Right To Remain Silent

Be angry, and do not sin; ponder in your own hearts on your beds, and be silent.     Psalm 4:4 ESV

I've enjoyed watching cop shows on TV for most of my life.  From Adam-12 and Barney Miller as a small child, to T.J. Hooker, Hawaii 5-O (original and remake), and many others, I have heard the phrase, "You have the right to remain silent..." more times than I can try to count.  The point is that you are not required to incriminate yourself of wrongs you may have done.  (This always seemed contrary to what I observed in the court shows on television where you swear to "tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.."  But, whatever!)

The "right to remain silent" is a foundational right of citizenship, guaranteed by our Constitution here in the US.  This provision was made for our protection, and as someone whose spoken words don't always convey the intended sentiment, I can appreciate this right.  And yet, though we are given the RIGHT to remain silent, the ABILITY to remain silent seems to be sorely lacking in our world today.

We are living in unusual times.  Strange things are happening in our country and in our world.  And, for good or for bad, in the midst of these strange times, the platforms from which people can speak opinions and ideas are virtually unlimited.  With the technology of the day, information - and misinformation - travels near the speed of light (really, really fast!).  And lately, it seems, much of what is being communicated is rooted in hatred and anger.

Not surprisingly, the Bible has something very pertinent to say on the subject.  The Lord tells us in scripture that though we may become angry, we should remain silent.  The New Living Translation puts it like this:

Don’t sin by letting anger control you.  Think about it overnight and remain silent.

Why is something so simple so hard to do?  We can defend our positions, claim "righteous indignation," express our ideas as moral defense of the powerless, etc...  We may get passionate, and feel justified in our anger.  We may even actually be right!  But once our anger begins to drive our actions, and particularly our speech, our indignation is no longer righteous.  It is sin.  No matter how hard we try to pretty it up, the root of the problem is sin.  

This is not to say that it is a sin to get angry.  Anger is an emotion, not an action.  And emotions are not sinful.  Our emotions are our automatic responses to the things that happen to us and around us.  This is how God created us.  He created us with the capacity to get angry, and so obviously He expects us to get angry.  We should get angry about injustice in our world.  We should care when people are mistreated.  But when we are angry, we should keep our mouths shut.  We should not let our anger lead us into sin.

Silence is not the same as apathy.  Just because I am not vocal about a particular topic does not mean that I do not care.  Silence gives me time to be thoughtful.  The Psalmist goes as far as to say that we should think about it overnight.  That certainly seems like a good rule of thumb.  If there is an issue that needs to be discussed, once the anger has passed, it is much easier to think and speak rationally. I often find that by the next day, what I thought needed to be said in the moment really didn't need to be said at all. 

In these days when anger and fear are running rampant, remember that silence is golden.  Not every idea that comes into your head needs to come out of your mouth (or onto your social media page).  It's a hard lesson, but one that I am trying to learn in these uncertain times.

Take some time to read Psalm 4 in its entirety today.  I believe you will find comfort and encouragement there...

 Many people say, “Who will show us better times?” (v.6a)

     

In peace I will lie down and sleep,  for you alone, O Lord, will keep me safe. (v.8)

Settle down.  Get quiet.  God can be trusted.  So rest well tonight.

...Just a thought...