נֶגֶף
𐤍𐤂𐤐
negeph
H5063 noun
SILEX Entry
Definition
A blow, striking, or event causing an affliction or calamity—often a sudden or forceful impact that falls upon an individual or community. In many biblical contexts, denotes a physical ailment, pestilence, defeat, or Divine act of punishment resulting in widespread harm or destruction. The term may refer to literal stumbling or injury, but more frequently describes collective afflictions such as plagues or military disasters.
Semantic Range
blow, striking, calamity, affliction, plague, pestilence, military defeat, event of Divine punishment
Root / Etymology
From the root נ-ג-ף (נָגַף), meaning 'to strike, smite, cause to stumble, inflict.' The noun form (נֶגֶף) developed to signify the result of a striking or smiting event. Its actual lexical scope is most commonly realized in the sense of a calamity or affliction rather than simply a physical trip or stumble.
Historical & Contextual Notes
In biblical usage, נֶגֶף always denotes an event with considerable negative impact, often viewed as Divinely inflicted. During the monarchic and pre-exilic periods, the term is used to describe military defeat or pestilence that befalls the Israelite community (e.g., 2 Samuel 24:21, 25; Numbers 16:46-48; Joshua 22:17). It is structurally distinguished from related nouns such as מַגֵּפָה (magefah, 'plague, pestilence'), which more directly designates an epidemic disease, and מָכוֹב (makov, 'suffering, pain'), which describes general suffering. English translations usually gloss נֶגֶף as 'plague' or 'affliction,' but such renderings may obscure the word’s broader sense as any calamity interpreted as an act of Divine retribution, whether disease or military loss. Over time, נֶגֶף is less commonly used in later biblical and post-biblical literature, mainly replaced by terms with more clinical or general connotations for disease or suffering. The later English translation tradition's use of 'plague' reflects the frequent context of large-scale outbreaks or sudden community disaster, but the Hebrew term includes, more broadly, any devastating blow to a group or individual.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
from נָגַף; a trip (of the foot); figuratively, an infliction (of disease); plague, stumbling.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.
+ Add Bantu Hebrew WordRoot Family
נגף (n-g-p̄) — to strike, to smite, to inflict, to cause to stumble
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H102 | אַגָּף | his army-wings |
| H4046 | מַגֵּפָה | in the striking-plague |
| H5062 | נָגַף | in being struck down |
Word Forms
3 distinct forms
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H5063-03 |
נֶ֨גֶף֙ | negef | HNcmsa |
plague | smiting blow | 4 |
H5063-02 |
הַ/נֶּ֖גֶף | hanegef | HTd/Ncmsa |
the plague | the smiting blow | 2 |
H5063-01 |
הַ/נָּֽגֶף | hanagef | HTd/Ncmsa |
the-plague | the smiting-blow | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
7 total occurrences
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H5063-03 |
Exodus 12:13 | נֶ֨גֶף֙ | negef | HNcmsa |
plague | smiting blow |
H5063-03 |
Exodus 30:12 | נֶ֖גֶף | negef | HNcmsa |
plague | smiting blow |
H5063-03 |
Numbers 8:19 | נֶ֔גֶף | negef | HNcmsa |
plague | smiting blow |
H5063-01 |
Numbers 17:11 | הַ/נָּֽגֶף | hanagef | HTd/Ncmsa |
the-plague | the smiting-blow |
H5063-02 |
Numbers 17:12 | הַ/נֶּ֖גֶף | hanegef | HTd/Ncmsa |
the plague | the smiting blow |
H5063-02 |
Joshua 22:17 | הַ/נֶּ֖גֶף | hanegef | HTd/Ncmsa |
the plague | the smiting blow |
H5063-03 |
Isaiah 8:14 | נֶ֠גֶף | negef | HNcmsa |
of-stumbling | smiting blow |