hearing

אֹֽזֶן ־אַֽהֲרֹן הַיְמָנִית (Vayikra 8:23), Aharon's right ear, הֲנֹטַע אֹזֶן הֲלֹא יִשְׁמָע (Tehillim 94:9), He who planted the ear, shall He not hear, and אָזְנַיִם כָּרִיתָ לִּי (Tehillim 40:7), ears You have opened for me.

הֲלֹא אֹזֶן מִלִּין תִּבְחָן (Iyov 12:11), does not the ear test words, שָׁמְעָה אָזְנִי וַתָּבֶן לָהּ (Iyov 13:1), my ear has heard and understood it, and כִּי אֹזֶן שָׁמְעָה וַתְּאַשְּׁרֵנִי (Iyov 29:11), for the ear heard and called me fortunate. סמך הבחינה והתבונה והחנינה לאזן, ואינה אלא ללב: the testing and the understanding and the favour are set upon the ear, though they belong to the heart alone, לפי שהיא תחלת הפעולה, because the ear is where the act begins; and so with וַתְּאַשְּׁרֵנִי, and it called me fortunate. In the same way, וּבִתְבוּנוֹת כַּפָּיו יַנְחֵם (Tehillim 78:72), and with the understanding of his hands he led them.

הַאֲזִינוּ הַשָּׁמַיִם (Devarim 32:1), give ear, O heavens, is הטו אזן, incline the ear, and so every word of this sense in this root. Of this sense too are אָזִין עַד תְּבוּנֹתֵיכֶם (Iyov 32:11), I gave ear to your reasonings, and שֶׁקֶר מֵזִין עַל לְשׁוֹן הַוֹּת (Mishlei 17:4), a liar gives ear to a mischievous tongue, whose regular forms would be אַאֲזִין and מַאֲזִין.

בְּמֹאזְנַיִם לַעֲלוֹת (Tehillim 62:10), in the scales they go up, and מֹאזְנֵי צֶדֶק אַבְנֵי צֶדֶק (Vayikra 19:36), just scales, just weights: their sense is known, the instrument one weighs with, called in the dual because it has two pans. On וְאִזֵּן וְחִקֵּר (Koheles 12:9), Rabbi Yonah ibn Janach takes it from this sense, which Radak puts as: he weighed one matter against another and searched them out. Rabbi Yehudah put the word with the first sense, of the ear.

Rabbi Yonah, in one of the ways he gives, put וְיָתֵד תִּהְיֶה לְךָ עַל אֲזֵנֶךָ (Devarim 23:14), and you shall have a peg upon your gear, under this root. Radak holds the right account is that the alef is added, and that it means כלי זיניך, your weapons.

All of them are in the sense of hearing, but some are hearing alone, some שמועה לקבלה, hearing to accept, and some שמועת הבנה, hearing that understands: דַּבֶּר־נָא אֶל־עֲבָדֶיךָ אֲרָמִית כִּי שֹֽׁמְעִים אֲנָחְנוּ (Yeshayahu 36:11), speak to your servants in Aramaic, for we understand it; גּוֹי אֲשֶׁר לֹֽא־ תִשְׁמַע לְשֹׁנֽוֹ (Devarim 28:49), a nation whose tongue you will not understand; and לֵב שֹׁמֵעַ (Melachim I 3:9), an understanding heart. תִּשְׁמַע חֲלוֹם לִפְתֹּר אֹתוֹ (Bereishis 41:15), you hear a dream to interpret it, can also be read as of this kind.

It is said with lamed, וַיִּשְׁמַע אַבְרָם לְקוֹל שָׂרָי (Bereishis 16:2), Avram listened to the voice of Sarai; with beis, שְׁמַע בְּקֹלִי (Bereishis 27:13), listen to my voice, and וְלֹא שָׁמְעוּ בְּתוֹרָתוֹ (Yeshayahu 42:24), they did not listen to His Torah; with אל, כִּי שָׁמַע אֱלֹהִים אֶל קוֹל הַנַּעַר (Bereishis 21:17), for God has heard the voice of the lad; and with על, יַעַן אֲשֶׁר שְׁמַעְתֶּם עַל מִצְוַת יְהוֹנָדָב אֲבִיכֶם (Yirmiyahu 35:18), because you obeyed the command of Yonadav your father, and אַל תִּשְׁמְעוּ עַל דִּבְרֵי הַנְּבִאִים הַנִּבְּאִים לָכֶם (Yirmiyahu 23:16), do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you. הִנֵּה שְׁמֹעַ מִזֶּבַח טוֹב (Shmuel I 15:22), to obey is better than a sacrifice.

In the pattern with tzeirei, אֵת כָּל הַדְּבָרִים אֲשֶׁר שָׁמֵעַ (Yirmiyahu 36:13), all the words that he had heard, and וְשָׂרָה שֹׁמַעַת (Bereishis 18:10), and Sarah was listening; the Nagid wrote that וָאֶשְׁמְעָה אֶחָד קָדוֹשׁ (Daniel 8:13), and I heard a holy one, has a kamatz chatuf. The noun כַּאֲשֶׁר שֵׁמַע לְמִצְרָיִם יָחִילוּ כְּשֵׁמַע צֹר (Yeshayahu 23:5), as at the report of Mitzrayim so they shall be in pain at the report of Tzor, has tzeirei; some come with segol, as Radak sets out in the part on grammar. In another pattern, שָׁמַעְנוּ אֶת שָׁמְעוֹ (Yirmiyahu 6:24), we have heard the report of it, and וַיְהִי שָׁמְעוֹ בְּכָל הָאָרֶץ (Yehoshua 6:27), his fame was in all the land; in another, וּבָא בַשָּׁנָה הַשְּׁמוּעָה (Yirmiyahu 51:46), and the report shall come in a year, and מִי הֶאֱמִין לִשְׁמֻעָתֵנוּ (Yeshayahu 53:1), who believed our report; and in another, וְלֹא לְמִשְׁמַע אָזְנָיו יוֹכִיחַ (Yeshayahu 11:3), nor decide by what his ears hear.

וְהַקֹּל נִשְׁמַע (Bereishis 45:16), the report was heard, and וַתִּשָּׁמַע שִׂמְחַת יְרוּשָׁלַם מֵרָחוֹק (Nechemiah 12:43), the joy of Yerushalayim was heard far off. וַיִּשָּׁמַע בְּקוֹלָם (Divrei HaYamim II 30:27), and their voice was heard, means that they were heeded and found favour. Likewise מִשְׁמַעַת is obedience: וּבְנֵי עַמּוֹן מִשְׁמַעְתָּם (Yeshayahu 11:14), and the children of Ammon their מִשְׁמַעַת, is that they will be obedient to them and under their service; so too וַיְשִׂמֵהוּ דָוִד אֶל מִשְׁמַעְתּוֹ (Shmuel II 23:23), David set him over those who obeyed him, וְסָר אֶל מִשְׁמַעְתֶּךָ (Shmuel I 22:14), and turns aside to your bidding, and לְשֵׁמַע אֹזֶן יִשָּׁמְעוּ לִי (Tehillim 18:45), at the hearing of the ear they obey me.

וַיִּשְׁמַע שָׁאוּל (Shmuel I 23:8) is אספם, וקבצם שיהיו נשמעים אליו: Shaul gathered and assembled them, that they should be obedient to him. So הַשְׁמִיעוּ אֶל בָּבֶל רַבִּים (Yirmiyahu 50:29) is gather many against Bavel, that they heed you and come to Bavel, and so הַשְׁמִיעוּ עָלֶיהָ מַמְלְכוֹת אֲרָרַט מִנִּי וְאַשְׁכְּנָז (Yirmiyahu 51:27), gather against her the kingdoms of Ararat, Minni and Ashkenaz. With these he lists, and gives no gloss to, הִשְׁמִיעַ אֶת מַחֲנֵה אֲרָם (Melachim II 7:6), Hashem made the camp of Aram hear, and הַשְׁמִיעוּ הַלְלוּ וְאִמְרוּ (Yirmiyahu 31:7), make it heard, praise, and say.

וְאָסָף בַּמְצִלְתַּיִם מַשְׁמִיעַ, and Asaf sounding the cymbals, is משמיע קול, making a sound heard; and וְעִמָּהֶם הֵימָן וִידוּתוּן חֲצֹצְרוֹת וּמְצִלְתַּיִם לְמַשְׁמִיעִים (Divrei HaYamim I 16:42), and with them Heiman and Yedusun, trumpets and cymbals for sounding, is to be sounding, as וְחֶרֶב אוֹיְבֶיךָ לְמַשֶּׂגֶת (Divrei HaYamim I 21:12), and the sword of your enemies overtaking, is to be overtaking. The noun is לְהַשְׁמָעוּת אָזְנָיִם (Yechezkel 24:26), for making the ears hear.