My Notes
What Does Job 33:16 Mean?
"Then he openeth the ears of men, and sealeth their instruction." Elihu describes how God communicates: He opens ears that were closed and seals instruction permanently into the human heart. The opening is revelation — God unstops the deafness that prevents hearing. The sealing is permanence — the instruction, once received, is stamped indelibly.
The phrase "openeth the ears" (yigleh ozen — literally 'uncovers the ear') means God removes whatever was blocking hearing: the ear was covered, muffled, stopped up. God peels back the covering and exposes the ear to His voice. The hearing isn't natural capacity. It's divine gift. You hear because God uncovers your ear, not because your ear was already functional.
The "sealeth their instruction" (musar yachtom — seals their discipline/correction) means God stamps the lesson permanently: the instruction is sealed like a document with a wax seal — authenticated, finalized, unalterable. What God teaches through opened ears becomes permanent instruction. The lesson is sealed so it can't be lost or forgotten.
Reflection Questions
- 1.What instruction has God sealed in you that you can't un-know — even if you wish you could?
- 2.How does God 'uncovering' the ear change your understanding of spiritual hearing?
- 3.What was blocking your ear before God opened it — and did you even know it was blocked?
- 4.What lesson has God sealed so permanently that it changed who you are, not just what you know?
Devotional
God opens ears. He seals instruction. The hearing is a gift — your ear was covered, and God removed the covering. The instruction is permanent — God stamps it into you like a seal pressed into wax. You didn't earn the hearing. You can't lose the lesson.
The 'openeth the ears' — literally 'uncovers' — means something was blocking your hearing before God acted. You weren't capable of receiving the instruction on your own. The covering could be pride, distraction, busyness, pain, or simple spiritual deafness. Whatever it was, God peeled it back. The first act of divine communication is removing the barrier to reception.
The 'sealeth their instruction' means the lesson, once delivered, is permanent: God doesn't give temporary insights. He seals the instruction — stamps it with His authority, finalizes it, makes it part of who you are. The thing God teaches through an opened ear becomes an unsealed part of your identity. You can ignore it, but you can't un-know it.
Elihu says this to explain how God speaks to people who aren't listening (verse 14 — 'God speaketh once, yea twice, yet man perceiveth it not'): God opens the deaf ear. God seals the resisted lesson. The communication gets through not because the person was ready but because God was persistent. The ear that wouldn't open, God opens. The lesson that wouldn't stick, God seals.
What ear has God opened in you recently — and what instruction has He sealed that you can't un-know?
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
Then he openeth the ears of men,.... Not the ears of his body, which remaining shut while things are presented to his…
Then he openeth the ears of men - Margin, as in Hebrew “revealeth,” or “uncovereth.” The idea is, that he then reveals…
III. By secret Inspirations
Then he openeth the ears of men, and sealeth, etc. - A dream or a vision simply considered…
Job had complained that God kept him wholly in the dark concerning the meaning of his dealings with him, and therefore…
sealeth their instruction The instruction is that communicated when the ear is opened, and a revelation given (comp. ch.…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture