נָפַשׁ
nâphash · H5314 · Hebrew · 3 occurrences
Meanings
-
to refresh oneself, to rest
Literally: to (be able to) breathe; action by which humans cease or interrupt a strenuous activity in order to recover their strength and ability to function
ExamplesExodus 23:12 “For six days you are to do your work, but on the seventh day you shall cease from labor so that your ox and your donkey may rest, and the son of your female slave, as well as the stranger residing with you, may refresh themselves.
Exodus 31:17 “It is a sign between Me and the sons of Israel forever; for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, but on the seventh day He ceased from labor, and was refreshed.”
2 Samuel 16:14 And the king and all the people who were with him arrived exhausted, and he refreshed himself there.
How it’s used In 3 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
3 occurrences in 3 groups
- Not stated: he, she or it 2
- בֵּןson 1
- גֵּרalien, sojourner, stranger 1
With prepositionsPrepositional phrases
1 occurrences in 1 groups
- בin/on/with+ יוֹםday, time 1
With adverbsAdverbs
1 occurrences in 1 groups
- שָׁםthere 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 2 words
- רָוַח râvach · H7304 · to smell, to find joy (in something)
- This Hebrew verb conveys the sense of getting relief or breathing freely, closely related to the refreshment concept of נָפַשׁ, though it emphasizes the aspect of relief and space rather than direct refreshment.
- חָיָה châyâh · H2421 · to be alive, to become alive, to live
- In its Piel and Hiphil forms meaning 'revive' or 'restore,' חָיָה shares semantic overlap with נָפַשׁ's sense of being refreshed or restored, though חָיָה has broader life-giving connotations.
Contrasting words 2 words
- יָעַף yâʻaph · H3286 · to grow faint, to grow weary, to fly
- The verb יָעַף meaning 'to be weary' or 'grow tired' represents the opposite state to being refreshed, making it a genuine lexical antonym to נָפַשׁ.
- עָיֵף ʻâyêph · H5889 · weary, faint, famished
- This adjective meaning 'weary' or 'faint' represents the opposite condition to being refreshed, serving as a lexical antonym to the refreshment conveyed by נָפַשׁ.
In the other Testament 2 words
- ἀναψύχω anapsýchō · G404 · to encourage, to cheer up
- The Greek verb ἀναψύχω directly captures the sense of being refreshed or revived, commonly used in contexts of rest and restoration, making it a natural translation equivalent for Hebrew נָפַשׁ in its refreshment sense.
- ἀναπαύω anapaúō · G373 · to cause to rest, to give rest, rest
- This Greek verb meaning 'to rest' or 'to refresh' is a close equivalent for the Hebrew concept of being refreshed, particularly in contexts of rest and renewal.
Semantic domains 1 entry
- Strong002001001063
- The word describes being refreshed or restored in strength, as God rests on the seventh day and is refreshed (Exodus 31:17) and David's men refresh themselves after battle (2 Samuel 16:14), tying the word to renewed vigor after exertion.
Word family 2 words
Words formed from the same root. They share a form, not always a meaning.
Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon H5314. naphash [נָפַשׁ] verb denominative (compare Syriac refresh; , be refreshed;…
[נָפַשׁ] verb denominative (compare Syriac refresh; , be refreshed; Ethiopic ); —
Niph`al Imperfect3masculine singular יִנָּפֵשׁ Exo 23:12 (E) 2Sa 16:14; וַיִּנָּפַ֑שׁ Exo 31:17 (P); — take breath, refresh oneself.
Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), public domain
Topical studies with this word 1 entry
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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