James 1:19

ταχὺς εἰς τὸ ἀκοῦσαι βραδὺς εἰς τὸ λαλῆσαι : Cf. Sir 5:11, γίνου ταχὺς ἐν ἀκροάσει σου, καὶ ἐν μακροθυμίᾳ φθέγγου ἀπόκρισιν; see Sir 4:29, Sir 20:7. A similar precept is quoted in Qoheleth Rabba, James 1:5 (Wünsche): “Speech for a shekel, silence for two; it it is like a precious stone”; cf. Taylor's ed. of Pirqe Aboth, p. 25. βραδὺς εἰς ὀργήν : Cf. Ecclesiastes 7:10 (R.V. 9), μὴ σπεύσῃς ἐν πνεύματί σου τοῦ θυμοῦσθαι, ὅτι θυμὸς ἐν κόλπῳ ἀφρόνων ἀναπαύσεται; see, too, Proverbs 16:32. Margoliouth (Expos. Times, Dec. 1893) quotes a saying which, according to Mohammedan writers, was spoken by Christ: “Asked by some how to win Paradise, He said: ‘Speak not at all'. They said: ‘We cannot do this'. He said then: ‘Only say what is good'.” It must be remembered that the Arabs are the most foul-mouthed people on earth.