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נָשָׁא

𐤍𐤔𐤀

nâshâʼ

H5377 verb

SILEX Entry

Root נשׁא to deceive, to delude, to mislead

Definition

To deceive, mislead, or trick; the act of causing someone to hold a false belief or enticing them into error, whether mentally (by delusion) or morally (by seduction). Used of misleading in speech, action, or inducement. The verb emphasizes intentionality and culpability on the part of the deceiver, and can refer to both subtle persuasion and open trickery.

Semantic Range

to deceive, to lead astray, to beguile, to seduce into error, to mislead mentally or morally, to delude, to cause to wander from truth

Root / Etymology

Root is נשׁא (n-š-ʼ). While the root נשׁא often means 'to lift, carry,' this verb form (nashâ) diverges distinctly in meaning. Its formation suggests a possible original sense of 'lifting up (the mind) deceptively, i.e., causing someone to be elated or carried away to error,' but its direct connection to the core noun/verb is debatable, and the semantic development is unclear. Some lexicons suggest the root meaning is 'to deceive' in this stem; etymology uncertain.

Historical & Contextual Notes

נָשָׁא is not a common verb and occurs primarily in poetic or elevated narrative settings (e.g., Genesis 3:13; 2 Kings 18:29; Isaiah 19:13). Its main nuance is that of deception—especially serious and often with ethical/moral consequences, such as the serpent misleading Eve, foreign leaders misleading peoples, or prophets seducing hearers into error. It can be used of being deceived (passive or niphal forms) as well as deceiving (active forms). In translation traditions, it is sometimes rendered "beguile" or "deceive," but these English terms may not capture the full gravity and intentionality implied in the Hebrew. The verb is distinguished from related Hebrew terms like רִמָּה (rimmah, 'to deceive, betray') and שָׁקַר (shaqar, 'to lie'), in that נָשָׁא focuses specifically on the act of misleading or leading into error rather than direct verbal falsehood or betrayal. In the Hebrew Bible, it is generally reserved for acts with significant consequence (as in the Fall narrative, Genesis 3:13), rather than casual deception. In later Hebrew and in post-biblical usage, this sense largely disappears or is absorbed by other roots.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

a primitive root; to lead astray, i.e. (mentally) to delude, or (morally) to seduce; beguile, deceive, [idiom] greatly, [idiom] utterly.

Bantu Hebrew

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Root Family

נשׁא (n-š-ʾ) — deceive, delude, mislead

Word Forms

12 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 Occurrences
H5377-10 יַשִּׁ֥יא yashi HVhj3ms deceive let him mislead 4
H5377-11 יַשִּׁאֲ/ךָ֣ yashiakha HVhj3ms/Sp2ms deceive you may he deceive you 2
H5377-09 תַּשִּׁ֤אוּ tashiu HVhj2mp deceive may you mislead 1
H5377-02 הִשֵּׁ֜אתָ hisheta HVhp2ms you have deceived you led astray 1
H5377-01 הַשֵּׁ֨א hashe HVha deception to cause deception 1
H5377-06 הִשִּׁיא֛וּ/ךָ hishiukha HVhp3cp/Sp2ms have deceived you they deceived you 1
H5377-03 הִשִּׁ֤יא hishi HVhp3ms has deceived he caused to deceive 1
H5377-08 נִשְּׁא֖וּ nisheu HVNp3cp have been deceived they were deceived 1
H5377-12 יַשִּׁ֧יאוּ yashiu HVhj3mp let deceive let them deceive 1
H5377-05 הִשִּׁיאֶ֔/ךָ hishiekha HVhp3ms/Sp2ms has deceived you he misled you 1

Occurrences in Scripture

16 total occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1
H5377-04 Genesis 3:13 הִשִּׁיאַ֖/נִי hishiani HVhp3ms/Sp1cs deceived me he misled me
H5377-10 2 Kings 18:29 יַשִּׁ֥יא yashi HVhj3ms let deceive let him mislead
H5377-11 2 Kings 19:10 יַשִּׁאֲ/ךָ֣ yashiakha HVhj3ms/Sp2ms let deceive may he deceive you
H5377-08 Isaiah 19:13 נִשְּׁא֖וּ nisheu HVNp3cp have been deceived they were deceived
H5377-10 Isaiah 36:14 יַשִּׁ֥א yashi HVhj3ms deceive let him mislead
H5377-11 Isaiah 37:10 יַשִּֽׁאֲ/ךָ֣ yashiakha HVhj3ms/Sp2ms deceive you may he deceive you
H5377-01 Jeremiah 4:10 הַשֵּׁ֨א hashe HVha deception to cause deception
H5377-02 Jeremiah 4:10 הִשֵּׁ֜אתָ hisheta HVhp2ms you have deceived you led astray
H5377-07 Jeremiah 23:39 נָשֹׁ֑א nasho HVqa lift/carry to utterly deceive
H5377-12 Jeremiah 29:8 יַשִּׁ֧יאוּ yashiu HVhj3mp let deceive let them deceive
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