“Hearken unto this, … stand still, and consider the wondrous works of God.” Job 37
I came across this in my daily reading this morning.
“But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil.” Proverbs 1:33
From the 1828 Webster’s Dictionary:
“Hearken: Listen; to give respectful attention; attend; archaic : to give heed to : hear.
Opposite to this is, “tune out, ignore, to refuse to take notice of, to reject.”
“Listen: To hear something with thoughtful attention; give consideration; to be alert to catch an expected sound.”
“Hear: to gain knowledge of; to gain information; to receive communication; learn.”
Ray C. Stedman wrote about “hearkening to God” – as we sit in church, “Externally it looks as though you are all paying attention. You sit there quietly, with rapt, turned-up faces, your eyes open and staring straight ahead, apparently attracted by what the Word of God is saying. But… Some of you are playing golf. Others of you are rehearsing a business deal. Some of you are planning a trip. Some are going over a conversation you had two days ago. It would be fascinating at the end of a service to know where everybody has been! But God … when His Word is speaking, listen! And not only listen, hearken! Hearken means to heed the Word, to do something about it, to let it really change you.”
He goes on to say that not to listen is to, “harden your heart” and result, “the minute anything goes wrong with them, they are ready to fall apart.”
He ends with, “Besides church, are we purposefully seeking quiet times and spaces when we can pay attention and hearken to God’s word letting Him speak peace into our souls?”