3Now if we put the bits into the horses’ mouths so that they will obey us, we direct their entire body as well. 4Look at the ships also, though they are so great and are driven by strong winds, are still directed by a very small rudder wherever the inclination of the pilot desires. 5So also the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it boasts of great things.
Two illustrations, one application, enormous implications. Words we speak may seem like small things, but they can create significant damage. The relatively small metal piece rests inside a horse’s mouth, across the soft tissue, between the incisor teeth and the molars, where there are no teeth. Pressure applied by the rider through the reins connected to either side of the bit controls the horse, working together with the other movements of the rider. Controlling the horse’s mouth in this way controls the head and the rest of the body.
Anyone who has ever looked at the underside of a boat has noticed how strikingly small the rudder seems relative to the size of the boat. According to Principles of Yacht Design (by Larsson and Eliasson), the “rudder area is typically around 1-2% of sail area” or “about 5% of the underwater hull profile.” James’ point is well made: the rudder is small, but by controlling it, the sailor (here called the “pilot”) governs the boat’s direction.
Both are powerful visuals for directing our attention to the tongue in the human body. James uses the word “tongue” to represent the words a person speaks, his verbal communication. The tongue is the instrument by which a person communicates. The metaphor slips in as a kind of illustration, where the uncontrolled tongue is like a spark or small ember that can start an enormous forest fire. One of the largest forest fires ever was the Black Dragon Fire in China that burned 18 million acres (28,000 sq. mi.), ignited by a small gas spill from a bush cutter operated by an inexperienced laborer (Wikipedia).
Why such emphasis on these illustrations? James has just told us, “For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all” (James 2:10). The “one point” that he focuses on is the boastful tongue. This is the spark. Boasting is designed to make the boaster seem bigger than he is, but it is like playing with fire, when a small flame can so effortlessly be fanned into a destructive firestorm. It is easy to minimize one’s words as small things, not to be compared with what seem to be bigger sins. In fact, we can overlook that our words can, indeed, be sinful, and as such, make us lawbreakers. Yes, I am just as much a sinner when I use my words as a weapon to hurt people as the person who uses a gun or knife to hurt people. Both of us are sinners who are breaking the law.
Lord, I confess the times my words have caused a firestorm in others.
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