This is the final post in this series. Thanks for reading.
Songs have been written about it. Books have been dedicated to it.
Yet, silence is elusive.
On the surface, it is the absence of audible sound. But in a deeper context, what is silence exactly and why does it seem so mysterious?
Silence is very often motive-driven, used either to inspire, scold, or even deceive.
We make jokes about “the look”, but only to soften an uncomfortable truth for many.
The scriptures actually have much to say about the power of silence.
For instance, Proverbs 17:28 states, “Even a fool, when he is silent, is counted wise, and he who shuts his lips is counted as a man of understanding.”
Conversely, many who cannot seem to keep their words in check prove who is the fool.
Have you ever been around someone who always has a “one-up” story? Often the tales get more outlandish with time.
This can be very annoying.
A former coworker of mine always seemed to have his ears tuned for a good conversation to join. I have observed him hear a word or two from a couple of cubicles over and make a beeline to put in his “2 cents worth”.
Soon the whole floor was wise to him and most would not have any sort of conversation while he was in range.
Unfortunately, he had a skill set that was greatly needed in our line of work, so this was tolerated, with a lot of snickers at the poor victims of course (and out of earshot I might add).
1 Thes 4:11 Exhorts us to “Study” to be quiet.
To most, silence doesn’t come naturally. Our tendency is to use words to draw attention to ourselves. Silence takes effort. It must be cultivated.
To be clear, we’re not talking about being rude or ignoring others. The point would be, as James 1:19 exhorts, to be “swift to hear and slow to speak”.
Truly listening to others benefits both the speaker and the listener. The listener gains insight and perspective while the one talking has the confidence that someone really does empathize with them.
Most of the time, we are so busy thinking about what we will say or how we can come up with one even better, that we fail to even hear what others are saying.
In that regard, how many nagging spouses turn their husbands or wives away from Christ?
Some spouses even make a false claim of salvation just to get them to shut up.
But Peter makes an interesting statement in 1 Peter 3:1 that the unbelieving spouse will be won over by a quiet, respectful, and loving mate.
Finally, there are times when silence can have just the opposite effect. David, in Psalm 32:3, when he was silent about confessing his sins, it felt as if his bone were old and brittle and he was in great pain.
While it is important to be quiet as we listen for God’s still small voice, Psalm 66:18 makes it clear that when we harbor sin in our lives, God will not hear us. So it is important to “keep a short account” so to speak, with God, confessing sin as it appears in our lives.
Ecclesiastes 3:1 states “To everything there is a season and a time to every purpose under the heaven”.
While this verse doesn’t mention silence specifically, it would certainly apply.
So, based on the scriptures presented in this short article, we have learned:
Silence can be used for good or evil.
Silence will even a foolish person appear wise.
Silence should be studied and cultivated.
Silence, along with appropriate behavior can create enough intrigue in an unbelieving spouse to win them to faith in Christ.
As always, thanks for following along in this short series about what the Bible says about the power of words.