← H4524 H4526 →

מַסְגֵּר

𐤌𐤎𐤂𐤓

maçgêr

H4525 noun

SILEX Entry

Root סגר to shut, close, secure

Definition

A person who works with metal, i.e., a smith, especially one who forges or shapes tools and implements; also, a place of confinement, i.e., a prison. The term is used for both the craftsman who works in metal (typically iron or bronze) and, in derivative usage, the place where prisoners are confined, possibly originally associated with the smith's workshop as a secure place of holding. In later contexts, refers simply to a prison, with no necessary association to metallurgy.

Semantic Range

metalworker, smith, artisan who forges or works in iron/bronze; prison, place of confinement; one who secures or is responsible for shutting in (prison-keeper); workshop (by extension in later usage)

Root / Etymology

From the root סָגַר (s-g-r), meaning 'to shut, close, secure.' The noun מַסְגֵּר is a derivative form indicating one who shuts or secures, hence a smith (one who shapes and secures metal) and a place of confinement (a secured or shut-in area). The connection to both metallurgists/smiths and prisons comes from the core sense of 'shutting,' 'securing,' or 'enclosing.'

Historical & Contextual Notes

In early Israelite texts, מַסְגֵּר primarily refers to a metalworker or smith, an occupation closely associated with the production of weapons, tools, and sometimes with the implementation of security (locks, fetters, etc.). Over time, the term also came to denote a prison, likely because confinement implies securing or shutting in, a semantic extension from the core root. The word appears in prophetic and exilic/post-exilic texts as a term for imprisonment or place of confinement. In later Hebrew, the meaning 'prison' becomes primary, mirroring societal changes and the diminishing role of the individual village smith. English translations sometimes flatten this nuance, using either 'smith' or 'prison,' potentially obscuring the word's broader historical and semantic associations. It is related to but distinct from אָסַר ('to bind'), which focuses on the act of binding rather than shutting or enclosing. No evidence suggests the term carried religious connotations in its early usage; it was a secular or civic term.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

from סָגַר; a fastener, i.e. (of a person) a smith, (of a thing) a prison; prison, smith.

Bantu Hebrew

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

+ Add Bantu Hebrew Word

Root Family

סגר (s-g-r) — to shut, close, secure

Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H4526 מִסְגֶּרֶת the enclosing frame
H5458 סְגוֹר enclosed covering of
H5462 סָגַר to hand them over
H5463 סְגַר and he shut
H5464 סַגְרִיד confining downpour

Word Forms

4 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 Occurrences
H4525-04 וְ/הַ/מַּסְגֵּ֑ר vehamaseger HC/Td/Ncmsa and the smiths and the metal-smith 3
H4525-03 מִ/מַּסְגֵּר֙ mimaseger HR/Ncmsa from prison from a smith 2
H4525-02 מַסְגֵּ֑ר maseger HNcmsa prison metal-smith 1
H4525-01 הַ/מַּסְגֵּר֙ hamaseger HTd/Ncmsa the smiths the metal-forger 1

Occurrences in Scripture

7 total occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1
H4525-04 2 Kings 24:14 וְ/הַ/מַּסְגֵּ֑ר vehamaseger HC/Td/Ncmsa and-the-smiths and the metal-smith
H4525-04 2 Kings 24:16 וְ/הַ/מַּסְגֵּר֙ vehamaseger HC/Td/Ncmsa and the smiths and the metal-smith
H4525-02 Isaiah 24:22 מַסְגֵּ֑ר maseger HNcmsa prison metal-smith
H4525-03 Isaiah 42:7 מִ/מַּסְגֵּר֙ mimaseger HR/Ncmsa from the dungeon from a smith
H4525-01 Jeremiah 24:1 הַ/מַּסְגֵּר֙ hamaseger HTd/Ncmsa the smiths the metal-forger
H4525-04 Jeremiah 29:2 וְ/הַ/מַּסְגֵּ֖ר vehamaseger HC/Td/Ncmsa and the smiths and the metal-smith
H4525-03 Psalms 142:8 מִ/מַּסְגֵּ֨ר mimaseger HR/Ncmsa from prison from a smith
← H4524 Hebrew Lexicon H4526 →