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סָפָה

𐤎𐤐𐤄

çâphâh

H5595 verb

SILEX Entry

Root ספה to sweep, gather up, remove

Definition

To sweep away, remove or destroy, especially by some overwhelming act, often by divine judgment or calamity. The verb may also refer (in a less common sense) to joining or adding to an assembly or group, particularly in a covenantal or collective context. Its fundamental image is of gathering up or consuming, which, in extended sense, can imply complete eradication, destruction, or addition.

Semantic Range

to sweep away; to destroy; to remove by disaster or judgment; to perish; to consume; to add or join to a group (rare); to be taken away or added; to eradicate; to heap up

Root / Etymology

From the root ספה (ס־פ־ה), meaning to sweep up, gather up, or remove. The verb often conveys a sense of being taken up, either through destruction or by being joined to an existing group. The root expresses the physical action of sweeping, with metaphorical extensions to other domains.

Historical & Contextual Notes

In the earlier strata of biblical Hebrew (e.g., Torah, Deuteronomistic and early Prophetic texts), סָפָה is frequently used in contexts of destruction, often with a subject acting decisively, such as the deity sweeping away populations, cities, or the wicked (e.g. Genesis 18:23-24; Deuteronomy 29:19-20). The verb may function both transitively (to sweep away something or someone) and intransitively (to be swept away, i.e., to perish). In some cases, such as Genesis 30:23, the sense shifts to 'gathering up' or removing a state of disgrace — a more positive or neutral connotation. Less frequently, especially in Psalms or later narratives, סָפָה refers to the positive adding or joining of people to a group, though this usage is rare and mostly contextual (e.g., Numbers 16:26). English translations often favor 'consume,' 'destroy,' or 'perish,' but the underlying semantic imagery is more comprehensive, involving both physical removal and existential erasure as well as rare cases of addition. Thematic parallels exist with verbs like כרת (to cut off) and אבד (to perish/destroy), but סָפָה typically implies mass eradication or collective removal. Later Hebrew tended to restrict its meaning mainly to destruction or perishing.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

a primitive root; properly, to scrape (literally, to shave; but usually figuratively) together (i.e. to accumulate or increase) or away (i.e. to scatter, remove, or ruin; intransitively, to perish); add, augment, consume, destroy, heap, join, perish, put.

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Root Family

ספה (s-p-h) — sweep, gather up, remove

Word Forms

13 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 Occurrences
H5595-12 תִּסְפֶּ֔ה tisepeh HVqi2ms sweep away you sweep away 3
H5595-08 סְפ֥וֹת sefot HVqc sweeps away to sweep away 2
H5595-11 תִּסָּפ֖וּ tisafu HVNi2mp you be swept away you will be swept away 2
H5595-10 תִּסָּפֶ֖ה tisafeh HVNi2ms you be swept away you will be swept away 2
H5595-09 סְפ֥וּ sefu HVqv2mp add Sweep away! 2
H5595-06 נִ֝סְפֶּ֗ה nisepeh HVNrmsa of being swept away one being swept away 2
H5595-03 הַ/נִּסְפֶּ֖ה hanisepeh HTd/VNrmsa who is caught the swept-away one 1
H5595-13 וְ/נִסְפָּֽה venisepah HC/VNp3ms and perishes and was swept away 1
H5595-07 סָפְתָ֤ה safetah HVqp3fs are swept away she swept away 1
H5595-05 לִ/סְפּ֫וֹתָ֥/הּ lisepotah HR/Vqc/Sp3fs to destroy it to sweep her away 1

Occurrences in Scripture

20 total occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1
H5595-12 Genesis 18:23 תִּסְפֶּ֔ה tisepeh HVqi2ms sweep away you sweep away
H5595-12 Genesis 18:24 תִּסְפֶּה֙ tisepeh HVqi2ms sweep away you sweep away
H5595-10 Genesis 19:15 תִּסָּפֶ֖ה tisafeh HVNi2ms you be swept away you will be swept away
H5595-10 Genesis 19:17 תִּסָּפֶֽה tisafeh HVNi2ms you be swept away you will be swept away
H5595-11 Numbers 16:26 תִּסָּפ֖וּ tisafu HVNi2mp you be swept away you will be swept away
H5595-04 Numbers 32:14 לִ/סְפּ֣וֹת lisepot HR/Vqc to add to sweep away
H5595-08 Deuteronomy 29:18 סְפ֥וֹת sefot HVqc sweeps away to sweep away
H5595-01 Deuteronomy 32:23 אַסְפֶּ֥ה asepeh HVhi1cs I will heap I will sweep away
H5595-11 1 Samuel 12:25 תִּסָּפֽוּ tisafu HVNi2mp you will be swept away you will be swept away
H5595-13 1 Samuel 26:10 וְ/נִסְפָּֽה venisepah HC/VNp3ms and perishes and was swept away
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