A good person says good things that come from the good stored up in their heart, but a bad person says bad things that come from the evil stored up in their heart, because a person’s mouth says whatever’s in their heart.
Don’t let any foul language come out of your mouths. Say only what will help build others up and meet their needs. Then what you say will help those who are listening.
Here’s how you can tell the difference between God’s children and the devil’s children. Anyone who doesn’t do what is right isn’t God’s child, and anyone who doesn’t love their brother or sister isn’t God’s child either.
You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s wishes. From the beginning, the devil has been a murderer. He has never obeyed the truth because there’s no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, because he is a liar and the father of lies.
But when he saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming to be baptized, John said to them, “You little snakes! Who warned you to try to escape the punishment that’s coming?
John said to the crowds who were coming to him to be baptized, “You’re like a nest of poisonous snakes! Who warned you to escape from God’s coming anger?