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7 Bible Verses About Verbal Abuse Or Violence

7 Bible Verses About Verbal Abuse Or Violence

Last updated on: November 25, 2015 at 5:13 pm by Jack Wellman

7 Bible Verses About Verbal Abuse Or Violence 2015-11-25T17:13:33-06:00 Jack Wellman

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Here are seven Bible verses about verbal abuse or violence.

Genesis 9:6 “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image.”

Even before the Ten Commandments, there was a prohibition against murder. God taught that capital punishment was the best deterrent to murder. If someone were to realize that the consequences of cold blooded, premeditated murder were death, they might think twice or more about committing such an atrocity or even planning one. Why is this sin so egregious to God? It’s because mankind is made in the image of God (Gen 1:27; 9:6) and since only the Lord gives, only the Lord can take away (Job 1:21). Life is sacred. It must be protected as all costs.

Exodus 20:13 “You shall not murder.”

There is a difference between killing and murder. When the British were attack on their own land, they fought back against the Nazi’s. They had every right to defend themselves and they did. That was not murder…that was killing. They were killing to preserve the life of their nation’s citizens. The Nazi’s were murdering because they had no right to bomb England and invade other sovereign nations. Because the Nazi’s were the aggressors, they were the murderers. That is what the command means; to not murder. It does not say “You shall not kill.”

Proverbs 18:21 “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits.”

Words can certainly hurt. Some of the deepest wounds I ever got were from words. We can wound people deeply with our words and any time there is unwarranted verbal abuse, that is the same thing as doing violence to that person. Words can bring such misery and sorrow that people can bully someone into committing suicide so there really is the power of death and life in the tongue. Those who produce godly fruits will love it and those who don’t, will hate it. Words have meaning more than we may realize. They can be the difference between life and death.

Proverbs 3:31 “Do not envy a man of violence and do not choose any of his ways.”

You tend to become who you spend the most time with and if that’s a person of violence, prepare to suffer the consequences. There’s no reason to envy someone like that…instead we should pity them because all murderers and thieves and other lawbreakers will be cast into the lake of fire (Rev 21:8) unless they repent and trust in Christ. You do not want to choose that path in life because as Jesus once said, “For all who take the sword will perish by the sword” (Matt 26:52).

James 3:6 “And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell.”

I think we’d have a better chance of lassoing the moon than trying to tame the tongue. It is like a spark that can set off an entire forest fire. The tongue can be used for gossip and can separate even the best of friends (Prov 16:28). The tongue can easily set “the entire course of life” on fire and into disastrous results.

Matthew 26:52 “Then Jesus said to him, “Put your sword back into its place. For all who take the sword will perish by the sword.”

When Jesus said told Peter to put back his sword He said “all who take the sword will perish by the sword.” By saying this, He was showing that violence was not the answer. Beside, didn’t they know that Jesus was God and so He asked them, “Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me more than twelve legions of angels” (Matt 25:53)? Peter’s one sword would be useless anyway because it was for this very purpose that Jesus came; to give His life as a ransom for many (Matt 20:28).

Isaiah 60:18 “Violence shall no more be heard in your land, devastation or destruction within your borders; you shall call your walls Salvation, and your gates Praise.”

Someday the law found in Exodus 21:12 which says “Whoever strikes a man so that he dies shall be put to death” may not be needed anymore. That is the time of the kingdom where Isaiah writes that violence will be unheard of anymore. It will be a distant, historical past. The devastation of all the land caused by all the violence would end and salvation will finally come that day for many and they shall sing “Praise” to God. That will not finally come until the Lord Himself descends to execute final justice (Rev 20:12-15).

Conclusion

Psalm 11:5 “The Lord tests the righteous, but his soul hates the wicked and the one who loves violence” so even though God will test us, we should never take revenge into our own hands as God says “Vengeance is mine; I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge his people” (Heb 10:30) and “Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all” (Rom 12:17). Romans 12:19-21 says “Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

Article by Jack Wellman

Jack Wellman is Pastor of the Mulvane Brethren Church in Mulvane Kansas. Jack is also the Senior Writer at What Christians Want To Know whose mission is to equip, encourage, and energize Christians and to address questions about the believer’s daily walk with God and the Bible. You can follow Jack on Google Plus or check out his book Teaching Children the Gospel available on Amazon.

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