He Did Not Open His Mouth

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.

(Isaiah 53:7)

As I opened my Bible to listen to whatever God wanted to share with me this morning I decided to read the chapter in Isaiah where I had some papers stuck into the Bible that needed arrangement. I decided to meditate and allow my heart to absorb whatever the Spirit had for me and to allow time for my own spirit to harmonize with the Spirit of heaven.

When I came to the above verse I noticed that it mentioned twice about Jesus not opening His mouth. This was clearly in reference to the intense time when He was undergoing the most shameful attacks on His body and spirit that could be invented by humans and demons. I used to think that Jesus simply kept His mouth shut and assumed that He did so to keep any potential anger or resentment stuffed inside so He could finish His perfect sacrifice for our redemption.

But with my new views of God that are taking shape in my mind I see that this kind of thinking is clearly faulty. There were possibly many good reasons why Jesus did not open His mouth under abuse but I don't think that it was because He was gritting His teeth and suppressing desires of anger and resentment in reaction to the treatment that He was receiving. That could easily describe the reaction that we might have in our distorted ideas of righteousness, but Jesus had very different motives and was dealing with a view of reality dramatically different than most of us ever perceive.

But another text came to my mind that I find interesting in this context. I do not know all the implications that it has in this setting, but I do see how the two texts can easily compliment each other when we find ourselves suffering under accusation, provocations or abuse.

But the things that proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and those defile the man. (Matthew 15:18)

I am wondering if there is not a principle that is not real clear to me yet that is being described in these two passages. Could it be that there are times when it is crucially important to keep the mouth shut in spite of an intense desire to speak truth or establish justice when there clearly is none? I know this sounds like a rhetorical question but that is not my intention here. I am searching my mind and heart and trying to hear what may be something new that I need to be more aware of that I need in my own experience. (I know – there are plenty of people eager to tell me I need to keep my mouth shut more often) And I wonder how this relates to the advice in Proverbs? A gentle answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger. (Proverbs 15:1)

What I am wondering is, was it possible that if Jesus had spoken anything under those circumstances that it would have proven to be a defilement to His spirit? In those particular kinds of circumstances where all matter of defilement was being heaped on Him, or us, is there a law of the mind that we must stay in harmony with that requires total silence – for the right reasons – to maintain a right spirit? And one of the descriptions of a right spirit is called “a meek and quiet spirit”.

Clearly Jesus was not defiled by all the abuse heaped upon Him as was the intention of all the evil forces arrayed against Him. His body was certainly defiled and He did allow all the consequences of the defilement of the whole world to rest on His soul until it crushed out His life, but His spirit did not become defiled in such a way as to cause Him to relinquish the slightest amount of confiding (more like clinging) trust in His Father in heaven.

As I think back over times when I have chosen to keep silent, usually in response to urgent promptings by the Spirit of God, I have noticed that I have avoided a lot more trouble than what I was already receiving and I was often able to eventually see that what was really going on was very different than my first very strong assumptions. In fact, I am coming to believe more and more strongly that one of the most important things I need to learn in my Christian growth is to listen more carefully and consistently to the very quiet voice inside of me from the Spirit of God, particularly when I feel the strongest urges to react to what I perceive as an attack or threat on my value. And usually that prompting from the Spirit includes the request for me to remain silent and allow God to change my perspective of reality in that moment.

I find another very interesting clue in this passage that I believe adds an important ingredient to this mix. In verse 9 it says, Nor was there any deceit in His mouth. That reminds me of a verse in Revelation of the people of God in the last days who have a similar description.

These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes. These have been purchased from among men as first fruits to God and to the Lamb. And no lie was found in their mouth; they are blameless. (Revelation 14:4-5)

I sense that whatever shape this principle has, it involves the liability for me to become defiled with deception in my spirit and heart whenever I indulge in the temptation to blurt when I hurt. I am all too aware of my penchant for blame and counterattack and resistance when I feel threatened. And in those moments if I can just obey the quiet voice inside of me pleading with me to keep still and focus on what God has to reveal to me instead of opening my mouth, I find that the direction of my inner life in particular always takes a turn for something very important and valuable to emerge from the situation.

I am sure there is much more that could be explored here, but this is what I see so far.