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סוּג

to fence

‘to fence’ is one of 2 main senses fuller range ↓

H5473 Strong's Hebrew
çûwg Transliteration
/soog/ Pronunciation
Usage in the Hebrew Bible 1 appearance

Compare with another word →

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.

סוג (çûwg) is a Hebrew verb most often rendered “to fence.” It occurs a mere 1 verse across Scripture. It clusters heavily in Song of Solomon, which alone accounts for 100% of its uses. Its lone occurrence is Song of Solomon 7:2. As a verb its force shifts by stem, across 5 stems (Qal, Niphal, and more). For the data behind this summary, explore the sense tree and the renderings breakdown below.

Gloss history

Strong's 1890 vs modern scholarship

Strong's · 1890
set about
Modern gloss
to fence
Strong's 1890 sometimes compressed multiple senses — or homonymous roots — under one number, and used 19th-century English phrasing that no longer carries the same connotation. The modern gloss reflects current BDB scholarship; open the Lexicon Entry tab for the full sense breakdown. Download share card

About this word

Strong's H5473 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 →

1
distinct verses
The word appears in 1 distinct verse.
1 / 39
OT books
The word appears in 1 of 39 Old Testament books.
Song of Solomon 7:2
only appearance
This word occurs only once, in Song of Solomon 7:2.
#6,101
by frequency
Rank #6,101 (rank 6,101 of 8,640 Hebrew words by occurrence).

View all 1 occurrence in the concordance →


Most concentrated in

By section of the Old Testament

  • Pentateuch 0 · 0%
  • Historical 0 · 0%
  • Wisdom 1 · 100%
  • Prophets 0 · 0%

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 1 distinct verse.

  • Writings (Ketuvim) 1 verse · 100%

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).

BDB lists this Strong’s number as 2 distinct words (homographs). Each count above pools all of them and is not split by sense — see the Senses section below. A low-frequency rendering may belong to a different one of those words, not the primary meaning.

  • King James Version: Set about 1×
  • American Standard Version: Set about 1×
  • Berean Standard Bible: Encircled 1×
  • unfoldingWord Literal Text: Encircled 1×

King James Version Public Domain

Renders H5473 across 1 tagged occurrence — most commonly:

  • “Set about” 1×

American Standard Version Public Domain

Renders H5473 across 1 tagged occurrence — most commonly:

  • “Set about” 1×

Berean Standard Bible Public Domain

Renders H5473 across 1 tagged occurrence — most commonly:

  • “Encircled” 1×

unfoldingWord Literal Text CC BY-SA 4.0

Renders H5473 across 1 tagged occurrence — most commonly:

  • “Encircled” 1×

11 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 Hophal (the passive of Hiphil) and one or more reduplicated stems (the Pōlēl/Pilpēl type), which for hollow or geminate roots behave much like Piel — often intensive or iterative.

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 11 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.

סוג I move away, backslide (שׂ׳ erron.

Qal

  • Pf. 3 ms. סָג ψ 53:4; Impf. 1 pl. נָסוֹג ψ 80:19; Pt. act. cstr. סוּג Pr 14:14 (BaNB § 124 c Ges§ § 50 f, 72 p);—backslide, prove recreant to י׳, c. מִן ψ 80:19; so abs. 53:4; סוּג לֵב Pr 14:14 a backslider in heart. e.g. Psalms 53:4

Niphal

  • Pf. 3 ms. נָסוֹג ψ 44:19, נָשׂוֹג 2 S 1:22 (שׂ for ס); 1 s. נְסוּגֹתִי Is 50:5; 3 pl. נָסֹ֫גוּ Is 42:17 Je 38:22; Impf. 3 ms. יִסַּג Mi 2:6 (Ges§ 72 dd, but v. infr.); 3 mpl. יִסֹּ֫גוּ ψ 35:4 + 3 times, וַיִּסֹּ֫גוּ ψ 78:57; Inf. abs. נָסוֹג Is 59:13; Pt. pl. נְסוֹגִים Zp 1:6 Je 46:5;— e.g. Psalms 44:19
  • 1. refl. turn oneself away, turn back:
    • a. lit. of Jonathan’s bow 2 S 1:22, c. מִן (v HPS). e.g. 2 Samuel 1:22
    • b. fig. = prove faithless (as Qal): (1) of human friends, נס׳ אָחוֹר Je 38:22 (abs.); usually (2) נס׳ מֵאַחֲרֵי י׳ Zp 1:6 cf. Is 59:13; so abs. ψ 78:57 (+ בָּגַד), c. אָחוֹר Is 50:5 (‖ מָרִיתִי), ψ 44:19 (‖ נָטָה מִן).—לֹא יִסַּג כְּלִמּוֹת Mi 2:6 could mean reproaches do not depart, i.e. cease (Hi-St Che GASm Now RV); Now proposes also (emending foll. v.) shall not disgrace depart from Jacob’s house? BuhlLex 13 conj., plausibly, יַשִּׂיג (√ נשׂג) disgrace shall not overtake us. e.g. Jeremiah 38:22
  • 2. be turned or driven back, be repulsed, of י׳’s foes: + אָחוֹר Je 46:5; Is 42:17 ψ 35:4; 40:15 = 70:3, 129:5. e.g. Jeremiah 46:5

Hiphil

  • 1. usually of displacing, moving back a boundary mark (גְּבוּל), Impf. 2 ms. תַּסִּיג Dt 19:14, juss. תַּסֵּג Pr 22:28; 23:10; 3 mpl. יַשִּׂיגוּ Jb 24:2 (שׂ for ס); Pt. מַסִּיג ג׳ Dt 27:17, מַסִּיגֵי ג׳ Ho 5:10. e.g. Deuteronomy 19:14
  • 2. remove, carry away, valuables, to rescue them, juss., 2 ms. תַּסֵּג Mi 6:14 si vera l. (on synt. v. Dr§ § 152, 1. 2; 155 Obs.). e.g. Micah 6:14

Hophal

  • Pf. 3 ms. וְהֻסַּג אָחוֹר מִשְׁפָּט Is 59:14 and justice is driven back (‖ צְדָקָה מֵרָחוֹק תַּעֲמֹד). e.g. Isaiah 59:14

סוג II fence about (Aramaic word

Qal

  • Pt. pass. f. בִּטְנֵךְ עֲרֵמַת חִטִּים סוּגָה בַּשּׁוֹשַׁנִּים Ct 7:3 thy body a heap of wheat fenced about with lilies (cf. especially De Bu). e.g. Song of Solomon 7:3

Pilp

  • intens. Impf. 2 fs. תְּשַׂגְֿשֵׂ֑גִי Is 17:11 thou dost fence it carefully about (> make it grow, as if שׂוג = שׂגה, AE Ki Brd Du). e.g. Isaiah 17:11

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

I. vb. move away, backslide (שׂ׳ erron.; Arabic ((سوج), سَاجَ), go and come Lane 1459, سَوْجَانٌ abitus et adventus Frey (Kam.));—

II. vb. fence about (Aramaic word; ܣܘܓ, ܣܳܓ sepsit, circumsepsit, clausit, ܣܝܳܓܳܐ sepes, cf. 𝔗 סיג Pa. fence about, סְיָיגָא fence; NH סוג fence about; Arabic سَيَاجٌ enclosure made with thorns, etc., around grape-vines, etc. Lane1460, سوّج ii. make a سِيَاجٌ );—only

— Brown-Driver-Briggs (Oxford 1906, public domain), digitized via Sefaria, supplemented by the OpenScriptures HebrewLexicon (CC BY 4.0). See Sources.

Derived from סוג (çûwg) (H5472) — to backslide.

Part of speech: Verb TWOT: 1470


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.

סוּג I

  • (b. h.) [to cut off, separate,] to fence in, mark off. Y. Ab. Zar. IV, 43ᶜ, sq. כל שהוא סָג וכ׳ any stone that is put up to mark the sea-shore or the roads. Y. M. Kat. I, 80ᶜ פירצה שהיא סָגָה וכ׳ a fence which, though broken, still bars the ground behind it (from falling out); Y. Shebi. III, end, 34ᵈ; a. e.—Trnsf. (v. סְיָג a. גָּדַר) to guard against trespassing a law, to make a prohibition more restrictive; to exaggerate. Ab. d’R. N. ch. I סייג שסָג … לדבריו (v. ed. Schechter) the guard which Adam set to his words (by adding the prohibition to touch the tree of knowledge). Ib. אם סג אדם לדבריו וכ׳ if a person exaggerates his words, he cannot abide by them.
    • to fence in. Part. pass. מְסוּיָּיג. Koh. R. to V, 14 והיה מס׳ וכ׳ it (the vineyard) was fenced in on all sides.
    • (with גְּבוּל) to remove the landmark. Sabb. 85ᵃ (ref. to Deut. XIX, 14) גבול … לא תַסִּיג do not remove the landmark which those before thee (the Canaanites) have set. e.g. Deuteronomy 19:14

סוּג

  • Targ. II Esth. III, 3 סָג יתיה (not סגיתיה).—Part. סָיֵיג, סָיֵג. Targ. Hos. II, 8 כמא דסַיְגִין (missing in ed. Lag.).—Y. M. Kat. III, 83ᶜ top יְסוּג תורעתך may the Lord fence in thy breach (guard thee from further trouble); Gen. R. s. 100. Y. Kidd. I, end, 61ᵈ; Y. Shebu. II, end, 33ᶜ, a. e. סָיְיגִין סייגה ותרעין וכ׳ a fence is fenced around, and a breach broken into, i.e. the good are assisted by Providence in their good work, and the bad in their evil ways; וכיני סייגין וכ׳ (not ובני) but is it right that the fence &c.?; Yalk. Prov. 935 סגיי סוגייא (corr. acc.).

סוּג II

  • (preced.) [partition,] a large chest or basket with partitions for various kinds of provision. Dem. V, 6 אפי׳ מאותו הס׳ וכ׳ even if he buys the second time from the same chest and of the same kind (quality). Y. B. Kam. II, 3ᵃ ס׳ שנתון וכ׳ a dealer’s chest which stands at the entrance of the shop; a. e.—Pl. סוּגִים, סוּגִין. Kel. XVI, 3 הס׳ הגדולים (R. S. a. l. Var. סוֹאִין; Tosef. Kel. B. Mets. V, 3; 13 הסאין, v. סוֹי) the large provision chests; Sifra Sh’mini ch. VII, Par. 6 סיגים (corr. acc.). Y. Sabb. XVII, 16ᵃ bot.; a. e.—[In later philosophical literature: סוּג class, species.—[Midr. Till. to Ps. CXIX, 119 עושה סוגים, v. סִיג I.]

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.


Same root — word family

Other BDB entries built from the same root as H5473, 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

Compare all same-root words → They share a root, not necessarily a meaning.


Septuagint verse parallels

This word appears in 1 verse that also exists in the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint), out of the 1 Hebrew verse 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.

Reading settings

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