He Opened Not His Mouth

Yesterday in sacrament meeting our bishop read the words of Isaiah 53 to commemorate the birth of the Savior. As I listened, I was struck in particular by this verse: “He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth” (Isaiah 53:7). As the Savior was taken and mocked and scorned, He did not revile the revilers. Though He did speak some words, He did not open His mouth to speak evil or give angry retorts to the unjust treatment He received. For example, after being taken to Pilate He was brought before Herod. Luke recorded, “And when Herod saw Jesus, he was exceeding glad: for he was desirous to see him of a long season, because he had heard many things of him; and he hoped to have seen some miracle done by him. Then he questioned with him in many words; but he answered him nothing. And the chief priests and scribes stood and vehemently accused him. And Herod with his men of war set him at nought, and mocked him, and arrayed him in a gorgeous robe, and sent him again to Pilate” (Luke 23:8-11). He said nothing as He was mocked and accused; He did not return enmity for enmity. As He later hung on the cross, “And the people stood beholding. And the rulers also with them derided him, saying, He saved others; let him save himself, if he be Christ, the chosen of God. And the soldiers also mocked him, coming to him, and offering him vinegar, And saying, If thou be the king of the Jews, save thyself” (Luke 23:35-37). Despite these aggravating words, He opened not His mouth but patiently waited for the cup to be fully drunk.

Hopefully most of us will not have to face this kind of mocking and cruelty, but surely we all have experiences frequently when we have to decide whether we will hold our tongue or let the natural man speak. It is often much harder to open not our mouth than to criticize others or speak negatively when we feel the need to defend ourselves or correct those we see fault in. I often quote to my children the wise words of Thumper the rabbit in the movie Bambi: “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say nothing at all.” The injunction is simple and is what we should follow; but its application is so hard for most of us! Sometimes the most Christian thing we can do is to not open our mouths, to let it pass, to forget our own pride and save our words for that which will edify and uplift instead. James spoke of this when he said, “For in many things we offend all. If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body…. Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth! And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity…. But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. Therewith bless we God, even the Father; and therewith curse we men, which are made after the similitude of God. Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be” (James 3:2-10). President Jeffrey R. Holland commented on these verses this way: “Well, that is pretty straightforward! Obviously James doesn’t mean our tongues are always iniquitous, nor that everything we say is ‘full of deadly poison.’ But he clearly means that at least some things we say can be destructive, even venomous—and that is a chilling indictment for a Latter-day Saint! The voice that bears profound testimony, utters fervent prayer, and sings the hymns of Zion can be the same voice that berates and criticizes, embarrasses and demeans, inflicts pain and destroys the spirit of oneself and of others in the process. ‘Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing,’ James grieves. ‘My brethren [and sisters], these things ought not so to be.’” As we are tempted to say what should not be said, putting others down with words that will not uplift, we must remember that Jesus opened not His mouth this way and we can choose to do the same. The Savior gave us this simple instruction to follow that should guide us in all we say: “Let your words tend to edifying one another” (Doctrine and Covenants 136:24).