פִּתְחוֹן

From the study of Ezekiel 16:63

Range of meaning

'An opening of the mouth.' It means having the right, standing or boldness to speak. In Ezek 29:21 God gives Ezekiel 'an opening of the mouth' among the exiles, meaning a positive authority to speak.

Against the English

Most versions say 'never open your mouth again.' That can sound like a gag order. The idiom is about no longer having grounds to speak: nothing to say in self-defence, no boasting, no complaint.

Used elsewhere in the period

Found only in Ezekiel (16:63; 29:21). Later Rabbinic Hebrew uses pitḥôn peh for having a pretext or opening to speak, for example to make a claim or an argument.

From the study of Ezekiel 29:21

Range of meaning

Literally 'opening of the mouth'. It occurs only twice in the Hebrew Bible. In Ezekiel 16:63 restored Jerusalem, overwhelmed by shame at God's forgiveness, will 'never again have opening of mouth', meaning no grounds or nerve to speak up. So the phrase means the standing, right or boldness to speak, freedom of speech that is not silenced by shame.

Against the English

KJV and YLT keep the noun phrase ('the opening of the mouth'). BSB's 'I will open your mouth to speak' and similar renderings turn it into a physical act and add 'to speak'. That can suggest the prophet was literally unable to talk until then. Paraphrases that render it as Ezekiel's words being 'respected' or 'listened to' bring out the vindication sense but drop the image.

How it drifted

Turning the noun phrase into a verb ('open your mouth') makes it sound like a cure for physical silence rather than a grant of credibility.

Used elsewhere in the period

Ezekiel 16:63 is the only other occurrence. Later rabbinic Hebrew used pitḥôn peh for 'a pretext, an opening to speak', which fits the sense of grounds for speaking. Related ideas: Ezekiel's commissioned muteness and its ending (3:26–27; 24:27; 33:21–22).