אֵשׁ
fire
‘fire’ is one of 6 main senses fuller range ↓
Full lexicon entry — Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
From Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
Where this word appears
See every Absolute-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
- Absolute
- The independent form of a noun, not bound to a following word.
- Construct
- A noun bound to a following noun in a possessive / “of” relationship (the construct chain).
Gender
- Both
- Attested as both masculine and feminine.
Number
- Singular
- One.
33 verses where H784 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
- Ezekiel 1:4 וְ/אֵ֣שׁ הָ/אֵֽשׁ conj + n c bs ptcl def.art + n c bs I looked, and, behold, a stormy wind came out of the north, a great cloud, with flashing lightning, and a brightness round about it, and out of the midst of it as it were glowing metal, out of the midst of the fire.
- Ezekiel 1:13 אֵ֗שׁ לָ/אֵ֔שׁ הָ/אֵ֖שׁ n c bs prep det + n c bs ptcl def.art + n c bs As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like burning coals of fire, like the appearance of torches: [the fire] went up and down among the living creatures; and the fire was bright, and out of the fire went forth lightning.
- Ezekiel 1:27 אֵ֤שׁ אֵ֔שׁ n c bs n c bs I saw as it were glowing metal, as the appearance of fire within it round about, from the appearance of his loins and upward; and from the appearance of his loins and downward I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and there was brightness round about him.
- Ezekiel 5:4 הָ/אֵ֔שׁ בָּ/אֵ֑שׁ אֵ֖שׁ ptcl def.art + n c bs prep det + n c bs n c bs Of these again shall you take, and cast them into the midst of the fire, and burn them in the fire; from it shall a fire come forth into all the house of Israel.
- Ezekiel 8:2 אֵ֔שׁ אֵ֑שׁ n c bs n c bs Then I saw, and, behold, a likeness as the appearance of fire; from the appearance of his loins and downward, fire; and from his loins and upward, as the appearance of brightness, as it were glowing metal.
- Ezekiel 10:2 אֵשׁ֙ n c bs He spoke to the man clothed in linen, and said, Go in between the whirling [wheels], even under the cherub, and fill both your hands with coals of fire from between the cherubim, and scatter them over the city. He went in as I watched.
- Ezekiel 10:6 אֵשׁ֙ n c bs It came to pass, when he commanded the man clothed in linen, saying, Take fire from between the whirling wheels, from between the cherubim, that he went in, and stood beside a wheel.
- Ezekiel 10:7 הָ/אֵשׁ֙ ptcl def.art + n c bs The cherub stretched forth his hand from between the cherubim to the fire that was between the cherubim, and took [of it], and put it into the hands of him who was clothed in linen, who took it and went out.
- Ezekiel 15:4 לָ/אֵ֖שׁ הָ/אֵשׁ֙ prep det + n c bs ptcl def.art + n c bs Behold, it is cast into the fire for fuel; the fire has devoured both the ends of it, and the midst of it is burned: is it profitable for any work?
- Ezekiel 15:5 אֵ֤שׁ n c bs Behold, when it was whole, it was meet for no work: how much less, when the fire has devoured it, and it is burned, shall it yet be meet for any work!
- Ezekiel 15:6 לָ/אֵ֖שׁ prep det + n c bs Therefore thus says the Lord Yahweh: As the vine tree among the trees of the forest, which I have given to the fire for fuel, so will I give the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
- Ezekiel 15:7 מֵ/הָ/אֵ֣שׁ וְ/הָ/אֵ֖שׁ prep + ptcl def.art + n c bs conj + ptcl def.art + n c bs I will set my face against them; they shall go forth from the fire, but the fire shall devour them; and you shall know that I am Yahweh, when I set my face against them.
- Ezekiel 16:41 בָּ/אֵ֔שׁ prep det + n c bs They shall burn your houses with fire, and execute judgments on you in the sight of many women; and I will cause you to cease from playing the prostitute, and you shall also give no hire any more.
- Ezekiel 19:12 אֵ֥שׁ n c bs But it was plucked up in fury, it was cast down to the ground, and the east wind dried up its fruit: its strong rods were broken off and withered; the fire consumed them.
- Ezekiel 19:14 אֵ֜שׁ n c bs Fire is gone out of the rods of its branches, it has devoured its fruit, so that there is in it no strong rod to be a scepter to rule. This is a lamentation, and shall be for a lamentation.
- Ezekiel 20:31 בָּ/אֵ֜שׁ prep det + n c bs and when you offer your gifts, when you make your sons to pass through the fire, do you pollute yourselves with all your idols to this day? and shall I be inquired of by you, house of Israel? As I live, says the Lord Yahweh, I will not be inquired of by you;
- Ezekiel 20:47 אֵ֡שׁ n c bs and tell the forest of the South, Hear the word of Yahweh: Thus says the Lord Yahweh, Behold, I will kindle a fire in you, and it shall devour every green tree in you, and every dry tree: the flaming flame shall not be quenched, and all faces from the south to the north shall be burnt thereby.
- Ezekiel 21:32 לָ/אֵ֤שׁ prep det + n c bs You shall be for fuel to the fire; your blood shall be in the midst of the land; you shall be no more remembered: for I, Yahweh, have spoken it.
- Ezekiel 22:20 אֵ֖שׁ n c bs As they gather silver and brass and iron and lead and tin into the midst of the furnace, to blow the fire on it, to melt it; so will I gather you in my anger and in my wrath, and I will lay you there, and melt you.
- Ezekiel 23:25 בָּ/אֵֽשׁ prep det + n c bs I will set my jealousy against you, and they shall deal with you in fury; they shall take away your nose and your ears; and your residue shall fall by the sword: they shall take your sons and your daughters; and your residue shall be devoured by the fire.
- Ezekiel 23:47 בָּ/אֵ֥שׁ prep det + n c bs The company shall stone them with stones, and dispatch them with their swords; they shall kill their sons and their daughters, and burn up their houses with fire.
- Ezekiel 24:10 הָ/אֵ֔שׁ ptcl def.art + n c bs Heap on the wood, make the fire hot, boil well the flesh, and make thick the broth, and let the bones be burned.
- Ezekiel 24:12 בְּ/אֵ֖שׁ prep + n c bs She has wearied [herself] with toil; yet her great rust doesn't go forth out of her; her rust doesn't [go forth] by fire.
- Ezekiel 28:14 אֵ֖שׁ n c bs You were the anointed cherub who covers: and I set you, [so that] you were on the holy mountain of God; you have walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire.
- Ezekiel 28:16 אֵֽשׁ n c bs By the abundance of your traffic they filled the midst of you with violence, and you have sinned: therefore I have cast you as profane out of the mountain of God; and I have destroyed you, covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire.
- Ezekiel 28:18 אֵ֤שׁ n c bs By the multitude of your iniquities, in the unrighteousness of your traffic, you have profaned your sanctuaries; therefore have I brought forth a fire from the midst of you; it has devoured you, and I have turned you to ashes on the earth in the sight of all those who see you.
- Ezekiel 30:8 אֵ֣שׁ n c bs They shall know that I am Yahweh, when I have set a fire in Egypt, and all her helpers are destroyed.
- Ezekiel 30:14 אֵ֖שׁ n c bs I will make Pathros desolate, and will set a fire in Zoan, and will execute judgments on No.
- Ezekiel 30:16 אֵשׁ֙ n c bs I will set a fire in Egypt: Sin shall be in great anguish, and No shall be broken up; and Memphis [shall have] adversaries in the day-time.
- Ezekiel 38:22 אֵ֣שׁ n c bs With pestilence and with blood will I enter into judgment with him; and I will rain on him, and on his hordes, and on the many peoples who are with him, an overflowing shower, and great hailstones, fire, and sulfur.
- Ezekiel 39:6 אֵ֣שׁ n c bs I will send a fire on Magog, and on those who dwell securely in the isles; and they shall know that I am Yahweh.
- Ezekiel 39:9 אֵ֖שׁ n c bs Those who dwell in the cities of Israel shall go forth, and shall make fires of the weapons and burn them, both the shields and the bucklers, the bows and the arrows, and the war clubs, and the spears, and they shall make fires of them seven years;
- Ezekiel 39:10 אֵ֑שׁ n c bs so that they shall take no wood out of the field, neither cut down any out of the forests; for they shall make fires of the weapons; and they shall plunder those who plundered them, and rob those who robbed them, says the Lord Yahweh.
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.
The Hebrew noun אש centers on the idea of “fire.” The lexicon spreads it across several senses; see its full sense range. Spanning 348 verses in 33 books, it ranks among the common words of the Hebrew Bible. Debuting at Genesis 15:17, it then recurs through the corpus. Sharing its root, it stands alongside אש, אש and אשדת. Dig into 348-verse concordance and the renderings breakdown below.
Gloss history
Strong's 1890 vs modern scholarship
About this word
Strong's H784 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 →
- 348
- distinct verses
- The word appears in 348 distinct verses.
- 33 / 39
- OT books
- The word appears in 33 of 39 Old Testament books.
- #131
- by frequency
- Top 250 most frequent Hebrew words (rank 131 of 8,640 Hebrew words by occurrence).
View all 348 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 348 distinct verses.
- Prophets (Nevi'im) 189 verses · 54%
- Torah (Pentateuch) 99 verses · 28%
- Writings (Ketuvim) 60 verses · 17%
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: Fire 321×, Like fire 7×, Let fire 5×
- American Standard Version: Fire 292×, Like fire 7×, Fires 3×
- Berean Standard Bible: Fire 244×, Like fire 10×, Fiery 7×
- unfoldingWord Literal Text: Fire 307×, Fire of 8×, Like fire 6×
King James Version Public Domain
Renders H784 across 378 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus 32 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 2 further occurrences.
American Standard Version Public Domain
Renders H784 across 379 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus 55 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 H784 across 313 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 20 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 60 further occurrences.
unfoldingWord Literal Text CC BY-SA 4.0
Renders H784 across 368 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus 27 renderings that appear 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 6 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. fire, of conflagration, e.g. in briers, endangering or destroying crops תֵּצֵא אֵשׁ וּמָֽצְאָה קֹצִים Ex 22:5 cf. 3:2 הַסְּנֶה בֹּעֵר בָּאֵשׁ (both E); more often of deliberate destruction by fire, especially שָׂרַף בָּאֵשׁ (בָּ c. qam. preton.) obj. golden calf Ex 32:20 (J), other idols Dt 7:5, 25, Asherim 12:3, chariots Jos 11:6, 9 2 K 23:11, house Ju 12:1; 14:15, tower 9:52, city-gates Ne 1:3; 2:3, 13, 17, city Jos 6:24 Ju 18:27 cf. Is 1:7 +; also שִׁלַּח אֵשׁ בְּ Am 1:4, 7, 10 +; שִׁלַּח אֶת־הָעִיר בָּאֵשׁ †Ju 1:8; 20:48 cf. 2 K 8:12; הִצִּית אֶת־הָעִיר בָּאֵשׁ Jos 8:8, 19 הצ׳ אֵשׁ ב׳ Je 17:27 +; cf. Ju 9:49 2 S 14:30, 31 (of field, cf. Ex 22:5 supr.). e.g. Exodus 22:5
- 2. of supernatural fire, attending theophany Ex 3:2; 19:18 (both JE) Dt 4:11, 12, 15, 33, 36 +; specif. עַמּוּד (הָ)אֵשׁ Ex 13:21, 22; 14:24 (all JE) Ne 9:12, 19 cf. Dt 1:33 (v. מַרְאֵה־אֵשׁ Nu 9:15, 16 P); of destructive fire from י׳ Nu 11:1, 2, 3 (J) 26:10 (P) Lv 10:2 (P); cf. א׳ אֹכֶלֶת in sim. of Yahweh’s glory Ex 24:17 (E) Dt 4:24; 9:3; v. also 1 K 18:24, 38 2 K 1:10(×2), 12(×2), 14 Jb 1:16 (perhaps lightning intended), cf. further of lightning Ex 9:23, 24 (JE) ψ 18:13, 14; 148:8 etc. e.g. Exodus 3:2
- 3. fire for cooking, roasting, parching, etc. צְלִי אֵשׁ roasted at a fire Ex 12:8, 9 (P) cf. Lv 2:14 2 Ch 35:13 Is 44:16, 19; of tinder for lighting fire Gn 22:6, 7 (E); of fire for melting (gold for the idolatrous calf) Ex 32:24; for refining Je 6:29, where read with Qr מֵאֵשׁ תַּם עֹפָֽרֶת; cf. Mal 3:2 (sim. of purifying work of messenger of cov’t). e.g. Exodus 12:8
- 4. especially of altar-fire Lv 1:7(×2); 6:2, 3, 5, 16 +; in offering incense Lv 10:1, also אֵשׁ זָרָה strange fire, i.e. an incense not commanded, offered presumptuously 10:1 Nu 3:4; 26:61; fire from י׳ consuming sacrifice (cf. 2 Lv 9:24 2 Ch 7:1, 3; of fire in child-sacrifice (usually (לְ) הֶעֱבִיר בֵּן בָּאֵשׁ) 2 K 16:3; 21:6 cf. 17:17; 23:10 2 Ch 33:6; also שׂרף בָּא׳ 2 K 17:31, בער בָּא׳ 2 Ch 28:3. e.g. Leviticus 1:7
- 5. fig. of Yahweh’s anger ψ 89:47 (sim.) cf. Na 1:6 La 2:4 אֵשׁ־עֶבְרָתִי Ez 21:36; 22:31; 38:19, אֵשׁ־קִנְאָתִי Ez 36:5; v. also Is 66:15 ψ 79:5 etc.; of word of י׳ Je 23:29; fig.of outbursting emotion ψ 39:4; of flagrant wickedness Is 9:17, etc. e.g. Psalms 89:47
- 6. in various combinations, לַפִּיד אֵשׁ Gn 15:17 (J) a torch of fire (cf. Di); לַבַּת־אֵשׁ Ex 3:2 flame of fire, לַהַב אֵשׁ Jo 2:5, לַפִּידֵי אֵשׁ (in sim.) Dn 10:6 cf. Zc 12:6, לַהֲבוֹת אֵשׁ ψ 29:7 לַהֲבֵי אֵשׁ Is 66:15 cf. א׳ לֶהָבוֹת ψ 105:32, נֹגַהּ א׳ לֶהָבָה Is 4:5 cf. Ho 7:6; שְׂבִיב אִשּׁוֹ spark of his fire Jb 18:5 cf. כִּידוֹדֵי אֵשׁ 41:11; תַּנּוּר אֵשׁ ψ 21:10 oven of fire, כִּיּוֹר אֵשׁ Zc 12:6; אוֹר אֵשׁ light of fire ψ 78:14; אֵשׁ לֹהֵט flaming fire ψ 104:4; לְשׁוֹן אֵשׁ Is 5:24 tongue of fire, גַּחֲלֵי אֵשׁ Ez 1:13 coals of fire, so 10:2, cf. רִשְׁפֵּי אֵשׁ Ct 8:6; on אַבְנֵי אֵשׁ Ez 28:14, 16 v. אֶבֶן; אֵשׁ דַּת Dt 33:2, lit. fire of a law, or fire was a law, but דָּת law is Pers. & late; read perhaps אֵשׁ [לַףִּ]דֹת cf. Ex 20:18 or אֵשׁ [יֹקֶ]דֶת cf. Is 65:5. e.g. Genesis 15:17
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.f. Ex 9:23 (m. Je 48:45; ψ 104·4; f. & m. Je 20:9; Jb 20:26) אֵשׁ ‘m.’ is dub.: Nu 16:18 read עָלֶיהָ for 2nd עֲלֵיהֶם (𝔊B); Je 20:9 v. Ges§ 132 d; 48:45 read (many MSS., Nu 21:28) יצאה; ψ 104:4 read perhaps (Ol) לֹהֵֽטָה׃ or (Kenn) וָלָֽהַט׃; Jb 20:26 v. Ges§ 145 u (or 121 b): cf. AlbrZAW xvi (1896), 63. fire (Assyrian išatu COTGloss, Syriac ܐܶܫܳܬܳܐ, እሳት deriv. from ii. אנשׁ,أَنَسَ, sociable, friendly element (MV Wetzst in De Psalmen, ed. 4, p. 888 LagBN 68 cf. انيسة, مانوسة), improb. especially in view of Assyrian; daghesh prob. secondary; cf. also Sta§ 189 b)—א׳ abs. Ex 9:24 +; cstr. Lv 6:2 + (seld.); †sf. אִשּׁוֹ Dt 4:36 Jb 18:5; אֶשְׁכֶם Is 50:11; אִשָּׁם Is 66:24;—
— Brown-Driver-Briggs (Oxford 1906, public domain), digitized via Sefaria, supplemented by the OpenScriptures HebrewLexicon (CC BY 4.0). See Sources.
Origin: a primitive word
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.
אֵשׁ
- c. (b. h.;
- 1. fire. Sabb. 11ᵃ; a. e. כא׳ לנעורת as destructive as fire to the flax. Sot. 48ᵇ כא׳ בנעורת like fire among flax, i.e. inflaming the senses. Gen. R. s. 39 מבול של א׳ (v. מַבּוּל) destruction by fire.—Num. R. s. 2 end א׳ הדיוטית fire from outside of the sanctuary; a. fr.—Pl. אִשֹּׁות. Yoma 21ᵇ; a. fr.
- 2. fever, א׳ של עצמות. Gitt. 70ᵃ
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 91 distinct written forms H784 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.
The 60 most common forms are shown; 31 rarer forms follow in the full concordance.
Same root — word family
Other BDB entries built from the same root as H784, 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
- אש ʼêsh H785 fire
- אש ʼish H786 there is
- אשדת ʼeshdâth H799 fiery law
- אשה ʼeshshâh H800 fire
- אשיש ʼâshîysh H808 foundation
- אתון ʼattûwn H861 furnace
Compare all same-root words → Showing 4 of 7 — not the complete family. They share a root, not necessarily a meaning.
Septuagint verse parallels
This word appears in 321 verses that also exist in the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint), out of the 348 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 15:17
- Exodus 3:2
- Leviticus 1:7
- Numbers 3:4
- Deuteronomy 1:33
- Joshua 6:24
- Judges 1:8
- 1 Samuel 30:1
- 2 Samuel 14:30
- 1 Kings 9:16
- 2 Kings 1:10
- 1 Chronicles 14:12
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.
