by Jonnie Hutchison<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/dirty-gutter-300x225.jpg\")
Where I grew up in Missouri, a person whose language included various curse words would be called a “gutter mouth.” Cursing, at least in public, was frowned upon by most people back then. It was characteristic of the undesirable and the rebellious in society.<\/p>\n
Today it is much different. One cannot turn on the television, watch a movie, walk down the street, or go through the halls of our schools without hearing a constant barrage of curse words. Movie stars, politicians, those who play professional sports, and even very small children are heard cursing, swearing, and using the name of God in vain. It is one of the symptoms of a society that has turned away from God and the guidance of His Word.<\/p>\n
Does it matter what comes out of one’s mouth? Yes, it matters to God. Jesus said, “But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned<\/em>” (Matthew 12:36-37).<\/p>\n Cursing is no trivial matter. The words one uses to communicate with others are important and have a direct connection to one’s eternal destiny. It is inconsistent to praise God with one’s words and use that same mouth to utter curse words. As the inspired James put it, “Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be so<\/em>” (See James 3:5-12). Many people underestimate the power of the spoken word. God describes the tongue as “a world of iniquity<\/em>” and that it has the power to defile “the body and set on fire the course of nature<\/em>” (James 3:5-6).\u00a0The words one speaks can cause emotional harm, damage relationships, and tarnish reputations. Once one speaks a word, it can never be unspoken. The damage is often already done, even if one regrets what he has said and apologizes for it.<\/p>\n Using the name of God as a curse or an exclamation is so common in our day that most people think little of it. However, it is a much bigger deal than one may think. When God gave Israel His spiritual law it contained these words, “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain<\/em>” (Exodus 20:7). The Psalmist wrote that it is God’s enemies and those who hate Him who take His name in vain (Psalm 139:20-21).<\/p>\n God should always be held in reverence for “Holy and reverend is His name<\/em>” (Psalm 119:9). “Who shall not fear You and glorify Your Name. For You alone are holy…<\/em>” (Revelation 15:4). We glorify and exalt God when we keep our speech free from cursing. We demean God when we use His name in vain.<\/p>\n Please, don’t be a “gutter mouth.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by Jonnie Hutchison Where I grew up in Missouri, a person whose language included various curse words would be called a “gutter mouth.” Cursing, at least in public, was frowned upon by most people back then. It was characteristic of the undesirable and the rebellious in society. Today it is much different. One cannot turn…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27],"tags":[1858,492],"class_list":["post-90150","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-cursing","tag-profanity"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":3128,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/careful-what-you-say\/","url_meta":{"origin":90150,"position":0},"title":"Careful What You Say (Article)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 12, 2005","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Have you paid close attention to your speech recently? Many of us say things that should embarrass us if we truly understood what we said. The words that we chose to express ourselves are important. According to\u00a0Matthew 12:32-37, we will give an account to God for\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":44503,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/cussing-and-cursing\/","url_meta":{"origin":90150,"position":1},"title":"Cussing and Cursing","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 10, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"by Perry Hall \"Words are just words.\" A friend who was a new Christian had just fired off an \"F-bomb\" while we were playing golf. When I suggested such language should not be used, he got angry and said, \"Words are just words. I don't mean anything by them.\" Well,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":49956,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/i-think-you-misused-some-verses-in-careful-what-you-say\/","url_meta":{"origin":90150,"position":2},"title":"I think you misused some verses in “Careful What You Say”","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 14, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: This is something I think can be especially difficult among the churches of Christ just because of our tradition. There is a very popular way of reading the Bible in the churches of Christ that goes way back to our roots and the reasoning is that a belief or\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":55738,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/curses\/","url_meta":{"origin":90150,"position":3},"title":"Curses!","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 13, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"by Steve Klein Today we have experts and scholars on every subject imaginable - from global warming to cotton farming.\u00a0 Timothy Jay is an expert on cursing.\u00a0 He's made quite a study of it, written two books about it, and talks about it often to his students at the Massachusetts\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":47622,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/shelomiths-son\/","url_meta":{"origin":90150,"position":4},"title":"Shelomith’s Son","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 13, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Leviticus 24:10-23 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Shelomith had married a non-Israelite and it appears that her son took more after his father than his mother \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0He got into a fight with an Israelite. During the fight he cursed and blasphemed the name of God. For this he was jailed.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":47639,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/careful-what-you-say-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":90150,"position":5},"title":"Careful What You Say (Sermon)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 13, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Ephesians 5:1-8 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0There is a passage that should cause each of us to pause - Matthew 12:32-37 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0We will give an account to God for every idle word we speak! \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0What we say will either justify us or condemn us \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0C.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0We will not be\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/90150","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=90150"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/90150\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=90150"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=90150"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=90150"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}