intimate friendship, but all men, to whom we are bound by the ties of humanity and a common nature. He employs these terms to show more clearly the odiousness of what he condemns, and that the saints may have the greater abhorrence of all wrong dealing, since every man who hurts his neighbor violates the fundamental law of human society. With respect to the meaning of the last clause, interpreters are not agreed. Some take the phrase, to raise up a calumnious report, for to invent, because malicious persons raise up calumnies from nothing; and thus it would be a repetition of the statement contained in the first clause of the verse, namely, that good men should not allow themselves to indulge in detraction. But I think there is also here rebuked the vice of undue credulity, which, when any evil reports are spread against our neighbors, leads us either eagerly to listen to them, or at least to receive them without sufficient reason; whereas we ought rather to use all means to suppress and trample them under foot. “Et mettre sous le pied.” — Fr.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Psa 15:3 [He that] backbiteth not with his tongue,…
Psa 15:3 [He that] backbiteth not with his tongue, nor doeth evil to his neighbour, nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour.
Ver. 3. He that backbiteth not with his tongue] That trotteth not up and down for the purpose, as the word signifieth; that walketh not about as a pedlar with his pack, as the word is, Lev 19:16, this is a bloody sin, ibid.; confer Eze 22:9. Ragal, whence Regal, a foot. Many ways a man may backbite with his tongue, that unruly member.
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Imponens, augens, manifestans, in mala vertens,
Qui negat, aut minuit, tacuit, laudatque remisse.
One observeth from this text that there is also a slander of the heart that never cometh into the tongue, sc. hard conceits and evil surmises. Some say that the word here signifieth to speak truth, but with a mischievous mind, to hurt another; as Doeg dealt by David, and is, therefore, accursed, Psa 52:1-6., and called a liar for his labour, Psa 120:2-3 The smutting of another man’s good name in any kind behind his back is backbiting; it is an irreparable wrong; take heed of it. The eye and the good name can bear no jests, as the proverb hath it.
Nor doth evil to his neighbour] Neither by disparaging nor disprofiting him. There is an elegance in the original that cannot be translated into English.
Nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour] Or receiveth, or endureth. The tale bearer carrieth the devil in his tongue; the tale hearer in his ear. Plautus wisheth that the one may be hanged by his tongue, and the other by his ear; the receiver, we say, is as bad as the thief. Not only he that maketh a lie, but he that loveth it, is excluded heaven, Rev 22:15. It is evil to sow reports and slanders, but worse to harrow them in. The heathen could say, He that easily believeth slanders, aut improbis, out puerilibus est moribus, is either a knave or a fool.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain He doth not take away or diminish his neighbour’s…
He doth not take away or diminish his neighbour’s good name, either by denying him his due praises, or by laying any thing to his charge falsely, or without sufficient cause and evidence;
nor doeth evil, i.e. any hurt or injury, to his neighbour, i.e. to any man; as is evident,
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1. From the nature of this precept, which reacheth to all, it being plain and certain that, both by laws of nature and of Moses, it was not. lawful to do evil to any man, except where God the Sovereign commanded it, as he did to the Canaanites and Amalekites.
2. From the Scripture usage of this word neighbour, which frequently signifies every man, though a stranger or a heathen, as appears from Gen 29:4; Exo 20:10,17; Le 18:20; 19:15, &c.; Pro 25:8,9; Lu 10:20, &c.; Mat 5:43,44. And he useth this word neighbour, because he who is strictly so is most within our reach, and most liable to the injuries which one man doth to another.
Nor taketh up, to wit, into his lips or mouth, which is understood here, as also Exo 20:7; Job 4:2, and fully expressed Psa 16:4; 50:16, i.e. doth not raise it, though that may seem to be included in the first clause, that backbiteth not; or doth not spread and propagate it; which men are too prone and ready to do, and which makes that a public which before was but a private injury and mischief. Or, nor taketh or receiveth, i.e. entertaineth it cheerfully and greedily, as men usually do such things, and easily believeth it without sufficient reason. See Exo 23:1; Lev 19:16. Or, nor beareth or endureth, as this phrase signifies, Psa 69:7; Eze 36:15. He doth not suffer another to defame him without some rebuke or signification of his dislike, Pro 25:23.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain He that backbiteth not with his tongue,.... Is not…
He that backbiteth not with his tongue,.... Is not a slanderer, a defamer, a tale bearer; a backbiter is one who privately, secretly, behind a man's back speaks evil of him, devours and destroys his credit and reputation: the word here used comes from which signifies the "foot", and denotes such a person who goes about from house to house, speaking things he should not, Ti1 5:13; and a word from this root signifies spies; and the phrase here may point at such persons who creep into houses, pry into the secrets of families, and divulge them, and oftentimes represent them in a false light. Such are ranked amongst the worst of men, and are very unfit to be in the society of the saints, or in a church of Christ; see Rom 1:30, Co2 12:20;
nor doeth evil to his neighbour: to any man whatever, good or bad, friend or foe, whether in a natural, civil, or spiritual relation, either by words or deeds, to his person, property, or good name;
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nor taketh up, a reproach against his neighbour; does not raise any scandalous report on him himself, nor will he bear to hear one from another, much less will he spread one; nor will he suffer one to lie upon his neighbour, but will do all he can to vindicate him, and clear his character.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain He - He that doth not speak evil of…
He - He that doth not speak evil of his neighbour. neighbour - That is, any man. Nor taketh - Into his mouth, doth not raise it, neither spread or propagate it; or believe it without sufficient reason.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 3. He that backbiteth not with his tongue]…
Verse 3. He that backbiteth not with his tongue] לא רגל על לשנו lo ragal al leshono, "he foots not upon his tongue."
4. He is one who treats his neighbour with respect. He says nothing that might injure him in his character, person, or property; he forgets no calumny, he is author of no slander, he insinuates nothing by which his neighbour may be injured. The tongue, because of its slanderous conversation, is represented in the nervous original as kicking about the character of an absent person; a very common vice, and as destructive as it is common: but the man who expects to see God abhors it, and backbites not with his tongue. The words backbite and backbiter come from the Anglo-Saxon bac, the back, and [A.S.], to bite. How it came to be used in the sense it has in our language, seems at first view unaccountable; but it was intended to convey the treble sense of knavishness, cowardice, and brutality. He is a knave, who would rob you of your good name; he is a coward, that would speak of you in your absence what he dared not to do in your presence; and only an ill-conditioned dog would fly at and bite your back when your face was turned. All these three ideas are included in the term; and they all meet in the detractor and calumniator. His tongue is the tongue of a knave, a coward, and a dog. Such a person, of course, has no right to the privileges of the Church militant, and none of his disposition can ever see God.
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Nor doeth evil to his neighbour]
5. He not only avoids evil speaking, but he avoids also evil acting towards his neighbour. He speaks no evil of him; he does no evil to him; he does him no harm; he occasions him no wrong. On the contrary, he gives him his due. See under the second particular. See Clarke on Ps 15:2.
Nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour.]
6. The word חרפה cherpah, which we here translate a reproach, comes from חרף charaph, to strip, or make bare, to deprive one of his garments; hence חרף choreph, the winter, because it strips the fields of their clothing, and the trees of their foliage. By this, nature appears to be dishonoured and disgraced. The application is easy: a man, for instance, of a good character is reported to have done something wrong: the tale is spread, and the slanderers and backbiters carry it about; and thus the man is stripped of his fair character, of his clothing of righteousness, truth, and honesty. All may be false; or the man, in an hour of the power of darkness, may have been tempted and overcome; may have been wounded in the cloudy and dark day, and deeply mourns his fall before God. Who that has not the heart of a devil would not strive rather to cover than make bare the fault? Those who feed, as the proverb says, like the flies, passing over all a man's whole parts to light upon his wounds, will take up the tale, and carry it about. Such, in the course of their diabolic work, carry the story of scandal to the righteous man; to him who loves his God and his neighbour. But what reception has the tale-bearer? The good man taketh it not up; לא נשא lo nasa, he will not bear it; it shall not be propagated from him. He cannot prevent the detractor from laying it down; but it is in his power not to take it up: and thus the progress of the slander may be arrested. He taketh not up a reproach against his neighbour; and the tale-bearer is probably discouraged from carrying it to another door. Reader, drive the slanderer of your neighbour far away from you: ever remembering that in the law of God, as well as in the law of the land, "the receiver is as bad as the thief."
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Psa 15:3. He backbites not with his tongue —…
Psa 15:3. He backbites not with his tongue — Doth not use his tongue to calumniate, or detract from the reputation of any one; speaks evil of no man, nor makes the faults of others the subject of his conversation, much less of his sport or ridicule, nor speaks of them with pleasure, nor at all but for edification. Nor doeth evil — Any hurt or injury, willingly or designedly, to his neighbour — That is, any man; doth nothing to offend or grieve his spirit, to prejudice the health or ease of his body, to injure him in his estate or secular concerns, in his family or relations; but makes conscience of doing as he would be done by. Nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour — Namely, into his lips or mouth: doth not raise it, or spread and propagate it, or even believe it, without sufficient reason.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain He that backbiteth not with his tongue - The…
He that backbiteth not with his tongue - The word “backbite” means to censure; slander; reproach; speak evil of. The Hebrew word - רגל râgal - a verb formed from the word foot, means properly “to foot it,” and then “to go about.” Then it means to go about as a tale-bearer or slanderer; to circulate reports unfavorable to others. It is not improperly rendered here “backbite;” and the idea is, that it is essential to true piety that one should “not” be a slanderer, or should “not” circulate evil reports in regard to others. On the use of the “tongue,” see the note at Jam 3:2-11.
Nor doeth evil to his neighbor - That does his neighbor no harm. This refers to injury in any way, whether by word or deed. The idea is, that the man who will be admitted to dwell on the holy hill of Zion, the man who is truly religious, is one who does no injury to anyone; who always does that which is right to others. The word “neighbor” usually refers to one who resides near us; and their it denotes all persons who are near to us in the sense that we have business relations with them; all persons with whom we have anything to do. It is used in this sense here as referring to our dealings with other persons.
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Nor taketh up a reproach - Margin, “or receiveth,” or, “endureth.” The idea is that of “taking up,” or receiving as true, or readily giving credit to it. He is slow to believe evil of another. He does not grasp at it greedily as if he had pleasure in it. He does not himself originate such a reproach, nor does he readily and cheerfully credit it when it is stated by others. If he is constrained to believe it, it is only because the evidence becomes so strong that he cannot resist it, and his believing it is contrary to all the desires of is heart. This is true religion every where; but this is contrary to the conduct of no small part of the world. There are large classes of persons to whom nothing is more acceptable than reproachful accusations of others, and who embrace no reports more readily than they do those which impute bad conduct or bad motives to them. Often there is nothing more marked in true conversion than the change which is produced in this respect. He who delighted in gossip and in slanderous reports of others; who found pleasure in the alleged failings and errors of his neighbors; who gladly lent a listening ear to the first intimations of this kind, and who cheerfully contributed his influence in giving circulation to such things, augmenting such reports as they passed through his hands - now sincerely rejoices on hearing everybody well spoken of, and does all that can be done consistently with truth to check such reports, and to secure to every man a good name.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain He neither slanders nor spreads slander.
He neither slanders nor spreads slander.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 3. The remaining verses of the psalm describe the…
3. The remaining verses of the psalm describe the character inquired after (Psa_15:1) in its conduct toward others.
Backbiteth not—The word rendered “backbiteth,” radically means to go about, walk, wander, for whatever purpose, and hence as talebearer, slanderer. By the law of God, and the judgment of mankind, a most cowardly, despicable, and pernicious practice, and yet how common! Exo_23:1; Lev_19:16. Our English version of the latter passage brings out the full idea: “Thou shalt not go up and down as a talebearer.”
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Evil—The term is generic—any thing that works injury.
Neighbour—That is, another, whoever he may be, any member of the human family. The word also denotes friend, companion, fellow.
Taketh up a reproach—To “take up a reproach” is to repeat it.
Against his neighbour—The word here rendered “neighbour” is different from that in the previous line, and means one who is nigh, either by residence, friendship, or blood relationship. Talebearing and slanderous gossip are proverbially neighbourhood nuisances and Church scandals.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 3. In the preceding verse the present participle is…
3. In the preceding verse the present participle is used; but here the perfect tense, describing how his actual behaviour has been governed by the principles of truth and justice.
He that hath had no slander on his tongue,
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Nor done evil to his fellow,
Nor taken up reproach against his neighbour.
Neighbour in A.V. represents two different words. Friend (R.V.) however is somewhat too strong for the first, which denotes anyone with whom he is associated in the intercourse of life. The general sense of the last line is clear. He has not made his neighbour’s faults or misfortunes the object of his ridicule or sarcasm (Psa_69:20). The precise meaning is however not quite certain. Either (1) uttered reproach, or (2) taken up, and given currency to, what might otherwise have lain unheeded; or (3), as is most probable, loaded his neighbour with reproach, adding to the burden of his trouble (Psa_69:7).
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (3) He that backbiteth not.—Literally, he has not footed…
(3) He that backbiteth not.—Literally, he has not footed it on his tongue. Very expressive of those who go about from house to house carrying tittle- tattle. (Comp. 1Ti_5:13.)
Reproach.—The Hebrew word has a striking derivation. Properly, the stripping of the trees of autumn fruit; so, stripping honour and reputation from a person. Two different words are in the Hebrew for “neighbour.” Translate, “Who does no ill to his friend, nor carries a reproach against his neighbour.” The marginal receiveth, or endureth, is quite against the context.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain He that backbiteth not with his tongue. Among the…
He that backbiteth not with his tongue. Among the negative virtues the first place is given to the observance of the ninth commandment, probably because to err in this respect is so very common a fault. (see Jer_6:28 Jer_9:4 Jam_3:5-8) Nor doeth evil to his neighbour; rather, to his friend, or his companion a different word from that used at the end of the verse, and implying greater intimacy. There is special wickedness in injuring one with whom we are intimate. Nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour. The good man does not, even when it is true, spread an ill report concerning his neighbour. He prefers to keep silence, and let the report die out. (see Exo_33:1)
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Charles H. Spurgeon 1885 · Public Domain Ver. 3. After the positive comes the negative.
Ver. 3. After the positive comes the negative.
He that backbiteth not with his tongue. There is a sinful way of backbiting with the heart when we think too hardly of a neighbour, but it is the tongue which does the mischief. Some men's tongues bite more than their teeth. The tongue is not steel, but it cuts, and it's wounds are very hard to heal; its worst wounds are not with its edge to our face, but with its back when our head is turned. Under the law, a night hawk was an unclean bird, and its human image is abominable everywhere. All slanderers are the devil's bellows to blow up contention, but those are the worst which blow at the back of the fire.
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Nor doeth evil to his neighbour. He who bridles his tongue will not give a licence to his hand. Loving our neighbour as ourselves will make us jealous of his good name, careful not to injure his estate, or by ill example to corrupt his character.
Nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour. He is a fool if not a knave who picks up stolen goods and harbours them; in slander as well as robbery, the receiver is as bad as the thief. If there were not gratified hearers of ill reports, there would be an end of the trade of spreading them. Trapp says, that "the tale bearer carrieth the devil in his tongue, and the tale hearer carries the devil in his ear." The original may be translated, "endureth; "implying that it is a sin to endure or tolerate tale bearers. "Show that man out!" we should say of a drunkard, yet it is very questionable if his unmanly behaviour will do us so much mischief as the tale bearers insinuating story. "Call for a policeman!" we say if we see a thief at his business; ought we to feel no indignation when we hear a gossip at her work? Mad dog! Mad dog!! is a terrible hue and cry, but there are few curs whose bite is so dangerous as a busybody's tongue. Fire! fire!! is an alarming note, but the tale bearer's tongue is set on fire of hell, and those who indulge it had better mend their manners, or they may find that there is fire in hell for unbridled tongues. Our Lord spake evil of no man, but breathed a prayer for his foes; we must be like him, or we shall never be with him.
Ver. 3. He that backbiteth not with his tongue, nor doeth evil to his neighbour. Lamentation for the gross neglect of this duty, or the frequent commission of this sin. What tears are sufficient to bewail it? How thick do censures and reproaches fly in all places, at all tables, in all conventions! And this were the more tolerable, if it were only the fault of ungodly men, of strangers and enemies to religion; for so saith the proverb, "Wickedness proceedeth from the wicked." When a man's heart is full of hell, it is not unreasonable to expect his tongue should be set on fire of hell; and it is no wonder to hear such persons reproach good men, yea, even for their goodness. But alas! the disease doth not rest here, this plague is not only among the Egyptians but Israelites too. It is very doleful to consider how professors sharpen their tongues like swords against professors; and one good man censures and reproaches another, and one minister traduces another; and who can say, "I am clean from this sin?" O that I could move your pity in this case! For the Lord's sake pity yourselves, and do not pollute and wound your consciences with this crime. Pity your brethren; let it suffice that godly ministers and Christians are loaded with reproaches by wicked menthere is no need that you should combine with them in this diabolical work. You should support and strengthen their hands against the reproaches of the ungodly world, and not add affliction to the afflicted. O pity the world, and pity the church which Christ hath purchased with his own blood, which I think bespeaks you in these words, "Have pity upon me, have pity upon me, O ye my friends; for the hand of God hath touched me." Job 19:21. Pity the mad and miserable world, and help it against this sin; stop the bloody issue; restrain this wicked practice amongst men as much as possibly you can, and lament it before God, and for what you cannot do yourselves, give God no rest until he shall please to work a cure. Matthew Poole, 1624-1679.
Ver. 3. He that backbiteth not, etc. Detraction or slander is not lightly to be passed over, because we do so easily fail in this point. For the good name of a man, as saith Solomon, is a precious thing to every one, and to be preferred before much treasure, insomuch that it is no less grievous to hurt a man with the tongue than with a sword: nay, ofttimes the stroke of a tongue is more grievous than the wound of a spear, as it is in the French proverb. And therefore the tongue must be bridled, that we hurt not in any wise the good name of our neighbour; but preserve it unto him safe and sound, as much as in us shall lie. That which he addeth touching evil or injury not to be done to our neighbour, is like unto that which we have seen already concerning the working or exercising of righteousness. He would have us therefore so to exercise all upright dealing, that we might be far from doing any damage or wrong to our neighbours. And by the name of neighbour, is meant every man and woman, as it is plain and evident. For we are all created of God, and placed in this world that we might live uprightly and sincerely together. And therefore he breaketh the law of human society (for we are all tied and bound by this law of nature) that doth hurt or injury to another. The third member of this verse is, nor that reproacheth another, or, that maintains not a false report give one against another; which latter particle seemeth to be the better, since he had spoken before expressly, touching the good name of another, not to be hurt or wronged with our tongue. To the which fault this is next in degree, wherewith we are too much encumbered, and which we scarce acknowledge to be a fault, when we further and maintain the slanders devised and given out by another against a man, either by hearing them or telling them forth to others, as we heard them. For why? It seemeth for the most part to be enough for us if we can say, that we feign not this or that, nor make it of our own heads, but only tell it forth as we heard it of others, without adding anything of our own brain. But as oft as we do this we fail in our duty doing, in not providing for our neighbour's credit, as were requisite for the things, which being uttered by others ought to be passed over in silence and to lie dead, we gather up, and by telling them forth, disperse them abroad, which whether it be a sin or no, when as we ought by all means possible to wish and do well unto our neighbours, all men do see. And therefore you that travel towards eternal life, must not only not devise false reports and slanders against other men, but also not so much as have them in thy mouth being devised by others, neither by any means assist or maintain them in slandering; but by all honest and lawful means, provide for the credit and estimation of thy neighbour, so much as in thee lieth. Peter Baro, D.D., 1560.
Ver. 3. He that backbiteth not with his tongue. The Hebrew word (lgr) signifieth to play the spy, and by a metaphor, to backbite or slander, for backbiters and whisperers, after the manner of spies, go up and down dissembling their malice, that they may espy the faults and defects of others, whereof they may make a malicious relation to such as will give ear to their slanders. So that backbiting is a malicious defamation of a man behind his back...And that the citizen of heaven doth and ought to abhor from backbiting, the horrible wickedness of this sin doth evince. For first, Le 19:16, where it is straightly forbidden, the "tale bearer" is compared to a pedlar: "Thou shalt not walk about with tales and slanders, as it were a pedlar among thy people." So much (lykr) signifieth. For as the pedlar having bought his wares of some one or more goeth about from house to house that he may sell the same to others; so backbiters and tale bearers, gathering together tales and rumours, as it were wares, go from one to another, that such wares as either themselves have invented, or have gathered by report, they may utter in the absence of their neighbour to his infamy and disgrace. Likewise Ps 50:20, it is condemned as a notable crime, which God will not suffer to go unpunished; Eze 22:9, it is reckoned among the abominations of Jerusalem, for which destruction is denounced against it; and Ro 1:29-30, among the crimes of the heathen, given over unto a reprobate sense, this is placed: they were "whisperers and backbiters." George Downame.
Ver. 3. He that backbiteth not. He that is guilty of backbiting, that speaks evil of another behind his back, if that which he speaks be false, is guilty of lying, which is prejudicial to salvation. If that which he speaks be true, yet he is void of charity in seeking to defame another. For as Solomon observes, "Love covereth all sins." Pr 10:12. Where there is love and charity, there will be a covering and concealing of men's sins as much as may be. Now where charity is wanting, their salvation is not to be expected. 1Co 13:1, etc.; 1Jo 3:14-15. Christopher Cartwright, 1602-1658.
Ver. 3. Backbiteth not. This crime is a conjugation of evils, and is productive of infinite mischiefs; it undermines peace, and saps the foundation of friendship; it destroys families, and rends in pieces the very heart and vitals of charity; it makes an evil man party, and witness, and judge, and executioner of the innocent. Bishop Taylor.
Ver. 3. Backbiteth. The scorpion hurts none but such as he touches with the tip of his tail; and the crocodile and basilisk slay none but such as either the force of their sight, or strength of their breath reach. The viper woundeth none but such as it biteth; the venomous herbs or roots kill none but such as taste, or handle, or smell them, and so come near unto them; but the poison of slanderous tongues is much more rank and deadly; for that hurts and slays, wounds and kills, not only near, but afar off; not only at hand, but by distance of place removed; not only at home, but abroad; not only in our own nation, but in foreign countries; and spareth neither quick nor dead. Richard Turnbull.
Ver. 3. Backbiteth. The word here used comes from a root signifying foot, and denotes a person who goes about from house to house, speaking things he should not (1Ti 5:13); and a word from this root signifies spies; and the phrase here may point at persons who creep into houses, pry into the secrets of families, divulge them, and oftentimes represent them in a false light. Such are ranked among the worst of men, and are very unfit to be in the society of saints, or in the Church of Christ. See Ro 1:30. John Gill.
Ver. 3. Nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour. The saints of God must not be too light of hearing, much less of believing all tales, rumours, and reports of their brethren; and charity requireth that we do not only stop and stay them, but that we examine them before we believe them. Saul, the king, too light of belief in this point, believed the slanderous and false reports of David's enemies, who put into Saul's head that David imagined evil against him. Yea, David himself showed his great infirmity in that, that without due examination and proof of the matter, he believed the false report of Ziba, against Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan; of whom to David the king, persecuted by Absalom his son, Ziba reported falsely, that he should say, "This day shall the house of Israel restore unto me the kingdom of my father." The example of whose infirmity in Scripture reproved, must not we follow; but let us rather embrace the truth of that heavenly doctrine which, through God's Spirit, here he preacheth, that we believe not false reports against our neighbours. Richard Turnbull.
Ver. 3. Despise not thy neighbour, but think thyself as bad a sinner, and that the like defects may befall thee. If thou canst not excuse his doing, excuse his intent which may be good; or if the deed be evil, think it was done of ignorance; if thou canst no way excuse him, think some great temptation befell him, and that thou shouldest be worse if the like temptation befell thee; and give God thanks that the like as yet hath not befallen thee. Despise not a man being a sinner, for though he be evil today, he may turn tomorrow. William Perkins, 1558-1602.
Ver. 3-5. They that cry down moral honesty, cry down that which is a great part of religion, my duty towards God, and my duty towards man. What care I to see a man run after a sermon, if he cozens and cheats as soon as he comes home? On the other side, morality must not be without religion, for if so, it may change as I see convenience. Religion must govern it. He that has not religion to govern his morality, is not a dram better than my mastiff dog; so long as you stroke him, and please him, and do not pinch him, he will play with you as finely as may be, he is a very good moral mastiff; but if you hurt him, he will fly in your face, and tear out your throat. John Seldon, 1584-1654.
Ver. 3. The evils of detraction. It affects three persons here mentioned: the backbiter, the suffering neighbour, and the taker up of the reproach.
Ver. 3. Nor taketh up a reproach. The sin of being too ready to believe ill reports. Common, cruel, foolish, injurious, wicked.
Psalms 15:4*
Ver. 3-5. See Psalms on "Ps 15:3" for further information.
Ver. 3-5. See Psalms on "Ps 15:3" for further information.
Charles H. Spurgeon's The Treasury of David (1869–1885) — public domain. Psalms only. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain He that backbiteth not with his tongue.
Psa_15:3
He that backbiteth not with his tongue.
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How may detraction be best prevented or cured
The abuses of the tongue are many, one whereof is the malignity of it. A man can scarce come into any company but his ears shall be filled with censures, detractions, reproaches; party against party, person against person. Doctrine: It is the duty, and must be the care, of every true Christian not to take up a reproach against his neighbour.
I. Explain the point.
1. Who is my neighbour? It is the peculiarity of the Gospel that every man is made my neighbour. Augustine says, Every man is a neighbour to any other man. Kimchi says, He is called my neighbour with whom I have any business.
2. What is a reproach?
(1) It is nothing else but an evil report, or an evil speech, unduly uttered concerning another. A report is evil in two ways--when it is evil in itself, a false report, and when it is evil to a mans neighbour, when your speech tends to your neighbours disparagement and defamation.
(2) When a man publisheth a neighbours secret infirmities or sins.
(3) When a man aggravates the real or supposed faults of his neighbour either in opinion or practice. Men often censure others for things indifferent and of small moment, as, for example, in their habits and garbs.
3. What is it to take up a reproach against a mans neighbour? It is a defective manner of expression, and therefore is diversely supplied, but especially and most reasonably two ways--when he takes it up into his mouth, and is the first raiser of the reproach, or the spreader and promoter of it; and when he takes it into his ear. This he may do when he quietly permits it, and gives no check to it; when he hears a reproach greedily, and with delight; and when he easily believes a reproach.
II. The proof of the doctrine. This shall consist in the representation of the sinfulness and injury of this practice of censuring, backbiting, and reproaching of others.
1. It is injurious to God. As an invasion of Gods prerogative: a manifest breach of His laws. It is against particular and express Scriptures; against the fundamental law of love and charity; against the royal law of Christ; against the great law of maintaining peace among men; against the great command laid upon all Christians, of excelling other men: it is a sin against the whole design and scope of the Scriptures; it is a great injury to God, because it is a confederacy with Gods greatest enemy, the devil.
2. It is an injury done to thyself. Hereby thou dost contract guilt, the worst of all evils. Hereby thou dost expel or weaken that excellent grace of love, that necessary and fundamental grace, that sweet and amiable grace. Hereby thou dost lay a foundation for thy own reproach.
3. It is a great injury to the person whom thou dost censure and reproach. Thou dost rob him of the best treasure he hath in the world. Hereby thou dost disenable him from getting good, both as to his outward and as to his inward man. Hereby thou dost hinder him from doing of good in the world.
4. It is a great injury to other men. Thou corruptest others by thy example. Thou art a disturber of human society. Thou art a great enemy to the Church of God.
Two questions--
1. May I not speak evil of another person when it is true? A man may be faulty in so doing. A man may speak evil of another person when necessity requires it. If you will speak evil of others, do it in the right method. In doubtful cases silence is the safest way.
2. If the man I speak against is an enemy of God and His people? Well to remember there is much sinful zeal in the world and in the Church. Con-eider how easy a mistake is in this case, and how dangerous. And you must not go out of your way to meet with Gods enemies.
Application:
1. Lamentation for the gross neglect of this duty, or the frequent commission of this sin.
2. Take heed that you be not found guilty of this sin.
3. Avoid the causes of this sin. Take heed of uncharitableness, in all its kinds and degrees. Take heed of loquacity and multitude of words. Take heed of pragmaticalness, which is when men are inquisitive and busy about other mens matters. Take heed of man-pleasing.
4. Learn the government of your tongues. (Matthew Poole, A. M.)
The good man no backbiter
He that backbiteth not with his tongue. That is an extraordinary expression! To bite with the tongue! But the word is even more expressive still. The backbiter is one who walks along the way for the purpose of spying out anothers defects. He then takes the products of his ugly search and presses them into his social intercourse, and endows his words with teeth that are coated with venom. The companion of the Lord paces the common way with quite a different purpose. He, too, spies about, but not with the eyes of the cynic, but with the eyes of a friend, and his words are a fountain of life. (J. H. Jowett, M. A.)
Venomous speech
We saw in the museum at Venice an instrument with which one of the old Italian tyrants was accustomed to shoot poisoned needles at the objects of his wanton malignity; we thought of gossips, backbiters, and secret slanderers, and wished that their mischievous devices might come to a speedy end. Their weapons of innuendo, shrug, and whisper appear to be as insignificant as needles, but the venom which they instill is deadly to many a reputation. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Slander avoided
1. Slander. All reproachful, opprobrious, and vile speech of or to our brethren is condemned; and that speech which, uttered in their absence, tendeth to their disgrace, discredit, or defamation. This evil is against the law of charity. Satan is the author of slander. See his words to Eve. St. James, speaking of slander, said the tongue was full of deadly poison. This sin is in sundry ways committed. Diogenes, being asked, what beast bit sorest, answered, Among wild beasts, the slanderer; but among tame beasts, the flatterer.
(1) When anything is falsely said of us, and we are charged with matters that are untrue.
(2) When men, by vehemency of words, aggravate and amplify the infirmities and light offences of men.
(3) When men blaze abroad the secret sins and infirmities of their brethren.
(4) When we deprave the good deeds and well doing of men.
(5) When, by our manner of speaking, we leave a surmise and suspicion in the hearts of the hearers.
(6) When we report truly the faults of men, yet not for love to the truth, but for envy to the persons. The chief causes of slandering seem to be these: Love of yourselves. Malice towards others. Desire of revenge. Hope of commodity. Study to please.
2. Injury. Men do injury and evil unto other men chiefly in four ways: in body, in goods, in rights and privileges, in name and estimation.
3. Receiving and believing false reports against brethren. Men should not be too light of belief. They are often even pleased with false reports.
4. Flattering the wicked. To hate the wicked and favour the just is a point of equity.
5. Breaking promises. This is usual in the wicked. (R. Turnbull.)
The backbiter
The backbiter is so called because, like the dog, he steals behind those in whom he wishes to flesh his teeth, deals in innuendoes, insinuations, evil surmisings, significant shrugs and looks, words meaning one thing in their literal sense and altogether another thing from the tone in which they are uttered, and so destroys a good name that no open assault could have affected. In this way the weak often overwhelm the strong; the vilest the most pure. The blow from behind and in the dark accomplishes its work of ruin before danger is even suspected. The truly good man, however, will assail no mans good name. If he cannot speak good of another he will say nothing. He thinks, and justly too, that he has no more right to injure anothers character, than he has to injure his health; to destroy anothers good name, than he has to destroy his life. If he discover a neighbours faults he does not noise them abroad, but tries to conceal them; and so, if he discovers his neighbours necessities, he does what he can to relieve them. Moreover, be taketh not up a reproach against his neighbour; that is, either he will not originate a reproach, or he will not listen to one. The willing listener is as bad as the tale bearer. If there were none to listen to the tale of scandal, there would be none to start it, and none to repeat it; the slanderous ear is as detestable as the slanderous tongue. (David Caldwell, A. M.)
Nor doeth evil to his neighbour.--
The good man no evil-doer
Nor doeth evil to his neighbour. I think we are still in the region of speech, and the Psalmist is still describing the influence of destructive conversation. To do evil in ones speech is to spoil ones neighbour; to break him to pieces. We have preserved the equivalent of the Psalmists phrase down to our own time. We still speak of picking a person to pieces. This is precisely the significance of the original word. There is a conversation which mercilessly engages in the exercise of spoliation; breaking up the reputation of another, and leaving it like the bones of some poor bird which has been picked to pieces by a destructive hawk. The speech of the companion of the Lord is quite otherwise. It ever seeks to construct and strengthen. Let no speech proceed out of your mouth but what is edifying. (J. H. Jowett, M. A.)
Detraction
From the day that Adam fell, thorns and thistles, with other noxious plants, have sprung up to vex and molest the sinner. As travellers wending their way through some dismal swamp, let us pause a moment on the way and pull up one of these weeds and examine it for our instruction. We may have it in our own garden plot; who knows? The weed we speak of is--Detraction.
I. It is owe of a class of sins. There are many of them, such as slander, calumny, defamation, revilings, aspersions, vilifications, and libel. All these are worse in some respects than detraction; they are coarser, uglier, bigger weeds. Calumny involves deliberate false statement. The defamer publishes his unfriendly message to the world. The libeler writes down and prints, and so puts before the eyes of a thousand readers in lasting form, the expressions of his malignity. And they who revile and asperse give us the idea of common scolds and scatterers of mud and offal, and show meanly themselves for the very manner of their work. But the act of the detractor is different from all these. It needs not lies nor aught which is essential to the others.
II. What, then, is it? It is a taking something away, a kind of petty minute robbery. It consists in depreciating and disparaging others, It is made up of slurs and innuendoes, of hints and gestures; and is often clad in graceful and witty garb. But it is very villainous. For with all our weakness and faults there is some good in everybody which is very precious to its possessor. Now the Lord sees this, however little it be, and makes the most of it. But detraction makes the least of it it can.
III. The causes of this sin.
1. Personal interest. People think there is something to be gained by it.
2. Envy. They cannot endure the prosperity or happiness of others. What evil it works in all public affairs. It is the crying scandal of our day. And in business, men use it to supplant their rivals and to advance themselves. The envious detractor is moved thereto by his bad temper and also by the pleasure, which he ought to be ashamed of,--the pleasure which people take in hearing of the misfortunes of others. Who is not conscious of this pleasure, vile as it is? But
3. Vanity is the chief motive of detraction. Reputation for wit is gained in such easy way by it, and a vain, weak person cannot resist the temptation. Nobody would listen to him on any other subject, but let him open his lips with some wretched gossip or scandal, and all listen. What punishment is too severe for this? It is the pest of society; but as for reform, it is all but impossible. Habit, and rivalry, and lack of high aim maintain it. But we have need greatly to fear if we be guilty of it. (Morgan Dix.)
Nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour.
Evil speaking not to be listened to
Nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour. Then we are not only forbidden to speak evil, we are forbidden to listen to it. We are not only forbidden to cast a slander, we are forbidden to take it up when another has hurled it. To repeat a thing is to incur guilt quite as much as if we originated it. I think that one of the great needs of our day is the grace of sanctified hearing. How much the Master made of the responsibility of possessing ears! He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. Take heed how ye hear. There is a discriminating way of listening. There is a listening which encourages the speaker of slander, and there is a closing of the ears which reduces the slanderer to silence. There would be much less evil speaking if there was much less evil listening. The evil speaker yearns for the reward of attention and applause. If these are withheld he will soon tire of his nefarious trade. The companion of the Lord listens for commendations, eulogies, and repeats them to others. He likes to hear a good thing of somebody, and he sings it again into the ears of somebody else. (J. H. Jowett, M. A.)
The law of the lip
I. The nature of slander.
1. The origination of an evil report concerning our neighbour.
2. The circulation of an evil report invented by others.
3. The listening to such a report. Giving it the sanction of our ear.
II. The evil of slander. What mighty unhappiness it causeth.
1. It demoralises the slanderer.
2. It demoralises the person to whom the slander is related.
3. It wrongs the party slandered.
III. The cure for slander. It is a most difficult thing to rule the tongue, and refrain from evil-speaking. What is the grand cure for all sins of the lip? He speaketh the truth in his heart. The heart must be changed, enlightened, exalted. Out of a pure fountain flows a pure stream. (W. L. Watkinson.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 He does not slander with his tongue
He does not slander with his tongue
Here "tongue" represents what a person says. The word "he" refers to the "righeous person" (Psalms 15:02). AT: "He does not slander people with his speech" or "He does not say evil things about innocent people" (See: Metonymy)
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harm
hurt
translationWords
slander
tongue
neighbor
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.