Bible Encyclopedias
Ephphatha

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

ef´a -tha , ef -a´tha ( Ἐφφαθά , Ephphathá ): Aramaic word used by Christ (Mark 7:34 ), the 'Ethpa'al imperative of Aramaic pethaḥ (Hebrew pāthaḥ ), translated, "Be (thou) opened"; compare Isaiah 35:5 . The Aramaic was the sole popular language of Palestine (Shurer, History of the Jewish People in the Time of Jesus Christ , IIg , 9) and its use shows that we have here the graphic report of an eyewitness, upon whom the dialectic form employed made a deep impression. This and the corresponding act of the touch with the moistened finger is the foundation of a corresponding ceremony in the Roman Catholic formula for baptism.