This verse took me completely by surprise. I read over it and quickly realized that the old adage "Stick and stones can break my bones but words will never hurt me" may be a good thing to tell yourself or others if they find themselves on the receiving end of nasty comments but it means nothing to God. God is saying that what you say whether intentionally or thoughtlessly is more that just a simple statement. It's a state of mind that is being compared to Murder. Have you ever been in heavy traffic in a big city? I can remember driving around the DC area all the time, and threw words such as "jerk", "idiot", and "moron" around all the time. I never knew the people in the other cars, but the fact that my state of mind was sincere in the fact that I was angry with another person and their driving is being compared to murder. I guarantee you I'll think twice about using words so carelessly again.

Matthew 5:22