How to Handle Gossip & Slander
Few sins spread faster—or wound deeper—than gossip and slander. They can fracture friendships, divide churches, and poison hearts under the guise of “concern” or “truth-telling.”
Every believer will encounter them: the whispered update about someone’s failure, the online “warning” that smears a brother or sister, the subtle character assassination dressed up as discernment. Scripture takes these sins seriously because they misrepresent God, who is truth, and they destroy the unity He commands us to guard (Eph. 4:3).
Yet many Christians don’t know how to recognize or respond to them biblically. Should you stay silent? Speak up? Call it out? In this article, we’ll define gossip and slander, learn what Scripture says about them, and walk through practical steps for handling them with wisdom, courage, and grace—so our words, and our silence, honor Christ and protect His people.
1. Defining Terms
GOSSIP – Idle or malicious talk that spreads personal or private information unnecessarily, often eroding trust and unity. Gossip is a sin because it is the act of spreading private, unconfirmed, or harmful information about others—whether true or false—with the intent or effect of diminishing their reputation, sowing division, or satisfying selfish curiosity. It is a violation of love (Lev. 19:16–18), a distortion of speech's God-given purpose (Eph. 4:29), and a divisive work of the flesh (Gal. 5:19–21), often masked in concern or masked as truth-sharing, yet fueled by pride, envy, or idleness. “The words of a whisperer are like delicious morsels; they go down into the inner parts of the body” (Prov. 18:8).
SLANDER – Slander is the deliberate use of false, exaggerated, or malicious words to damage another person’s reputation. While gossip often spreads secret or unnecessary information (true or not), slander goes further—it weaponizes speech with the intent to harm. Biblically, slander is closely tied to bearing false witness (Exod. 20:16), reviling (1 Cor. 6:10), and the devil himself, whose very name diabolos means “slanderer” (Rev. 12:10).
Slander is more than careless speech. It is sinful speech aimed at destruction, where words are twisted or invented to portray another in a false light. “You sit and speak against your brother; you slander your own mother’s son” (Ps. 50:20).
Both are sins of the tongue that flow from the heart (Matt. 12:34–37). They are not “small” sins but destructive to relationships and deadly to the church.
2. Key Scriptures
Proverbs 16:28 – “A dishonest man spreads strife, and a whisperer separates close friends.”
James 3:5–6 – The tongue is a fire, capable of setting a whole forest ablaze.
Romans 1:29–30 – Gossip and slander are listed among sins of the reprobate.
Ephesians 4:29–32 – Speech should build up, give grace, not tear down.
Titus 3:1–2 – Speak evil of no one; avoid quarreling, be gentle.
3. Voices from Church History
John Calvin: “Slander is the child of pride and cruelty… it spares not even friends, but defiles all with its poison.”
Charles Spurgeon: “The tale-bearer carries more than the tale—he carries firebrands, arrows, and death.”
John MacArthur: “Gossip is the devil’s radio. It sows discord, destroys reputations, and betrays confidences. It has no place in the life of the believer.”
R.C. Sproul: “When we speak evil of others unjustly, we take what belongs to God alone—the right to judge—and we place ourselves in His seat.”
4. A Roadmap for Christians
Guard Your Tongue Ruthlessly
Before speaking, ask: Is it true? Is it necessary? Is it loving? Apply James 1:19 — be “quick to hear, slow to speak.”
Refuse to Receive Gossip
Proverbs 26:20 says, “For lack of wood the fire goes out.” Gossip dies when it has no audience. Leaders should set the tone by not indulging in “juicy” talk. Oh did you hear about so and so? Did you hear what he did? What they said? If you hear phrases like this, your red flags should go up. Not because it’s a gag order, but because it’s the wrong order. You don’t gossip about people, you go directly to people.
Correct It When You Hear It
Lovingly redirect: “Let’s not talk about him; have you spoken to him directly?” Matthew 18:15 says go to your brother and if he doesn’t repent, then go to him again with a couple of witnesses privately still seek to work it out. Then if he’s in blatant sin and has no regard for Scripture and repentance, it’s church discipline. If someone just wants to gossip about someone else and not deal with it biblically, tell them: “I don’t think you should be talking to me unless you’re asking me to be a witness and then we need to go directly to him together, privately.”
Cultivate Edifying Speech
Ephesians 4:29 reminds us to replace destructive words with words that build. Make it your pattern to honor and defend others publicly, even when correcting privately.
Remember the Stakes
Gossip divides families, friendships, and churches. It undermines credibility and unity in leadership. A church that does not openly and blatantly correct gossip will wither and die. It’s one of the most damaging sins in the body of Christ. False teaching hits from the outside, but gossip cuts from the inside. Cowards gossip. Cowards slander. They hide in the shadows and have no guts, no spine, and no honor. Avoid such men as these. Titus 3:10-11 says, “Reject a factious man after a first and second warning, knowing that such a man is perverted and is sinning, being self-condemned.”
Let’s be people whose words are weapons against Satan, not wounds against our brothers. “Set a guard, O LORD, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips!” (Psalm 141:3).
*The preceding article is an excerpt from Costi Hinn’s sermon at Shepherd’s House Bible Church, titled, “Demonic Strategies We Demolish.” To watch the original sermon on YouTube, click here.
