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James 3 · a question people ask

"we put bits into the horses’ mouths" (3:3), and "the ships also" (3:4). Why does the letter speak of horses and ships?

In the text

The letter says in its next words: "So the tongue is also a little member, and boasts great things." (3:5). With bits in the horses’ mouths, "we guide their whole body" (3:3); the ships, "so big", are "guided by a very small rudder" (3:4); and the tongue is "a little member" (3:5).

The verses

“Indeed, we put bits into the horses’ mouths so that they may obey us, and we guide their whole body. Behold, the ships also, though they are so big and are driven by fierce winds, are yet guided by a very small rudder, wherever the pilot desires. So the tongue is also a little member, and boasts great things. See how a small fire can spread to a large forest!”
James 3:3-5 · World English Bible

From Favor's study of James 3

James 3: Out of the same mouth

The tongue is "a little member" (3:5), set beside the bits in a horse’s mouth and a ship’s "very small rudder" (3:4). And bitter in "fresh and bitter water" (3:11) and in "bitter jealousy" (3:14) is one Greek word, found in the New Testament in these two verses only.

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Last reviewed October 8, 2026. Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain. Every answer cites the verses it rests on. What we believe · All Bible questions