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מֹשֶׁה

𐤌𐤔𐤄

Mosheh

H4872 noun

SILEX Entry

Root משה to draw out, extract

Definition

A personal name designating the prominent Israelite leader known for mediating the exodus from Egypt and the giving of the law at Sinai. In the Hebrew Bible, Môsheh primarily refers to the individual who is traditionally portrayed as leading the Israelites out of Egypt, serving as mediator, prophet, and lawgiver. The semantic range is essentially as a proper name but closely associated with themes of deliverance and leadership among Israelites.

Semantic Range

personal name designating the leader and mediator of the Israelites; refers to the founder-figure of the covenant at Sinai; sometimes used typologically in later literature to evoke themes of deliverance, mediation, or prophetic leadership

Root / Etymology

Root uncertain; traditionally linked in the biblical narrative to the verb מָשָׁה (mashah, 'to draw out') by exegetical wordplay in Exodus 2:10, relating to Moses being drawn out of the water. However, the name may have Egyptian origins (cf. Egyptian ms or msy, 'born of'), with the etymology uncertain.

Historical & Contextual Notes

The name מֹשֶׁה appears exclusively as a personal name in the Hebrew Bible and is consistently associated with the individual depicted as leader and mediator for the Israelites during the era of the overseas Exodus and journey to Canaan. In the narrative, the name is connected to Moses' rescue as an infant from the Nile (Exod 2:10), but many scholars consider this a Hebrew adaptation or reinterpretation of an originally Egyptian name component common in theophoric names (such as 'Thutmose,' meaning 'born of Thoth'). The use of 'Moses' as a substitute for 'Mosheh' in later English translations reflects a later Greek/Latin transmission rather than the original Hebrew. In historical terms, he is depicted as an Israelite leader and not specifically as a 'Jew' or Judean. The name never functions as a common noun or verb in the Hebrew Bible; its association with 'drawing out' is an etiological explanation rather than a primary lexical meaning. The character of Môsheh is central throughout the Torah and receives frequent mention in other biblical books as the paradigmatic prophet and lawgiver.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

from מָשָׁה; drawing out (of the water), i.e. rescued; Mosheh, the Israelite lawgiver; Moses.

Bantu Hebrew

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Root Family

משה (m-š-h) — to draw out, extract

Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H4873 מֹשֶׁה Mosheh
H4897 מֶשִׁי drawn silk
H5250 נִמְשִׁי Rescued-One

Word Forms

7 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 Occurrences
H4872-04 מֹשֶׁ֔ה mosheh HNp Moses Mosheh 726
H4872-03 לְ/מֹשֶֽׁה lemosheh HR/Np to Moses to Mosheh 17
H4872-05 וּ/מֹשֶׁ֗ה umosheh HC/Np and Moses and Mosheh 16
H4872-01 בְּ/מֹשֶׁ֗ה bemosheh HR/Np against Moses in Mosheh 3
H4872-06 וּ/בְ/מֹשֶׁ֖ה uvemosheh HC/R/Np and against Moses and in Mosheh 2
H4872-02 כְּ/מֹשֶׁ֑ה kemosheh HR/Np like-Moses like Mosheh 1
H4872-07 בְ/מֹשֶֽׁה vemosheh HR/Np against-Moses in Mosheh 1

Occurrences in Scripture

766 total occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1
H4872-04 Exodus 2:10 מֹשֶׁ֔ה mosheh HNp Moses Mosheh
H4872-04 Exodus 2:11 מֹשֶׁה֙ mosheh HNp Moses Mosheh
H4872-04 Exodus 2:14 מֹשֶׁה֙ mosheh HNp Moses Mosheh
H4872-04 Exodus 2:15 מֹשֶׁ֑ה mosheh HNp Moses. Mosheh
H4872-04 Exodus 2:15 מֹשֶׁה֙ mosheh-2 HNp Moses Mosheh
H4872-04 Exodus 2:17 מֹשֶׁה֙ mosheh HNp Moses Mosheh
H4872-04 Exodus 2:21 מֹשֶׁ֖ה mosheh HNp Moses Mosheh
H4872-03 Exodus 2:21 לְ/מֹשֶֽׁה lemosheh HR/Np to Moses. to Mosheh
H4872-05 Exodus 3:1 וּ/מֹשֶׁ֗ה umosheh HC/Np Now Moses and Mosheh
H4872-04 Exodus 3:3 מֹשֶׁ֔ה mosheh HNp Moses, Mosheh
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