²⁸A froward man soweth strife: and a whisperer separateth chief friends.

⁹He that covereth a transgression seeketh love; but he that repeateth a matter separateth very friends.

⁸The words of a talebearer are as wounds, and they go down into the innermost parts of the belly.

²²The words of a talebearer are as wounds, and they go down into the innermost parts of the belly.

²⁰Where no wood is, there the fire goeth out: so where there is no talebearer, the strife ceaseth.

¹⁹A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.

¹³For I have heard the slander of many: fear was on every side: while they took counsel together against me, they devised to take away my life.

⁹In thee are men that carry tales to shed blood: and in thee they eat upon the mountains: in the midst of thee they commit lewdness.

²¹Thou shalt be hid from the scourge of the tongue: neither shalt thou be afraid of destruction when it cometh.

³They have sharpened their tongues like a serpent; adders’ poison is under their lips. Selah.

¹¹Surely the serpent will bite without enchantment; and a babbler is no better.

¹³The beginning of the words of his mouth is foolishness: and the end of his talk is mischievous madness.

³⁶But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.

¹⁶If a false witness rise up against any man to testify against him that which is wrong;

¹⁷Then both the men, between whom the controversy is, shall stand before the LORD, before the priests and the judges, which shall be in those days;

¹⁸And the judges shall make diligent inquisition: and, behold, if the witness be a false witness, and hath testified falsely against his brother;

¹Thou shalt not raise a false report: put not thine hand with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness.

¹³If any man take a wife, and go in unto her, and hate her,

¹⁴And give occasions of speech against her, and bring up an evil name upon her, and say, I took this woman, and when I came to her, I found her not a maid:

¹⁵Then shall the father of the damsel, and her mother, take and bring forth the tokens of the damsel’s virginity unto the elders of the city in the gate:

⁶And if he come to see me, he speaketh vanity: his heart gathereth iniquity to itself; when he goeth abroad, he telleth it.

⁷All that hate me whisper together against me: against me do they devise my hurt.

⁸An evil disease, say they, cleaveth fast unto him: and now that he lieth he shall rise up no more.

⁵Whoso privily slandereth his neighbour, him will I cut off: him that hath an high look and a proud heart will not I suffer.

²⁸They are all grievous revolters, walking with slanders: they are brass and iron; they are all corrupters.

⁴Take ye heed every one of his neighbour, and trust ye not in any brother: for every brother will utterly supplant, and every neighbour will walk with slanders.

²⁹Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,

³⁰Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,

¹⁰Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.

²⁰For I fear, lest, when I come, I shall not find you such as I would, and that I shall be found unto you such as ye would not: lest there be debates, envyings, wraths, strifes, backbitings, whisperings, swellings, tumults:

¹¹Speak not evil one of another, brethren. He that speaketh evil of his brother, and judgeth his brother, speaketh evil of the law, and judgeth the law: but if thou judge the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge.

¹Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings,

¹⁰But chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise government. Presumptuous are they, selfwilled, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities.

¹⁴That she called unto the men of her house, and spake unto them, saying, See, he hath brought in an Hebrew unto us to mock us; he came in unto me to lie with me, and I cried with a loud voice:

¹⁵And it came to pass, when he heard that I lifted up my voice and cried, that he left his garment with me, and fled, and got him out.

¹⁶And she laid up his garment by her, until his lord came home.

³⁶And the men, which Moses sent to search the land, who returned, and made all the congregation to murmur against him, by bringing up a slander upon the land,

³And the king said, And where is thy master’s son? And Ziba said unto the king, Behold, he abideth at Jerusalem: for he said, To day shall the house of Israel restore me the kingdom of my father.