גֹּ֫דֶל
greatness
‘greatness’ is one of 4 main senses fuller range ↓
Full lexicon entry — Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
From Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
Where this word appears
See every Construct-state word in the Hebrew Bible →
Grammar key — what these labels mean
Part of speech
- Noun
- A naming word — a person, place, thing, or idea.
Noun type
- Common
- A common noun — a general class of person, place, or thing (“king,” “city,” “water”), not a specific name.
State
- Construct
- A noun bound to a following noun in a possessive / “of” relationship (the construct chain).
- Absolute
- The independent form of a noun, not bound to a following word.
Gender
- Masculine
- Grammatically masculine.
Number
- Singular
- One.
1 verse where H1433 appears in the Absolute state in the Book of Ezekiel. Filtered view — show all forms. Click any verse to open its interlinear word-by-word view. Verse text shown in the World English Bible for context — . Each verse’s Hebrew form is shown with its reference; the English is not keyword-highlighted, since the data carries no word-level English alignment. Use “Compare translations” on any verse to read it across multiple English versions. This concordance covers the Hebrew Bible; Septuagint (Greek Old Testament) occurrences are not indexed here.
Ezekiel
About this entry
At a glance — auto-summarized from this page’s data, not written by a person. Every figure links to its source below. This summary describes the numbers; it doesn’t interpret them.
“greatness” is the headline sense of the Hebrew noun גדל (gôdel). Carrying more than one sense, it rewards its full sense range. The Hebrew Bible uses it across 13 verses — uncommon. More than a third of its appearances fall in Deuteronomy. First canonically at Numbers 14:19, it enters the text early. The sections below give every sense, occurrence, and version rendering.
Gloss history
Strong's 1890 vs modern scholarship
About this word
Strong's H1433 catalogs a Hebrew word from the Hebrew Old Testament.
These counts are not copied from any lexicon or concordance. They are computed here, from the morphology-tagged Hebrew Old Testament. What Lemma adds →
- 13
- distinct verses
- The word appears in 13 distinct verses.
- 5 / 39
- OT books
- The word appears in 5 of 39 Old Testament books.
- #2,001
- by frequency
- Top 2500 most frequent Hebrew words (rank 2,001 of 8,640 Hebrew words by occurrence).
View all 13 occurrences in the concordance →
Most concentrated in
- Deuteronomy 5 verses 38%
- Ezekiel 3 verses 23%
- Psalms 2 verses 15%
By section of the Old Testament
By traditional corpus
Conventional, traditional groupings — biblical authorship is debated, so this is a traditional corpus grouping, not an authorship claim. Each share is this word’s portion of its verses in that division of the Hebrew canon. Each figure is a share of the word’s 13 distinct verses.
- Torah (Pentateuch) 6 verses · 46%
- Prophets (Nevi'im) 5 verses · 38%
- Writings (Ketuvim) 2 verses · 15%
How translations render this word
Counts come from each version’s own published word-to-Strong’s tagging or interlinear alignment — an approximate guide to how each version renders this word, not a word-level alignment the data otherwise carries. Because each total is that version’s own tagged count, the per-version totals vary from one another and need not match the appearance or distinct-verse counts above. These counts may also differ from a printed concordance because Lemma counts each distinctly tagged rendering and does not collapse phrase taggings into a single head-word total. This is a fixed set of word-tagged versions (KJV, ASV, BSB, ULT) and does not change with the reading translation you choose elsewhere. Each version’s license is shown beside its name below (and on Sources).
- King James Version: Greatness 7×
- American Standard Version: Greatness 7×
- Berean Standard Bible: Greatness 8×
- unfoldingWord Literal Text: Greatness 8×, According to the greatness of 2×, Greatness of 2×
King James Version Public Domain
Renders H1433 across 13 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus 6 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
American Standard Version Public Domain
Renders H1433 across 13 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus 6 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
Berean Standard Bible Public Domain
Renders H1433 across 13 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus 5 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
unfoldingWord Literal Text CC BY-SA 4.0
Renders H1433 across 13 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus 1 rendering that appears only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
Senses in the full BDB
What do BDB’s symbols mean?
BDB uses these scholarly abbreviations:
| Symbol | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 𝔊 | the Septuagint (the ancient Greek translation, LXX) |
| 𝔙 | the Vulgate (the Latin translation) |
| 𝔖 | the Syriac version (the Peshitta) |
| 𝔗 | the Targum (the Aramaic translation) |
| ψ | the Psalms |
| √ | root (the underlying root or stem) |
| ‖ | parallel passage (a synonymous or contrasted parallel) |
| † | the dagger: every passage where the word occurs is cited |
The 5 senses and sub-senses the full Brown-Driver-Briggs lexicon distinguishes for this word, in lexicon order (not ranked by frequency), with BDB’s own verbatim wording and sub-sense lettering. Shown in Hebrew script with BDB’s own scholarly abbreviations. The condensed entry is in the Lexicon Entry tab. See also the Forms in the corpus table below.
- 1. greatness, magnitude, tree Ez 31:7, arm of God ψ 79:11, mercy of God Nu 14:19. e.g. Ezekiel 31:7
- 2. magnificence,
- a. king Ez 31:2, 18; e.g. Ezekiel 31:2
- b. God Dt 3:24; 5:21; 9:26; 11:2; 32:3 ψ 150:2. e.g. Deuteronomy 3:24
- 3. in a bad sense, גֹּדֶל לֵבָב = pride, insolence of heart Is 9:8; 10:12. e.g. Isaiah 9:8
Senses from the full Brown-Driver-Briggs lexicon (Brown, Driver, Briggs; Oxford 1906 — public domain), digitized via Sefaria, supplemented by the OpenScriptures HebrewLexicon (CC BY 4.0). Full attribution on Sources.
Word origin
n.m. greatness—Dt 32:3 + 5 times; sf. גָּדְלוֹ Dt 5:21 + 5 times; גֻּדְלוֹ ψ 150:2;—
— Brown-Driver-Briggs (Oxford 1906, public domain), digitized via Sefaria, supplemented by the OpenScriptures HebrewLexicon (CC BY 4.0). See Sources.
Derived from גדל (gâdal) (H1431) — to grow.
Jastrow Dictionary
A second Hebrew/Aramaic lexicon for comparison, covering Aramaic and post-biblical (Talmudic, Targumic, Midrashic) usage that the biblical-Hebrew BDB does not. Matched by lemma rather than by Strong’s number, so a lemma may carry more than one Jastrow headword (shown separately below), and the entries cover usage well beyond the Bible.
גָּדַל I
- v. גדל II) to be high, to grow, be large, tall. Ex. R. s. 1 שהיה גָדֵל שלא וכ׳ he was extraordinarily tall for his age. Ib. וכי אין הכל גְּדֵילִים do not all children grow?—Y. Maasr. I, 49ᵃ, v. טְפוּס; a. fr. Fem. גְּדֵילָה, pl. גְּדֵילוֹת. Succ. 34ᵃ; a. fr.
- 1. to raise (of live stock and of plants); to rear, train. Kil. VIII, 1 מותרים לגַדֵּל you are permitted to raise. Snh. 19ᵇ מיכל גִּידְּלָה Michal reared (Mirab’s children). Ib.; Meg. 13ᵃ המְגַדֵּל יתום וכ׳ he who educates an orphan in his house. Gen. R. s. 98 היו … מְגַדְּלִים שער they let their hair grow (in mourning). Erub. 100ᵇ מְגַדָּלֶת שער she lets her hair grow (does not cut it); a. fr.
- 2. to raise to dignity, make famous; to praise. Hor. 9ᵃ (ref. to Lev. XXI, 10) whence do we know אם אין לו שחייבין לגַדְּלוֹ when he (the Highpriest) is poor, that they (the brethren) are bound to raise him (make him independent)? Ib. גַּדְּלֵהוּ משל אחיו raise him by a collection from his brethren (v. Rabb. D. S. a. l.). Esth. R. to III, 1 למה גִדְּלוֹ for what purpose did (the Lord) raise him? Yalk. Esth. 1053 עד היכן גִּידְּלוֹ וכ׳ how high did he raise him? Fifty cubits (to the gallows); a. fr.—Y. Meg. III, end, 74ᶜ (ref. to הגדול, Neh. VIII, 6) במה גִידְּלוֹ wherewith did he magnify the Lord (describe His greatness)?; Yoma 69ᵇ ג׳ בשם וכ׳ he praised the Lord by pronouncing the tetragrammaton; Y. Ber. VII, 11ᶜ גודלו (corr. acc.)—Part. pass. מְגוּדָּל well grown. Ber. 11ᵃ; a. fr.—Kidd. 49ᵃ; 49ᵇ, v. גַּדֶּלֶת. e.g. Leviticus 21:10
- to grow up, to become of age. Yeb. X, 9 וּמִשֶּׁהִ׳ and after he is of age. Ib. XIII, 1 עד שתַּגְדִּיל until she becomes of age; a. fr.
- , Nithpa. נִתְגַּדֵּל
- 1. to be raised to dignity. Esth. R. to III, 1 יִתְגַּדֵּל ואח"כ יתלה let him first become great and then be hanged. Gen. R. s. 99, end (play on פֹּרָת, Gen. XLIX, 22) ע"י פָּרוֹת נ׳ by means of cows (Pharaoh’s dream) was he raised to power; a. fr.— to be magnified. Y. Ber. IX, 14ᵃ top; Y. Taan. I, 64ᵇ top יִתְגַּדֵּל וכ׳ may Thy Name be glorified, sanctified &c.; a. e. e.g. Genesis 49:22
- 3. to glorify one’s self, to boast, parade. Ned. 62ᵃ; Ab. IV, 5 אל תעשם עטרה להִתְגַּדֵּל בהם make them (the words of the Law) not a crown to parade therewith.
- 4. to grow, prosper, be nursed. Tanḥ. V’zoth 1; Pesik. ib. p. 199ᵃ הרי … מִתְגַּדֵּל עמו the poison-bearing tree will be nursed along with it (the health-giving tree). Tanḥ. B’resh. 7 נִתְגַּדַּלְתָּ וחטאת thou didst grow older and didst sin, opp. תינוק היית; a. fr.
גְּדַל I
- Kidd. 71ᵇ ג׳ ולא נסיב was grown up and not yet married.
- to raise, rear. Ḥag. 4ᵇ מרים מְגַדְּלָא דרדקי Miryam, the childrens’ nurse.
- to be exalted. Targ. Ps. CIV, 1.
גָּדַל II
- (v. preced.; cmp. גדש) [to heap up, round;] to plait, dress the hair. Kel. XVI, 7 גּוֹדְלֵי מצנפות capweavers (on a model head, v. אִמּוּם). Ib. XV, 3 וגוֹדְלוֹת and dress their hair. Sabb. X, 6 הגּוֹדֶלֶת she who plaits her hair (on the Sabbath). Ib. 94ᵇ bot. גודלת משום אורגת plaiting the hair (is forbidden on the Sabbath) as an act of weaving; ib. 95ᵃ (another opin.) ג׳ … משום בונה as an act of building. Y. ib. VII, 10ᵈ הגודל כלי צורה he who forms raised figures on a vessel. M. Kat. 11ᵃ ג׳ תנור to build a stove.
גְּדַל II
- Gitt. 69ᵃ ניגדול תרתי וכ׳ let him twine two threads. M. Kat. 11ᵃ למִיגְדַּל אהורי to weave nets; למי׳ תנורא to build a stove, v. preced.
- same. Ḥag. 4ᵇ מרים מְגַדְּלָא נשייא Ms. M. (ed. מג׳ שיער נ׳) Miriam the women’s hair-dresser (v. Rabb. D. S. a. l. note); Snh. 67ᵃ; Sabb. 104ᵇ (missing in later editions). Succ. 37ᵃ הנהו מְגַדְּלֵי הושענא those twining the willow twigs (v. הוֹשַׁעְנָא).
גִּדָּל
- , v. גִּידּוֹל
גִּידּוֹל
- Giddol, name of several Amoraim. Y. Meg. III, end 74ᶜ ר׳ גי׳; Yoma 69ᵇ ר׳ גדל. Y. Bets. I, 60ᵃ (without title). Kidd. 59ᵃ ר׳ גידל; a. fr.—G. b. Binyamin, b. Minyamin (Minyomi). Y. Pes. VIII, end, 36ᵇ.—Y. B. Bath. III, 14ᵃ; Bab. B. Bath. 39ᵇ; a. fr.—G. b. R’ulai. Gitt. 34ᵃ
A Dictionary of the Targumim, the Talmud Babli and Yerushalmi, and the Midrashic Literature (Marcus Jastrow; London, Luzac, 1903) — Public Domain. Digitized via Sefaria. Digitized via Sefaria. Full attribution on Sources.
Forms in the corpus
The 13 distinct written forms H1433 takes in the Hebrew Bible, most frequent first — each parse links to that state’s occurrences in the concordance. Hebrew forms include their vowel points and cantillation, so a single lemma takes many written forms.
| Form | Parsing | Example | Uses |
|---|---|---|---|
| בְ/גָדְלֶֽ/ךָ | Noun, Common, Masculine, Singular, Construct | Ezekiel 31:2 | 1 |
| בְּ/גָדְל֔/וֹ | Noun, Common, Masculine, Singular, Construct | Ezekiel 31:7 | 1 |
| בְּ/גָדְלֶ֑/ךָ | Noun, Common, Masculine, Singular, Construct | Deuteronomy 9:26 | 1 |
| גֹ֖דֶל | Noun, Common, Masculine, Singular, Absolute | Deuteronomy 32:3 | 1 |
| גֹ֨דֶל֙ | Noun, Common, Masculine, Singular, Construct | Isaiah 10:12 | 1 |
| גָּדְל֔/וֹ | Noun, Common, Masculine, Singular, Construct | Deuteronomy 5:24 | 1 |
| גָּדְל֕/וֹ | Noun, Common, Masculine, Singular, Construct | Deuteronomy 11:2 | 1 |
| גָּדְלְ/ךָ֔ | Noun, Common, Masculine, Singular, Construct | Deuteronomy 3:24 | 1 |
| גֻּדְלֽ/וֹ | Noun, Common, Masculine, Singular, Construct | Psalms 150:2 | 1 |
| וּ/בְ/גֹ֖דֶל | Noun, Common, Masculine, Singular, Absolute | Ezekiel 31:18 | 1 |
| וּ/בְ/גֹ֥דֶל | Noun, Common, Masculine, Singular, Construct | Isaiah 9:9 | 1 |
| כְּ/גֹ֣דֶל | Noun, Common, Masculine, Singular, Construct | Numbers 14:19 | 1 |
| כְּ/גֹ֥דֶל | Noun, Common, Masculine, Singular, Construct | Psalms 79:11 | 1 |
Same root — word family
Other BDB entries built from the same root as H1433, grouped by Strong’s listed origin. These share a root / origin per the lexicon — not necessarily a shared meaning. Each links to that word’s own entry.
Derives from
Shares the same root
Proper names from this root
People and places named from this root — a name, not an additional meaning of the word.
- גדל Giddêl H1435 Giddel
- גדליה Gᵉdalyâh H1436 Gedaliah
- גדלתי Giddaltîy H1437 Giddalti
- יגדליהו Yigdalyâhûw H3012 Igdaliah
Compare all same-root words → Showing 4 of 10 — not the complete family. 4 of the same-root words are proper names (people or places). They share a root, not necessarily a meaning.
Septuagint verse parallels
This word appears in 13 verses that also exist in the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint), out of the 13 Hebrew verses it occurs in. You can read those verses in Greek by switching the Old Testament edition to the Septuagint.
Read these verses in the Septuagint
This is a verse-level parallel only — the same verses exist in both the Hebrew and Greek Old Testaments. No word-level Hebrew↔Greek correspondence is claimed: the data carries no such alignment, so no Greek word is shown as this Hebrew word’s translation. Coverage is not total — the Septuagint omits the deuterocanon and renumbers the Psalms, so some Hebrew verses have no direct Greek parallel.
