I’ve been mulling over Psalm 19 all day going back to it via the NIV and The Message. I love it. It’s majestic and wonderful. It’s verses 1-4 that have really grabbed my attention though the whole Psalm pulls together as something beautiful, contrasting silence and word and bringing them together in harmony.

Ultimately it’s about the Creator who reveals himself and can be known in that which he has created. Verse 1 has David saying that the heavens declare the glory of God and the skies show us the work of his hands day and night. They give us a message and reveal knowledge. Who hasn’t experienced those many times we look up to the sky and catch a sense of wonder and awe that draws us beyond ourselves whether you believe in God or not?

What I adore about the psalm is how poetically it follows up those words about the messages and knowledge found in the skies. It’s in verses 3 and 4 that I’m captured:

‘They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them. Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the end of the world.’ (NIV)

The Message puts it slightly differently:

‘Their words aren’t heard, their voices aren’t recorded, but their silence fills the earth; unspoken truth is spoken everywhere.’ (MSG)

‘But their silence fills the earth…’ Brilliant!

Many view silence as passive and apathetic… a capitulation if you will.

There is another powerful story of silence in scripture. The gospel of Matthew gives us Jesus’ silence at two very important times in the lead up to his crucifixion. One is when he is before the Sanhedrin being falsely accused in an illegal trial. The high priest, via a question, demanded that he answer to the accusations being brought against him. The response in Matt 26:63 was ‘Jesus kept silent.’ He answered the next question, but that silence in the face of false testimonies and accusations was neither passive or apathetic – it was born from strength and a voluntary embrace of weakness… and that’s not an oxymoron.

The next instance of Jesus’ silence before his crucifixion is in front of Pilate. Jesus was willing to answer Pilate’s questions, but again, when faced with the false accusations the Sanhedrin was bringing against him he remained silent to the amazement of the governor.

He answered every question that did not demand that he defend himself. He made statements about who he was/is but he would not defend himself against false accusations. That silence said everything. That silence was strong. That silence has filled the earth for around 2000 years now and it has revealed a lot about who God is. ‘But HIS silence fills the earth…’

Silence is strength and while it is inherently apophatic in that it seeks God in what is not rather than in what is, it still reveals God and it reveals who we are. The question is, do we really want to know what will be revealed? Silence carries a message not easily heard, it brings us to the still, small voice but don’t underestimate the strength of that voice. It’s the voice of the one who stood before his accusers and made himself heard so powerfully by remaining silent when their noise was at its loudest and most deafening.

May we be people who hear the voice of the divine in the silence that fills the earth. May we know the voice of the one who remained silent in the face of his accusers as they sought his demise. In embracing silence may we hear the voices of the voiceless in our world because of injustice. God dwells in that silence. When we utter words and pursue action, may they be accepted by God and be part of his voice in the world; may they give voice to those who are voiceless.

Read more of my reflections on the Psalms.

Here’s why I’m walking this journey through the Psalms.