No, it is not words that determine our standing before God but the heart from which they flow. Words show whether a heart is good or evil (Matthew 12:34; see Luke 19:22, James 3:10–12). The decisive factor in justification is the disposition of the heart, which determines guilt or innocence, and one’s knowledge of God, which determines the degree of guilt or innocence. Jesus here speaks generally, without delving into the origin of such disposition. As in Matthew 25:26 and Luke 19:22, here in Matthew 12:37 Jesus stresses that what a person says will testify for or against him. Yet we know that Jesus also teaches that only in union with him can anyone bring forth truly good words (John 15:5), so we should never think that our words bring us salvation.
No, for it is not the words themselves that will determine our standing before God but that from which they flow. Words matter in judgment because they flow naturally from the heart, revealing that heart to be either good or evil (Matthew 12:34; see also Luke 19:22, James 3:10–12). The decisive factor in justification is therefore not mere speech, but the disposition of the heart, which determines guilt or innocence, as well as one’s knowledge of God, which determines the measure of that guilt or innocence.1
Jesus here speaks generally, without delving into the deeper origin of such disposition. Justification or condemnation is linked to the outward fruits of our internal disposition. As in Matthew 25:26 and Luke 19:22, here in Matthew 12:37 Jesus highlights that what a person speaks will testify for or against him. Yet this must also be understood in light of the fact Jesus elsewhere teaches that only in union with him can anyone bring forth truly good words (John 15:5). As such we should never imagine that our words are a meritorious cause of salvation.2
37 Car par tes paroles tu seras justifié, et par tes paroles tu seras condamné.