3 We put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us. We can control their whole bodies.
4 It is the same with ships. A ship is very big, and it is pushed by strong winds. But a very small rudder controls that big ship. The man who controls the rudder decides where the ship will go. The ship goes where the man wants.
5 It is the same with the tongue. It is a small part of the body, but it brags about doing great things.A big forest fire can be started with only a little flame.
6 And the tongue is like a fire. It is a whole world of evil among the parts of our bodies. The tongue spreads its evil through the whole body. It starts a fire that influences all of life. The tongue gets this fire from hell.
7 People can tame every kind of wild animal, bird, reptile, and fish, and they have tamed them.
8 But no one can tame the tongue. It is wild and evil. It is full of poison that can kill.
9 We use our tongues to praise our Lord and Father, but then we curse people. And God made them like himself.