If you bite and chew your food enough times it will break down into small pieces and disappear into your stomach. In our passage, the apostle Paul informs us that our relationships with others bear the same truth. If we bite and devour one another, we will eventually consume each other. Many believers have quit attending the house of God and given up on serving the Lord because Christians have allowed their words to devour and consume. Just as food can only withstand so many bites before it is fully consumed, other believers can only take so much backbiting before weakened beyond their willingness to withstand. As the people of God, we are responsible for strengthening each other and surely will answer to God for any backbiting.
The words that so flippantly slip from our tongues are often used by the Devil as weapons to wound others. When we think of biting something, we think of using our teeth; yet backbiting employs the tongue. Backbiting is the act of saying something disparaging about someone without regard to the harm caused to that person. Today’s passage demonstrates that the Lord considers backbiting a detestable act; so much so, that David said the backbiter would not abide in the Lord’s tabernacle. According to James chapter 3, the tongue kindles a great fire (James 3:5) and is a world of iniquity (James 3:6). The Bible proves that the quaint phrase used as a child, “sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me” is both untrue and unscriptural. Instead, the tongue is “full of deadly poison” (James 3:8). Backbiting wounds its victims – wounds which sometimes fester for years under the surface!
The Lord desired a special relationship with the nation of Israel choosing to bless them both spiritually and physically above all other nations. One such blessing involved bringing them safely into the land of Canaan. However, many of these blessings were dependent upon Israel maintaining the right type of relationship with the Lord. He, therefore, issued several commandments for the Israelites to carefully keep (i.e., Deuteronomy chapter 11). The Lord desired for Israel to “hearken diligently” (Deuteronomy 11:13) and “diligently keep” (Deuteronomy 11:22) these commandments. He wanted His people to carefully listen when He spoke, giving God their full attention (listening to every word). He also wanted them to attentively obey what they heard. He always desired for His people to listen to and obey Him. God speaks today through the Bible. He still wants men to diligently hear and obey.
