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Verse

Mark 7:34

ESV And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, “Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.”
NIV He looked up to heaven and with a deep sigh said to him, 'Ephphatha!' (which means 'Be opened!').
NASB and looking up to heaven with a deep sigh, He *said to him, 'Ephphatha!' that is, 'Be opened!'
CSB Looking up to heaven, he sighed deeply and said to him, "Ephphatha! " (that is, "Be opened! ").
NLT Looking up to heaven, he sighed and said, 'Ephphatha,' which means, 'Be opened!'
KJV And looking up to heaven, he sighed, and saith unto him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened.

What does Mark 7:34 mean?

Jesus and the disciples are in Decapolis, possibly near the southeastern shore of the Sea of Galilee. A group of people have brought Him a man who is deaf and can't speak clearly. Jesus has pulled him away from the crowd and indicates what He plans to do.

Jesus tends to look up in situations where He wishes to direct attention to God, notably, when He feeds the five thousand (Mark 6:41) and raises Lazarus (John 11:41). "Ephphatha" is either Hebrew or Aramaic for "be opened." Like with the raising of the little girl (Mark 5:41), Mark records the original words, perhaps to show Jesus did not use a magical spell.

There's a lot of confusion over the fact that although Jesus is God, He often prays to God. The topic touches on the nature of the Trinity and whether Jesus is all-powerful during His life on earth. Jesus clearly states that as a person, He is separate from the Father (John 5:19–27). In fact, He "emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant" (Philippians 2:7). Jesus' power comes from the Holy Spirit, not Himself (Mark 3:22–30).

Jesus, the Father, and the Holy Spirit are members of the Trinity. They are of the same essence, but they are different persons with different roles. In His time on earth, Jesus learns obedience to God (Hebrews 5:8) and asks God for power (John 11:41–42) and wisdom (Mark 1:35; 6:46). Jesus, the only perfect man who ever lived, serves as our example; no matter how much we think we have what we need, we still need to ask for God's power.
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