A Gossip

June 29

2 Kings 21-23

Psalm 76:7-12

Proverbs 16:28-29

Acts 24

A Gossip

“A perverse person stirs up conflict, and a gossip separates close friends.” 

Proverbs 16:28 NIV

We have all experienced the negative consequences of gossip.  It is one of those sins that seems less “bad” and is often overlooked because it isn’t perceived to be as serious as murder, stealing or adultery.  Afterall, it isn’t one of the Ten Commandments.  But there are numerous Bible verses that clearly define gossip as sin.  Gossip is sharing information about another person’s behavior or personal life.  It may be true, true but not the whole story or completely false.  The fact that the information is true does not mean that it isn’t gossip.  The important question is whether it is your information to share.  It may very well be true information, but none of your business.  It may also be something that you are involved in but you do not need to share the information with others.  Just because you are privy to information does not mean that it needs to be passed on to anyone else.  A gossip is someone who enjoys being “in the know” so they can tell others the latest news.  Sharing information makes them somehow feel important.  They may even share the news as a “prayer request” to make it seem like they are just concerned about the person when really they want an excuse to tell people something they should not be revealing. 

Gossip can be damaging to a person’s reputation, marriage, job, and family.  It betrays confidences and destroys relationships.  The tongue has tremendous power and we need to be careful how we use it.  As today’s verse explains, gossip can stir up conflict and cause division between friends.  Ephesians 4:29 gives us the standard of how believers should act regarding our speech, “Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for building up what is needed, so that it will give grace to those who hear.” LSB   When we engage in gossip, we are sinning against the person we are sharing the information about, but we are also sinning against the person we are sharing the information with.  We are including them in a situation where they have no business being involved.  We may be tempting them to then pass on the information to others causing them to sin.  Gossip can create an atmosphere of negativity and distrust in relationships.  No one trusts a gossip because they know they cannot keep confidences.  Gossip also damages the testimony of a believer because it does not portray a Christlike behavior or attitude.  If this is something you struggle with, ask God to make it clear to you before you do it.  Ask yourself if this is information that needs to be shared, if you are the one who needs to share it and if this person needs to hear it.  If the answer is no then it is best to keep your mouth shut.   Some other verses to examine related to gossip and controlling our tongues are Proverbs 11:13, Proverbs 20:19, Proverbs 26:20, I Timothy 5:13, Romans 1:29, and Psalm 15:2-3.