Charles Spurgeon Commentary Matthew 12:36-37

"And I say unto you, that every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned." — Matthew 12:36-37 (ASV)

They might think that they had done no great wrong when they scattered their black phrases among the people. They had only given their opinion with more or less levity; at worst, they had only spoken idle words. Thus they would make light of what they had done, now that the Lord had most completely crushed them.

But our Lord drives them out of this retreat. He deals strictly with such gross offenders. Words are to be accounted for at the last great day. Words prove people just or worthy of condemnation. Their very works may be judged by their words.

There is something very heart-revealing about human language, and especially about those words which spring from deep-seated passion. When we are convicted of unjust speech, we may try to shield ourselves with the idea that our bark was worse than our bite, and that we merely said such-and-such and hardly meant it to be taken so seriously; but the plea will not help us.

We must be careful what we say about godly people, and especially about their Lord, for libelous words will live and will be swift witnesses against us in the day of judgment, when we will find that they were all recorded in the book of God.

Surely this business of charging the Lord Jesus with being in league with Satan was never likely to be heard of again while He lived! He had silenced that form of slander once and for all, as far as the Pharisees were concerned.

Dear Master, help me to bridle my tongue that I may not be found guilty of idle words and teach me when to speak that I may keep equally clear of idle silence.