Psalms 40:6 · Bible study
Psalms 40:6 Commentary: Opened Ears and the Heart of Worship
Hebrew · 11 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Why does God reject the sacrifices He commanded? What does 'ears opened' mean? Explore Psalm 40:6 in its OT context and its use in Hebrews 10.
Research Summary
- Meaning: God desires obedient hearts, not mere ritual offerings.
- Key words: Sacrifice, offering, burnt offering, sin offering, opened ears.
- Main debate: Does “opened ears” allude to the slave boring of Exodus 21:6 or is it a general metaphor for receptive hearing?
- Theological theme: The priority of inner devotion and self-offering over external religious performance.
- Best use: Hebrews 10 applies the verse to Christ’s willing obedience and sacrifice, while the OT context calls every worshiper to examine their heart.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, but my ears You have opened. Burnt offerings and sin offerings You did not require.
WEB World English Bible 2000
Sacrifice and offering you didn’t desire. You have opened my ears. You have not required burnt offering and sin offering.
KJV King James Version 1769
Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire; mine ears hast thou opened: burnt offering and sin offering hast thou not required.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
Sacrifice and offering thou hast no delight in; Mine ears hast thou opened: Burnt-offering and sin-offering hast thou not required.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
Sacrifice and present Thou hast not desired, Ears Thou hast prepared for me, Burnt and sin-offering Thou hast not asked.
Darby Darby Bible 1890
Sacrifice and oblation thou didst not desire: ears hast thou prepared me. Burnt-offering and sin-offering hast thou not demanded;
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
My enemies have spoken evils against me: when shall he die and his name perish?
Translations in other languages (10 available)
Sacrificio y presente no te agrada; has abierto mis oídos; holocausto y expiación no has demandado.
Tu não te agradaste de sacrifício e oferta; porém tu me furaste as orelhas; tu não pediste nem oferta de queima nem oferta para expiação de pecado.
Tu as multiplié, Éternel, mon Dieu!
Opfer und Speisopfer gefallen dir nicht; aber die Ohren hast du mir aufgetan. Du willst weder Brandopfer noch Sündopfer.
Gij, o HEERE, mijn God! hebt Uw wonderen en Uw gedachten aan ons vele gemaakt, men kan ze niet in orde bij U verhalen; zal ik ze verkondigen en uitspreken, zo zijn zij menigvuldiger dan dat ik ze zou kunnen vertellen.
Tu non prendi piacere né in sacrifizio né in offerta; tu m’hai aperto gli orecchi. Tu non domandi né olocausto né sacrifizio per il peccato.
Wieleś uczynił, Panie, Boże mój! cudów twoich, a myśli twoich o nas nikt porządnie wyliczyć nie może przed tobą; chciałlibym je wypowiedzieć i wymówić, daleko ich więcej, niżby wypowiedziane być mogły.
Враги мои говорят обо мне злое: "когда он умрет и погибнет имя его?"
祭物 和禮物，你不 喜悅；你已經開通 我的 耳朵。燔祭 和贖罪祭 非 你所要。
You had no desire for offerings of beasts or fruits of the earth; ears you made for me: for burned offerings and sin offerings you made no request.
Verse in Context
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators across traditions agree that Psalm 40:6 issues a strong priority: God values a heart ready to obey over the sacrificial system He Himself instituted. The verse lists four categories of offerings (blood sacrifice, grain offering, burnt offering, sin offering), covering every type of Old Testament worship. The message is comprehensive. No amount of ritual can substitute for inner surrender.
On the phrase “ears hast thou opened,” commentators diverge. Some, following Adam Clarke and Matthew Henry, see an allusion to Exodus 21:6, where a slave’s ear is bored through to mark a willing lifelong commitment. Others, like Barnes and the Cambridge Bible, understand the Hebrew verb karah (“to dig” or “to pierce”) as a metaphor for making the ear receptive, God has “dug out” the hearing, so the psalmist now listens and obeys. The Septuagint translators rendered the line “a body hast thou prepared me,” a reading the writer of Hebrews applies to Christ’s incarnation (Hebrews 10:5).
All agree on the main claim: external religion without genuine faith and obedience misses God’s intention. As Barnes notes, the offerings “were of no value without obedience.”
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Medium
Main views:
- Slave boring allusion: Exodus 21:6 – willing perpetual service expressed by piercing the ear with an awl.
- Metaphor of opened hearing: Isaiah 50:4-5 – God 'wakes' the ear to hear as a disciple, emphasizing receptive obedience.
- Messianic prophecy (Hebrews 10): The New Testament interprets the verse as Christ's own words at his incarnation; the Septuagint translation supports a body prepared for sacrifice.
What is clear: God desires obedient hearts more than ritual offerings, a point the psalmist, prophets, and apostles all affirm.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning of 'opened ears' | All agree the phrase signifies readiness to hear and obey God. | Some see a direct allusion to Exodus 21:6 (the bored ear of a willing slave), while others treat it as a more general metaphor for God making someone receptive. |
| Relationship of OT sacrifices to NT | Christians agree the Old Testament offerings pointed forward to Christ’s atoning work. | Some read Psalm 40:6 as a direct messianic prophecy (Christ speaking through David); others see it as a typological or thematic application by the author of Hebrews without claiming David consciously spoke for the Messiah. |
| The psalmist's identity | The psalm is attributed to David and reflects his experience of deliverance. | Some traditions emphasize the historical David; others see the psalm as voicing the ideal king Israel longs for, finding its fullest meaning in Christ. |
| The assessment of ritual | God created the sacrificial system, but He values obedience and a contrite heart above external acts. | A minority view holds that the verse implies the sacrificial system was always inadequate for atonement; the broader Christian consensus sees it as inadequate only when divorced from faith and obedience. |
Historical & Cultural Context
Psalm 40:6 names four types of offerings used in Israel’s worship. Zebach was a blood sacrifice, often a fellowship offering. Minchah was a grain or gift offering. Olah, the burnt offering, symbolized total dedication as it was consumed entirely on the altar. Chattat, the sin offering, provided purification and restoration. Together they represent the full range of commanded worship and atonement. Yet God says He does not desire them and has not required them.
This is not a contradiction of the law. The prophets regularly insisted that sacrifice without obedience was worthless (1 Samuel 15:22; Isaiah 1:11-20; Hosea 6:6). The psalmist is not abolishing the sacrificial system; he is drilling down to what the system always meant, a heart fully given to God.
The verb “opened” (Hebrew karah, “to dig” or “to pierce”) is unusual. Exodus 21:5-6 describes a slave who chooses to stay with his master; his ear is pierced with an awl at the doorpost as a mark of lifelong service. Many commentators, from the Geneva Bible to Matthew Henry, see that custom behind this verse: the psalmist declares himself God’s willing bondservant. Others, such as Barnes and Cambridge, read it as a broader image, God has “dug out” the ears, making them alert and obedient. The Septuagint translators, working in the centuries before Christ, rendered the phrase “a body hast thou prepared me,” apparently understanding the ear as a part standing for the whole person, ready for action.
Psalm 40 opens with thanksgiving for rescue (vv.1-3) and moves to a vow of public praise (vv.9-10). Verse 6 is the hinge: the speaker turns from ritual to radical obedience. This prepares for verse 7, “Behold, I have come,” where the offer of self is presented as the true sacrifice God wants.
Textual Notes
The Hebrew Masoretic text is consistent across manuscripts for Psalm 40:6. No significant variants are noted in the Dead Sea Scrolls or other witnesses for this verse. The main textual issue involves the Septuagint, which translates “ears you have dug for me” as “a body you have prepared for me.” This reading, preserved in Hebrews 10:5, may reflect a different Hebrew Vorlage (perhaps guf for body), but most scholars view it as an interpretive translation rather than a distinct manuscript tradition. The difference does not affect the fundamental meaning: whether “ears” or “body,” the point is total readiness for obedient service.
Reception History
The earliest Christian reception appears in Hebrews 10:5-10, where the writer quotes the Septuagint version and places the words on Christ’s lips at his incarnation. The early church saw this as a prophecy that Christ’s willing obedience would fulfill and replace the sacrificial system. Augustine, in his expositions of the Psalms, read the verse as pointing to the Word’s taking on a body, a theme echoed in medieval commentaries that connected “opened ears” to the incarnation. During the Reformation, Luther and Calvin seized on the verse’s priority of faith and obedience, using it to criticize trust in mere external works. In the Wesleyan tradition, Matthew Henry gave it a warmly messianic reading while also noting the moral application for every believer. Modern scholarship generally reads the psalm in its Davidic context first, then recognizes the New Testament appropriation as a legitimate spiritual interpretation. Across all eras, the verse has been a central text for warning against empty ritual and calling the church to heartfelt obedience.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- The insufficiency of ritual alone, God did not desire the sacrifices He commanded when the heart was absent.
- The opened ear, readiness to hear and obey marks the true worshiper, not the volume of offerings.
- The obedient life as true worship, the psalmist’s response is not more animals but a complete offering of self to do God’s will.
Five-point outline
- God commands sacrifice, yet desires something more: the heart of the worshiper.
- The opened ear, a metaphor for receptive obedience (or, for some, the slave’s bored ear signifying permanent service).
- The servant’s vow, “I come to do your will” is the substance of true worship.
- Public proclamation, the one whose ears are opened does not hide God’s righteousness (vv.9-10).
- The plea for mercy, even the obedient depend on God’s lovingkindness (v.11).
Illustration hooks
- A child forced to apologize knows the words but not the sorrow; the parent wants the heart, not the rope.
- An employee shows up, punches the clock, does the minimum, and the boss knows. Attendance without engagement pleases no one.
- A spouse brings gifts but withholds time and attention. The gifts feel hollow. God is not impressed by offerings that cost nothing of the self.
Questions your congregation is asking
- If God does not desire my church attendance and giving, what exactly does He want from me?
- How can I tell if my ears are truly “opened” rather than just going through the motions?
- Why does the New Testament place this verse on Christ’s lips? Does that mean David was speaking for the Messiah all along?
Leading a Discussion
Psalm 40:6 confronts a problem every religious person faces: the temptation to substitute ritual for relationship. The psalmist tells us that God did not desire the offerings He Himself commanded, not because they were wrong, but because they were empty without the heart. The phrase “ears opened” draws on the image of a slave who chooses permanent service (Exodus 21:6) or simply a person whom God has made ready to hear and obey.
Discussion questions
- Look at the four kinds of offerings named. Why do you think the poet lists so many? What effect does that have on the point he is making?
- What does it mean that God “did not desire” what He had commanded? How did the Old Testament prophets help explain this (1 Samuel 15:22, Isaiah 1:11-20)?
- The phrase “ears opened” is unique. What does each possible meaning (slave boring, receptive hearing, prepared body) emphasize about the kind of response God wants?
- Read Hebrews 10:5-10. Why does the New Testament writer apply this verse to Christ? What does it tell you about how the early church read the Psalms?
- In your own life, where are you tempted to trust in religious activity instead of a listening, obedient heart?
- Verse 7 says, “I have come” to do God’s will. How does that posture differ from simply “going to church” or “offering a sacrifice”?
- The psalm ends with a plea for mercy (v.11). How does that shape what “obedience” looks like for someone who still fails?
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Exodus 21:6 | then his master shall bring him to God, and shall bring him to the door or to the doorpost, and his master shall bore his ear through with an awl, and he shall serve him forever. |
| I Samuel 15:22 | Samuel said, “Has Yahweh as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying Yahweh’s voice? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams. |
| Job 33:16 | then he opens the ears of men, and seals their instruction, |
| Psalms 50:8 | I don’t rebuke you for your sacrifices. Your burnt offerings are continually before me. |
| Psalms 51:16 | For you don’t delight in sacrifice, or else I would give it. You have no pleasure in burnt offering. |
| Isaiah 1:11 | “What are the multitude of your sacrifices to me?”, says Yahweh. “I have had enough of the burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fed animals. I don’t delight in the blood of bulls, or of lambs, or of male goats. |
| Isaiah 50:4 | The Lord Yahweh has given me the tongue of those who are taught, that I may know how to sustain with words him who is weary. He awakens morning by morning, he awakens my ear to hear as those who are taught. |
| Isaiah 50:5 | The Lord Yahweh has opened my ear. I was not rebellious. I have not turned back. |
Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
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What the Commentators Say
10 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke highlights that the Hebrew phrase "my ears hast thou opened" alludes to the ancient custom of boring a servant's ear as a sign of lifelong voluntary service. The Septuagint and the writer of Hebrews reinterpret this as "a body hast thou prepared me," applying it directly to Christ's willing incarnation and sacrificial death.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible Protestant 1832
Barnes stresses that no type of sacrifice—bloody, bloodless, burnt, or sin-offering—can substitute for obedience. He explains that "mine ears hast thou opened" means God has made the speaker attentive to this truth, not a reference to the servant's ear-piercing. The essential point is that God desires obedience above all ritual offerings.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
The commentator argues that "ears hast thou dug for me" is not about receiving special revelation but about God giving humans the capacity to hear, which implies the duty to obey. This interpretation deliberately avoids linking the phrase to the slave-ear-piercing custom. True worship, they insist, is not material sacrifice but willing obedience.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The Geneva note highlights the contrast between God's lack of desire for ritual sacrifices and His preparation of human ears for obedience. The phrase "mine ears hast thou prepared" is taken to mean that God shapes the believer for listening and submitting to His will, a spiritual readiness that outward offerings cannot replace.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill stresses that this passage does not merely rank inward devotion above outward ritual. It announces that God's will at this moment was for legal sacrifices to cease entirely, because their purpose was finished. Christ's prepared body and obedient ears now take their place as the one true sacrifice.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary Protestant 1871
JFB argues that Paul reads Psalm 40 not as simple gratitude but as Christ contrasting the inadequacy of all Old Testament offerings with His own obedience unto death. Paul quotes the Septuagint's "a body hast thou prepared me" rather than "ears opened," which JFB treats as an interpretive gloss pointing to the suffering that a body made possible.
Keil & Delitzsch OT Commentary Protestant 1876
Keil-Delitzsch highlights the deliberate choice of the word for man, emphasizing one tempted to self-trust. The blessedness belongs to those who trust in God, whose wondrous works and saving plans are so vast and powerful that they cannot be compared or fully declared; any attempt to enumerate them falls short.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange argues strongly against dividing Psalm 40 into separate thanksgiving and prayer sections, insisting the whole psalm is a unified composition. He interprets "ears hast thou digged" as God creating ears for obedient hearing, not as a reference to the slave ear-boring ritual. For Lange, the psalm's core message is that God desires obedient hearts and lives over ritual sacrifices.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry notes that the psalmist is carried beyond his own time to foretell Christ's redemptive work. The legal sacrifices were insufficient, so the Son volunteered to do God's will instead. This voluntary obedience, not a secret decree, is the foundation of salvation, as the apostle later confirms in Hebrews.
Wesley's Explanatory Notes Methodist/Wesleyan 1754
Wesley insists these words belong strictly to Christ, not David. God never desired animal sacrifices to satisfy his justice or expiate sin, which only Christ's blood could accomplish. The "opened ears" (or "body prepared") signify Christ's voluntary dedication, foretelling the end of the old sacrifices and their replacement by his perfect obedience.