Proverbs 11

Whoever belittles his neighbor lacks sense, but a man of understanding remains silent.

Proverbs 11:12 ESV

First, let’s remember that God is not only referring to a physical house neighbor when He speaks of ‘neighbor’ in His word. Jesus expanded the concept of neighbor being not just fellow Israelites but to include anyone with whom we have close contact. With that in mind… How hard it is to bite our tongues sometimes! Conflicts arise and we must proactively and productively address them. However, when we cross the line into belittling someone, we have just shown that we lack sense. We really can’t split hairs about this. It is one thing to say, “I am hurt by your harsh tone and your disrespectful behavior” (be more specific if you can when speaking about specific behavior), but it is completely another to say, “You are a harsh, disrespectful man who is always making trouble” or something worse yet, “Don’t be such an idiot!” If we do not hold our insults and think before we speak, we lack sense. I, for one, want people to say of me, “She was kind, she was Godly, and she was wise.” None of those will be truthfully said if I belittle those God has put in my path.