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# עֹרֶף

Biblical Hebrew · Strong's H6203

**back of neck** — used 33 times in the Hebrew Bible. Below: its meanings with their sources, MACULA's glosses, and 2 verses word for word and in JPS 1917.

## Meaning

### OpenScriptures lexical index

back of neck [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1506/6203/#m1)

### Brown–Driver–Briggs 1906

עֹ֫רֶף: n.m. back of neck, neck [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1506/6203/#m2)

**The whole BDB entry:** n.m. Dt 31:27 back of neck, neck;—ע׳ abs. Jos 7:12 +; cstr. Gn 49:8 +; sf. עָרְפִּי Jb 16:12, עָרְפְּךָ Dt 31:27, etc.;— back of neck of fleeing foe יָֽדְךָ בְּע׳ אֹיְבֶיךָ Gn 49:8 (poem in J), cf. וְאָחַז בְּעָרְפִּי Jb 16:12 (fig.); Ex 23:27 (E), ψ 18:41 = 2 S 22:41; turn (הָפַךְ, פָּנָה) one’s back before (לִפְנֵי) a foe Jos 7:8, 12 (JE), abs. Je 48:39; fig. of apostasy פָּנָה ע׳אֶל Je 2:27; 32:33 (opp. פָּנָה פָנִים) abs. וַיִּתְּנוּ ע׳ 2 Ch 29:6; of י׳’s disfavour ע׳ וְלֹא פָנִים אֶרְאֵם Je 18:17 with the back and not the face will I look at them. fig. in קְשֵׁה־ע׳ stiff of neck, i.e. obstinate, of Isr. Ex 32:8; 33:3, 5; 34:9 (all JE), Dt 9:6, 13; עָרְפְּךָ הַקָּשֶׁה Dt 31:27; with vb. הִקְשָׁה ע׳ i.e. be obstinate, intractable 10:16; Je 7:26; 17:23; 19:15; 2 K 17:14(×2) Ne 9:16, 17, 29; 2 Ch 30:8; cf. גִּיד בַּרְזֶל ע׳ Is 48:4 (‖ קָשֶׁה אָ֑תָּת); הִקְשָׁה ע׳ of individual 2 Ch 36:13; Pr 29:1. of bird: nip its head מִמּוּל עָרְפּוֹ Lv 5:8 (P).

Why these entries: BDB: headword, part of speech agrees, 31 of its verses cited, 1 words shared with the glosses, lists its Strong's number (5 candidates); OSHB: headword, part of speech agrees, 2 words shared with the BDB entry, 1 with the glosses (4 candidates)

## Glosses

MACULA's English glosses of the word in the text, with how often each is used: neck (18); a neck (7); of neck (6).

## In the verses

[Proverbs 29:1](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/ketuvim/PRO.29.1/) · [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/ketuvim/PRO.29.1/#tree)

אִ֣ישׁ תּ֭וֹכָחוֹת מַקְשֶׁה־עֹ֑רֶף פֶּ֥תַע יִ֝שָּׁבֵ֗ר וְאֵ֣ין מַרְפֵּֽא׃

*Word for word:* a.person of.rebukes \[who\].stiffens a.neck suddenness he.will.be.broken and there.\[will\].not.\[be\] healing

*JPS 1917:* He that being often reproved hardeneth his neck shall suddenly be broken, and that without remedy.

[Deuteronomy 10:16](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/torah/DEU.10.16/) · [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/torah/DEU.10.16/#tree)

וּמַלְתֶּ֕ם אֵ֖ת עָרְלַ֣ת לְבַבְכֶ֑ם וְעָ֨רְפְּכֶ֔ם לֹ֥א תַקְשׁ֖וּ עֽוֹד׃

*Word for word:* and you.will.circumcise (et) the.foreskin your.heart your and neck your not you.will.stiffen again

*JPS 1917:* Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no more stiffnecked.

## On Mova

- [This word in the Tanakh dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/tanakh/w/6203.html) on Mova free.
- [Trees and pragmatics of its meanings](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1506/6203/): every English meaning parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.

Sources. The words, their counts, glosses and the word-for-word renderings: MACULA Hebrew (the Westminster Leningrad Codex; Clear Bible, CC BY 4.0). Meanings: the OpenScriptures lexical index (CC BY 4.0), Brown–Driver–Briggs 1906 and Jastrow 1903 (public domain, via Sefaria); Targum Onkelos from Sefaria (public domain). Translation: JPS 1917 (public domain, from eBible.org).