עֹצֶב
𐤏𐤑𐤁
ʻôtseb
H6090 noun
SILEX Entry
Definition
Object or image fashioned (typically by human hands), often with the sense of a 'carved idol' or 'cultic image'; by extension, the emotional or physical pain, toil, or labor associated with effort or suffering. The word is used both for tangible objects connected with worship of foreign deities and for experiences of sorrow, grief, or hardship.
Semantic Range
idol, image, cultic object (especially foreign); pain, physical suffering, sorrow, grief, toil, hardship
Root / Etymology
From the root עצב (ʿ-ṣ-b), which primarily means 'to shape, fashion, form,' and by extension 'to feel pain, hurt, grieve.' The noun עֹצֶב is a variant formation closely related to עֶצֶב (ʿeṣeb), with similar semantic content. While the verbal root emphasizes action (forming or causing pain), the noun denotes both the result (an idol, something formed) and the experience (pain, sorrow).
Historical & Contextual Notes
In its sense as 'idol,' עֹצֶב appears in post-monarchic and exilic texts, especially in poetic or prophetic denunciations of foreign cultic practices (e.g., Psalm 115:4, Isaiah 48:5). This usage highlights the physical fabrication of non-Israelite cultic images and often serves to contrast the living deity of Israel with inert handmade objects. In parallel with עֶצֶב, the term also expresses emotional or physical suffering, as seen in the context of labor, toil, pain, or sorrow. English translations sometimes collapse the nuance by rendering both senses as 'idol' or 'sorrow'; however, the Hebrew retains a tangible connection between the notions of suffering and the products of human hands, possibly with ironic intent in some texts. The overlapping semantic field with other words for idol (e.g., פֶסֶל pesel, תְּרָפִים teraphim) distinguishes עֹצֶב as emphasizing act of making and the almost burdensome or sorrowful character of such objects. In later periods, the word's association with 'idol' contributed to the negative valuation of both meaning components.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
a variation of עֶצֶב; an idol (as fashioned); also pain (bodily or mental); idol, sorrow, [idiom] wicked.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been recorded for this word yet.
Root Family
עצב (Otsem) — to shape, to form, to grieve, to cause pain
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H4620 | מַעֲצֵבָה | to a carved idol |
| H6087 | עָצַב | he pained him |
| H6088 | עֲצַב | pain-stricken |
| H6089 | עֶצֶב | in pain |
| H6091 | עָצָב | carved idols of |
Word Forms
4 distinct forms
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H6090-01 |
עָצְבִּ֣/י | atsebi | HNcmsc/Sp1cs |
my-idol | my formed-idol | my formed idol | 1 |
H6090-02 |
בְּ/עֹֽצֶב | beotsev | HR/Ncmsa |
in pain | in carved-idol | in pain | 1 |
H6090-03 |
מֵֽ/עָצְבְּ/ךָ֖ | meatsebekha | HR/Ncmsc/Sp2ms |
from your sorrow | your fashioned-idol | from your sorrow | 1 |
H6090-04 |
עֹ֥צֶב | otsev | HNcmsa |
of-pain | shaped idol | pain | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
4 occurrences
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H6090-03 |
Isaiah 14:3 | מֵֽ/עָצְבְּ/ךָ֖ | meatsebekha | HR/Ncmsc/Sp2ms |
from your sorrow | your fashioned-idol | from your sorrow |
H6090-01 |
Isaiah 48:5 | עָצְבִּ֣/י | atsebi | HNcmsc/Sp1cs |
my-idol | my formed-idol | my formed idol |
H6090-04 |
Psalms 139:24 | עֹ֥צֶב | otsev | HNcmsa |
of-pain | shaped idol | pain |
H6090-02 |
1 Chronicles 4:9 | בְּ/עֹֽצֶב | beotsev | HR/Ncmsa |
in pain | in carved-idol | in pain |