Bill Mounce

For an Informed Love of God

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Saturday, November 9, 2013

Does “open its/his mouth” mean anything? (Matthew 5:2)

Matthew 5:2 says that Jesus “opened his mouth and taught them, saying” (καὶ ἀνοίξας τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ ἐδίδασκεν αὐτοὺς λέγων). If you were in a sarcastic mood you might respond, “How else would he teach? With a closed mouth?” This is why the NIV skips it entirely: “he began to teach them,” as well as most other translations (HCSB, NRSV, NET, NLT). They see it as unnecessarily redundant. The ESV, NASB, and KJV keep the phrase.

I did a search for the phrase “open* his/its mouth” (* allows the search to find “opens” and “opened”). There are seven in the Greek Testament (ESV). There are non-metaphorical uses such as Peter opening the mouth of the fish to find the coin (Matt 17:27), and the metaphor of the earth opening its mouth to swallow the water from the beast (Rev 12:16).

There are two verses of special interest. The beast opened its mouth to utter blasphemies (Rev 13:6). The point is not that the orifice below the nose opened, but that it said something.

In Acts 18:14 we read, “But when Paul was about  to open his mouth, Gallio said  to the Jews ….” The point is that Paul was stopped before he said something. And then there is Job; “Job opens his mouth in empty talk; he multiplies words without knowledge” (35:16). Also Prov 24:7; “wisdom is too high for a fool; in the gate he does not open his mouth.” The point in both is that Paul and the fool do not even begin to say something.

This brings us to the important verses. “Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning from this Scripture he announced the good news to him,  Jesus” (Acts 8:35). “So Peter opened his mouth and said: “Truly I understand that God is not one who shows partiality” (Acts 10:34). What was implicit in the preceding paragraph is explicit here: “opening the mouth” sounds like a rhetorical device to add solemnity to what is going to be said.

When you check the Old Testament, you see similar verses. “Job opened his mouth and cursed the day of his birth” (Job 3:1; cf. 33:2). “And behold, one in the likeness of the children of man touched my lips. Then I opened my mouth and spoke” (Dan 10:16). Again, it feels like the phrase “opened his mouth” is a rhetorical device to add solemnity to the saying.

So does the phrase “to open one’s mouth” have any meaning, or is it so redundant that it should be skipped in translation? I think that there is enough of a pattern to show that it was a way of adding solemnity to what was to be said. Carson comments that it reflects OT roots and “is used in solemn or revelatory contexts.”

It is not that Jesus just started saying the Sermon on the Mount. He looked around at the audience and solemnly began his most memorable sermon.

We should be very careful at dropping out entire phrases in translation, even if there is not an easy counterpart in English.

Comments

Amen. It's so sad that some common translations would omit an entire phrase. That they would judge anything to be redundant. That they would judge the Word as anything but God-breathed and therefore cherishing every word. If we don't see the significance, it is still not up to us to omit. Thank you for your work in bringing out the significance of opening the mouth.

I suspect when you typed "The point in both is that Paul and the fool do even begin to say something" that you actually meant "The point in both is that Paul and the fool do NOT even begin to say something." As for the rest of your post, you then would saying that the NT words are often solemn, since the phrase is often used.

Thanks. It is corrected.

People can say a lot without opening their mouth. Jesus taught his disciples in many different ways including by opening his mouth. It appears arogant to think that we know better than the writer of the original text so that we can rewrite it (by dropping parts of the text out) rather than translate. So your final thought is on the right track.

I have always got deeper meaning when each word is cherished as a pearl. It prompt your soul when reading and one word or phrase can have such an impact on a persons life. I have often wondered about this phrase. Jesus had to open his mouth before teaching, just as the stone on the tomb of Lazarus had to be rolled away before he could be released. There is always some action that needs to be done first before the word of God can be released. Thank you for expanding this important phrase.

I once did a 'stylometric' (i.e., word-count) comparison of John's Gospel and Revelation, and found something parallel in John--a frequent use of the formula, "Then answered Jesus and said, ...." A chaplain friend of mine thought that John was emphasizing that what the Lord said was no mere casual reply, but definitive answer--a correction to a faulty world-view. As a historian, I'm thinking there's also an "I was there" assertion by the narrator, and it's a "visual." It puts the reader with the narrator in the presence of the person speaking. For what it's worth. :)

KJV studier here. I think opened his mouth means the word of God is spread out from confined thought. It makes me pause to listen carefully. Jesus was set and standing on a mountain when he proclaimed his special inclusions. The part known as the Beatitudes the first thing out of Jesuses mouth at Sermon on the Mount translated I believe by most thinkers is misunderstood. Blessed are the poor in spirit for they shall inherit the kingdom of heaven. This part I believe refers to the souls who suffer this life greatly from mental illness who are possessed by the demons that Christ and his disciples cast out. These are the poor souls who are societies misunderstood and outcast rejects who by no fault of their own live a painful existence on earth. Following he clarifies. This is not to be confused with the Blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted. The meek are the born deformed who are sent to group homes and institutions. They are helpless souls who share little of the earth. They get Heaven too being poor in spirit. Paul opened his mouth when he preached and baptized what is believed to be the first gentile, the Eunuch from Ethiopia thus spreading the word. That was a desert. Nothing was there right. Do not change a word or a tittle I think because much is lost when we mess with God’s word that could be lost. What does anybody think about my thought on this? Kelly

God speaks through his people. The phrase signifies to me that if we are willing to open our mouth, God will speak through us (as he did through Jesus). Also he will heal if we are willing to step out and pray and touch those who need it. Lord give us a willing heart!