Confessions from a reviler
I read this the other day:
Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. (1 Cor 6:9-10)
I think I've always skimmed over the word ‘reviler’ because I didn't know what it meant. I assumed it meant something similar to ‘slanderer’ (since the NIV uses ‘slanderer’ where the ESV has ‘reviler’). It occurred to me that perhaps I should find out what a reviler is, just in case I was one. So I went and looked it up in the Macquarie Dictionary:
revile: assail with contemptuous or opprobrious language; to address, or speak of, abusively.
And, while I was at it:
slander: a malicious, false, and defamatory statement or report.
Apart from having to skim over ‘opprobrious’ because I didn't know what it meant, I found this little dictionary exercise to be enlightening and challenging. You might even call it ‘defining’ (sorry).
For example, do you ever find yourself thinking along these lines: Person X has done something about which I am frustrated or annoyed or irritated or angry or upset. I'm only human, so for my own wellbeing I need to vent. But if what I am saying about person X is true, then it isn't slander. It isn't false. So it's ok, even if it's bad.
But in my venting, I'm more than likely speaking abusively, and so being a ‘reviler’.
Or try this on for size: Person X has done something about which I am frustrated or annoyed or irritated or angry or upset. Of course, I'm only human so for my own wellbeing I just need to vent. But as long as I don't name person X, I can say what I like about them because no-one knows who I'm talking about. So technically it's not slandering or reviling them.
It's a bit pharisaic, isn't it? It doesn't matter if no-one else knows who I am talking about. God knows. And I know.
It reminds me of Matthew 15:18-20:
But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person.
So, with God's help, no more of those thinly-veiled (or not-so-thinly-veiled) whinges, now that the dictionary has helped to reveal my reviling.