Be Quiet

“Better is a dry morsel, and QUIETNESS therewith, than an house full of sacrifices with strife” (Prov. 17:1). “Better is an handful with quietness, than both the hands full with travail and vexation of spirit” (Eccl. 4:6). “For thus saith the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel; In returning and rest shall ye be saved; in QUIETNESS and in confidence shall be your strength: and ye would not” (Isa. 30:15). “And the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance for ever. And my people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in sure dwellings, and in QUIET resting places” (Isa. 32:17,18). “Now them that are such we command and exhort by our Lord Jesus Christ, that with quietness they work, and eat their own bread” (II Thess. 3:12). “And all the people of the land rejoiced: and the city was QUIET, after that they had slain Athaliah with the sword” (II Chron. 23:21). “But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil” (Prov. 1:33). “The words of wise men are heard in quiet more than the cry of him that ruleth among fools” (Ecc. 9:17). “And say unto him, Take heed, and BE QUIET; fear not, neither be fainthearted for the two tails of these smoking firebrands, for the fierce anger of Rezin with Syria, and of the son of Remaliah” (Isa. 7:4). “He who smote the people in wrath with a continual stroke, he that ruled the nations in anger, is persecuted, and none hindereth. The whole earth is at rest, and is quiet: they break forth into singing” (Isa. 14:6,7). “Look upon Zion, the city of our solemnities: thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a QUIET habitation, a tabernacle that shall not be taken down” (Isa. 33:20). “Therefore fear thou not, O my servant Jacob, saith the LORD; neither be dismayed, O Israel: for, lo, I will save thee from afar, and thy seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return, and shall be in rest, and be quiet, and none shall make him afraid” (Jer. 30:10). “And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you” (I Thess. 4:11).

“I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty” (I Tim. 2:1,2). And last but certainly not least, a personal favorite of mine that speaks volumes: “Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel; But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price” (I Pet. 3:3,4). So we see that there’s a lot that can be said for the axiom of “peace and quiet.” And there is a good reason that those two elements of life are always spoken of together. Not only so, but it is usually the case that the person who says the least is the one who has the most to say, of worth that is. We could continue with this scriptural exposition of the virtue of being quiet, but I think we have enough to establish and confirm the point sufficiently. In these verses we see quietness being synonymous with fearlessness, confidence, contentment and humility. We also see that quietness in the Bible is directly correlated to wicked rule being overthrown and righteous order being established by the Lord. Being quiet is also shown here to be an element of waiting on the Lord to establish his word and promise that he has given. It is also clearly shown that being quiet goes hand in hand with someone tending to their own affairs and staying out of the business of others. Also stipulated in these verses is that quietness is a virtue of having godly wisdom. Those who learn to be led consistently by God’s Spirit are going to be frequently very quiet. And when someone is quiet because they are subjected to God’s Spirit, they will also speak boldly and with grace when there is something of worth to say. They are well acquainted with the proverb that says, “[There is] a time to keep silence, and a time to speak” (Eccl. 3:7).

In the Bible, being quiet is also correlated with not being opinionated, as this proverb shows: “Wisdom RESTETH in the heart of him that hath understanding: but that which is in the midst of fools is made known” (Prov. 14:33). There is a vast difference between someone who seeks only to edify others with their words, and someone who just has to be heard. To the soul who follows after God’s love in his life, he only wants to speak when it will be of good use to someone for their faith’s sake. This kind of person is conditioned by the holy Ghost to be in line with the following admonition of the apostle Paul: “Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man” (Col. 4:6). Someone who loves contentment and peace with God would rather listen and be quiet than to speak, as the scripture states: “Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath” (Jas. 1:19). Someone who does not have peace or contentment has to keep talking, and has to be disruptive. It is evident that there are many who just do NOT believe this sobering warning that Jesus gave us: “But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned” (Mat. 12:36,37). I think a lot of people must have the idea that Jesus was just talking about what someone says when they’re preaching or something like that, and don’t realize that he meant exactly what he said. It’s really strange to me how so many people think that there is something wrong with someone who is being quiet. Maybe they should read the Bible, or maybe they should believe what is in it. The truth is you can learn a whole lot from someone who is quiet, if you have ‘an ear to hear.’ The old saying really is true that says, “Silence is golden.” Amen.