“Whoever secretly slanders his neighbor, him I will silence.” – Psalm 101:5

I once had an unusual experience at work.

A colleague went to the CEO’s office and said some nasty things about me.

After listening to everything, the boss called me up.

When I got there, the boss asked my accuser to repeat everything in my presence!

My accuser was not only shocked but also speechless.

Then the boss said something I will never forget; “Never say anything about someone in secret if you can’t say it his/her presence.”

We have all been victims of slander, gossip, backbiting, defamation, badmouthing, backstabbing, etc, haven’t we?

Numerous relationships, careers, organisations and companies have been ruined by that menace.

To ‘slander’ is to make false and damaging statements about someone with the intention of harming their reputation.

As someone said, “Slander is like a bell: once rung, it’s impossible to un-ring.”

It was John Heywood who famously said; “Slander is worse than cannibalism – at least with cannibals, the victim dies only once.”

As a political and community leader responsible for many people at the highest level, David understood this all too well.

“Whoever secretly slanders his neighbor, him I will silence,” he declared in our meditation verse today.

In the Greek, the word for ‘slander’ is diabole and it is from this word that we derive the English word ‘devil.’

In other words, a person who engages in slander is an agent of the devil.

God warned the Children of Israel against “spreading false rumors.” (see Exodus 23:1)

In Psalm 15:1-4, David wondered what kind of person would “abide in God’s tabernacle and dwell in His holy hill.”

Then he gave the answer: “Those who do not slander others. They do no wrong to their friends nor spread rumors about their neighbors.”

As the Bible suggests, the best way to deal with slander is to “silence” its source!

In the New Testament, slander is identified as one of the disqualifications for church leadership.  

For example, in 1Timothy 3:9-11, the apostle Paul states that the wife of an aspiring deacon must not be a slanderer, of course for obvious reasons.

Slander is harmful and divisive, which is why the Bible admonishes against such behavior.

It betrays trust, which when broken, is extremely difficult to repair – whether in personal relationships, workplaces, or communities.

Slander fosters an environment of toxicity and negativity – leading to the creation of cliques, factions, camps and discord.

It can ruin the victim’s social standing or career, sometimes permanently, without giving them a fair chance to defend themselves.

When false or malicious information is spread about individuals, relationships are damaged, and people become suspicious of one another.

When slander is allowed to thrive at a workplace or home, it distracts the focus from the positive aspects and instead creates an environment of conflict and negative energy.

Ask any person whose spouse is a habitual gossiper/slanderer who tells everything in the home to outsiders.

When slander targets leaders, it can severely undermine their authority and their ability to lead effectively.

False accusations or malicious gossip about a pastor or leadership team can cause a loss of respect and confidence, potentially leading to a breakdown in leadership and causing long-term damage.

Potentially, this could force leaders to get discouraged, quit or even go back to the world.

Sadly, there are some leaders who not only tolerate slander but also solicit and reward it.

However, as the Spanish proverb says; “whoever slanders another to you will certainly slander you to another!”

So as the Bible suggests, the best way to deal with slander is to “silence” its source!