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mowth (פּה, peh, חך, hÌ£eÌ„kh, גּרון, גּרן, gaÌ„roÌ„n ; Aramaic פּ×, pum, תּרע, tera‛ ; στοÌμα, stoÌma, 71 times, once λοÌγος, loÌgos, i.e. “word of mouth,†“speech†; once we find the verb ἐπιστομιÌζω, epistomıÌzoÌ„, “to silence,†“to stop the mouth†):
1. Literal Sense
In addition to frequent references to man and animals, “Their food was yet in their mouths†; “And Yahweh opened the mouth of the ass†; “Save me from the lion's mouth†, etc., the term is often used in connection with inanimate things: mouth of a sack ; of the earth ; ; of a well -3, , ; of a cave , , ; of Sheol ; of the abyss ; of furnace (Aramaic tera‛, ); of idols ; -17.
2. Figurative Sense
(1) The “mouth†denotes language, speech, declaration (compare “lips,†“tongue,†which see): “By the mouth of†is “by means of,†“on the declaration of†; ; “Whoso killeth any person, the murderer shall be slain at the mouth of witnesses†(; compare ; ; ); “I will give you mouth and wisdom†; “fool's mouth†. (2) “Mouth†also denotes “spokesmanâ€: “He shall be to thee a mouth†.
Numerous are the idiomatic phrases which have, in part, been introduced into English by means of the language of the Bible. “To put into the mouth,†if said of God, denotes Divine inspiration ; . “To have words put into the mouth†means to have instructions given ; ; -15; -16. “The fruit of the mouth†is synonymical with wisdom, the mature utterance of the wise. “To put one's mouth into the dust†is equivalent with humbling one's self (; compare “to lay one's horn in the dust,†). Silent submission is expressed by “laying the hand upon the mouth†; ; ; ; compare “to refrain the lipsâ€; see LIP. “To open the mouth wide†against a person is to accuse him wildly and often wrongfully ; , otherwise “to open one's mouth wide,†“to have an enlarged mouth†means to have great confidence and joy in speaking or accepting good things ; ; ; . “To gape upon one with the mouth†means to threaten a person . Divine rebuke is expressed by the “rod of God's mouth†, and the Messiah declares “He hath made my mouth like asharp sword†(; compare ; , ). Great anguish, such as dying with thirst, is expressed by “the tongue cleaving to the roof of the mouth†(Hebrew hÌ£eÌ„kh, ; ; compare ).