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תֶּלֶם

𐤕𐤋𐤌

telem

H8525 noun

SILEX Entry

Root תלם to accumulate, to pile, to heap

Definition

A long, raised row of earth created by plowing, primarily used in reference to a furrow or ridge in a cultivated field. In biblical usage, refers to the strip of ground turned up by a plow, forming a distinct ridge or embankment separating one area of tilled land from another. By extension, can denote a constructed earthwork or embankment, though typically in an agricultural context.

Semantic Range

furrow (in plowed field), ridge of earth, embankment, unit of plowed ground; occasionally metaphor for productivity or fruitfulness

Root / Etymology

From a root uncertain or unused in biblical Hebrew, possibly connected with accumulation or piling up (cf. Akkadian 'tilm' meaning 'hole, pit'). The word is not clearly derived from any active Hebrew verb, suggesting a noun of result related to the concept of piled earth.

Historical & Contextual Notes

תֶּלֶם (telem) appears infrequently in the Hebrew Bible, primarily in agricultural contexts (e.g., Psalm 65:11; 1 Samuel 14:14; Job 31:38). In early Israelite society, the term denotes the basic unit of plowed land, corresponding to a single pass of an ancient plow; thus, it represents both a measure of manual agricultural activity and the physical result thereof. Unlike מַעֲרֶשֶׁת (maʿăreshet, 'plowed field' or 'arable land'), תֶּלֶם refers specifically to the ridged shape produced by plowing, not the field as a whole. The image of the telem is sometimes used metaphorically, especially in poetry, to evoke images of fruitful labor or divine blessing (e.g., 'watering the furrows'). Later biblical and extra-biblical Hebrew may employ related terms for earthworks, but telem in the Hebrew Bible remains closely tied to farming practice. Standard English translations typically render the word as 'furrow,' 'ridge,' or 'row,' but these do not always capture its context as a unit of agricultural labor in Iron Age Israel.

Translation Consistency

primary "furrow" 4 occurrences

Most natural and specific English equivalent for תֶּלֶם in agricultural contexts. "Furrow" matches the primary sense (a raised row or strip of plowed ground) and is the majority render in existing P2 occurrences, while still covering related senses (ridge/embankment, unit of plowed ground) and metaphorical uses of productivity.

Alternatives (1 occurrence):
"plowed earth ridge" (1x)

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

from an unused root meaning to accumulate; a bank or terrace; furrow, ridge.

Bantu Hebrew

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

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Root Family

תלם (t-l-m) — to accumulate, to pile, to heap

Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H8526 תַּלְמַי Furrow-man

Word Forms

3 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2 Occurrences
H8525-02 תַּלְמֵ֥י talemey HNcmpc furrows furrows of furrows of 2
H8525-03 תְּלָמֶ֣י/הָ telameyha HNcmpc/Sp3fs her ridges her piled earth-ridges her furrows 2
H8525-01 בְּ/תֶ֣לֶם betelem HR/Ncmsc in-furrow plowed-earth ridge-of in a plowed earth ridge 1

Occurrences in Scripture

5 occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2
H8525-02 Hosea 10:4 תַּלְמֵ֥י talemey HNcmpc furrows furrows of furrows of
H8525-02 Hosea 12:12 תַּלְמֵ֥י talemey HNcmpc furrows furrows of furrows of
H8525-03 Psalms 65:11 תְּלָמֶ֣י/הָ telameyha HNcmpc/Sp3fs her ridges her piled earth-ridges her furrows
H8525-03 Job 31:38 תְּלָמֶ֥י/הָ telameyha HNcmpc/Sp3fs its furrows her piled earth-ridges her furrows
H8525-01 Job 39:10 בְּ/תֶ֣לֶם betelem HR/Ncmsc in-furrow plowed-earth ridge-of in a plowed earth ridge
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