נָכָה
to strike
also: smite, hit, beat, slay fuller range ↓
Full lexicon entry — Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
From Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
Where this word appears
Grammar key — what these labels mean
Part of speech
- Verb
- An action or state-of-being word.
- Preposition
- A relational word (e.g. “in,” “to,” “from”) governing a noun.
Stem
- Hiphil
- The causative active stem (“he caused / brought about”). Here: ‘smite’
- Hophal
- The passive counterpart of the Hiphil (“he was caused to…”). Here: ‘receive a blow Is 1’
- Niphal
- Usually the simple passive or reflexive of the Qal (“he was written”).
- Pual
- The passive counterpart of the Piel.
Form
- Sequential Imperfect
- An imperfect with prefixed waw — the standard past-narrative form (waw-consecutive imperfect).
- Perfect
- A completed action or state — Hebrew marks aspect (completeness) more than strict tense (“he wrote”).
- Infinitive Construct
- A bound verbal noun, frequently with prepositions (“to write / in writing”).
- Imperfect
- An incomplete, ongoing, or future action (“he will / would write”).
- Participle Active
- A verbal adjective expressing ongoing or characteristic action (“writing / one who writes”).
- Sequential Perfect
- A perfect with prefixed waw continuing a preceding imperfect or command (waw-consecutive perfect).
- Imperative
- A direct command (“write!”).
- Infinitive Absolute
- An unbound verbal noun, often intensifying or standing in for a finite verb.
- Participle Passive
- A verbal adjective expressing action received (“written”).
- Cohortative
- A first-person volitional form expressing wish or resolve (“let me / let us write”).
- Jussive
- A third- or second-person volitional form expressing wish or command (“let him write”).
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.
Person
- 3rd Person
- The one spoken about (“he / she / it / they”).
- 2nd Person
- The one addressed (“you”).
- 1st Person
- The speaker (“I / we”).
Gender
- Masculine
- Grammatically masculine.
- Common
- Either gender — not distinguished for this form.
- Feminine
- Grammatically feminine.
Number
- Singular
- One.
- Plural
- More than one (in Hebrew, generally three or more).
Every verse where H5221 appears in the Book of Joshua — 35 distinct verses. 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.
Joshua
- Joshua 7:3 וְ/יַכּ֣וּ conj + Hiphil juss 3mp They returned to Joshua, and said to him, Don't let all the people go up; but let about two or three thousand men go up and strike Ai; don't make all the people to toil there; for they are but few.
- Joshua 7:5 וַ/יַּכּ֨וּ וַ/יַּכּ֖וּ/ם conj + Hiphil wimpf 3mp conj + Hiphil wimpf 3mp + sfx pers 3mp The men of Ai struck of them about thirty-six men; and they chased them [from] before the gate even to Shebarim, and struck them at the descent; and the hearts of the people melted, and became as water.
- Joshua 8:21 וַ/יַּכּ֖וּ conj + Hiphil wimpf 3mp When Joshua and all Israel saw that the ambush had taken the city, and that the smoke of the city ascended, then they turned again, and killed the men of Ai.
- Joshua 8:22 וַ/יַּכּ֣וּ conj + Hiphil wimpf 3mp The others came forth out of the city against them; so they were in the midst of Israel, some on this side, and some on that side: and they struck them, so that they let none of them remain or escape.
- Joshua 8:24 וַ/יַּכּ֥וּ conj + Hiphil wimpf 3mp It happened, when Israel had made an end of killing all the inhabitants of Ai in the field, in the wilderness in which they pursued them, and they were all fallen by the edge of the sword, until they were consumed, that all Israel returned to Ai, and struck it with the edge of the sword.
- Joshua 9:18 הִכּוּ/ם֙ Hiphil pf 3cp + sfx pers 3mp The children of Israel didn't strike them, because the princes of the congregation had sworn to them by Yahweh, the God of Israel. All the congregation murmured against the princes.
- Joshua 10:4 וְ/נַכֶּ֖ה conj + Hiphil impf 1cp Come up to me, and help me, and let us strike Gibeon; for it has made peace with Joshua and with the children of Israel.
- Joshua 10:10 וַ/יַּכֵּ֥/ם וַ/יַּכֵּ֥/ם conj + Hiphil wimpf 3ms + sfx pers 3mp conj + Hiphil wimpf 3ms + sfx pers 3mp Yahweh confused them before Israel, and he killed them with a great slaughter at Gibeon, and chased them by the way of the ascent of Beth Horon, and struck them to Azekah, and to Makkedah.
- Joshua 10:20 לְ/הַכּוֹתָ֛/ם prep + Hiphil inf.cs + sfx pers 3mp It happened, when Joshua and the children of Israel had made an end of killing them with a very great slaughter, until they were consumed, and the remnant which remained of them had entered into the fortified cities,
- Joshua 10:26 וַ/יַּכֵּ֨/ם conj + Hiphil wimpf 3ms + sfx pers 3mp Afterward Joshua struck them, and put them to death, and hanged them on five trees: and they were hanging on the trees until the evening.
- Joshua 10:28 וַ/יַּכֶּ֣/הָ conj + Hiphil wimpf 3ms + sfx pers 3fs Joshua took Makkedah on that day, and struck it with the edge of the sword, and the king of it: he utterly destroyed them and all the souls who were therein; he left none remaining; and he did to the king of Makkedah as he had done to the king of Jericho.
- Joshua 10:30 וַ/יַּכֶּ֣/הָ conj + Hiphil wimpf 3ms + sfx pers 3fs and Yahweh delivered it also, and the king of it, into the hand of Israel; and he struck it with the edge of the sword, and all the souls who were therein; he left none remaining in it; and he did to the king of it as he had done to the king of Jericho.
- Joshua 10:32 וַ/יַּכֶּ֣/הָ conj + Hiphil wimpf 3ms + sfx pers 3fs and Yahweh delivered Lachish into the hand of Israel; and he took it on the second day, and struck it with the edge of the sword, and all the souls who were therein, according to all that he had done to Libnah.
- Joshua 10:33 וַ/יַּכֵּ֤/הוּ conj + Hiphil wimpf 3ms + sfx pers 3ms Then Horam king of Gezer came up to help Lachish; and Joshua struck him and his people, until he had left him none remaining.
- Joshua 10:35 וַ/יַּכּ֣וּ/הָ conj + Hiphil wimpf 3mp + sfx pers 3fs and they took it on that day, and struck it with the edge of the sword; and all the souls who were therein he utterly destroyed that day, according to all that he had done to Lachish.
- Joshua 10:37 וַ/יַּכּֽוּ/הָ conj + Hiphil wimpf 3mp + sfx pers 3fs and they took it, and struck it with the edge of the sword, and the king of it, and all the cities of it, and all the souls who were therein; he left none remaining, according to all that he had done to Eglon; but he utterly destroyed it, and all the souls who were therein.
- Joshua 10:39 וַ/יַּכּ֣וּ/ם conj + Hiphil wimpf 3mp + sfx pers 3mp and he took it, and the king of it, and all the cities of it; and they struck them with the edge of the sword, and utterly destroyed all the souls who were therein; he left none remaining: as he had done to Hebron, so he did to Debir, and to the king of it; as he had done also to Libnah, and to the king of it.
- Joshua 10:40 וַ/יַּכֶּ֣ה conj + Hiphil wimpf 3ms So Joshua struck all the land, the hill-country, and the South, and the lowland, and the slopes, and all their kings: he left none remaining, but he utterly destroyed all that breathed, as Yahweh, the God of Israel, commanded.
- Joshua 10:41 וַ/יַּכֵּ֧/ם conj + Hiphil wimpf 3ms + sfx pers 3mp Joshua struck them from Kadesh-barnea even to Gaza, and all the country of Goshen, even to Gibeon.
- Joshua 11:8 וַ/יַּכּוּ/ם֒ וַ/יַּכֻּ֕/ם conj + Hiphil wimpf 3mp + sfx pers 3mp conj + Hiphil wimpf 3mp + sfx pers 3mp Yahweh delivered them into the hand of Israel, and they struck them, and chased them to great Sidon, and to Misrephoth Maim, and to the valley of Mizpeh eastward; and they struck them, until they left them none remaining.
- Joshua 11:10 הִכָּ֣ה Hiphil pf 3ms Joshua turned back at that time, and took Hazor, and struck the king of it with the sword: for Hazor before was the head of all those kingdoms.
- Joshua 11:11 וַ֠/יַּכּוּ conj + Hiphil wimpf 3mp They struck all the souls who were therein with the edge of the sword, utterly destroying them; there was none left who breathed: and he burnt Hazor with fire.
- Joshua 11:12 וַ/יַּכֵּ֥/ם conj + Hiphil wimpf 3ms + sfx pers 3mp All the cities of those kings, and all the kings of them, did Joshua take, and he struck them with the edge of the sword, and utterly destroyed them; as Moses the servant of Yahweh commanded.
- Joshua 11:14 הִכּ֣וּ Hiphil pf 3cp All the spoil of these cities, and the cattle, the children of Israel took for a prey to themselves; but every man they struck with the edge of the sword, until they had destroyed them, neither left they any who breathed.
- Joshua 11:17 וַ/יַּכֵּ֖/ם conj + Hiphil wimpf 3ms + sfx pers 3mp from Mount Halak, that goes up to Seir, even to Baal Gad in the valley of Lebanon under Mount Hermon: and all their kings he took, and struck them, and put them to death.
- Joshua 12:1 הִכּ֤וּ Hiphil pf 3cp Now these are the kings of the land, whom the children of Israel struck, and possessed their land beyond the Jordan toward the sunrise, from the valley of the Arnon to Mount Hermon, and all the Arabah eastward:
- Joshua 12:6 הִכּ֑וּ/ם Hiphil pf 3cp + sfx pers 3mp Moses the servant of Yahweh and the children of Israel struck them: and Moses the servant of Yahweh gave it for a possession to the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh.
- Joshua 12:7 הִכָּ֨ה Hiphil pf 3ms These are the kings of the land whom Joshua and the children of Israel struck beyond the Jordan westward, from Baal Gad in the valley of Lebanon even to Mount Halak, that goes up to Seir; and Joshua gave it to the tribes of Israel for a possession according to their divisions;
- Joshua 13:12 וַ/יַּכֵּ֥/ם conj + Hiphil wimpf 3ms + sfx pers 3mp all the kingdom of Og in Bashan, who reigned in Ashtaroth and in Edrei (the same was left of the remnant of the Rephaim); for these did Moses strike, and drove them out.
- Joshua 13:21 הִכָּ֨ה Hiphil pf 3ms and all the cities of the plain, and all the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites, who reigned in Heshbon, whom Moses struck with the chiefs of Midian, Evi, and Rekem, and Zur, and Hur, and Reba, the princes of Sihon, who lived in the land.
- Joshua 15:16 יַכֶּ֥ה Hiphil impf 3ms Caleb said, He who strikes Kiriath Sepher, and takes it, to him will I give Achsah my daughter as wife.
- Joshua 19:47 וַ/יַּכּ֧וּ conj + Hiphil wimpf 3mp The border of the children of Dan went out beyond them; for the children of Dan went up and fought against Leshem, and took it, and struck it with the edge of the sword, and possessed it, and lived therein, and called Leshem, Dan, after the name of Dan their father.
- Joshua 20:3 מַכֵּה Hiphil ptcp.act ms cs that the manslayer who kills any person unwittingly [and] unawares may flee there: and they shall be to you for a refuge from the avenger of blood.
- Joshua 20:5 הִכָּ֣ה Hiphil pf 3ms If the avenger of blood pursue after him, then they shall not deliver up the manslayer into his hand; because he struck his neighbor unawares, and didn't hate him before.
- Joshua 20:9 מַכֵּה Hiphil ptcp.act ms cs These were the appointed cities for all the children of Israel, and for the stranger who sojourns among them, that whoever kills any person unwittingly might flee there, and not die by the hand of the avenger of blood, until he stood before the congregation.
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.
At its core, נכה (nâkâh) means “to strike.” The King James Version usually renders it “smote,” while modern versions prefer “struck down” (Berean Standard Bible) and “struck” (unfoldingWord Literal Text) — see the renderings breakdown. Spanning 461 verses in 31 books, it ranks among the common words of the Hebrew Bible. Scripture first uses it in Genesis 4:15. The verb spans 4 stems, from Niphal to Pual. Dig into 461-verse concordance and the renderings breakdown below.
Gloss history
Strong's 1890 vs modern scholarship
About this word
Strong's H5221 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 →
- 461
- distinct verses
- The word appears in 461 distinct verses.
- 31 / 39
- OT books
- The word appears in 31 of 39 Old Testament books.
- #100
- by frequency
- Top 100 most frequent Hebrew words (rank 100 of 8,640 Hebrew words by occurrence).
View all 461 occurrences in the concordance →
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 461 distinct verses.
- Prophets (Nevi'im) 297 verses · 64%
- Torah (Pentateuch) 92 verses · 20%
- Writings (Ketuvim) 72 verses · 16%
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: Smote 130×, Slew 41×, Smite 38×
- American Standard Version: Smote 124×, Smite 32×, He smote 25×
- Berean Standard Bible: Struck down 33×, Struck 22×, Strike 18×
- unfoldingWord Literal Text: Struck 68×, He struck 61×, And 50×
King James Version Public Domain
Renders H5221 across 501 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 103 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 H5221 across 498 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 109 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 H5221 across 496 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 166 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings. Not rendered by a distinct English word in 3 further occurrences.
unfoldingWord Literal Text CC BY-SA 4.0
Renders H5221 across 565 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 105 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
26 senses and sub-senses in the full BDB
Hebrew verbs can shift meaning by stem (binyan): Qal is the basic action, Niphal is often passive or reflexive, Piel often intensifies or makes it factitive, and Hiphil is typically causative. The senses below are grouped under the stem BDB assigns to each. This entry also uses Pual (the passive of Piel) and Hophal (the passive of Hiphil).
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 26 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.
Niphal
- Pf. וְנִכָּה וָמֵת consec. 2 S 11:15 and he shall be smitten [struck by weapon in battle] and die. e.g. 2 Samuel 11:15
Pual
- Pf. 3 fs. נֻכָּ֑תָה Ex 9:31; 3 pl. נֻכּוּ v 32 (J), both be smitten down by the hail. e.g. Exodus 9:31
Hiphil
- Pf. 3 ms. הִכָּה Ex 9:25 +; sf. וְהִכַּ֫נִי consec. Gn 32:12, הִכָּם Je 5:6; 2 ms. הִכִּ֫יתָ Ex 17:5 +; 1 s. הִכֵּיתִי Ju 15:16 +, וְהִכֵּיתִ֫י Ex 3:20 +; 3 pl. הִכּוּ Gn 19:11 +; 2 mpl. הִכִּיתֶם Je 37:10 + 3 times consec.; etc.; Impf. 3 ms. יַכֶּה Ex 21:20 +, יַךְ Ho 6:1 (but read וַיַּךְ We Now GASm); וְיַךְ Ho 14:6 (v. infr.); וַיַּכֶּה Jos 10:40 +, usually וַיַּךְ Ex 2:12 +; sf. 2 ms. יַכֶּ֫כָּה Je 40:15 + 2 times, 3 ms. וַיַּכּוֹ 2 S 14:6 (but read וַיַּךְ 𝔊 𝔖 𝔙 Th We Dr Klo Kit Bu HPS), יַכֶּ֫נּוּ 1 S 17:25 + 2 times; usually וַיַּכֵּ֫הוּ Nu 21:24 +; 3 fs. וַתַּךְ Jon 4:7.8; 2 ms. תַּכֶּה Ex 2:13 +; sf. 3 ms. תַּכֶּ֫נּוּ Pr 23:13, 14; 1 s. אַכֶּה 1 S 18:11 +; וָאַכֶּה Ne 13:25, וָאַךְ Ex 9:15; 3 mpl. יַכּוּ Mi 4:14; usually וַיַּכּוּ Gn 14:5 + (1 S 4:2 read prob. Hoph. q.v.); 1 pl. נַכֶּה־ Nu 22:6; וַנַּךְ Dt 2:33, etc.; Imv. הַכֵּה Ez 6:11; הַךְ Am 9:1 +; mpl. הַכּוּ 2 S 13:28, etc.; Inf. abs. הַכֵּה Dt 3:16 +; הַכּוֹת 2 K 3:24 (Ges§ 75 ff); cstr. הַכּוֹת Gn 4:15 +, etc.; Pt. מַכֶּה Ex 2:11 +; cstr. מַכֵּת Ex 21:12 +; pl. מַכִּים 1 S 4:8 +, etc.;— e.g. Exodus 9:25
- 1.
- a. lit., smite (with a single, non-fatal, blow), strike, sq. acc., ass Nu 22:23, 25, 27 (בְּמַקֵּל), v 28, 32 (all J); man Ex 21:15, 19 (E); cheeks Jb 16:10; man (on) cheek (2 acc.) La 3:30 ψ 3:8; man עַל־לְחִי Mi 4:14 (ב instr.), 1 K 22:24 = 2 Ch 18:23; eye Ex 21:26 (E); שֵׁבֶט מַכֵּךְ Is 14:26; with ב obj. Ex 17:6; with (ב) stone or fist Ex 21:18 (E), cf. (fig.) Is 58:4 (abs.); smite lion or bear 1 S 17:35; strike river (with rod מַטֶּה) 7:17 (c. עַל obj., + ב instr.), v 20 Ex 17:5 (E; ב instr.), also (with mantle) 2 K 2:8, 14(×2), cf. י׳ smiting Euphrates into (ל) seven streams Is 11:15; dust Ex 8:12, 13 (P); rock 17:6 (E), Nu 20:11 (P; ב instr.), ψ 78:20; fig. smite earth בְּשֵׁבֶט פִּיו Is 11:4 (of future Davidic kg.); strike on ground (אַ֫רְצָה; with arrows) 2 K 13:18, also (abs.) v 18, 19; strike weapons out of (מִן) hands, Ez 39:3 (י׳; fig. of making powerless); lintel of door Am 9:1; barley-loaf strikes tent Ju 7:13 (in dream); in fig. of regret, remorse וַיַּךְ לֵב דָּוִד אֹתוֹ 2 S 24:10 and David’s heart smote him, so 1 S 24:6 (+ עַל־אֲשֶׁר because); of goat smiting (butting with horn) the ram, so as to break its horns Dn 8:7 (in vision); smite = hit with missile, sling-stone 1 S 17:49 (c. acc. pers. + אֶל־מִצְחוֹ), cf. 2 K 3:25 (but text perhaps corrupt, v. Benz); arrow, 1 K 22:34 = 2 Ch 18:33 (c. acc. pers. + בֵּין), 2 K 9:24 (c. id.); of piercing, הַכּוֹת בַּחֲנִית בְּדָוִד וּבַקִּיר 1 S 19:10 smite with the dart into D. and into the wall, pin D. to the wall, וַיַּךְ אֶת־הַח׳ בַּקִּיר v 10, cf. 18:11, אַכֶּנּוּ בַחֲנִית וּבָאָרֶץ 26:8. e.g. Numbers 22:23
- b. smite repeatedly, beat, a man Ex 2:11, 13 (E), 5:16 (J), Ne 13:25 (מִן partit.), cf. Dt 25:11; here prob. also 1 K 20:35(×2), 37(×2) (הַכֵּה וּפָצֹעַ beating and bruising him); of Assyrian under fig. of task-master Is 10:24; beat a woman so as to bruise her (פָּצַע) Ct 5:7; beat by authority, scourge Je 20:2; 37:15 Dt 25:2, 3 (c. acc. pers. + acc. cogn. מַכָּה רַבָּה), v 3 cf. בִּן הַכּוֹת v 2 i.e. worthy of scourging, bastinado, (cf. Dr); 2 Ch 25:16; Pr 17:10; 19:25; 23:13, 14 (ב instr.); cf. גֵּוִי נָתַתִּי לְמַכִּים Is 50:6; of hail, beat down herbage etc. Ex 9:25(×2) (cf. Pu.). e.g. Exodus 2:11
- c. וַיַּכּוּ כַף 2 K 11:12 and they clapped hands (in applause); elsewhere only Ezek., in mockery; כַּף אֶל־כַּף Ez 21:19, 22; בְּכַפְּךָ 6:11 (‖ רְקַע בְּרַגְלְךָ); acc. כַּפִּי 22:13. e.g. 2 Kings 11:12
- d. give a thrust (with fork) into (ב) pot 1 S 2:14; strike roots Ho 14:6 (in fig., but וַיֵּלְכוּ We Now). e.g. 1 Samuel 2:14
- e. rarely smite (in battle) so as (merely) to wound 2 K 8:28, so (+ acc. cogn. מַכָּה) v 29; 9:15 = 2 Ch 22:6; fig. of י׳’s wounding Isr. Ho 6:1 (opp. חָבַשׁ, bind up), Je 30:14 (c. acc. cogn.). Cf. smite with (ב) the tongue Je 18:18. e.g. 2 Kings 8:28
- f. smite, of sun, etc., c. acc. pers. Is 49:10 ψ 121:6; c. עַל Jon 4:8. e.g. Isaiah 49:10
- 2. Smite fatally:
- a. (subj. man) smite, c. acc., + word of killing (dying):—obj. lion and bear 1 S 17:35; man Ex 21:12, 20 (E), Jos 10:26 (JE), 11:17 (D), 1 S 17:50; 2 S 1:15; 2:31 (מִן partit. + ב among), 4:7; 14:6; 18:15; 21:17; 1 K 16:10; 2 K 12:22; 15:30; 25:21 = Je 52:27, 2 K 25:25 Je 41:2; Nu 35:16, 17, 18, 21 (P; all c. ב instr.); c. acc. + אֶל־חֹמֶשׁ + ב instr. 2 S 2:23 smote him (fatally) in the belly with (v. HPS), 20:10, cf. 3:27 (+ 2 acc.) 4:6 (but del. 𝔊 Ew Th We Dr Bu HPS); וְהִכָּהוּ נֶפֶשׁ Dt 19:11 and he smite him in his life (mortally), and he die, cf. (without word of dying) v 6 Gn 37:21 (J), Je 40:14, 15 [otherwise Lv 24:17.18 Nu 35:11, 15, 30; Dt 27:25; Jos 20:3, 9]; with prolepsis לְהַכּוֹת חֲלָלִים smite the slain Ju 20:31, 39; + אַ֫רְצָה smite to the ground i.e. kill 2 S 2:22; 18:11. e.g. 1 Samuel 17:35
- b. smite, of worm gnawing or boring so as to kill plant Jon 4:7. e.g. Jonah 4:7
- c. very often = kill, slay, man or beast (c. 150 times): Gn 4:15; 8:21 (exterminate; both J), Ex 2:12; Nu 21:35 (E), Jos 7:5 (מִן partit.), v 5 (JE), Dt 19:6; 21:1; 27:24, 25; Jos 11:10 (ב instr.; all D), Lv 24:17, 18, 21(×2) (H), Nu 35:11, 15, 21, 24, 30; Jos 9:18; 20:3, 9 (all P), Ju 15:16; 1 S 17:9(×2), 36; 2 S 12:9 (ב instr.), 2 K 9:7 (exterminate), etc.; c. ב among 1 S 6:19; 23:5, מִן partit. Ju 14:19; 20:45; c. ב partit. slay at, work slaughter among 2 S 23:10 (ins. also in ‖ 1 Ch 11:13 v Bead loc. Dr 2 S 23:10), but also ב of dir. obj. 1 S 18:7; 21:12 = 29:5; subj. lion 1 K 20:36(×2) cf. Je 5:6 (fig. of judgment); י׳ subj. 1 S 6:19b (ב among, + acc. cogn.; 1 S 6:19a וַיַּךְ crpt. v. 𝔊 Th We Dr Kl Kit Bu HPS); slay firstborn Ex 12:12 (J), v 29 Nu 3:13; 8:17; 33:4 (all P), ψ 78:51; 105:36; 135:8; God slays for (עַל) sin 2 S 6:7 = 1 Ch 13:10 (עַל־אֲשֶׁר); slay לְפִי־חֶרֶב Dt 13:16; 20:13 Jos 11:11, 12, 14 (all D), Ju 18:27; 21:10; 1 S 22:9; 2 K 10:25 Je 21:7 Jb 1:15, 17; kill, slay, c. acc. cogn. (מַכָּה) 1 S 14:14; 1 K 20:21 (ב among), 2 Ch 13:17 (בָּחֶם), 25:13 (מֵהֶם); c. acc. pers. + acc. cogn. Jos 10:20 (JE), Est 9:5, etc.; kill unwittingly, unintentionally הִכָּה בִבְלִי דַ֫עַת Dt 19:4; Jos 20:5 (both D). e.g. Genesis 4:15
- 3. Smite = attack, attack and destroy a company Gn 32:9, 12; 34:30; Jos 8:21 Ju 8:11; 9:43; 2 K 8:21; 2 Ch 21:9; attack and capture a city Ju 1:8 v 12 = Jos 15:16 (JE), Jos 7:3; 10:4 (JE), 1 S 30:1; 1 K 15:20 = 2 Ch 16:4, 2 K 15:16(×2) 1 Ch 20:1; 2 Ch 14:13; Je 47:1; tents 1 Ch 4:41; 2 Ch 14:14; = sack a city לְפִי־חֶרֶב (slaying inhab.), Jos 8:24; 19:47 (both JE), 10:28, 30, 32, 35, 37 cf. v 39 (all D), Ju 1:25; 20:37; 2 S 15:14; especially defeat kg. or army (involving often overthrow, pursuit and slaughter),—c. 95 times,—Gn 14:5, 15, 17; Nu 14:45; 21:24 (JE), Jos 8:12; 10:10 (+ acc. cogn.), v 10 (עַד loc.), 11:8(×2) (all JE), Dt 1:4; 2:33; 3:3; 4:46; 7:2; 29:6; Jos 10:33, 40 (ועד—מִן loc.), 12:1, 6, 12; 13:12 (all D); Ju 1:5, 17; 1 S 11:11 (עד temp.), 2 K 13:17 (עַד־כְּלֵּה), 2 K 3:24a + v 24b (where read וַיָּבֹאוּ בוֹא וְהַכּוֹת and they went on defeating), Is 10:20; Je 37:10, etc.; ins. וַיַּךְ or הִכָּה in 2 S 8:13 Th Ke Kit Bu cf. Dr, after 𝔊; c. ב obj. 1 S 14:31; 23:2(×2) (ה loc.—מִן); + לְפִי חֶרֶב Ju 20:48, etc.; of gods causing defeat 2 Ch 28:23; smite land = conquer, subjugate, sometimes ravage, Gn 14:7; Jos 10:40 (D), 1 S 27:9; Je 43:11; 46:13, cf. Is 14:6 (acc. cogn.); subj. י׳ Nu 32:4 (P); of י׳ smiting sea וְהִכָּה בַיָּם גַּלִּים Zc 10:11 (BevJPh. xviii. 35 (1889), 88 proposes גבלים). e.g. Genesis 32:9
- 4. Of God,
- a. smite with (ב) a plague, disease, etc.:—blindness Gn 19:11 (J), 2 K 6:18(×2) cf. Zc 12:4(×2) (symbol.); of Egyptian plagues Ex 3:20; 9:15 (both J), 1 S 4:8, without ב Ex 7:25 (J), 12:13 (P), ψ 136:10 (acc. + בִּבְכוֹרֵיהֶם); other plagues Nu 14:12 (JE), Dt 28:22, 27, 28, 35; 1 S 5:6; 2 S 24:17; Jb 2:7; Am 4:9; Hg 2:17; Mal 3:24; 1 S 5:6, 9; 2 K 19:35 = Is 37:36 (+ ב in); Nu 11:33 (JE; בָּעָם + acc. cogn.); smite vines with (ב) blight ψ 105:33. e.g. Genesis 19:11
- b. smite = chastise, or send judgment upon, usually c. acc., 1 K 14:15; 1 Ch 21:7; Is 5:25; 9:12; 27:7 (הַכְּמַכַּת מַכֵּהוּ הִכָּהוּ), 30:31 (ב instr.) 57:17; 60:10 (opp. רִחַם) Je 2:30; 5:3; 14:9; Ez 32:15 (𝔊 Co זֵרָה scatter); c. עַל punish for, (sin) Lv 26:24 (H). e.g. 1 Kings 14:15
- c. of God’s destroying palaces Am 3:15; 6:11 (2 acc.), cf. Zc 9:4. e.g. Amos 3:15
Hophal
- Pf. הֻכָּה Ho 9:16; Nu 25:14. הוּכָּה ψ 102:5; וְהֻכָּת consec. Ex 22:1; 3 fs. הֻכְּתָה Ez 33:21; 40:1; 1 s. הֻכֵּ֫יתִי Zc 13:6; 3 pl. הֻכּוּ 1 S 5:12; Impf. 3 mpl. וַיּכֻּוּ Ex 5:14; 2 mpl. תֻּכּוּ Is 1:5; Pt. מֻכֶּה Nu 25:14, cstr. מֻכֵּה Is 53:4; f. מֻכָּה Nu 25:15, 18; pl. מֻפִּים Ex 5:16, cstr. מֻכֵּי־ Je 18:21;—be smitten: e.g. Hosea 9:16
- 1. = receive a blow Is 1:5 (Judah under fig. of man). e.g. Isaiah 1:5
- 2. be wounded Zc 13:6. e.g. Zechariah 13:6
- 3. be beaten Ex 5:14, 16 (J). e.g. Exodus 5:14
- 4. be (fatally) smitten + vb. of dying Ex 22:1 (E); be killed, slain Nu 25:14(×2), 15, 18 (c. עַל, for), מֻכֵּי־חֶרֶב Je 18:21 (‖ הֲרֻגֵי מָ֑וֶת); so also (abs.) prob. 1 S 4:2 (read וַיֻּכּוּ 𝔊 𝔖 𝔙 Th Dr Klo Kit, for MT וַיַּכּוּ). e.g. Exodus 22:1
- 5. be attacked and captured, of city Ez 33:21; 40:1. e.g. Ezekiel 33:21
- 6. be smitten with disease (by God) 1 S 5:12; abs., of י׳’s servant Is 53:4. e.g. 1 Samuel 5:12
- 7. be blighted, of plant (in fig.) Ho 9:16 (Ephr.), ψ 102:5 (heart, כָּעֵשֶׂב; both + יָבַשׁ). e.g. Hosea 9:16
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
vb. smite (not in Qal) (NH Hiph. id.; Pf. 3 pl. הכו SI 4, Inf. להך[ת] ib. 2; Syriac ܢܟܳܐ, laesit, nocuit, repugnavit; Aph. laesit, vulneravit; Ethiopic ነከየ laesit, nocuit; cf. Arabic نَكَى be defeated, نِكَايَةٌ the inflicting of injury on an enemy Lane3038);—
— Brown-Driver-Briggs (Oxford 1906, public domain), digitized via Sefaria, supplemented by the OpenScriptures HebrewLexicon (CC BY 4.0). See Sources.
Origin: a primitive root
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.
נָכָה
- , v. נכי
נֵכֶה
- crippled, נְכֵה רגלים paralyzed, lame. Yalk. Deut. 933. משל לנ׳ ר׳ וכ׳ like a lame person that disturbed the peace of &c., opp. שָׁלֵם.—Pl. נֵכִים. Pesik. R. s. 13, v. צָלַע.
נְכֹה
- (b. h.) pr. n. m. Pharaoh Necho (II), King of Egypt. Sot. 9ᵃ; a. e.
נכי
- (b. h.) to be lessened.—[Lev. R. s. 33 אלא נכה, some ed., v. אָנָךְ.]
- to deduct. Ḥull. X, 3 ואינו מְנַכֶּה לו וכ׳ and the seller is not bound to allow him a reduction for the priest’s share. B. Bath. VII, 2, sq. יְנַכֶּה he must make an allowance for what there is less than specified in the contract. Num. R. s. 20 (ref. to נכה, ib. XXII, 6) כמי שמְנַכֶּה אחד מכ"ד לסאה as one (purchasing grain) is prepared for a deficiency of one twenty-fourth for each S’ah (allowance for chaff, v. טִינֹּופֶת); Tanḥ. Balak 4 (not למאה); ed. Bub. 6; a. fr.—[Cant. R. to III, 4 שנכה מסנחריב some ed., read שנָכַת, v. נְכִיתָה.]
- 1. to injure, knock, strike. B. Kam. VIII, 1 הִכָּהוּ חייב וכ׳ if he hit him (created a sore), he must pay for curing him. Ib. 3 המַכֶּה את וכ׳ if a person strikes his father &c. Snh. IX, 2 נתכוין להַכֹּותוֹ וכ׳ if he intended to hit him on his loins. Y. Peah I, 16ᵃ bot. (ref. to Ps. CXX, 3, sq.) כל כלי זיין מַכִּין וכ׳ all weapons strike in their place, but this (calumny) strikes at a distance; a. v. fr.—Part. pass. מוּכֶּה; f. מוּכָּה; pl. מוּכִּים, מוּכִּין; מוּכֹּות. Keth. VII, 10, a. fr. מוּכֵּה שהין afflicted with leprosy. Ib. I, 3, a. fr. מוּכַּת עץ one who lost her hymen through an accidentallesion. Par. VIII, 9; Mikv. I, 8, v. מַיִם. e.g. Psalms 120:3
- 2. (trnsf.) to strike, produce sound, play. Yoma I, 7 מַכִּין לפניו באצבע וכ׳ snap their middle-fingers. Arakh. II, 3, v. חָלִיל; a. fr.
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 289 distinct written forms H5221 takes in the Hebrew Bible, most frequent first — each parse links to that stem’s occurrences in the concordance. Hebrew forms include their vowel points and cantillation, so a single lemma takes many written forms.
The 60 most common forms are shown; 229 rarer forms follow in the full concordance.
Same root — word family
Other BDB entries built from the same root as H5221, 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.
Derived from this word
Compare all same-root words → They share a root, not necessarily a meaning.
Septuagint verse parallels
This word appears in 431 verses that also exist in the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint), out of the 461 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
- Genesis 4:15
- Exodus 2:11
- Leviticus 24:17
- Numbers 3:13
- Deuteronomy 1:4
- Joshua 7:3
- Judges 1:4
- 1 Samuel 2:14
- 2 Samuel 1:1
- 1 Kings 11:15
- 2 Kings 2:8
- 1 Chronicles 4:41
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.
