Bible Strands
Mark 7:34
And looking up to heaven, He sighed deeply and said to him, “Ephphatha!” (which means, “Be opened!”).
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Jesus addresses a deaf man with a speech impediment immediately after taking him aside and touching his ears and tongue. He speaks directly to the man following a moment of physical engagement and private separation from the crowd.
The words — The text records Jesus saying “Ephphatha,” a transliterated Aramaic command meaning “Be opened!” The narrative also notes His action of sighing deeply (estenaxen) while looking up to heaven (anablepsas eis ton ouranon).
The thread — The gesture of looking upward to heaven before acting appears in Mark 6:41 and John 11:41, while the preservation of an Aramaic healing command parallels the account in Mark 5:41.
Why it lands — The passage requires a reader to observe that divine intervention here follows a deliberate physical sequence rather than an immediate verbal decree. It demands acknowledgment that the spoken command initiates an instantaneous, irreversible physical change.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
And looking up to heaven, he sighed, and saith unto him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened.
Cross-references
- John 11:41 So they took away the stone. Then Jesus lifted His eyes upward and said, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me.
- Mark 5:41 Taking her by the hand, Jesus said, “Talitha koum!” which means, “Little girl, I say to you, get up!”
- Mark 6:41 Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, Jesus spoke a blessing and broke the loaves. Then He gave them to His disciples to set before the people. And He divided the two fish among them all.
- John 11:33 When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, He was deeply moved in spirit and troubled.
- Acts 9:34 “Aeneas,” Peter said to him, “Jesus Christ heals you! Get up and put away your mat.” Immediately Aeneas got up,
- Acts 9:40 Then Peter sent them all out of the room. He knelt down and prayed, and turning toward her body, he said, “Tabitha, get up!” She opened her eyes, and seeing Peter, she sat up.
- Mark 8:12 Jesus sighed deeply in His spirit and said, “Why does this generation demand a sign? Truly I tell you, no sign will be given to this generation.”
- John 11:43 After Jesus had said this, He called out in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!”
- Isaiah 53:3 He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief. Like one from whom men hide their faces, He was despised, and we esteemed Him not.
- Mark 1:41 Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out His hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” He said. “Be clean!”