Jesus said that on the day of judgment we will give account for every careless word we speak, and James adds a verdict of his own: no human being can tame the tongue. In this teaching from James 3:1-12, we trace our words back to their source in the heart, discover why cursing a person made in God’s likeness is an assault on God Himself, and learn how gossip recruits two sinners at a time, the mouth that speaks it and the ear that receives it. But the teaching does not end in despair, because there was one Man with no deceit in His mouth, and He stood silent before false witnesses to answer for the words of His people. If your tongue has ever run ahead of you, or your ears have welcomed what they should have refused, this message is for you.