120. SILENCE
--page 943--
When Silence Is Golden
A time to keep silence, and a time to speak. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath (Ecc.3:7; Jam.1:19).
1. In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin: but he that refraineth his lips is wise (Pro.10:19).
2. He that keepeth his mouth keepeth his life: but he that openeth wide his lips shall have destruction (Pro.13:3).
3. He that hath knowledge spareth his words. Even a fool when he holdeth his peace, is counted wise: and he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding (Pro.17:27-28).
4. Better to let'm wonder why you didn't talk than why you did.
5. If for a tranquil mind you seek,
These things observe with care:
Of whom you speak, to whom you speak,
And how, and when, and where.
6. Every time you give another a `piece of your mind' you add to your own vacuum.
7. I have often regretted my murmurs, seldom my silence.
8. Tact is the unsaid part of what you think.
9. Tact is the ability to make a person see the lightning without letting him feel the bolt.
10. We have two ears and only one tongue in order that we may hear more and speak less.
11. A good listener is not only popular everywhere, but after a while he knows something.
12. God, Who gave us two eyes to see and two ears to hear, has given us but one tongue to speak.
13. Blessed are the brief, for they shall have lower phone bills.
14. If you are a man of few words, you won't have to take so many of them back.
15. If it had been intended for man to talk twice as much as listen, he would have been given two mouths and one ear.
16. Learning to speak in two or more languages is not nearly as hard as learning to keep your mouth shut in one.
17. Some folks say the squeaking wheel gets the grease, but others point out that it is the first one to be replaced.
18. Never say all that you know, but always know all that you say.
19. If you wish others to keep you secret, first keep it yourself.
20. Be slow of tongue and quick of eye.
21. Sometimes silence is a great peacemaker.
22. Pray before you say!
23. Don't speak unless you're spoken through!
24. Communication is nothing without listening.
25. Speaking without thinking is shooting without aim.
26. Wash your dirty linen at home.
27. He who talks without thinking runs more risks than he who thinks without talking.
28. It is better to be silent and be considered a fool, than to speak and remove all doubt.
29. Be sure your brain is in gear before engaging your mouth.
30. It often shows a fine command of language to say nothing.
31. Smart people speak from experience--smarter people from experience, sometimes don't speak.
32. The mouth is the grocer's friend, the dentist's fortune, the orator's pride and the fool's trap.
33. It takes a baby approximately two years to learn to talk and the rest of his life to learn to keep his mouth shut.
34. The hardest thing for some people to say in 25 words or less is "good-bye."
35. A loose tongue often gets its owner into a tight place.
36. Usually the first screw that gets loose in a person `s head is the one that controls the tongue.
37. The ability to speak several languages is valuable, but the art of keeping silent in one is precious when necessary.
38. The tongue can be a blessing, and the tongue can be a curse! How are you using yours--for better or for worse?
39. Did you hear the story about the little boy who came home from school and told his mother, "Mama, I was a peacemaker today."
She said, "Oh, you were? Did you stop a fight?"
"No," he said.
She said, "Well, did you refuse to fight?"
"No."
She said, "Well then how were you a peacemaker?"
He said, "I knew something I didn't tell."
40. Never answer a matter before you hear it (Pr.18:13).
41. The loudest mouths usually have nothing to say.
42. A wise old owl sat on an oak.
The more he heard the less he spoke,
The less he spoke the more he heard.
Why aren't we all like that wise old bird?
(See also No.33, 85, 326C, 381, 1247, 1250, 1377, 1547.)
43. JOB 13:5 O that ye would altogether hold you peace! and it should be your wisdom.
44. PSA.39:1 I said, I will take heed to my ways, that I sin not with my tongue: I will keep my mouth with a bridle, while the wicked is before me.
45. PSA.46:10a Be still, and know that I am God.
46. PSA.141:3 Set a watch O Lord, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips.
47. PRO.10:19 In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin: but he that refraineth his lips is wise.
48. PRO.11:13 A talebearer revealeth secrets: but he that is of a faithful spirit concealeth the matter.
49. PRO.13:3 He that keepeth his mouth keepeth his life: but he that openeth wide his lips shall have destruction.
50. PRO.15:23 A man hath joy by the answer of his mouth: and a word spoken in due season, how good is it!
51. PRO.15:28 The heart of the righteous studieth to answer: but the mouth of the wicked poureth out evil things.
52. PRO.16:23 The heart of the wise teacheth his mouth, and addeth learning to his lips.
53. PRO.17:27,28 He that hath knowledge spareth his words: and a man of understanding is of an excellent spirit. Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace, is counted wise: and he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding.
54. PRO.18:13 He that answereth a matter before he heareth it, it is folly and shame unto him.
55. PRO.21:23 Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from troubles.
56. PRO.29:11 A fool uttereth all his mind: but a wise man keepeth it in till afterwards.
57. PRO.29:20 Seest thou a man that is hasty in his words? There is more hope of a fool than of him.
58. ECC.5:2 Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in Heaven, and thou upon Earth: therefore let thy words be few.
59. ECC.5:6 Suffer not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin; neither say thou before the angel, that it was an error: wherefore should God be angry at thy voice, and destroy the work of thine hands?
60. ACT.19:36b Ye ought to be quiet, and do nothing rashly.
61. 1TH.4:11 And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you.
62. JAM.1:26 If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man s religion is vain.
Copyright (c) 1998 by The Family