Why may prophets remain silent?

Summary:

Prophets may remain silent sometimes. 

There are several possible reasons for this to happen. For example:

- The prophet hasn't received anything from God to speak.

- There is a need for another topic to be addressed in priority.

- There is a temporary judgment from God on people.

- The prophet needs alone time. 

A prophet remaining silent is not necessarily sinning, even if it is possible in certain cases that a prophet should actually speak but is disobeying God by not speaking. 

It is important to avoid making assumptions on why a prophet may be silent as there can be consequences for doing so if the assumption does not match reality. 

Furthermore pressuring a prophet to speak is usually to be avoided for various reasons as there can be consequences for doing so if it is not led by God to rebuke the prophet for disobedience, both on the person doing it and also potentially on the prophet, such as:

- Tempting the prophet to disobey God.

- Violating God's will for silence.

- Usurping God's authority. 

You can find more details below:

The prophet hasn't received anything from God to speak:

A true prophet's primary responsibility is to speak only what God gives them. If God is silent, they must be silent.

Balaam understood a core principle: a prophet is constrained by God's command, as it is written: "BALAAM answered and said to the servants of Balak, 'Though Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I COULD NOT GO BEYOND THE COMMAND OF THE LORD MY GOD TO DO LESS OR MORE.'" (Numbers 22:18).

Jesus, also being a prophet, said to people: "I have many things to say and to judge concerning you. BUT the One having sent Me is true; and WHAT I HAVE HEARD FROM HIM, THESE THINGS I SAY TO THE WORLD" (John 8:26). Jesus would only limit Himself to speak what He heard from the Father.

It is written that one is not to hear the words of the prophets who are given to worthless speculation and are speaking not from the mouth of the Lord: "Thus says the LORD Almighty, “Stop hearing the words of the prophets; for THEY ARE GIVEN TO WORTHLESS SPECULATION for themselves; THEY SPEAK a vision from their own heart, and NOT FROM THE MOUTH OF THE LORD" (Jeremiah 23:16).

There is a need for another topic to be addressed in priority:

A prophet can be silent concerning a matter in order for another topic to be addressed in priority. 

This can take form in two ways:

1) The prophet is completely silent:

→This is giving room for the person to think about their request, so that they might reconsider requesting that. 

2) The prophet is silent concerning the request made, but directs instead the conversation differently toward what needs to be addressed:

→This is done to point the person toward what needs to be prioritized. 

1) The prophet is completely silent:

A prophet can be completely silent. 

→This is giving room for the person to think about their request, so that they might reconsider requesting that. 

It is written about Jesus: "When Herod saw Jesus, he was very glad, for he had long desired to see him, because he had heard about him, and he was hoping to see some sign done by him. So HE [Herod] QUESTIONNED HIM AT SOME LENGTH, BUT HE [Jesus] MADE NO ANSWER" (Luke 23:8-9).

Here the silence from Jesus should have implicitly redirected Herod's attention on another topic: Herod's intentions and current requests, so that Herod would start examining them to see if they are correct or pure. 

2) The prophet is silent concerning the request made, but directs instead the conversation differently toward what needs to be addressed:

The prophet can be silent concerning the request made, but direct instead the conversation differently toward what needs to be addressed. 

→This is done to point the person toward what needs to be prioritized.

For example, it is written about Jesus that a ruler of the Jews "came to Him (by) night and SAID (to) Him, “Rabbi, we-know that You-have-come from God (as a) TEACHER. For no-one is-able TO-BE-DOING THESE SIGNS which You are-doing unless (the) GOD IS WITH HIM”. JESUS RESPONDED and said (to) him, “Truly, truly, I-say (to) you, UNLESS ONE IS BORN AGAIN, HE-IS NOT ABLE TO-SEE THE KINGDOM (OF) GOD”." (John 3:2-3). 

Jesus in His answer did not mention that if He was a TEACHER, or if He was DOING SIGNS or if GOD WAS WITH HIM. He answered SOMETHING ELSE ENTIRELY to go straight to the heart of a certain matter. 

Another example: "having-found Him on-the-other-side (of) the sea, THEY [the crowd] SAID (to) Him, “Rabbi, WHEN HAVE-YOU-COME HERE?” JESUS RESPONDED (to) them and said, “Truly, truly, I-say (to) you, YOU-ARE-SEEKING ME NOT BECAUSE YOU-SAW SIGNS, BUT BECAUSE YOU-ATE OF THE LOAVES-OF-BREAD AMD WERE FILLED-TO-SATISFACTION" (John 6:25:26).

Jesus in His answer did not mention WHEN HE HAD COME HERE. He answered SOMETHING ELSE ENTIRELY to go straight to the heart of a certain matter. 

There is a temporary judgment from God on people:

God may JUDGE THE PEOPLE (FOR SOMETHING THEY ARE OR ARE DOING) and make the prophet to remain silent.

For example the LORD said to the prophet Ezekiel: "I WILL MAKE YOUR TONGUE CLINGE TO YOUR PALATE, AND YOU SHALL BE MUTE. And there shall not be to them a reproving man; FOR THEY ARE A REBELLIOUS HOUSE" (Ezekiel 3:26).

Another example: It is written about Amos the prophet that "Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, ‘AMOS has conspired against you in the midst of the house of Israel. THE LAND IS NOT ABLE TO BEAR ALL HIS WORDS.’" (Amos 7:12). And so as a consequence: "the days are coming, a statement of the Lord YHWH, that I WILL SEND a famine into the land, not a famine for bread, and not a thirst for water, but rather A FAMINE OF HEARING THE WORDS OF YHWH. And they shall stagger from sea to sea, and from the north even to east; THEY SHALL ROAM ABOUT TO SEEK THE WORD OF YHWH, AND THEY SHALL NOT FIND IT" (Amos 8:11-12).

The prophet needs alone time:

A prophet can be silent because HE NEEDS ALONE TIME.

It is written about Jesus, also being a prophet, that "the word about Him was-spreading more, and LARGE CROWS WERE-COMING TOGETHER TO-HEAR, AND TO-BE-CURED FROM THEIR INFIRMITIES. BUT HE [Jesus] WAS RETREATING WITHIN THE DESOLATE (PLACES) and praying" (Luke 5:15-16). 

Here Jesus needed to retreat in desolate places to have alone time to pray. He was not available to answer. 

A prophet remaining silent is not necessarily sinning:

Not every prophet remaining silent is necessarily sinning. That is, it can be perfectly righteous for a prophet to say a word or to remain silent. Jesus, also being a prophet, remained silent many times when people were questioning or requesting Him, and yet He was "WITHOUT SIN" (Hebrews 4:15) as "HE COMMITTED NO SIN" (1 Peter 2:22).

For example: "(A) CANNAANITE WOMAN having-come-out from those districts WAS-CRYING-OUT, SAYING, “HAVE-MERCY ON ME, MASTER, SON (OF) DAVID. MY DAUGHTER IS BADLY DEMONIZED”. BUT THE (ONE) [Jesus] DID NOT RESPOND (A) WORD (TO) HER" (Matthew 15:22-23). Here Jesus initially did not answer a word to the woman. 

Another example: It is written about Jesus: "When Herod saw Jesus, he was very glad, for he had long desired to see him, because he had heard about him, and he was hoping to see some sign done by him. So HE [Herod] QUESTIONNED HIM AT SOME LENGTH, BUT HE [Jesus] MADE NO ANSWER" (Luke 23:8-9).

It is possible that a prophet should actually speak but is disobeying God by not speaking:

God commanded Jonah to go and speak to Nineveh, but Jonah did not obey, as it is written: "(the) word of the LORD came to Jonah [...], saying, “RISE, AND GO TO NINEVEH [...] BUT JONAH ROSE TO FLEE TO TARSHISH" (Jonah 1:1-3).

God may command a second time the same prophet to speak and send the prophet back to do so if necessary, as for example it is written about Jonah that when Jonah came to be on a boat, he went in the water and "The LORD commanded a great sea-creature to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the sea-creature three days and three nights" (Jonah 1:17), "And the LORD commanded the sea-creature, and it cast out Jonah on the dry (land). AND (THE) WORD OF THE LORD CAME TO JONAH A SECOND TIME, SAYING, “RISE, AND GO TO NINEVEH" (Jonah 3:1-2).

Avoiding making assumptions on why a prophet may be silent:

If a person requests something from a prophet, but the prophet remains silent as a result, it is important to not assume intents from the prophet, because that could potentially lead to issues in the relationship or even bring judgment from God if doing that was not in accordance with reality, as this can be a false accusation if the assumption does not match reality. 

This includes blaspheming the intent of the prophet such as assuming for example that the prophet would be:

- Incompetent,

- Egoistic, 

- Mean-spirited, 

- Ignoring the person,

- Dismissing the person's emotions or request, 

- Not paying attention to the person, 

- Not taking of time for the person,

etc.

Example of assumption: 

A prophet remaining silent after being asked something does not have to necessarily be assumed as "ignoring" the person. "Ignoring" someone is a relational posture of dismissal. It treats the person as insignificant. It involves conveying that the person or their question is not worthy of time or attention. 

→ But that would assume that attention or time would not have been given to the person or their request, and this on purpose. 

Ignoring may be fundamentally rooted in pride, disrespect, or a lack of love, so assuming that a prophet would be "ignoring" someone because they are remaining silent can become an accusation of great weight (as it assumes that the relational posture of the prophet may be rooted in pride, disrespect and a lack of love just because they may remain silent). 

→ Instead for a prophet, it is possible that to remain silent is to NOT IGNORE the spiritual needs of the person, BUT TO ANSWER DIRECTLY with the most appropriate way to answer for that specific context: silence. Silence can be an answer when talking to a prophet specifically. 

Risks of sinning and of incurring God's judgement for making an assumption that does not match reality: 

If any assumption concerning the intents for a prophet to remain silent does not match the exact spiritual reality of the situation, it can become a false accusation blaspheming the prophet's intents. This is important because this can be a sin before God (to judge unrighteously), as Jesus commanded: "DO NOT JUDGE BY APPEARANCES, BUT JUDGE WITH RIGHTEOUS JUDGMENT" (John 7:24). 

Furthermore if the prophet or the prophet's intent has been blasphemed falsely, this act can incur judgment from God Himself as God may need to defend the prophet Himself (as the prophet may need to remain silent, not being authorized to defend himself against the false accusation).

Pressuring a prophet to speak is usually to be avoided:

Pressuring a prophet to speak is usually not good to do for various reasons as there can be consequences for doing so if it is not led by God to rebuke the prophet for disobedience, both on the person doing it and also potentially on the prophet. 

To pressure a prophet to speak can tempt the prophet to disobey God: 

To pressure a prophet to speak about something when a prophet is silent is not good because it could tempt the prophet to disobey God.

For example, it is written about Micaiah the prophet that "the messenger that had gone to call Micaiah spoke to him, saying, Behold now, the words of the prophets with one mouth are good to the king. PLEASE LET YOUR WORD BE AS THE WORD OF ONE OF THEM, AND SPEAK GOOD. AND MICAIAH SAID, As YHWH lives, surely THAT WHICH YHWH SAYS TO ME, THAT I WILL SPEAK" (1 Kings 22:13-14). Here Micaiah is to only speak what the Lord tells him. Not doing so and taking into account the pressure could have made him disobey God. 

If a prophet would speak without being commanded to speak, he can reap unwanted consequences for that, as it is written: "THE PROPHET WHO SHALL SPEAK PRESUMPTUOUSLY IN MY NAME A WORD WHICH I DID NOT COMMAND HIM TO SPEAK in My name a word which I did not command him to speak, and who shall speak in the name of different gods, THAT PROPHET WILL DIE" (Deuteronomy 18:20). 

To pressure a prophet to speak can violate God's will for silence: 

For example the LORD said to the prophet Ezekiel: "I WILL MAKE YOUR TONGUE CLINGE TO YOUR PALATE, AND YOU SHALL BE MUTE. And there shall not be to them a reproving man; FOR THEY ARE A REBELLIOUS HOUSE" (Ezekiel 3:26). 

If someone were to pressure Ezekiel to speak when the Lord's will was for Ezekiel not to, this would violate God's will. 

To pressure a prophet to give a reason for their silence can usurp God's authority:

Pressuring a prophet to give a reason for why they do not speak can usurp the authority of God that is over the prophet, as it is God who is the One who tells the prophet to speak if needed. 

Furthermore, a prophet is to serve and answer to God ultimately, not people. A prophet is a servant of God, and is not to seek to please humans at the same time, as it is written: "am I now (trying to) win-approval-of humans or God? Or am-I-seeking to-please humans? IF I-WERE STILL (SEEKING TO) PLEASE HUMANS, I-WOULD NOT BE (A) SLAVE (OF) CHRIST" (Galatians 1:10). 

A prophet will have to render an account of his actions (or non-actions) for himself to God one day, as Paul wrote: "each (of) us WILL-GIVE (AN) ACCOUNT FOR HIMSELF (TO) GOD" (Romans 14:12). 

A prophet does not have to answer to humans about charges brought against him. For example, it is written about Jesus, also being a prophet, that "DURING HIS BEING-ACCUSED by the chief-priests and elders, HE-ANSWERED NOTHING. Then Pilate says (to) Him, “Do-You not hear how-many (things) they-are-testifying-against You?” AND HE-DID NOT ANSWER HIM WITH-REGARD-TO EVEN ONE CHARGE, so-that the governor (was) marveling greatly" (Matthew 27:12-14). 

God will discipline prophets if they sin by not saying a word, there is no need to pressure them:

God will hold a prophet accountable if they sin by not saying a word, as God may discipline them or judge them. 

For example it is written to the prophet Ezekiel: "WHEN I SAY to the lawless person, ‘By death, you will surely die’; AND YOU DID NOT WARN HIM, NOR SPOKE TO WARM THE LAWLESS PERSON TO TURN FROM HIS WAYS, for him to live; that lawless person will die in his unrighteousness; but HIS BLOOD I WILL REQUIRE FROM YOUR HAND" (Ezekiel 3:18). 

God may even send a prophet to rebuke another prophet. 

For example it is written about a prophet who disobeyed that "HE RETURNED WITH HIM, AND HE ATE BREAD AND DRANK WATER AT HIS HOUSE. And it happened while they were sitting at the table, that THE WORD OF THE LORD CAME TO THE PROPHET having turned him back; AND HE SPOKE TO THE MAN OF GOD coming out of Judah, saying, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Because of which YOU RESISTED THE WORD OF THE LORD, and did not keep the commandment which the LORD your God commanded you, but RETURNED, AND ATE BREAD AND DRANK WATER IN THIS PLACE which He spoke to you, saying, “You shall not eat bread, and you shall not drink water,” by no means shall your body enter into the tomb of your fathers.’”" (1 Kings 13:20-22).

A prophet cannot set their prophethood aside:

People cannot ask a prophet to set their prophethood aside, because being a prophet is not merely about HAVING a gift, it is WHO THEY ARE.

While someone merely HAVING a gift of "prophecy" (Romans 12:6) may choose to use it at a given time and still speak in a personal capacity, a prophet cannot compartmentalize themselves. A prophet IS the gift, and speaks as a prophet, even when speaking casually.

For more information:

Prophet and gift of prophecy can be distinct:
Click here

One cannot SELECTIVELY engage with a prophet, either one ACCEPTS THEM or REJECTS THEM ENTIRELY.

Jesus, who was recognized as a "PROPHET" (John 6:14) after doing a "SIGN" (John 6:14), attended social events like the "wedding" (John 2:1) at Cana. While He may have interacted with people casually, He did not cease being a prophet. When a NEED arose for doing one of the "SIGNS" (John 2:12), He was bound to act in alignment with His prophetic identity.

A prophet can talk to people more casually, but IF GOD INTERVENES and asks the prophet to say or not say something, the prophet is morally bound to do what God commands, because a prophet does not stop being a prophet depending on a given context; a prophet remains a prophet.

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