Psalms 34:13 (LSB)

Passage

Guard your tongue from evil And your lips from speaking deceit.

Nearby Context

Psalms 34:11 Come, you children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of Yahweh.

Psalms 34:12 Who is the man who delights in life And loves many days that he may see good?

Psalms 34:13 Guard your tongue from evil And your lips from speaking deceit.

Psalms 34:14 Depart from evil and do good; Seek peace and pursue it.

Psalms 34:15 The eyes of Yahweh are toward the righteous And His ears are open to their cry for help.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "guard", "tongue", "evil", "lips", "speaking", and "deceit". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "guard" and "tongue", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 12's "Who is the man who delights in..." into verse 14's "Depart from evil and do good Seek...", so "guard" and "tongue" belong inside that flow. In Psalms context, the local focus is worship, trust, the LORD's kingship, and covenant mercy.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "guard" and "tongue" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.