"The tongue of the righteous is pure silver; the heart of the wicked is of little value." Proverbs 10:20 (CSB)
What an interesting comparison/contrast - the tongue and the heart. If we were to ascribe a worth to each of these, all things being equal, we would say the heart is more valuable than the tongue. For example, would you rather have the one you adored love you in word only or with all their heart? See? We instinctively realize that it is the heart that controls the tongue. We also are keenly aware that talk can be cheap in that it serves as a veil that hides the true intent of the heart. The heart is the seat of emotions. The throne of the man/woman as a whole. The heart is the core of the individual. If you have their heart you have them. That's why we have such expressions as, "I love you with all of my heart." or "You broke my heart."
But this proverb has one differing factor in the comparison. The two parts being compared and contrasted are not from the same individual. One is righteous and the other wicked. This not only makes the disparity of the ascribed value for each greater, but turns it on its head. Upon the initial reading of this proverb we see that the tongue is of more worth than the heart, simply because of who each belongs to. But as we mull over this proverb, we can see there's more than the simple value disparity seen at first glance. The more we look, the more the scale starts tipping.
The Tongue of The Righteous:
Is Silver: The tongue of the righteous is pure silver. Not that it has a worth of pure silver, but rather IS pure silver. What's the difference? If I were to purchase silver from you, I give you it's current value, the money we traded would depreciate due to inflation. If you gave me silver for a vehicle, the vehicle would be worth substantially less within 6 months than the silver you traded for it. Silver has inherent value and cannot be depreciated. There is inherent value in the tongue of the righteous, for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. (Luke 6:45) The tongue is valuable because it is controlled by the heart.
Just The Tongue: And this is the next point of note, the tongue of the righteous is of greater value than the heart of the wicked. How much more the distance between the two had they each been equal objects! It's almost as if Solomon felt a bit sorry for the wicked man in this instance so instead of running up the score, chose a lesser object to shorten the score lead. But just as when a skilled team does that, it makes the losing side look even more inept, so it is with this instance. The power of life and death are in the tongue (Proverbs 18:21) and the mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life (Proverbs 10:11). Herein lies its value, it gives life. It can build up, speak truth, heal wounded hearts, talk people off ledges, but most of all - preach the gospel of peace. The power of life and death are in the tongue, and the righteous uses their tongue to proclaim life - Jesus Christ.
The Heart of The Wicked:
Little Value: This is mercifully short and nondescript. The worth placed upon the heart of the wicked is "little value". The seat of all that a being is, if that being be wicked, is of little value. But we should keep this in perspective, so in order to do so let's understand the rating scale. The value provided by a wicked heart, if we're honest, is less than little value, it's negative value. Just a cursory look at the chapter this particular proverb is nested in we can see the wicked hides violence [in order to preserve it, not avoid it] (v.11), runs headlong to self-destruction (v.15), brings punishment on him/herself (v.16), plunges to their own senseless death (v.21), their life is cut short (v. 27), they don't get what they hope for (v. 28), their mouth is filled with perversities (v.32). Not a pretty picture is painted here. The wicked provide negative value, they are in debt to society as all the examples listed here are the value they bring to themselves and/or fellow humanity. But the Scripture doesn't say the heart of the wicked is worthless. It says of little value. It is still ascribed value, however it should be abundantly clear that value is not inherent in itself. There could be more scripture stacked against the negative-value of the evil heart, but why kick a dead horse?
The "little value" should give us hope because, through the redeeming power of God, the very wicked heart that is a self-consuming parasite even deceiving its own self - the heart is deceitful above all things - is made righteous. Each and every one of those who have a tongue of pure silver in the first part of this verse all were originally born into the last part of this verse. That's where they began, but that's not where they remained. They were pulled past the semicolon. With the heart that is changed by God's grace, using the tongue that by grace has been infused with value far beyond the entire being of their original state, and being made co-laborers with Christ (1 Corinthians 3:9) they are calling out. With their tongue they proclaim life, and God is graciously making His appeal through them (2 Corinthians 5:20) for others to rest in the completed, atoning work of Jesus.
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