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מִצְוָה

𐤌𐤑𐤅𐤄

mitsvâh

H4687 noun

SILEX Entry

Root צוה to command, to order, to instruct

Definition

Directive or instruction issued with authority, most frequently referring to a command issued by God to the Israelite people, but also occasionally used of human commands. The term designates specific injunctions, prescriptions, or statutes, often those given as part of a covenantal relationship, especially the authoritative directives found in the Torah. In some contexts, the word can refer more broadly to any command, rule, or regulation.

Semantic Range

command, directive, instruction, precept, prescribed law, ordinance, collective body of commands, specific injunction, rule

Root / Etymology

From the root צוה (ts-w-h), meaning 'to command, order, instruct.' The noun מִצְוָה derives from this root, denoting that which is commanded or instructed. The root conveys the act of giving orders or making demands on a subordinate, and the noun crystallizes as the actual utterance or item of instruction issued by one in authority.

Historical & Contextual Notes

In the Hebrew Bible, מִצְוָה most often refers to divine directives—individual commandments or the corpus of commands within the Torah given to the Israelites, as in Deuteronomy and Leviticus. Sometimes, particularly in narrative sections (e.g. the book of Esther), it may refer to royal or human commands. In the monarchic period, the term increasingly denoted authoritative religious instructions, especially ritual, ethical, or social obligations specific to the Israelite covenantal context. Post-exilic and Second Temple literature began to focus more on the enumeration and codification of מִצְווֹת as discrete acts or obligations, a development that influenced later Jewish tradition (e.g., the rabbinic tally of 613 commandments). In English Bibles, מִצְוָה is often rendered as 'commandment,' but this can flatten the nuance between singular instructions and the collective legal/religious framework. The term differs from חֹק (statute, ordinance) and מִשְׁפָּט (judgment, legal case/ruling), which stress permanence or judicial procedure, respectively. The term 'commandment' is not anachronistic for most biblical periods, but care should be taken not to map later religious categories (such as 'mitzvah' in rabbinic Judaism) uncritically onto earlier texts.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

from צָוָה; a command, whether human or divine (collectively, the Law); (which was) commanded(-ment), law, ordinance, precept.

Bantu Hebrew

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Root Family

צוה (ts-w-h) — to command, to order, to instruct

Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H6673 צַו to a command
H6680 צָוָה I will command
H6716 צִי in seagoing ships

Word Forms

36 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 Occurrences
H4687-15 מִצְוֺ֣ת mitseot HNcfpc commandments commands of 25
H4687-18 מִצְוֺתָ֗י/ו mitseotayv HNcfpc/Sp3ms his commandments his commanded directives 24
H4687-05 הַ/מִּצְוָ֛ה hamitsevah HTd/Ncfsa the commandment the directive 20
H4687-17 מִצְוֺתַ֖/י mitseotay HNcfpc/Sp1cs my commandments my commands 19
H4687-20 מִצְוֺתֶֽי/ךָ mitseoteykha HNcfpc/Sp2ms Your commandments your commanded directives 18
H4687-22 מִצְוַ֖ת mitsevat HNcfsc commandment command of 17
H4687-28 וּ/מִצְוֺתַ֔/י umitseotay HC/Ncfpc/Sp1cs and my commandments and my commands 7
H4687-06 כְּ/מִצְוַ֥ת kemitsevat HR/Ncfsc according to the command according to command of 5
H4687-04 הַ/מִּצְוֺ֖ת hamitseot HTd/Ncfpa are the commandments the commands 5
H4687-21 מִ֭צְוָה mitsevah HNcfsa the commandment authoritative command 4

Occurrences in Scripture

184 total occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1
H4687-17 Genesis 26:5 מִצְוֺתַ֖/י mitseotay HNcfpc/Sp1cs my commandments my commands
H4687-09 Exodus 15:26 לְ/מִצְוֺתָ֔י/ו lemitseotayv HR/Ncfpc/Sp3ms to His commandments to his commands
H4687-17 Exodus 16:28 מִצְוֺתַ֖/י mitseotay HNcfpc/Sp1cs My commandments my commands
H4687-17 Exodus 20:6 מִצְוֺתָֽ/י mitseotay HNcfpc/Sp1cs My commandments my commands
H4687-34 Exodus 24:12 וְ/הַ/מִּצְוָ֔ה vehamitsevah HC/Td/Ncfsa and the commandment and the directive
H4687-15 Leviticus 4:2 מִצְוֺ֣ת mitseot HNcfpc of the commandments commands of
H4687-15 Leviticus 4:13 מִצְוֺ֧ת mitseot HNcfpc commandments commands of
H4687-15 Leviticus 4:22 מִצְוֺת֩ mitseot HNcfpc the commandments commands of
H4687-12 Leviticus 4:27 מִ/מִּצְוֺ֧ת mimitseot HR/Ncfpc of the commandments commands of
H4687-15 Leviticus 5:17 מִצְוֺ֣ת mitseot HNcfpc commandments commands of
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