“Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones” (Proverbs 16:24). These words of wisdom from Proverbs are exactly what we need in our Indigenous communities. Many of us have been wounded from the harsh words and actions of others in society, and also from those within our immediate families, tribes or clans.
When we experience harsh words from others, it hurts and often leads to other sins such as hatred or revenge. Following these natural instincts will only make things worse. We say things we don’t really mean. We do things we didn’t want to do, and then we are filled with guilt and shame. By the time we are done there is fighting and discord.
It is far better for us to embrace the words of Proverbs and make our words gracious, so they can be sweet to the soul of others and not bitter. We need to speak wisely so that it can bring healing rather than more hurt and pain.
When the writer of Proverbs said that gracious words would bring healing to the bones, he was referring to the hurt that we encounter in our lives, from words that are not gracious. When we look at another chapter in Proverbs this is what it says of honey that comes right from the honeycomb, “Eat honey, my son, for it is good; honey from the comb is sweet to your taste.
Know also that wisdom is like honey for you: If you find it, there is a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off” (Proverbs 24:13-14).
Let’s take a look at one more proverb that speaks of honey. “But Jonathan had not heard that his father had bound the people with the oath, so he reached out the end of the staff that was in his hand and dipped it into the honeycomb. He raised his hand to his mouth, and his eyes brightened” ( 1 Samuel 14:27).
Aside from the why or why not Jonathan should have been eating the honey, we see that honey is sweet to the taste and puts us in a better mood. Our words (being compared to honey) can also be sweet to our soul. Yet, there is still more. Just like honey gives hope for our bodies and refreshes us, gracious words also give us a hope and make us feel better. Gracious words refresh us and give us the strength to go on.
Proverbs 24 also says that wisdom is like honey. If you find it there is a future hope for you. When we look at healing to our bones in light of these three verses, we see that gracious words make us feel better, they refresh us, and they give us a future hope. This is how healing to lives (bones) takes place.
We are quick to attack those around us because of various reasons. Sometimes it is because of actual offenses, and sometimes it’s because of simple things that get on our nerves. Regardless of the reasons, we need to learn to speak peace and grace into each other’s lives. Harsh words only make things worse not better. We may be able to say that we got it off of our minds, but in the process we may have started something far worse than we could have imagined.
This is why I need to stay in God’s Word on a regular basis, so that I can get this wisdom that is spoken in the above passages. I can’t live this life on my own strength. I need Jesus in my life, and the power of the Holy Spirit to lead and guide me into all truth. My wife does things that get on my nerves, but I also do things that get on her nerves. It takes wisdom to know what to say and what not to say in order to keep our marriage together.
The same is true for all our relationships. We need wisdom to say the right thing and the gracious thing, instead of the first thing that comes into our minds. We as humans know instinctively how to hurt each other, blame each other, and use each other. Just as it’s instinctive for a mother bear to protect her young, it’s also instinct for us to know how to hurt each other. We need to fight the natural instinct of hurting each other and choose to help heal each other.
Let your words bring nourishment and refreshment to those around you. Let your words brighten the eyes of someone around you—just like the honeycomb brightened the eyes of Jonathan. Let your words bring healing to the bones of someone today. Think before you speak, pray before you speak, and if you read the Bible every day, this will become a little easier as you continue on this journey of life.
Parry Stelter is orginally from Alexander First Nation with his wife Angeline and their two daughters. They live in Edmonton, AB.
