οὖς
ous
ear
Lexicon Entry
Lexicon data from STEPBible TIPNR, Tyndale House, Cambridge. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
What Original Readers Understood
ExploredThe Greek word οὖς (ous) is defined as "ear." It appears 37 times in the Bible, indicating its significance in various contexts. In its most basic sense, οὖς refers to the physical organ responsible for hearing. However, its usage extends beyond this literal meaning. The word is often used figuratively to convey attention, obedience, or willingness to listen. For instance, when someone says "to hear" (e.g., Matthew 11:15), it implies not just perceiving sound but also understanding and responding to a message. The frequency and variety of οὖς' occurrences suggest its importance in biblical communication. It is used in contexts ranging from spiritual guidance (e.g., Matthew 13:9) to social interactions (e.g., Luke 10:16). This versatility underscores the significance of listening and understanding in both personal and communal settings.
Source data & methodology
Occurrences in Scripture
37 total occurrences across the text
What I tell you in the darkness, speak in the light; and what you hear whispered in the ear, proclaim on the housetops.
Matthew 11:15He who has ears to hear, let him hear.
Matthew 13:9He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
Matthew 13:15for this people’s heart has grown callous, their ears are dull of hearing, they have closed their eyes; or else perhaps they might perceive with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their heart, and would turn again; and I would heal them.’
Matthew 13:15for this people’s heart has grown callous, their ears are dull of hearing, they have closed their eyes; or else perhaps they might perceive with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their heart, and would turn again; and I would heal them.’
Matthew 13:16“But blessed are your eyes, for they see; and your ears, for they hear.
Matthew 13:43Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the Kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.
Mark 4:9He said, “Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear.”
Mark 4:23If any man has ears to hear, let him hear.”
Mark 7:16If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear!”
Mark 7:33He took him aside from the multitude, privately, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spat, and touched his tongue.
Mark 8:18Having eyes, don’t you see? Having ears, don’t you hear? Don’t you remember?
Luke 1:44For behold, when the voice of your greeting came into my ears, the baby leaped in my womb for joy!
Luke 4:21He began to tell them, “Today, this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”
Luke 8:8Other fell into the good ground, and grew, and produced one hundred times as much fruit.” As he said these things, he called out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”
Luke 9:44“Let these words sink into your ears, for the Son of Man will be delivered up into the hands of men.”
Luke 12:3Therefore whatever you have said in the darkness will be heard in the light. What you have spoken in the ear in the inner rooms will be proclaimed on the housetops.
Luke 14:35It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile. It is thrown out. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
Luke 22:50A certain one of them struck the servant of the high priest, and cut off his right ear.
Acts 7:51“You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit! As your fathers did, so you do.
Acts 7:57But they cried out with a loud voice and stopped their ears, then rushed at him with one accord.
Acts 11:22The report concerning them came to the ears of the assembly which was in Jerusalem. They sent out Barnabas to go as far as Antioch,
Acts 28:27For this people’s heart has grown callous. Their ears are dull of hearing. Their eyes they have closed. Lest they should see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their heart, and would turn again, then I would heal them.’
Acts 28:27For this people’s heart has grown callous. Their ears are dull of hearing. Their eyes they have closed. Lest they should see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their heart, and would turn again, then I would heal them.’
Romans 11:8According as it is written, “God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear, to this very day.”
1 Corinthians 2:9But as it is written, “Things which an eye didn’t see, and an ear didn’t hear, which didn’t enter into the heart of man, these God has prepared for those who love him.”
1 Corinthians 12:16If the ear would say, “Because I’m not the eye, I’m not part of the body,” it’s not therefore not part of the body.
James 5:4Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you have kept back by fraud, cry out, and the cries of those who reaped have entered into the ears of the Lord of Armies.
1 Peter 3:12For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears open to their prayer; but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”
Revelation 2:7He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the assemblies. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the Paradise of my God.
Revelation 2:11He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the assemblies. He who overcomes won’t be harmed by the second death.
Revelation 2:17He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the assemblies. To him who overcomes, to him I will give of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written, which no one knows but he who receives it.
Revelation 2:29He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the assemblies.
Revelation 3:6He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the assemblies.
Revelation 3:13He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the assemblies.
Revelation 3:22He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the assemblies.”
Revelation 13:9If anyone has an ear, let him hear.