הָגָה
hâgâh · H1897 · Hebrew · 25 occurrences
Meanings
-
to produce a sound, to growl, to mutter, to moan
Action by which living creatures produce inarticulate sounds
ExamplesPsalm 115:7 They have hands, but they cannot feel; They have feet, but they cannot walk; They cannot make a sound with their throat.
Isaiah 8:19 When they say to you, “Consult the mediums and the spiritists who whisper and mutter,” should a people not consult their God? Should they consult the dead in behalf of the living?
Isaiah 16:7 Therefore Moab will wail; everyone of Moab will wail. You will moan for the raisin cakes of Kir-hareseth As those who are utterly stricken.
-
to meditate, to rehearse
Action by which humans speak softly for themselves as if thinking out loud
ExamplesJoshua 1:8 “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will achieve success.
Psalm 1:2 But his delight is in the Law of the LORD, And on His Law he meditates day and night.
Psalm 63:6 When I remember You on my bed, I meditate on You in the night watches,
-
to mutter, to speak
Action by which humans utter words with the focus on what is said
ExamplesJob 27:4 My lips certainly will not speak unjustly, Nor will my tongue mutter deceit.
Psalm 2:1 Why are the nations restless And the peoples plotting in vain?
Psalm 35:28 And my tongue shall proclaim Your righteousness And Your praise all day long.
How it’s used In 4 roles
Every occurrence, grouped by the words it is grammatically related to.
the word studied the word it goes with
Who or what does itSubject
23 occurrences in 14 groups
- Not stated: I 4
- לֵבheart, mind 3
- לָשׁוֹןtongue, language 3
- Not stated: he, she or it 3
- Other words · 10 groups that occur once or twice (11) 11
What it acts on, or what is saidObject
11 occurrences in 11 groups
- Other words · 11 groups that occur once or twice (11) 11
With prepositionsPrepositional phrases
13 occurrences in 12 groups
- Other words · 12 groups that occur once or twice (14) 14
With adverbsAdverbs
3 occurrences in 2 groups
- יוֹמָםby day 2
- לֹאnot 1
When two words share a role, as in “Paul and Barnabas said”, the verse appears under each, so a section’s counts can add up to more than the number of occurrences.
MACULA Greek Linguistic Datasets, available at https://github.com/Clear-Bible/macula-greek/, licensed CC BY 4.0; MACULA Hebrew Linguistic Datasets © 2022-2024 by Biblica, Inc., CC BY 4.0. Westminster Leningrad Codex (tanach.us). OpenScriptures Hebrew Bible morphology (hb.openscriptures.org), CC BY 4.0.
Near synonyms 1 word
- הָמָה hâmâh · H1993 · to moan, to groan, to roar
- Both overlap in the semantic field of vocal or auditory expression, sharing senses such as roaring, mourning, and speaking or uttering aloud.
In the other Testament 1 word
- μελετάω meletáō · G3191 · to ponder, to let one’s mind dwell on, to keep thinking about
- Greek μελετάω emphasizes deliberate mental practice or careful consideration ('revolve in the mind'), while Hebrew הָגָה covers a broader semantic range including meditative speech, muttering, mourning sounds, and animal roaring, with meditation being one prominent but not exclusive sense.
Semantic domains 3 entries
- Location002002001
- This entry carries no spatial-location sense of its own; the domain is bundle-shared and does not reflect an independent attested usage of הָגָה, which denotes an activity of the mind or mouth (meditating, uttering) rather than a location.
- Sounds002004001009007
- This entry carries no generic-sounds sense of its own that is independently attested distinct from its speech/utterance sense; the domain is bundle-shared. The genuine sense is covered under the speak/meditate bullet below.
- Speak002004001009008
- הָגָה denotes speaking, meditating, or uttering, whether inwardly or aloud, as at Joshua 1:8 — "you shall meditate on it day and night" — and Psalm 1:2 — "on His Law he meditates day and night."
Word family 4 words
Words formed from the same root. They share a form, not always a meaning.
Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon H1897. hagah I. הָגָה verb moan, growl, utter, speak, muse (only poetry) (onomatopoetic;…
I. הָגָה verb moan, growl, utter, speak, muse (only poetry) (onomatopoetic; Late Hebrew הָגָה muse, speak, spell a word, so Aramaic הֲגָא; muse, especially Ethpa`al; Arabic satirize, insult, scold, also spell (borrowed meaning)) —
Qal Perf.2masculine singular וְהָגִ֫יתָ consecutive Jos 1:8; Jos 1:1singular הָגִ֫יתִי Psa 143:5, וְהָגִיתִי consecutive Psa 77:13; Imperfect יֶהְגֶּה Job 27:4 Job 27:8t.; 3 feminine singular תֶּהְגֶּה Psa 35:28 Psa 35:2t., אֶהְגֶּה Psa 63:7; Isa 38:14, יֶהְגּוּ Psa 2:1 + 2t., תֶּהְגּוּ Isa 16:7; נֶהְגֶּה֑ Isa 59:11; Infinitive absolute הָגוֺ Isa 59:11; —
1 of inarticulate sounds:
a. growl, of lion growling over prey, followed by על Isa 31:4.
b. groan, moan, in distress (like dove), absolute, Isa 38:14; Isa 59:11 (נֶהְגֶּה הָגוֺ); sigh for (לְ) in sorrow, mourning, moan for Isa 16:7 (|| לְ יְיֵלִיל), so also Jer 48:31.
2 utter, followed by accusative of thing, Psa 38:13; subject לָשׁוֺן Job 27:4 (|| דִּבֶּר) Psa 35:28; Psa 71:24; Isa 59:3; subject מֶּה Psa 37:30; Pro 8:7 — compare also below Po. below; speak (absolute) Psa 115:7 (בְּ instrumental)
3. a. (soliloquize) meditate, muse, with בְּ of thing, Jos 1:8; Psa 1:2; Psa 63:7; Psa 77:13; Psa 143:5; with accusative Isa 33:18, subject לֵב.
b. imagine, devise, with accusative Psa 2:1; Pro 24:2 (subject לֵב); with Infinitive Pro 15:28 (subject id.)
Po. Infinitive absolute only דִּבְרֵישֶֿׁקֶר מִלֵּב וְהֹגוֺ הֹרוֺ Isa 59:13 a conceiving and an uttering, out of the heart, lying words (|| וְסָרָה עשֶׁק דַּבֵּר); — on form compare Köi. 555; but read rather וְהָגוֺ הָרוֺ
Qal Infinitive absolute compare Di; BaNB 77 retains ᵑ0 & explanation as Qal Infinitive passive
Hiph`il Participle plural וְהַמַּהְגִּ֥ים הַמְּצַפְצְפִים Isa 8:19 those that make chirpings and mutterings, of necromancers and wizards.
Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), public domain
Topical studies with this word 3 entries
Meanings adapted from the UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament, © United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0 and the UBS Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew (from the Semantic Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew), © United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0; MACULA Greek Linguistic Datasets, available at https://github.com/Clear-Bible/macula-greek/, licensed CC BY 4.0; MACULA Hebrew Linguistic Datasets © 2022-2024 by Biblica, Inc., CC BY 4.0. Westminster Leningrad Codex (tanach.us). OpenScriptures Hebrew Bible morphology (hb.openscriptures.org), CC BY 4.0.
Sources
eRhema lexical overview, based on the UBS Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew and the UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament (© United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Macula Hebrew and Greek (Clear Bible, CC BY 4.0); released under CC BY-SA 4.0
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