What is the worth of silence?
Perhaps, many might find the scope of this question a little too overstretched for idle thought or aimless conjecture.
If it is okay to ascribe the worth of an event as a direct measure of the quality and consequence of its outcome(s), then it's safe to say that the worth of any exercise in silence is the very result apparently obtained thereby.
All through recorded history, many brilliant minds have striven to demystify in the mind of man, the very measure of strength that silence affords. But all they could ever lisp only served up a glimpse of the profound, subliminal emancipation bequeathed to those, who have the aptitude to exercise their mind and expose it to the glare of Wisdom.
Indeed, the literary world is replete with many quotes which make an effort to inundate mankind with the unabated futility of words betimes. And I took the liberty to pick out a few which better reflect the thrust of this message:
"Silence is the sleep that nourishes wisdom"...Francis Bacon
"Under all speech that is good for anything, there lies a silence that is better. Silence is deep as eternity, speech is shallow as time"...
Thomas Carlyle
"God speaks in the silence of the heart. Listening is the beginning of prayer"...Mother Theresa
"Great souls suffer in silence"... Friedrich Schiller
"Silence is one of the hardest arguments to refute"...Josh Billings
One incontestible attribute is clearly seen in all these quotes. Wisdom! It reverberates seamlessly through these quotes, not in a stentorian manner, but, in a rather elusive and silent way.
Now these are all the various perspectives of men of different ages and civilizations on silence. If men seem to have found common ground on the virtue of silence, what does the Almighty God, the one true source of Divine Wisdom have to say about silence? These few bible references have a thing or two to say about this:
WHEN TO BE SILENT . . . And the Bible says.
1. Be silent In the heat of
anger - (Prov 14:17)
2. Be silent When you don't
have all the facts - (Prov
18:13)
3. Be silent When you
haven't verified the story -
(Deut 17:6)
4. Be silent If your words
will offend a weaker
person - (1 Cor 8:11)
5. Be silent When it is time
to listen - (Prov 13:1)
6. Be silent When you are
tempted to make light of
holy things - (Eccl 5:2)
7. Be silent When you are
tempted to joke about
sin - (Prov 14:9)
8. Be silent If you would be
ashamed of your words
later - (Prov 8:8)
9. Be silent If your words
would convey the wrong
impression - (Prov 17:27)
10. Be silent If the issue is
none of your business -
(Prov 14:10)
11. Be silent When you are
tempted to tell an
outright lie - (Prov 4:24)
12. Be silent If your words
will damage someone
else's reputation - (Pro
16:27)
13. Be silent If your words
will damage a friendship
- (Prov 16:28)
14. Be silent When you are
feeling critical - (James
3:9)
15. Be silent If you can't say
it without screaming it -
(Prov 25:28)
16. Be silent If your words
will be a poor reflection
of the Lord or your
friends and family - (1 Pt
2:21-23)
17. Be silent If you may
have to eat your words
later - (Prov 18:21)
18. Be silent If you have
already said it more
than one time - (Prov
19:13)
19. Be silent When you are
tempted to flatter a
wicked person - (Prov
24:24)
20. Be silent When you are
supposed to be working
instead - (Prov 14:23)
"WHOEVER GUARDS HIS MOUTH AND TONGUE KEEPS HIS SOUL FROM TROUBLES" - (Prov 21:23).
"BE STILL, AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD" (Ps 46:10).
P.S. Biblical references: Anon.
