'Silent' in the Bible
Now Jacob heard that he had defiled Dinah his daughter; but his sons were with his livestock in the field, so Jacob kept silent until they came in.
Then Moses said to Aaron, “It is what the Lord spoke, saying,‘By those who come near Me I will be treated as holy,And before all the people I will be honored.’”So Aaron, therefore, kept silent.
Then Moses and the Levitical priests spoke to all Israel, saying, “Be silent and listen, O Israel! This day you have become a people for the Lord your God.
When it was told to the Gazites, saying, “Samson has come here,” they surrounded the place and lay in wait for him all night at the gate of the city. And they kept silent all night, saying, “Let us wait until the morning light, then we will kill him.”
They said to him, “Be silent, put your hand over your mouth and come with us, and be to us a father and a priest. Is it better for you to be a priest to the house of one man, or to be priest to a tribe and a family in Israel?”
But certain worthless men said, “How can this one deliver us?” And they despised him and did not bring him any present. But he kept silent.
Then Absalom her brother said to her, “Has Amnon your brother been with you? But now keep silent, my sister, he is your brother; do not take this matter to heart.” So Tamar remained and was desolate in her brother Absalom’s house.
However, Absalom, whom we anointed over us, has died in battle. Now then, why are you silent about bringing the king back?”
Then they said to one another, “We are not doing right. This day is a day of good news, but we are keeping silent; if we wait until morning light, punishment will overtake us. Now therefore come, let us go and tell the king’s household.”
But the people were silent and answered him not a word, for the king’s commandment was, “Do not answer him.”
I said to them, “We according to our ability have redeemed our Jewish brothers who were sold to the nations; now would you even sell your brothers that they may be sold to us?” Then they were silent and could not find a word to say.
For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place and you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have not attained royalty for such a time as this?”
for we have been sold, I and my people, to be destroyed, to be killed and to be annihilated. Now if we had only been sold as slaves, men and women, I would have remained silent, for the trouble would not be commensurate with the annoyance to the king.”
“When they become waterless, they are silent,When it is hot, they vanish from their place.
“Teach me, and I will be silent;And show me how I have erred.
“O that you would be completely silent,And that it would become your wisdom!
“Be silent before me so that I may speak;Then let come on me what may.
“Who will contend with me?For then I would be silent and die.
“To me they listened and waited,And kept silent for my counsel.
Because I feared the great multitude,And the contempt of families terrified me,And kept silent and did not go out of doors?
“Pay attention, O Job, listen to me;Keep silent, and let me speak.
“If not, listen to me;Keep silent, and I will teach you wisdom.”
A Psalm of David.To You, O Lord, I call;My rock, do not be deaf to me,For if You are silent to me,I will become like those who go down to the pit.
That my soul may sing praise to You and not be silent.O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever.
Let me not be put to shame, O Lord, for I call upon You;Let the wicked be put to shame, let them be silent in Sheol.
When I kept silent about my sin, my body wasted awayThrough my groaning all day long.
You have seen it, O Lord, do not keep silent;O Lord, do not be far from me.
I was mute and silent,I refrained even from good,And my sorrow grew worse.
“Hear my prayer, O Lord, and give ear to my cry;Do not be silent at my tears;For I am a stranger with You,A sojourner like all my fathers.
A Song, a Psalm of Asaph.O God, do not remain quiet;Do not be silent and, O God, do not be still.
For the choir director. A Psalm of David.O God of my praise,Do not be silent!
He who despises his neighbor lacks sense,But a man of understanding keeps silent.
Even a fool, when he keeps silent, is considered wise;When he closes his lips, he is considered prudent.
A time to tear apart and a time to sew together;A time to be silent and a time to speak.
Be silent, you inhabitants of the coastland,You merchants of Sidon;Your messengers crossed the sea
But they were silent and answered him not a word; for the king’s commandment was, “Do not answer him.”
“I have kept silent for a long time,I have kept still and restrained Myself.Now like a woman in labor I will groan,I will both gasp and pant.
He was oppressed and He was afflicted,Yet He did not open His mouth;Like a lamb that is led to slaughter,And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers,So He did not open His mouth.
“Of whom were you worried and fearfulWhen you lied, and did not remember MeNor give Me a thought?Was I not silent even for a long timeSo you do not fear Me?
For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent,And for Jerusalem’s sake I will not keep quiet,Until her righteousness goes forth like brightness,And her salvation like a torch that is burning.
On your walls, O Jerusalem, I have appointed watchmen;All day and all night they will never keep silent.You who remind the Lord, take no rest for yourselves;
Will You restrain Yourself at these things, O Lord?Will You keep silent and afflict us beyond measure?
“Behold, it is written before Me,I will not keep silent, but I will repay;I will even repay into their bosom,
My soul, my soul! I am in anguish! Oh, my heart!My heart is pounding in me;I cannot be silent,Because you have heard, O my soul,The sound of the trumpet,The alarm of war.
“And the peaceful folds are made silentBecause of the fierce anger of the Lord.
The elders of the daughter of ZionSit on the ground, they are silent.They have thrown dust on their heads;They have girded themselves with sackcloth.The virgins of JerusalemHave bowed their heads to the ground.
Let him sit alone and be silentSince He has laid it on him.
“Moreover, in their wailing they will take up a lamentation for youAnd lament over you:‘Who is like Tyre,Like her who is silent in the midst of the sea?
Therefore at such a time the prudent person keeps silent, for it is an evil time.
Your eyes are too pure to approve evil,And You can not look on wickedness with favor.Why do You look with favorOn those who deal treacherously?Why are You silent when the wicked swallow upThose more righteous than they?
“But the Lord is in His holy temple.Let all the earth be silent before Him.”
Be silent before the Lord God!For the day of the Lord is near,For the Lord has prepared a sacrifice,He has consecrated His guests.
“Be silent, all flesh, before the Lord; for He is aroused from His holy habitation.”
But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest said to Him, “I adjure You by the living God, that You tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God.”
And He *said to them, “Is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, to save a life or to kill?” But they kept silent.
But they kept silent, for on the way they had discussed with one another which of them was the greatest.
But He kept silent and did not answer. Again the high priest was questioning Him, and saying to Him, “Are You the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One?”
And behold, you shall be silent and unable to speak until the day when these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their proper time.”
And when the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent, and reported to no one in those days any of the things which they had seen.
But they kept silent. And He took hold of him and healed him, and sent him away.
But Jesus answered, “I tell you, if these become silent, the stones will cry out!”
And they were unable to catch Him in a saying in the presence of the people; and being amazed at His answer, they became silent.
Now the passage of Scripture which he was reading was this:“He was led as a sheep to slaughter;And as a lamb before its shearer is silent,So He does not open His mouth.
But motioning to them with his hand to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had led him out of the prison. And he said, “Report these things to James and the brethren.” Then he left and went to another place.
All the people kept silent, and they were listening to Barnabas and Paul as they were relating what signs and wonders God had done through them among the Gentiles.
And the Lord said to Paul in the night by a vision, “Do not be afraid any longer, but go on speaking and do not be silent;
And since he would not be persuaded, we fell silent, remarking, “The will of the Lord be done!”
but if there is no interpreter, he must keep silent in the church; and let him speak to himself and to God.
But if a revelation is made to another who is seated, the first one must keep silent.
The women are to keep silent in the churches; for they are not permitted to speak, but are to subject themselves, just as the Law also says.