H4570 H4570
A track, path, or wagon-rut; figuratively the course of one's life or conduct; also a circular military encampment formed by wagons.
Derived from a root suggesting roundness or rolling, this noun carries two quite distinct senses shaped by context. In the Psalms and Proverbs it denotes the rutted tracks or well-worn paths that travelers follow, and it becomes a powerful metaphor for the moral direction of a person's life -- the 'paths of righteousness' (Ps 23:3) or the crooked tracks of the wicked (Prov 2:15, Isa 59:8). In the David narratives, however, it refers to the circular wagon-barricade forming Saul's camp (1 Sam 17:20; 26:5-7), a concrete military formation. The Spanish 'sendas' and 'camino' for the figurative usage versus 'círculo de carros' for the military sense nicely mirror this split.
Senses
1. path, track, way — The well-worn track or rut left by wheels or feet, used almost exclusively in figurative language for the moral or spiritual course of a person's life. Proverbs and the Psalms pair it with 'righteousness' (Ps 23:3), 'uprightness' (Prov 4:11), and 'goodness' (Prov 2:9), while also applying it to the devious paths of the wicked (Prov 2:15; Isa 59:8). The multilingual glosses converge on path-language: Spanish 'sendas,' French 'sentier,' underscoring the metaphorical force of a traveled route as moral direction. 13×
AR["الطَّرِيقِ","فِي-سُبُلِ-","فِي-مَسَالِكِ-","فِي-مَسَالِكِكَ","فِي-مَسَالِكِهِمْ","مَسَالِكُهَا","مَسَالِكِهِ","مَسْلَكٍ-","مَسْلَكَ","وَ-مَساراتُكَ"]·ben["-এ-পথে-","আপনার-পথে","ও-তোমার-পথগুলো","চক্র","তাদের-পথে","তাদের-রাস্তায়","তার-রাস্তা","পথ","পথ-","পথে-","পথের;"]·DE["[במעגלותם]","[במעגלי]","[מעגל]","[מעגלתיה]","[מעגלתיו]","der-Pfad","in-Pfade-von-","in-dein-Pfade","und-dein-Pfade"]·EN["and-Your-paths","her-paths","his-paths","in-paths-of-","in-the-paths-of","in-their-paths","in-their-ways","in-your-paths","the-path","the-path-of","the-way","track"]·FR["[במעגלותם]","[מעגל]","dans-leur-sentier-eux","dans-sentier","de-sentier","et-de-sentier","sa-sentier-elle","sentier","son-sentier-lui"]·heb["ב-מעגלותיך","ב-מעגלותם","ב-מעגלי","ב-מעגלי-","ו-מעגליך","מעגל","מעגלותיה","מעגלותיו"]·HI["उनके-राहों-में","और-तेरे-मार्ग","पथ","पथ-","पथ-उसके","पथों-अपने-में","पथों-में-","पाश","में-तेरे-मार्गों","में-रास्तों-","राह"]·ID["dalam-lintasan-lintasan-mereka","dan-jalan-jalan-Mu","di-jalan-jalan-Mu","di-jalur-jalur-mereka","di-lintasan-lintasan-","jalan","jalan-","jalannya","lintasan"]·IT["[במעגלותם]","[מעגל]","da-vitello","e-sentiero","il-sentiero-di","in-in-il-paths-di","in-in-loro-ways-loro","sentiero","sua-paths-sua","suo-paths-suo","track"]·jav["dalan","ing-dalan","ing-lampah","ing-laras-","ing-laras-Panjenengan","ing-lurung-ipun","lampah","margi","saha-dalan-Panjenengan","tapakan"]·KO["-에-길들","경로-들-에서","경로-를","그-들-의-경로-들-에서","그-의-경로-들-을","그녀-의-경로-들-은","그들의-바퀴자국에-","그리고-주-의-바퀴-자국-들-이","길","길들-에서","길을"]·PT["caminho","e-tuas-veredas","em-suas-trilhas","em-trilhas-de","em-trilhos-deles","em-tuas-veredas","por-veredas-de","suas-trilhas","trilha","trilha-de"]·RU["и-стези-Твои","на-путях-Твоих","на-путях-их","по-стезям-","стези-его","стези-её -","стези-её.","стези-их.","стезю","стезю-","тропы"]·ES["camino-de","en-sus-sendas","en-tus-sendas","la-senda-de","por-sendas-de","senda","sendero","sus-sendas","y-tus-sendas"]·SW["katika-mapito-yao","katika-njia-za","katika-njia-zako","mapito","na-njia-zako","njia","njia-ya","njia-zake"]·TR["izini","izleri-onun","izlerinde","izlerinde-","izlerini-onun","patikaları","patikalarında","patikasını-","ve-izlerin","yollarında","yollarında-","yolun"]·urd["-راستوں-میں","اُن-کی-راہوں-میں","تیری-راہوں-میں","راستوں-اُس-کے","راستوں-میں","راستوں-میں-ان-کی","راستہ","راستہ-","راستے-اس-کے","راستے-کے","راہیں-اُس-کے","وَ-تیرے-راستے"]
2. circular encampment, wagon-circle — A circular defensive encampment formed by arranging wagons or carts in a ring, attested only in the David-Saul narratives (1 Sam 17:20; 26:5, 7). The Hebrew directional ending in 'hammaʿgalah' (toward the encampment) confirms its concrete, spatial meaning. Spanish renders this 'círculo de carros' and French 'campement,' distinguishing it sharply from the figurative path-sense. 3×
AR["الدَّائِرَةَ","في-المَحَلِّ"]·ben["গাড়ির-বেড়ায়","শিবিরে"]·DE["in-der-encampment","zu-der-encampment"]·EN["in-the-encampment","to-the-encampment"]·FR["dans-le-encampment","à-le-encampment"]·heb["ב-מעגל","ה-מעגלה"]·HI["गअधि-गोल-घेरे-मेइन","घेरे-में"]·ID["di-perkemahan","ke-lingkaran-kemah"]·IT["a-il-accampamento","in-il-accampamento"]·jav["-lingkungan","ing-bunderan"]·KO["그-진영-고리에","에-그수레울타리안에"]·PT["ao-círculo","no-círculo"]·RU["в-обозе","к-обозу"]·ES["al-círculo-de-carros","en-el-campamento"]·SW["duru","katika-mzingo"]·TR["-arabaların-içinde","araba-çemberine"]·urd["گاڑی-میں","گھیرے-میں"]
Related Senses
H5921a 1. upon, on, over (spatial) (5443×)H0413 1. directional: to, toward (5366×)H1121a 1. son, male offspring, descendant (4914×)H3808 1. simple negation (not) (4839×)H4428 1. king, human ruler (2518×)G1722 1. locative: in, within (2442×)H1004b 1. house, dwelling, building (2015×)H6440 1. before, in front of (spatial) (1870×)G3756 1. not (negation particle) (1635×)H3027 1. physical hand (body part) (1596×)H1697 1. word, speech, utterance (1235×)H4480a 1. source or separation (1198×)H5892b 1. city, town (1093×)G1519 1. direction: into, to, toward (1061×)H3427 1. Qal: to dwell, inhabit (937×)G1537 1. from, out of (source/origin) (886×)H8034 1. Name (designation / identifier) (856×)G3361 1. subjective negation (not) (834×)G1909 1. on, upon (spatial surface) (757×)H0369 1. existential negation: there is not (738×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† מַעְגָּל n.m. ψ 65:12 1. entrenchment; 2. track;—abs. מ׳ 1 S 26:5 +, c. ה loc. הַמַּעְגָּ֫לָה 17:20; cstr. מַעְגַּל Pr 4:26 +; pl. cstr. מַעְגְּלֵי ψ 23:3 Pr 4:11; sf. מַעְגָּלֶיךָ ψ 65:12, elsewhere מַעְגְּלוֹתֶיךָ 17:5, מַעְגְּלֹתָיו Pr 5:21, -תֶיהָ 2:12; 5:6, -תָם 2:15 Is 59:8;— 1. circumvallation, entrenchment 1 S 17:20; 26:5, 7. 2. track (proposes wagon-track), only fig.: a. in fig. of…