Job 33:16

"In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falls on men, in slumbering on the bed,"

Key Reflection

The verse from Job 33:16 speaks to the experience of divine communication through dreams and visions during deep sleep, a common method believed in ancient Near Eastern cultures for receiving revelations from God. For the original audience, this passage would have evoked the idea that profound spiritual insights could come even while deeply asleep, highlighting the mysterious and intimate ways in which the divine might interact with humanity.

From the Scholars: Barnes' Notes

Then he openeth the ears of men -Margin, as in Hebrew “revealeth,” or “uncovereth.” The idea is, that he then reveals to the ear of man important admonitions or counsels. He communicates valuable truth. We are not to understand this as saying that the sleeper actually hears God speak, but as the ear is the organ of hearing, it is employed here to denote that God then communicates His will to human beinigs. In what way he had access to the souls of people by dreams, it is impossible to explain. And sealeth their instruction -literally, “In their admonition he seals;” or he affixes a seal. The idea is, that he makes the admonition or instruction as secure as if a seal were affixed to it.

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