Psalm 40:6 Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but my ears you have pierced{opened}; burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not require.
“Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but my ears you have pierced …” Some versions use pierced and some use opened. Either way, I didn’t get the connection – what do offerings have to do with pierced ears? Looking in the concordance:
Exodus 21:2-6 “If you buy a Hebrew servant, he is to serve you for six years. But in the seventh year, he shall go free, without paying anything. 3 If he comes alone, he is to go free alone; but if he has a wife when he comes, she is to go with him. 4 If his master gives him a wife and she bears him sons or daughters, the woman and her children shall belong to her master, and only the man shall go free.
5 “But if the servant declares, ‘I love my master and my wife and children and do not want to go free,’ 6 then his master must take him before the judges. He shall take him to the door or the doorpost and pierce his ear with an awl. Then he will be his servant for life.
The law controlled slaves when slavery was a fact among the Israelites. There was a time limit of six years. After that, the slave was to go free. Then comes verse five; “But if the slave declares, ‘I love my master … and do not want to go free’, then his master must take him before the judges … and pierce his ear … then he will be his servant for life.
The pierced ear became a symbol (sign) of permanent possession. After that there would never be any doubt as to whose he was and whom he served.
Psalm 40:7-8 Then I said, “Behold, I come; In the scroll of the book it is written of me. 8I delight to do Your *will, O my God; Your Law is within my heart.”
In verse 8, the Hebrew the word ratsown[07522] is translated *will . It literally means “a voluntary favor” and comes from a root meaning “to satisfy” as in a debt. Jesus wasn’t forced to die for us, He did so voluntarily. Jesus willingly to gave His life in payment of our debt. It was His delight to do what pleased His Father.
So it seems that the psalmist is saying in effect that the Lord does not desire our gifts and services. He desires us. He desires us to commit ourselves whole heartedly to Him because we love him and want to belong to Him. His desire is that we delight to do His will and treasure His word in our hearts.
He in turn would have us desire Him, not just His gifts or what He can do for us. Our gifts to Him, and His to us, follow love based on personal relationship. For without this love, all gifts are meaningless.
Psalm 119:11 Your word I have treasured in my heart, that I may not sin against You.
Proverbs 22:17-19 Incline your ear and hear the words of the wise, and apply your heart to my knowledge. For it is pleasing when you keep them in your heart and have all of them ready on your lips. So that your trust may be in the LORD.
Psalm 19:14 May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.
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Related:
Make Music in Your Heart!
Bow Your Ear
Tags: bond slave, delight in HIs will, Ears Open to Hear, Exodus 21:2-6, Psalm 19:14, Psalm 40:6, willing sacrifice
Touching the King! 
June 10, 2009 at 4:14 pm |
Dear Sis. Karen,
What came to me as I was reading “Pierced Ears” is this…. For those of us who have been called to Zion, we have been on a journey where there have been many obstacles. There were giants all around us, but we had to overcome them through the precious Blood of Jesus in order to make the climb. Our aim as you can imagine was to get to the top… where Jesus is reigning with His Father in the throne.
Now, we are in a place of elevation and exaltation through separation because we passed the test. We had to overcome principalities and powers and rulers of darkness and wickedness in high places in order to get there.
At this moment, having passed the test, we can never again go back to the place of the pierced ear, because our Lord has said we are to sit with Him in His throne. In I John 15:15, our Lord Jesus said, Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth, but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.”
Today, my Lord calls me His friend.
Sis. A-
June 10, 2009 at 4:15 pm |
Psalm 40:6-8 Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but my ears you have pierced{opened}; burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not require.
Then I said, “Behold, I come; In the scroll of the book it is written of me. 8I delight to do Your *will, O my God; Your Law is within my heart.”
I hear you Lois —
To me the place of the pierced ear is talking about complete — whole hearted surrender. The place of the pierced ear above is also implying that this is where Jesus was — Jesus was in the place of the pierced ear even tho He had all power and authority. He took the cup even tho He asked for the cup to be taken away. His joy was to take the cup — because it was the Fathers will…
So even tho it may have looked like Jesus put himself in a ‘powerless’ position — this position of complete whole hearted surrender — the voluntary position of the ‘pierced ear’ — in the center of the Fathers will — this is actually where the real power comes from.
Jesus was in the place of the pierced ear and in the position of friend — both at the same time …
Karen
November 9, 2014 at 10:32 am |
[…] Related […]
May 23, 2020 at 12:25 pm |
Jesus draw near, draw near, draw near –He 10:22
Open my ears
For I long to hear. –1Sam 3:10
.
Fill me with Your Spirit Lord –Gal 5:25
To learn from You
Yoked with You to keep in step –Mt 11:29
I delight to do Your will! –Ps 40:6-8
He who has ears to hear, let him hear! –Mt 11:15
{listen, understand and heed carefully }.