The Hebrew verb atam means to close, stop up, or shut tight — especially the closing of the ear or eye. It carries the connotation of willful, deliberate shutting off of perception.
The theological gravity of atam lies in its use for spiritual deafness and blindness. Isaiah uses it to describe Israel's deliberate choice to 'stop their ears' to God's word — not inability but unwillingness (Isaiah 33:15). The soul that atams its ears to the cries of the poor will not be heard when it cries (Proverbs 21:13). This reciprocal principle — blocking what comes in determines what goes out — is a consistent biblical pattern. Jesus applied it directly: 'Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.' The open ear before God (Isaiah 50:5 — the Servant who is 'not rebellious, did not turn away') stands as the perfect counter-image to the atam-ed ear of Israel.