James 3:2–12

²For we all stumble in many ways.^u If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is mature, able also to control the whole body.^{v 3}Now if we put bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us,^w we direct their whole bodies. ⁴And consider ships: Though very large and driven by fierce winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. ⁵So too, though the tongue is a small part of the body, it boasts great things.^x Consider how a small fire sets ablaze a large forest. ⁶And the tongue is a fire. The tongue, a world of unrighteousness, is placed^C among our members. It stains the whole body,^y sets the course of life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. ⁷Every kind of animal, bird, reptile, and fish is tamed and has been tamed by humankind, ⁸but no one can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.^{z 9}With the tongue we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in God’s likeness.^{aa 10}Blessing and cursing come out of the same mouth. My brothers and sisters, these things should not be this way. ¹¹Does a spring pour out sweet and bitter water from the same opening? ¹²Can a fig tree produce olives, my brothers and sisters, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a saltwater spring yield fresh water.