- Reverence and Presence: Silence is used to show respect in God's presence, as in Habakkuk 2:20 ("The Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before him") and Zechariah 2:13. It is also linked to recognizing God's sovereignty Psalm 46:10.
- Wisdom and Self-Control: Proverbs 17:28 suggests that even a fool is thought wise if they keep silent. It is portrayed as a method to avoid foolishness and sin.
- Listening to God: 1 Kings 19:11-12 illustrates that God is often found in a "sound of sheer silence" or a "gentle whisper" rather than in dramatic, noisy events.
- Trust and Strength: Isaiah 30:15 notes that "in quietness and in trust shall be your strength".
- Examples of Silence: Jesus’ silence before Pilate Matthew 27:14, John 19:10-11 represents a deliberate, active trust in God's plan rather than a passive reaction. Job’s friends sat in silence for seven days to offer comfort Job 2:13.
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Timing: Ecclesiastes 3:7 explicitly states there is "a time to keep silence, and a time to speak," indicating that the wisdom lies in knowing which to choose.
https://www.google.com/search?q=silence+in+the+bible&rlz
“A right time for birth and another for death, A right time to plant and another to reap, A right time to kill and another to heal, A right time to destroy and another to construct, A right time to cry and another to laugh, A right time to lament and another to cheer, A right time to make love and another to abstain, A right time to embrace and another to part, A right time to search and another to count your losses, A right time to hold on and another to let go, A right time to rip out and another to mend, A right time to shut up and another to speak up, A right time to love and another to hate, A right time to wage war and another to make peace.”
Ecclesiastes 3:2-8 MSG
https://bible.com/bible/97/ecc.3.2-8.MSG