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בָּזַז

𐤁𐤆𐤆

bâzaz

H962 verb

SILEX Entry

Definition

To plunder, seize as spoil, or rob; refers primarily to the act of taking goods, valuables, or resources (especially in the context of war or violence). The core sense involves forcibly stripping another party of possessions, with uses ranging from literal looting in warfare to metaphorical uses of utter deprivation or destruction.

Semantic Range

to plunder, to strip of possessions, to seize as booty or spoil, to rob, to utterly deprive, to loot

Root / Etymology

From the root ב-ז-ז (בָּזַז), meaning fundamentally 'to seize' or 'to plunder.' The verb likely developed from the core idea of taking quickly or forcefully, often under conditions of conflict or chaos. This root gives rise to the noun בָּז (baz, 'spoil, booty'), directly reflecting the outcome of the verb's action.

Historical & Contextual Notes

בָּזַז appears most frequently in narrative, especially in accounts of military action, where victors plunder the possessions of the defeated. In these contexts, it is distinguished from other roots such as שָׁסָה (shasah, 'to plunder, spoil') and גָּזַל (gazal, 'to rob, seize by violence'). The word emphasizes both the act of violent acquisition and the resulting transfer of valuables. During the monarchic and exilic periods, בָּזַז retains its martial overtones but can also refer to broader acts of deprivation or devastation (cf. Isa 10:13, 'I remove the boundaries of nations, I plunder [בזז] their treasures'). English translations typically render it as 'plunder,' 'spoil,' or 'take as booty,' but in some contexts the full sense involves complete devastation or utter loss. The noun derivative בָּז refers to spoil or booty and appears frequently in parallel with other spoils-of-war terminology. Later in the Second Temple period, such martial overtones are often preserved in retellings or prophecies of national calamity.

Translation Consistency

primary "plunder" 40 occurrences

SILEX and usage favor the wartime/forcible-taking sense; ‘plunder’ is the natural, widely attested English verb for seizing goods as spoil in both literal and metaphorical contexts and matches the majority of existing renderings (e.g. “plundered,” “plunder”). It is clear, consistent, and fits the primary semantic range better than weaker alternatives like ‘take’.

Alternatives (3 occurrences):
"took as booty" (1x) "those who despoil" (1x) "plunderers" (1x)

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

a primitive root; to plunder; catch, gather, (take) for a prey, rob(-ber), spoil, take (away, spoil), [idiom] utterly.

Bantu Hebrew

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

Root Family

בזז (baz) — to plunder, to spoil, to seize by force

Root בזז to plunder, to seize, to take as spoil
Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H957 בַּז plunder
H961 בִּזָּה her plundered goods

Word Forms

28 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2 Occurrences
H962-03 בָּזְז֣וּ bazezu HVqp3cp they plundered they plundered they plundered 6
H962-21 וַ/יָּבֹ֨זּוּ֙ vayavozu HC/Vqw3mp and plundered and they plundered and they plundered 5
H962-11 לָ/בֹ֣ז lavoz HR/Vqc to plunder to plunder to plunder 3
H962-09 בֹּ֥זּוּ bozu HVqv2mp Plunder! Plunder! Plunder 2
H962-18 וּ/בָֽזְזוּ֙ uvazezu HC/Vqq3cp and-they-will-plunder and they plundered and they plundered 2
H962-23 וְ/לָ/בֹ֣ז velavoz HC/R/Vqc and to seize and to plunder and to plunder 2
H962-27 יָבֹֽזּוּ yavozu HVqi3mp they plunder they plunder they will plunder 2
H962-01 בָּזַ֣זְנוּ bazazenu HVqp1cp we took as spoil we plundered we plundered 1
H962-02 בָּזָֽזוּ bazazu HVqp3cp they plundered they plundered they plundered 1
H962-04 בַּזּ֥וֹנוּ bazonu HVqp1cp we took as booty we plundered we took as booty 1

Occurrences in Scripture

43 occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2
H962-21 Genesis 34:27 וַ/יָּבֹ֖זּוּ vayavozu HC/Vqw3mp and plundered and they plundered and they plundered
H962-21 Genesis 34:29 וַ/יָּבֹ֑זּוּ vayavozu HC/Vqw3mp and plundered and they plundered and they plundered
H962-02 Numbers 31:9 בָּזָֽזוּ bazazu HVqp3cp they plundered they plundered they plundered
H962-03 Numbers 31:32 בָּזְז֖וּ bazezu HVqp3cp they had plundered they plundered they plundered
H962-03 Numbers 31:53 בָּזְז֖וּ bazezu HVqp3cp had plundered they plundered they plundered
H962-01 Deuteronomy 2:35 בָּזַ֣זְנוּ bazazenu HVqp1cp we took as spoil we plundered we plundered
H962-04 Deuteronomy 3:7 בַּזּ֥וֹנוּ bazonu HVqp1cp we took as booty we plundered we took as booty
H962-14 Deuteronomy 20:14 תָּבֹ֣ז tavoz HVqi2ms you shall take as plunder you will plunder you shall plunder
H962-15 Joshua 8:2 תָּבֹ֣זּוּ tavozu HVqi2mp you shall take as plunder you will plunder you shall take as plunder
H962-03 Joshua 8:27 בָּזְז֥וּ bazezu HVqp3cp they plundered they plundered they plundered
H962-03 Joshua 11:14 בָּזְז֥וּ bazezu HVqp3cp they plundered they plundered they plundered
H962-24 1 Samuel 14:36 וְֽ/נָבֹ֥זָה venavozah HC/Vqh1cp and let us plunder and let us plunder and let us plunder
H962-21 2 Kings 7:16 וַ/יָּבֹ֕זּוּ vayavozu HC/Vqw3mp and plundered and they plundered and they plundered
H962-27 Isaiah 10:2 יָבֹֽזּוּ yavozu HVqi3mp they plunder they plunder they will plunder
H962-23 Isaiah 10:6 וְ/לָ/בֹ֣ז velavoz HC/R/Vqc and to seize and to plunder and to plunder
H962-27 Isaiah 11:14 יָבֹ֣זּוּ yavozu HVqi3mp they will plunder they plunder they will plunder
H962-12 Isaiah 17:14 לְ/בֹזְזֵֽי/נוּ levozezeynu HR/Vqrmpc/Sp1cp of those who plunder us to our plunderers of those who despoil us
H962-22 Isaiah 24:3 וְ/הִבּ֣וֹז vehiboz HC/VNa and will be completely plundered being plundered being plundered
H962-16 Isaiah 24:3 תִּבּ֑וֹז tiboz HVNi3fs will be plundered she will be plundered it will be plundered
H962-03 Isaiah 33:23 בָּ֥זְזוּ bazezu HVqp3cp take the prey they plundered they plundered
H962-05 Isaiah 42:22 בָּז֣וּז bazuz HVqsmsa robbed plundered one plundered one
H962-13 Isaiah 42:24 לְ/בֹזְזִ֖ים levozezim HR/Vqrmpa to-plunderers to plundering ones to plunderers
H962-19 Jeremiah 20:5 וּ/בְזָזוּ/ם֙ uvezazum HC/Vqq3cp/Sp3mp and they shall plunder them and they plundered them and they plundered them
H962-06 Jeremiah 30:16 בֹּזְזַ֖יִ/ךְ bozezayikhe HVqrmpc/Sp2fs who plunder you your plunderers those who plunder you
H962-20 Jeremiah 50:37 וּ/בֻזָּֽזוּ uvuzazu HC/VPq3cp and they will be plundered and they were plundered and they will be plundered
H962-18 Ezekiel 26:12 וּ/בָֽזְזוּ֙ uvazezu HC/Vqq3cp and-they-will-plunder and they plundered and they plundered
H962-17 Ezekiel 29:19 וּ/בָזַ֣ז uvazaz HC/Vqq3ms and plunder and he plundered and plunder
H962-23 Ezekiel 38:12 וְ/לָ/בֹ֣ז velavoz HC/R/Vqc and to seize and to plunder and to plunder
H962-10 Ezekiel 38:13 הֲ/לָ/בֹ֥ז halavoz HTi/R/Vqc Have you assembled for booty? to plunder to plunder
H962-18 Ezekiel 39:10 וּ/בָֽזְזוּ֙ uvazezu HC/Vqq3cp and-they-will-plunder and they plundered and they plundered
H962-07 Ezekiel 39:10 בֹּ֣זְזֵי/הֶ֔ם bozezeyhem HVqrmpc/Sp3mp plunderers-of-them those plundering them those plundering them
H962-25 Amos 3:11 וְ/נָבֹ֖זּוּ venavozu HC/VNq3cp and-will-be-plundered and they were plundered and will be plundered
H962-09 Nahum 2:10 בֹּ֥זּוּ bozu HVqv2mp Plunder! Plunder! Plunder
H962-09 Nahum 2:10 בֹּ֣זּוּ bozu-2 HVqv2mp Plunder! Plunder! Plunder
H962-28 Zephaniah 2:9 יְבָזּ֔וּ/ם yevazum HVqi3mp/Sp3mp will plunder them they will plunder them they will plunder them
H962-26 Psalms 109:11 וְ/יָבֹ֖זּוּ veyavozu HC/Vqi3mp and may strangers plunder and they will plunder and may they plunder
H962-11 Esther 3:13 לָ/בֽוֹז lavoz HR/Vqc to-plunder to plunder to plunder
H962-11 Esther 8:11 לָ/בֽוֹז lavoz HR/Vqc to plunder to plunder to plunder
H962-21 2 Chronicles 14:13 וַ/יָּבֹ֨זּוּ֙ vayavozu HC/Vqw3mp and they plundered and they plundered and they plundered
H962-11 2 Chronicles 20:25 לָ/בֹ֣ז lavoz HR/Vqc to plunder to plunder to plunder
H962-08 2 Chronicles 20:25 בֹּזְזִ֥ים bozezim HVqrmpa gathering the spoil the plundering ones the plundering ones
H962-21 2 Chronicles 25:13 וַ/יָּבֹ֖זּוּ vayavozu HC/Vqw3mp they plundered and they plundered and they plundered
H962-03 2 Chronicles 28:8 בָּזְז֣וּ bazezu HVqp3cp they plundered they plundered they plundered
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