Bible Encyclopedias
Mutter

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

mut´ẽr ( הגה , hāghāh Isaiah 8:19; Isaiah 59:3 ): An onomatopoetic word, used of the growling of a lion Isaiah 31:4 , of the "mourning" of a dove Isaiah 38:14 , or of the human voice, whether speaking inarticulately Isaiah 16:7 or articulately ( Psalm 37:30 , "The mouth of the righteous talketh of wisdom" compare Job 27:4; Proverbs 8:7 , etc.). Hence, it is only the context that can give to hāghāh the meaning "mutter." No such meaning can be gathered from the context of Isaiah 59:3 , and, in fact, the open shamelessness of the sinners seems to be in point. So the verse should be rendered, "Your lips have spoken lies, your tongue uttereth wickedness." In Isaiah 8:19 hāghāh describes the tone of voice used by the necromancers in uttering their formulas, "that chirp and that mutter." That this tone was subdued and indistinct is quite probable. See PEEP .