The Bible shows that God's silences are not his absence. Jesus was silent through thirty hidden years, before Pilate and Herod, in a storm, in the tomb, and for four hundred years before his coming, yet every silence ended in a word, a rescue, or a resurrection. God is often working most in what looks like his quiet.

Does God still speak?

Christianity holds that God has spoken most fully in Jesus (Hebrews 1:1-2) and continues to speak through Scripture, his Spirit, and his people. A season of felt silence is common in the life of faith and, as with the silences of Jesus, is often a preparation rather than an abandonment.

When God said nothing

The Silences of Jesus

Why is God silent? It is one of the oldest and hardest questions of faith. It helps to notice that God, in Christ, was often silent, and that his silences were never his absence. He was silent for thirty hidden years, silent before his accusers, silent in a storm that terrified his friends, silent in a tomb on Saturday, silent for four hundred years before he came. Every one of those silences ended in a word, a work, or a resurrection.

“1 Kings 19:12”And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.

Each silence below has its own page: the moment, what it means, and how it meets you when God feels silent.

The Thirty Hidden YearsThe silence of Nazareth · Luke 2:51-52
Silent Before PilateThe Lamb who did not open his mouth · Matthew 27:12-14
Silent Before HerodHe answered him nothing · Luke 23:8-9
Writing in the DustThe silence that saved her · John 8:6-8
Asleep in the StormWhen God seems not to care · Mark 4:38
The Silence of Holy SaturdayThe day God was in the tomb · Matthew 27:59-66
The Four Hundred Silent YearsThe long wait before Christ · between Malachi and Matthew

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The silence was never the whole story

Every silence of Jesus ended in a word, a work, or a resurrection. If God feels silent to you right now, you are not necessarily far from him; you may be in a Saturday before a Sunday. The Living Bread is a quiet place to keep bringing your questions to him, read the Gospels, and pray, even into the quiet.

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Jesus Christ is Lord.

Frequently asked questions

Why is God silent?: The Bible shows that God's silences are not his absence. Jesus was silent through thirty hidden years, before Pilate and Herod, in a storm, in the tomb, and for four hundred years before his coming, yet every silence ended in a word, a rescue, or a resurrection. God is often working most in what looks like his quiet.
Does God still speak?: Christianity holds that God has spoken most fully in Jesus (Hebrews 1:1-2) and continues to speak through Scripture, his Spirit, and his people. A season of felt silence is common in the life of faith and, as with the silences of Jesus, is often a preparation rather than an abandonment.