[Greek] παρακούω (parakouō), [Latin] auditare, [Latin] non audire: to refuse to hear, to ignore, to neglect to hear, to disobey, to overhear, to mishear; Mt.18:17, Mk.5:36
Raising of Jairus’ Daughter: painting by Llya Repin (1871). After Jesus overhears (and ignores) the news of her ‘death’, He heals Jairus’ daughter.
Background information:
Greek Hellenism: This term means to overhear, to hear talk of, to eavesdrop, to misunderstand, to disregard, to disobey, and to pretend not to hear.
Aristophanes’ Frogs 750: “Eavesdropping on the masters when they gossip?”
Plato’s Protagoras 330e: “Perhaps I did not hear you right.”
Plutarch’s Philopemen 16: “Diophanes, however, paid no heed to advice.”
Plato’s Theaetus 195a states “They usually see and hear and think amiss.”
Polybius’ Histories 3.15.2: “For a long time the Romans disregarded their words.”
Old Testament: This term means to fabricate, to devise, to be silent, to let alone, and to not hear it. Even if you remain silent, relief and deliverance will come to the Jews from another source (Est.4:14). A heart that plots wicked schemes, feet that are quick to run to evil (Pro.6:18). Do not be silent toward me (Psa.28:1). Hear my cry; do not be deaf to my weeping (Psa.39:13). I spoke and you did not listen (Psa.65:12). They did not obey the laws of the king (Est.3:8).
New Testament: This term means to refuse to obey, to overhear, to disregard, and to ignore. Jesus teaches and provides the means to reconcile with one who sins. If one sins, you must discuss his fault between you and him. If he does not listen, then bring witnesses to settle this matter. If he still refuses to listen, then you must set him aside. Jairus pleaded with Jesus to heal his daughter. It was reported that this girl had died. Jesus disregarded this message and sought to heal the daughter. Jesus said that she was not dead but asleep. The people were astonished when the girl arose and walked around.
Scripture:
“Disregarding the message that was reported, Jesus said to the synagogue official, ‘Do not be afraid; just have faith.’” Mk. 5:36
Essentially, Jesus ignored or overlooked the message that the girl had died. This was a test of faith for Jairus. The girl was healed through Jairus’ faith, in contrast to the others’ lack of faith.
“If he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, so that every fact may be established on the testimony of two or three witnesses.” Mt.18:17
Jesus provides a way by which one who sins can be reconciled to others. If one still refuses in the presence of witnesses, then that person must be set aside or shunned.
Etymology: The Latin noun auditus means an official examination of accounts. This examination was originally an oral procedure. On the other hand, hearing is not sufficient when it pertains to the Word of God. Jas.1:22 states that one must be both doers and hearers of the Word. To do otherwise, you would be deluding yourselves in being a faithful disciple. This would be tantamount (equivalent) to not being fully conformed to Jesus’ message.
Conclusion:
Audit, auditing, tantamount
It was very interesting to discover the varied and nuanced meanings of this term which can be applicable in any time period. One could say that eavesdropping is a form of abnormal or unusual hearing. This term also pertains to aspects of ignoring, disregarding or failing to hear.
The Old Testament also conveys nuanced meanings with an actively negative sense. Examples include disobeying, scheming, being silent, and not hearing.
In the New Testament, Jesus overhears the news that Jairus’ daughter has died. It can be said that Jesus ignores or disregards this information. Jesus provides the means by which sinful people can reconcile themselves with others. If there cannot be any reconciliation, then these sinners must be shunned or separated. On a related note, Jas.1:22 makes a very important point in that actions (not just faith) are very necessary in being a disciple conformed to Jesus’ message
Even after this election, there remain many concerns (questions) about election integrity. Yet, it is curious that these lawsuits are now going to the US Supreme Court. It looks like now the Supreme Court has just ignored these cases. For the longest time, the other side had refused to hear, disregarded, or even ignored these concerns which prompted the lawsuits and thousands of witnesses (whistleblowers). If these concerns are not addressed, this may or could generate a national movement to fully forensically examine the votes. It is interesting to note that the Maricopa County Board of Examiners continues to push back (ignore a lawsuit) against a full forensic examination of the ballots.
If there was no voter fraud, why does the other side still oppose having a forensic examination of the votes (ballots)? Me thinks they doth protest too much (if there was no voter fraud)!
Update: Many of us in Texas were literally freezing (in our homes) and starving for energy. (Many of us were using our cars to warm up and to power our smartphones). Not surprisingly, there will be many questions about what happened with the management and transmission of the power grids. This is tantamount to being a scandal. Rolling blackouts were made disregarding and ignoring the health and welfare of many Texans. Hopefully, this will force many people to reassess their total desire for only green energy. (An electric car is useless when there is no electricity).
I hope this post can become a wake-up call for all those who refuse to hear that we must continue to use conventional resources sources (natural gas, oil, coal, etc.) to supply our energy needs.