What is the meaning ofephphathain the Bible?

An Aramaic word, signifying 'Be opened.' Mark 7:34.

Eph’pha tha - I shall be opened.

'And he says, 'Ephphatha.' That is the Aramaic word for 'Be opened.' The ears need to be opened first. We know from Romans 10 that faith comes through hearing the Word of God. So if someone cannot hear, they are lost. They need to hear first for God to work further in their lives.

As He touched the man the Lord looked up to heaven, and sighed, saying "Ephphatha," that is "Be opened." The burden of the world's sin, and the many miseries attendant upon it, oppressed His gracious spirit. He recalled the day when, ages before, He pronounced His whole creative work "very good" (Gen. 1:31), and He groaned as He considered all the havoc that Satan and man had caused through sin. It was this that brought Him from above. But He had come, not to heal physical diseases only, but to make atonement for sin by His blood, in order that all who believe might be delivered once and for ever from the guilt and thraldom of sin, and be reconciled to God in peace and blessing.

What a scene it must have been! The subjects of delivering power enjoying and displaying the grace shown them. Speech, sight, activity, and use of limbs — all this heard or seen by the wondering crowds. How many cases of cure, each full of interest in itself, could have been recounted. Matthew recounts all this, but Mark has related one deeply interesting and instructive case — that of the deaf man, who had an impediment in his speech (7:31-37). He could not hear; he could not speak aright. Had we seen him at a distance or in the crowd, we should probably have thought him like other men, till coming to close quarters we would have discovered his defects, and have heard that he could not properly articulate. The ears were there, the tongue too was there; but the former were useless, and the latter was inefficient.

How long he had been in that condition is not stated. Human skill and human resources were powerless. They brought him now to the Lord, and supplicated Him for the desired relief. The Lord graciously at once acceded to their request. He took the deaf man aside from the multitude. The two were now alone together, the deaf man in the company of the Son of God. Attention was first directed to his ears, then to his tongue. He must hear sounds aright before he could speak intelligibly. This act of the Lord, in first putting His fingers into his ears, gives the impression that he had been deaf from his birth — had never heard the articulate sounds of human speech. Soon, however, he was to hear that most melodious of musical instruments — the human voice; for he was in the company of Him who made the ears, and who also formed man's mouth, and who was not indifferent to his condition. Looking up to heaven, the Lord sighed — a token of His sympathy, and a proof how fully He felt the consequences of the Fall. And then He uttered that one word in Aramaic, which Mark has preserved: "Ephphatha," that is, "Be opened."

How often are we reminded, in reading the Gospels, of that graphic description in the Psalms (33:9) of the exercise of the Creator's power: "He spake, and it was done." It was thus in the storm; it was thus with the leper; it was thus with the deaf man. "Ephphatha" was the word of command, and it was done. Immediately "his ears were opened, and the string of his tongue was loosed, and he spake plain." The effect on the crowd was marked also. The Lord "charged them to tell no man; but the more He charged them, so much the more a great deal they published it. And they were beyond measure astonished, saying, He has done all things well: He maketh both the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak" (7:33-37).

(4) The word of authority. Following His touch of sympathy, the Lord uttered His word of command, Ephphatha. The Servant of Jehovah, in the plenitude of His rights as the Son of God, spoke, and it was accordingly done, for His word was equally potent to control and to correct as it was to create. Had He not "planted the ear" (Ps. 94:9)? If He made the hearing ear (Prov. 20:12), should He not cause the deaf ear to hear His voice? Addressing therefore the impotent member rather than the man himself, the Lord said, Be opened, and accordingly the ears of the deaf man were unstopped, and the bond of his tongue loosed, so that he spoke aright.

The miracle was wrought in secret, and not as a public sign. Hence the Lord, having opened the ears and mouth of the man brought to Him, gave direction that no one should be told. But this command fell upon the deaf ears of disobedience, for the more He charged this upon them, so much the more a great deal they published it. … Being beyond measure astonished they said, "He has done all things well: he makes even the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak."

He marked in both acts how all depended on bringing Himself personally to bear on the actual wants. He who wrought was man, but no less was He God, the Son incarnate and on earth, in His pitiful love serving God and man. It was not only that He applied what came from within Himself to the man's tongue, but looking up to heaven He groaned, and saith to him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened. Power truly went out of Him, and love was its spring in devotedness to God Who is as truly light in His nature as love is the character of its energy, which His own service was manifesting. And thus, if He deigned to touch the man so intimately, He looked up to heaven whence He came in a love that abides unchanging and above all evil, yet groaned in deep sense of it, whilst He said to him, Be opened.

And they bring to him [one] deaf and hardly speaking, and they beseech him to lay his hand on him. And having taken him away from the crowd apart, he put his fingers to his ears; and he spit and touched his tongue; and looking up to heaven he groaned, and saith to him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened. And straightway his ears were opened, and the bond of his tongue was loosed, and he spoke aright. And he charged them that they should tell no one; but the more he charged them, the more abundantly were they publishing [it]. And they were beyond measure astonished, saying, He hath done all things well; he maketh both the deaf to hear and the speechless to speak" (vers. 32-37).

The minute accuracy of the Holy Spirit in recounting Christ's miracles is admirable. This case differs from others, in that the sufferer is not said to have been absolutely mute, but to have had an impediment of speech, or speaking with difficulty, as well as deaf. Nevertheless the Lord takes especial pains with him. The manner reveals the divine Servant's grace. There was no question of His power. Ordinarily He healed all that needed it in a moment, no matter how extreme, as when an unclean spirit was the cause of the dumbness rather than physical inability or defect. Here He was pleased to manifest His tender interest in detail, and His compassionate love no less than His power to heal. He does much more than what those besought who brought the patient to Him. Putting the hand on the needy one was the usual sign of blessing; and less than this, a word, would have been enough, if so the obedient Lord had seen fit to God's glory.

'And they bring to him a deaf man who could not speak right, and they beseech him that he might lay his hand on him. And having taken him away from the crowd apart, he put his fingers to his ears; and having spit, he touched his tongue; and looking up to heaven he groaned, and says to him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened. And immediately his ears were opened, and the band of his tongue was loosed and he spoke right' (Mk. 7:32-35).

'Be opened' (v. 34) represents one of the forms of the specific verb mentioned above. The context shows it is fitting that this should be the first occurrence in the series of eight. I would like to make an application for Christians: before we were saved we were sinners and enemies of God, not even able to hear God's voice. In the story above, we observe the actions needed to enable us to listen to His voice.

1918 73 "And again he went out from the borders of Tyre, and came through Sidon unto the sea of Galilee, through the midst of the borders of Decapolis. And they bring unto him one that was deaf, and had an impediment in his speech; and they beseech him to lay his hand upon him. And he took him aside from the multitude privately, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spat, and touched his tongue; and, looking up to heaven, he sighed, and says unto him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened. And his ears were opened, and the bond of his tongue was loosed, and he spake plain. And he charged them that they should tell no man; but the more he charged them, so much the more a great deal they published it. And they were beyond measure astonished, saying, He path done all things well: he makes even the deaf to hear and the dumb to speak" (Mark 7:31-37, R.V.).