Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.
What does Ephesians 4:29 mean?
Filthy words proceed from corruption in the speaker, and they corrupt the minds and manners of those who hear them: Christians should beware of all such discourse.
Key themes
Read with
Keep this verse inside Ephesians 4:28-30 and alongside a few nearby related passages.
Commentary on Ephesians 4:29
Let no corrupt communication proceed - see the notes on 1 Corinthians 15:33 . The word rendered "corrupt" (σαπρος sapros) means bad, decayed, rotten, and is applied to putrid vegetable or animal substances. Then it is applied to a tree that is of a useless character, that produces no good fruit; Matthew 7:17 . Then it is used in a moral sense, as our word "corrupt" is, to denote that which is depraved, evil. contaminating, and may denote here anything that is obscene, offensive, or that tends to corrupt others. The importance of this admonition will be appreciated when it is remembered: (1) that such obscene and filthy conversation prevailed everywhere, and does still among the pagan.
Key words
- for edification
-
for edification.
- corrupt
-
Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth,.
- communication
-
Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth,.
Context in Ephesians 4
Show chapter context
Ephesians 4 belongs to the middle movement of the book, especially the section often described as the church’s calling and gifts. Ephesians presents the church as Christ’s body and temple, chosen in grace, united across dividing walls, and called to mature holy life. Read this chapter with the wider themes of union with Christ, church, and grace in view so the individual verses keep their proper weight.
Related topics
Explore by topic
Passages on the nature of truth, honesty, deception, the word of God as truth, and Jesus' claim to be the truth.
Key passages on God's unmerited favour, the grace of Christ, salvation by grace through faith, and how grace transforms the way believers live.