The Hebrew shama means to hear, listen, attend to, or obey. In Hebrew thought, true hearing always implies response — to hear God's word is to obey it. The most famous use is the Shema: 'Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one' (Deuteronomy 6:4).
Shama is perhaps the single most theologically loaded verb in the Hebrew Bible. The Shema (from this very word) became the central confession of Jewish faith — an act of hearing that was simultaneously an act of worship and commitment. In Deuteronomy, Israel's entire covenant relationship depends on whether they shama — hear and obey — or refuse. The prophets continually cry 'Hear!' (shima) to a deaf people (Isaiah 1:2; Amos 3:1). Proverbs makes listening the path to wisdom (1:5; 8:33). Crucially, biblical shama is never merely cognitive — it always calls for response. Jesus built on this: 'Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear' (Mark 4:9) — and 'blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it' (Luke 11:28).