23 Bible Verses about Slander

And Eli saith unto her, 'Until when are thou drunken? turn aside thy wine from thee.'

And also, prophets thou hast appointed to call for thee in Jerusalem, saying, A king is in Judah, and now it is heard by the king according to these words; and now come, and we take counsel together.'

Yet, put forth, I pray Thee, Thy hand, and strike unto his bone and unto his flesh -- if not: unto Thy face he doth bless Thee!'

For thou takest a pledge of thy brother for nought, And the garments of the naked Thou dost strip off.

And it cometh to pass, he is at the gate of Benjamin, and there is a master of the ward -- and his name is Irijah son of Shelemiah, son of Hananiah -- and he catcheth Jeremiah the prophet, saying, 'Unto the Chaldeans thou art falling.'

the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, Lo, a man, a glutton, and a wine-drinker, a friend of tax-gatherers and sinners, and wisdom was justified of her children.'

but the Pharisees said, 'By the ruler of the demons he doth cast out the demons.'

and began to accuse him, saying, 'This one we found perverting the nation, and forbidding to give tribute to Caesar, saying himself to be Christ a king.'

they set up also false witnesses, saying, 'This one doth not cease to speak evil sayings against this holy place and the law,

and others mocking said, -- 'They are full of sweet wine;'

Whoso slandereth in secret his neighbour, Him I cut off, The high of eyes and proud of heart, him I endure not.

Each of his friend -- beware ye, And on any brother, do not trust, For every brother doth utterly supplant, For every friend slanderously doth walk,

For I have heard an evil account of many, Fear is round about. In their being united against me, To take my life they have devised,

Whoso is covering hatred with lying lips, And whoso is bringing out an evil report is a fool.

With the mouth a hypocrite corrupteth his friend, And by knowledge the righteous are drawn out.

'For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and ye say, He hath a demon;

And the heads of the Bene-Ammon say unto Hanun their lord, 'Is David honouring thy father in thine eyes because he hath sent to thee comforters? for to search the city, and to spy it, and to overthrow it, hath not David sent his servants unto thee?'

The work of his hands Thou hast blessed, and his substance hath spread in the land, and yet, put forth, I pray Thee, Thy hand, and strike against anything that he hath -- if not: to Thy face he doth bless Thee!'

Thou sittest, against thy brother thou speakest, Against a son of thy mother givest slander.

And Amaziah priest of Beth-El sendeth unto Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, 'Amos hath conspired against thee in the midst of the house of Israel; the land is not able to bear all his words,

Whoso is covering hatred with lying lips, And whoso is bringing out an evil report is a fool.

And Eli saith unto her, 'Until when are thou drunken? turn aside thy wine from thee.'

And also, prophets thou hast appointed to call for thee in Jerusalem, saying, A king is in Judah, and now it is heard by the king according to these words; and now come, and we take counsel together.'

Yet, put forth, I pray Thee, Thy hand, and strike unto his bone and unto his flesh -- if not: unto Thy face he doth bless Thee!'

For thou takest a pledge of thy brother for nought, And the garments of the naked Thou dost strip off.

And it cometh to pass, he is at the gate of Benjamin, and there is a master of the ward -- and his name is Irijah son of Shelemiah, son of Hananiah -- and he catcheth Jeremiah the prophet, saying, 'Unto the Chaldeans thou art falling.'

the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, Lo, a man, a glutton, and a wine-drinker, a friend of tax-gatherers and sinners, and wisdom was justified of her children.'

but the Pharisees said, 'By the ruler of the demons he doth cast out the demons.'

and began to accuse him, saying, 'This one we found perverting the nation, and forbidding to give tribute to Caesar, saying himself to be Christ a king.'

they set up also false witnesses, saying, 'This one doth not cease to speak evil sayings against this holy place and the law,

and others mocking said, -- 'They are full of sweet wine;'

Whoso slandereth in secret his neighbour, Him I cut off, The high of eyes and proud of heart, him I endure not.

Each of his friend -- beware ye, And on any brother, do not trust, For every brother doth utterly supplant, For every friend slanderously doth walk,

For I have heard an evil account of many, Fear is round about. In their being united against me, To take my life they have devised,

Whoso is covering hatred with lying lips, And whoso is bringing out an evil report is a fool.

With the mouth a hypocrite corrupteth his friend, And by knowledge the righteous are drawn out.

'For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and ye say, He hath a demon;

And the heads of the Bene-Ammon say unto Hanun their lord, 'Is David honouring thy father in thine eyes because he hath sent to thee comforters? for to search the city, and to spy it, and to overthrow it, hath not David sent his servants unto thee?'

The work of his hands Thou hast blessed, and his substance hath spread in the land, and yet, put forth, I pray Thee, Thy hand, and strike against anything that he hath -- if not: to Thy face he doth bless Thee!'

Thou sittest, against thy brother thou speakest, Against a son of thy mother givest slander.

And Amaziah priest of Beth-El sendeth unto Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, 'Amos hath conspired against thee in the midst of the house of Israel; the land is not able to bear all his words,

And questioning him also were those warring, saying, 'And we, what shall we do?' and he said unto them, 'Do violence to no one, nor accuse falsely, and be content with your wages.'

'Thou dost not answer against thy neighbour a false testimony.

Thou dost not answer against thy neighbour -- a false testimony.

All of them are turned aside by apostates, Walking slanderously -- brass and iron, All of them are corrupters.

Thou sittest, against thy brother thou speakest, Against a son of thy mother givest slander.

Each of his friend -- beware ye, And on any brother, do not trust, For every brother doth utterly supplant, For every friend slanderously doth walk,

Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil-speaking, be put away from you, with all malice,

Speak not one against another, brethren; he who is speaking against a brother, and is judging his brother, doth speak against law, and doth judge law, and if law thou dost judge, thou art not a doer of law but a judge;

'Thou dost not lift up a vain report; thou dost not put thy hand with a wicked man to be a violent witness.

in which they think it strange -- your not running with them to the same excess of dissoluteness, speaking evil,

And those seeking my soul lay a snare, And those seeking my evil Have spoken mischievous things, And they do deceits meditate all the day.

For the mouth of wickedness, and the mouth of deceit, Against me they have opened, They have spoken with me -- A tongue of falsehood, and words of hatred!

and began to accuse him, saying, 'This one we found perverting the nation, and forbidding to give tribute to Caesar, saying himself to be Christ a king.'

Pilate, therefore, said to him, 'Art thou then a king?' Jesus answered, 'Thou dost say it; because a king I am, I for this have been born, and for this I have come to the world, that I may testify to the truth; every one who is of the truth, doth hear my voice.'

Then, therefore, did Pilate take Jesus and scourge him, and the soldiers having plaited a crown of thorns, did place it on his head, and a purple garment they put around him, and said, 'Hail! the king of the Jews;' and they were giving him slaps. read more.
Pilate, therefore, again went forth without, and saith to them, 'Lo, I do bring him to you without, that ye may know that in him I find no fault;' Jesus, therefore, came forth without, bearing the thorny crown and the purple garment; and he saith to them, 'Lo, the man!'

They sharpened their tongue as a serpent, Poison of an adder is under their lips. Selah.

Who sharpened as a sword their tongue, They directed their arrow -- a bitter word.

For I have heard an evil account of many, Fear is round about. In their being united against me, To take my life they have devised,

And they enlarge against me their mouth, They said, 'Aha, aha, our eye hath seen.'

Mine enemies say evil of me: When he dieth -- his name hath perished!

For I have heard the evil report of many, Fear is round about: 'Declare, and we declare it,' All mine allies are watching for my halting, 'Perhaps he is enticed, and we prevail over him, And we take our vengeance out of him.'

being spoken evil of, we entreat; as filth of the world we did become -- of all things an offscouring -- till now.

Whoso slandereth in secret his neighbour, Him I cut off, The high of eyes and proud of heart, him I endure not.

'When a violent witness doth rise against a man, to testify against him apostasy, then have both the men who have the strife stood before Jehovah, before the priests and the judges who are in those days, and the judges have searched diligently, and lo, the witness is a false witness, a falsehood he hath testified against his brother: read more.
'Then ye have done to him as he devised to do to his brother, and thou hast put away the evil thing out of thy midst, and those who are left do hear and fear, and add not to do any more according to this evil thing in thy midst; and thine eye doth not pity -- life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.

for I fear lest, having come, not such as I wish I may find you, and I -- I may be found by you such as ye do not wish, lest there be strifes, envyings, wraths, revelries, evil-speakings, whisperings, puffings up, insurrections,

having been filled with all unrighteousness, whoredom, wickedness, covetousness, malice; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil dispositions; whisperers,

for I fear lest, having come, not such as I wish I may find you, and I -- I may be found by you such as ye do not wish, lest there be strifes, envyings, wraths, revelries, evil-speakings, whisperings, puffings up, insurrections,

evil-speakers, God-haters, insulting, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,

They sharpened their tongue as a serpent, Poison of an adder is under their lips. Selah.

If the serpent biteth without enchantment, Then there is no advantage to a master of the tongue.

A maul, and a sword, and a sharp arrow, Is the man testifying against his neighbour a false testimony.

A rash speaker is like piercings of a sword, And the tongue of the wise is healing.

Whoso is covering transgression is seeking love, And whoso is repeating a matter Is separating a familiar friend.

A froward man sendeth forth contention, A tale-bearer is separating a familiar friend.

The words of a tale-bearer are as self-inflicted wounds, And they have gone down to the inner parts of the heart.

The words of a tale-bearer are as self-inflicted wounds, And they have gone down to the inner parts of the heart.

and not, as we are evil spoken of, and as certain affirm us to say -- 'We may do the evil things, that the good ones may come?' whose judgment is righteous.

through glory and dishonour, through evil report and good report, as leading astray, and true;

These six hath Jehovah hated, Yea, seven are abominations to His soul.

A false witness who doth breathe out lies -- And one sending forth contentions between brethren.

Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil-speaking, be put away from you, with all malice,

Having put aside, then, all evil, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envyings, and all evil speakings,

having a good conscience, that in that in which they speak against you as evil-doers, they may be ashamed who are traducing your good behaviour in Christ;

having your behaviour among the nations right, that in that which they speak against you as evil-doers, of the good works having beheld, they may glorify God in a day of inspection.

Violent witnesses rise up, That which I have not known they ask me.

and they did not find; and many false witnesses having come near, they did not find; and at last two false witnesses having come near,

For I have heard an evil account of many, Fear is round about. In their being united against me, To take my life they have devised,

Men of slander have been in thee to shed blood, And on the mountains they have eaten in thee, Wickedness they have done in thy midst.

for 'he who is willing to love life, and to see good days, let him guard his tongue from evil, and his lips -- not to speak guile;

Keep thy tongue from evil, And thy lips from speaking deceit.

'And I say to you, that every idle word that men may speak, they shall give for it a reckoning in a day of judgment;

If any one doth think to be religious among you, not bridling his tongue, but deceiving his heart, of this one vain is the religion;

Mine enemies say evil of me: When he dieth -- his name hath perished!

This is the wage of mine accusers from Jehovah, And of those speaking evil against my soul.

for out of the heart come forth evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, whoredoms, thefts, false witnessings, evil speakings:

The good man out of the good treasure of his heart doth bring forth that which is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart doth bring forth that which is evil; for out of the abounding of the heart doth his mouth speak.

for 'he who is willing to love life, and to see good days, let him guard his tongue from evil, and his lips -- not to speak guile;

Keep thy tongue from evil, And thy lips from speaking deceit.

All hating me whisper together against me, Against me they devise evil to me:

They have compassed me about, And they fight me without cause.

A Psalm of David. Jehovah, who doth sojourn in Thy tent? Who doth dwell in Thy holy hill?

He hath not slandered by his tongue, He hath not done to his friend evil; And reproach he hath not lifted up Against his neighbour.

and chiefly those going behind the flesh in desire of uncleanness, and lordship despising; presumptuous, self-complacent, dignities they are not afraid to speak evil of,

In like manner, nevertheless, those dreaming also the flesh indeed do defile, and lordship they put away, and dignities they speak evil of,

And Mephibosheth son of Saul hath come down to meet the king -- and he prepared not his feet, nor did he prepare his upper lip, yea, his garments he washed not, even from the day of the going away of the king, till the day that he came in peace -- and it cometh to pass, when he hath come to Jerusalem to meet the king, that the king saith to him, 'Why didst thou not go with me, Mephibosheth?' And he saith, 'My lord, O king, my servant deceived me, for thy servant said, I saddle for me the ass, and ride on it, and go with the king, for thy servant is lame; read more.
and he uttereth slander against thy servant unto my lord the king, and my lord the king is as a messenger of God; and do thou that which is good in thine eyes, for all the house of my father have been nothing except men of death before my lord the king, and thou dost set thy servant among those eating at thy table, and what right have I any more -- even to cry any more unto the king?' And the king saith to him, 'Why dost thou speak any more of thy matters? I have said, Thou and Ziba -- share ye the field.' And Mephibosheth saith unto the king, 'Yea, the whole let him take, after that my lord the king hath come in peace unto his house.'

And the king saith, 'And where is the son of thy lord?' and Ziba saith unto the king, 'Lo, he is abiding in Jerusalem, for he said, To-day do the house of Israel give back to me the kingdom of my father.'

and many of them said, 'He hath a demon, and is mad, why do ye hear him?'

The Jews, therefore, answered and said to him, 'Do we not say well, that thou art a Samaritan, and hast a demon?'

The Jews, therefore, said to him, 'Now we have known that thou hast a demon; Abraham did die, and the prophets, and thou dost say, If any one may keep my word, he shall not taste of death -- to the age!

because of this, then, were the Jews seeking the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the sabbath, but he also called God his own Father, making himself equal to God.

Ye heard the evil speaking, what appeareth to you?' and they all condemned him to be worthy of death,

If the serpent biteth without enchantment, Then there is no advantage to a master of the tongue.

being spoken evil of, we entreat; as filth of the world we did become -- of all things an offscouring -- till now.

The beginning of the words of his mouth is folly, And the latter end of his mouth Is mischievous madness.

And answer doth Doeg the Edomite, who is set over the servants of Saul, and saith, 'I have seen the son of Jesse coming in to Nob, unto Ahimelech son of Ahitub, and he asketh for him at Jehovah, and provision hath given to him, and the sword of Goliath the Philistine hath given to him. And the king sendeth to call Ahimelech son of Ahitub, the priest, and all the house of his father, the priests, who are in Nob, and they come all of them unto the king;

'For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, He hath a demon; the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, Lo, a man, a glutton, and a wine-drinker, a friend of tax-gatherers and sinners, and wisdom was justified of her children.'

And I heard a great voice saying in the heaven, 'Now did come the salvation, and the power, and the reign, of our God, and the authority of His Christ, because cast down was the accuser of our brethren, who is accusing them before our God day and night;

Thou dost not go slandering among thy people; thou dost not stand against the blood of thy neighbour; I am Jehovah.

and not, as we are evil spoken of, and as certain affirm us to say -- 'We may do the evil things, that the good ones may come?' whose judgment is righteous.

through glory and dishonour, through evil report and good report, as leading astray, and true;

and many other things, speaking evilly, they spake in regard to him.

and they were the more urgent, saying -- 'He doth stir up the people, teaching throughout the whole of Judea -- having begun from Galilee -- unto this place.'

Without wood is fire going out, And without a tale-bearer, contention ceaseth,

and at the same time also, they learn to be idle, going about the houses; and not only idle, but also tattlers and busybodies, speaking the things they ought not;

having a good conscience, that in that in which they speak against you as evil-doers, they may be ashamed who are traducing your good behaviour in Christ;

having your behaviour among the nations right, that in that which they speak against you as evil-doers, of the good works having beheld, they may glorify God in a day of inspection.

A north wind bringeth forth rain, And a secret tongue -- indignant faces.

Whoso is covering hatred with lying lips, And whoso is bringing out an evil report is a fool.

Women -- in like manner grave, not false accusers, vigilant, faithful in all things.

and at the same time also, they learn to be idle, going about the houses; and not only idle, but also tattlers and busybodies, speaking the things they ought not;

And the heads of the Bene-Ammon say unto Hanun their lord, 'Is David honouring thy father in thine eyes because he hath sent to thee comforters? for to search the city, and to spy it, and to overthrow it, hath not David sent his servants unto thee?'

and two men -- sons of worthlessness -- come in, and sit over-against him, and the men of worthlessness testify of him, even Naboth, before the people, saying, 'Naboth blessed God and Melech;' and they take him out to the outside of the city, and stone him with stones, and he dieth;

And the heads say unto the king, 'Let, we pray thee, this man be put to death, because that he is making feeble the hands of the men of war, who are left in this city, and the hands of all the people, by speaking unto them according to these words, for this man is not seeking for the peace of this people, but for its evil.'

And the king saith, 'And where is the son of thy lord?' and Ziba saith unto the king, 'Lo, he is abiding in Jerusalem, for he said, To-day do the house of Israel give back to me the kingdom of my father.'

A false witness who doth breathe out lies -- And one sending forth contentions between brethren.

Speak not one against another, brethren; he who is speaking against a brother, and is judging his brother, doth speak against law, and doth judge law, and if law thou dost judge, thou art not a doer of law but a judge; one is the lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy; thou -- who art thou that dost judge the other?

Whoso is covering transgression is seeking love, And whoso is repeating a matter Is separating a familiar friend.

he is proud, knowing nothing, but doting about questions and word-striving, out of which doth come envy, strife, evil-speakings, evil-surmisings,

And David saith to Saul, 'Why dost thou hear the words of man, saying, Lo, David is seeking thine evil?

With the mouth a hypocrite corrupteth his friend, And by knowledge the righteous are drawn out.

With the mouth a hypocrite corrupteth his friend, And by knowledge the righteous are drawn out.

And he heareth the words of Laban's sons, saying, 'Jacob hath taken all that our father hath; yea, from that which our father hath, he hath made all this honour;'

it is written in it, 'Among the nations it hath been heard, and Gashmu is saying: Thou and the Jews are thinking to rebel, therefore thou art building the wall, and thou hast been to them for a king -- according to these words!

Happy are ye whenever they may reproach you, and may persecute, and may say any evil thing against you falsely for my sake --

Each of his friend -- beware ye, And on any brother, do not trust, For every brother doth utterly supplant, For every friend slanderously doth walk,

that she calleth for the men of her house, and speaketh to them, saying, 'See, he hath brought in to us a man, a Hebrew, to play with us; he hath come in unto me, to lie with me, and I call with a loud voice, and it cometh to pass, when he heareth that I have lifted up my voice and call, that he leaveth his garment near me, and fleeth, and goeth without.' And she placeth his garment near her, until the coming in of his lord unto his house. read more.
And she speaketh unto him according to these words, saying, 'The Hebrew servant whom thou hast brought unto us, hath come in unto me to play with me; and it cometh to pass, when I lift my voice and call, that he leaveth his garment near me, and fleeth without.'

and she writeth in the letters, saying, 'Proclaim a fast, and cause Naboth to sit at the head of the people, and cause two men -- sons of worthlessness -- to sit over-against him, and they testify of him, saying, Thou hast blessed God and Melech; and they have brought him out, and stoned him, and he dieth.' And the men of his city, the elders and the freemen who are dwelling in his city, do as Jezebel hath sent unto them, as written in the letters that she sent unto them, read more.
they have proclaimed a fast, and caused Naboth to sit at the head of the people, and two men -- sons of worthlessness -- come in, and sit over-against him, and the men of worthlessness testify of him, even Naboth, before the people, saying, 'Naboth blessed God and Melech;' and they take him out to the outside of the city, and stone him with stones, and he dieth; and they send unto Jezebel, saying, 'Naboth was stoned, and is dead.'

For I have heard an evil account of many, Fear is round about. In their being united against me, To take my life they have devised,

and in the days of Artaxerxes have Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of his companions written unto Artaxerxes king of Persia, and the writing of the letter is written in Aramaean, and interpreted in Aramaean. Rehum counsellor, and Shimshai scribe have written a letter concerning Jerusalem to Artaxerxes the king, thus: Then Rehum counsellor, and Shimshai scribe, and the rest of their companions, Dinaites, and Apharsathchites, Tarpelites, Apharsites, Archevites, Babylonians, Susanchites, (who are Elamites), read more.
and the rest of the nations that the great and honourable Asnapper removed and set in the city of Samaria, and the rest beyond the river, and at such a time: This is a copy of a letter that they have sent unto him, unto Artaxerxes the king: 'Thy servants, men beyond the river, and at such a time; Be it known to the king, that the Jews who have come up from thee unto us, have come in to Jerusalem, the rebellious and base city they are building, and the walls they have finished, and the foundations they join. Now, be it known to the king, that if this city be builded, and the walls finished, toll, tribute, and custom they do not give; and at length to the kings it doth cause loss. Now, because that the salt of the palace is our salt, and the nakedness of the king we have no patience to see, therefore we have sent and made known to the king; so that he doth seek in the book of the records of thy fathers, and thou dost find in the book of the records, and dost know, that this city is a rebellious city, and causing loss to kings and provinces, and makers of sedition are in its midst from the days of old, therefore hath this city been wasted. We are making known to the king that, if this city be builded and the walls finished, by this means a portion beyond the river thou hast none.'

'Thou dost not lift up a vain report; thou dost not put thy hand with a wicked man to be a violent witness.

Remind them to be subject to principalities and authorities, to obey rule, unto every good work to be ready, of no one to speak evil, not to be quarrelsome -- gentle, showing all meekness to all men,

Thou sittest, against thy brother thou speakest, Against a son of thy mother givest slander.

And Haman saith to the king Ahasuerus, 'There is one people scattered and separated among the peoples, in all provinces of thy kingdom, and their laws are diverse from all people, and the laws of the king they are not doing, and for the king it is not profitable to suffer them;

Mischiefs doth thy tongue devise, Like a sharp razor, working deceit.

Thou hast loved all devouring words, O thou deceitful tongue.

And they say, Come, And we devise against Jeremiah devices, For law doth not perish from the priest, Nor counsel from the wise, Nor the word from the prophet, Come, and we smite him with the tongue, And we do not attend to any of his words.

then they suborned men, saying -- 'We have heard him speaking evil sayings in regard to Moses and God.'

whom Jason hath received; and these all do contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying another to be king -- Jesus.'

And the chief priests were accusing him of many things, but he answered nothing.

A Psalm of David. Jehovah, who doth sojourn in Thy tent? Who doth dwell in Thy holy hill?

He hath not slandered by his tongue, He hath not done to his friend evil; And reproach he hath not lifted up Against his neighbour.

Remind them to be subject to principalities and authorities, to obey rule, unto every good work to be ready, of no one to speak evil, not to be quarrelsome -- gentle, showing all meekness to all men,

aged women, in like manner, in deportment as doth become sacred persons, not false accusers, to much wine not enslaved, of good things teachers,

And I heard a great voice saying in the heaven, 'Now did come the salvation, and the power, and the reign, of our God, and the authority of His Christ, because cast down was the accuser of our brethren, who is accusing them before our God day and night;

the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, Lo, a man, a glutton, and a wine-drinker, a friend of tax-gatherers and sinners, and wisdom was justified of her children.'

And the men whom Moses hath sent to spy the land, and they turn back and cause all the company to murmur against him, by bringing out an evil account concerning the land,

Women -- in like manner grave, not false accusers, vigilant, faithful in all things.

Whoso is covering hatred with lying lips, And whoso is bringing out an evil report is a fool.

'And I say to you, that every idle word that men may speak, they shall give for it a reckoning in a day of judgment;

Thou sittest, against thy brother thou speakest, Against a son of thy mother givest slander.

Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil-speaking, be put away from you, with all malice,

A north wind bringeth forth rain, And a secret tongue -- indignant faces.

When the tongue scourgeth thou art hid, And thou art not afraid of destruction, When it cometh.

being spoken evil of, we entreat; as filth of the world we did become -- of all things an offscouring -- till now.

With the mouth a hypocrite corrupteth his friend, And by knowledge the righteous are drawn out.

Thou hast loved all devouring words, O thou deceitful tongue.

Happy are ye whenever they may reproach you, and may persecute, and may say any evil thing against you falsely for my sake --