← H4155 H4157 →

מוֹעֵצָה

𐤌𐤅𐤏𐤑𐤄

môwʻêtsâh

H4156 noun

SILEX Entry

Root יעץ to advise, counsel, deliberate, plan

Definition

An assembly for deliberation or the act of deliberation; plan, purpose, or decision arrived at after counsel. The term denotes either a formal group gathered for counsel (such as a council or assembly) or the result of such deliberations—namely, advice, plan, or policy. It can refer both to the act of giving counsel and the concluded counsel itself, often with a social or communal nuance.

Semantic Range

council (assembly of advisors), act of deliberation, common purpose, plan devised by council, policy decision, resolved course of action

Root / Etymology

Derived from the root יעץ (y-ʻ-ts), which means 'to advise, counsel, plan, deliberate.' The noun מוֹעֵצָה is a feminine form formed with the mem- prefix, commonly used to indicate a place or product of the root action. Thus, מוֹעֵצָה originally implies a gathering (place) of deliberation or its product (counsel, plan).

Historical & Contextual Notes

Throughout the Hebrew Bible, מוֹעֵצָה appears infrequently and typically denotes a council or assembly for decision-making (e.g., Micah 4:12). It is distinguished from עֵצָה (ʿêtsâ, 'advice, counsel') by indicating a formal group task or assembly, rather than individual advice. The transition from physical assembly (council, board) to abstract idea (purpose, policy, devised plan) appears in both biblical and later Hebrew. In postbiblical usage, מוֹעֵצָה becomes a standard term for administrative councils or legislative bodies, a meaning that develops more fully in Second Temple and later periods. English translations sometimes flatten these nuances, rendering both עֵצָה and מוֹעֵצָה simply as 'counsel' or 'advice,' whereas Hebrew maintains a distinction between the personal (עֵצָה) and the collective/communal (מוֹעֵצָה). The term can reflect both human decision-making and, by metaphorical extension, the decisions or purposes of YHWH when God is depicted as presiding over a deliberative assembly.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

from יָעַץ; a purpose; counsel, device.

Bantu Hebrew

No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.

+ Add Bantu Hebrew Word

Root Family

יעץ (y-ʿ-ṣ) — advise, counsel, deliberate, plan

Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H3263 יְעוּץ Counselor
H3272 יְעַט they took counsel together
H3289 יָעַץ to the advising one
H6097 עֵצָה her counsel
H6098 עֵצָה counsel of

Word Forms

5 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 Occurrences
H4156-03 בְּ/מֹ֣עֵצ֔וֹת bemoetsot HR/Ncfpa in counsels in deliberative councils 2
H4156-04 מִֽ/מֹּעֲצ֖וֹתֵי/הֶֽם mimoatsoteyhem HR/Ncfpc/Sp3mp because of their counsels from their deliberations 2
H4156-01 בְּ/מֹֽעֲצוֹתָ֑/ם bemoatsotam HR/Ncfpc/Sp3mp in their counsels in their deliberations 1
H4156-05 וּֽ/מִ/מֹּעֲצֹ֖תֵי/הֶ֣ם umimoatsoteyhem HC/R/Ncfpc/Sp3mp and from their counsels and from their deliberated plans 1
H4156-02 בְּֽ/מוֹעֲצוֹתֵי/הֶֽם bemoatsoteyhem HR/Ncfpc/Sp3mp in-their-counsels in their counsels 1

Occurrences in Scripture

7 total occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1
H4156-03 Jeremiah 7:24 בְּ/מֹ֣עֵצ֔וֹת bemoetsot HR/Ncfpa in counsels in deliberative councils
H4156-04 Hosea 11:6 מִֽ/מֹּעֲצ֖וֹתֵי/הֶֽם mimoatsoteyhem HR/Ncfpc/Sp3mp because of their counsels from their deliberations
H4156-01 Micah 6:16 בְּ/מֹֽעֲצוֹתָ֑/ם bemoatsotam HR/Ncfpc/Sp3mp in their counsels in their deliberations
H4156-04 Psalms 5:11 מִֽ/מֹּעֲצ֪וֹתֵ֫י/הֶ֥ם mimoatsoteyhem HR/Ncfpc/Sp3mp by their own counsels from their deliberations
H4156-02 Psalms 81:13 בְּֽ/מוֹעֲצוֹתֵי/הֶֽם bemoatsoteyhem HR/Ncfpc/Sp3mp in-their-counsels in their counsels
H4156-05 Proverbs 1:31 וּֽ/מִ/מֹּעֲצֹ֖תֵי/הֶ֣ם umimoatsoteyhem HC/R/Ncfpc/Sp3mp and from their counsels and from their deliberated plans
H4156-03 Proverbs 22:20 בְּ/מ֖וֹעֵצֹ֣ת bemoetsot HR/Ncfpa of counsels in deliberative councils
← H4155 Hebrew Lexicon H4157 →