H4953 H4953
mashroqita — pipe, wind instrument in Nebuchadnezzar's orchestra
This Aramaic noun denotes a musical pipe or flute, appearing exclusively in Daniel 3's account of Nebuchadnezzar's golden image dedication ceremony. The term is part of the repeated list of instruments in the Babylonian royal orchestra, which was to signal when subjects should bow in worship. The word appears in emphatic and absolute forms across four verses. Related forms exist in Syriac, and the root suggests a whistling or piping sound. This wind instrument was part of the polyglot international music ensemble that characterized ancient Near Eastern royal courts.
Senses
1. sense 1 — A pipe or flute, one of the musical instruments in Nebuchadnezzar's royal orchestra. The term appears four times in Daniel 3 (verses 5, 7, 10, 15), each time within the formulaic list of instruments accompanying the command to worship the golden image: horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and all kinds of music. The Aramaic forms show both emphatic (mashroqitha, Dan 3:5, 7, 15) and variant (mashrōqīt, 3:10) states. As a wind instrument producing a whistling or piping sound, it contributed to the impressive sonic display meant to awe the gathered officials into submission and worship. 4×
AR["الْمِزْمَارِ"]·ben["বাঁশির"]·DE["[משרוקיתא]", "[משרקיתא]"]·EN["pipe"]·FR["flûte"]·heb["משרוקית"]·HI["बांसुरी"]·ID["seruling"]·IT["flauto"]·jav["suling"]·KO["피리의"]·PT["flauta"]·RU["свирели"]·ES["la-flauta"]·SW["filimbi"]·TR["flütün"]·urd["بانسری"]
Related Senses
H2719 1. sword, weapon of war (410×)H4196 1. altar (place of sacrifice) (403×)H7393 1. chariot, chariotry (117×)H7198 1. bow (weapon) (72×)H7979 1. table (71×)H7782 1. ram's horn trumpet (69×)H4294 2. staff, rod, scepter (63×)H4043 1. shield, defensive weapon (60×)H0646 1. ephod (priestly garment) (49×)H8504 1. blue (violet-blue yarn/fabric) (49×)H2595 1. spear, lance (48×)H2671 1. arrow, projectile weapon (46×)H4818 1. chariot, war-chariot (44×)H3658 1. lyre, harp (stringed instrument) (42×)H1537 1. Gilgal (place name) (41×)H0713 1. purple (fabric/dye) (38×)H0905 3. poles, staves (37×)H7392 1. Qal participle: rider, charioteer (37×)H4501 1. cultic lampstand (menorah) (36×)H0212 1. wheel (35×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† [מַשְׁרוֹקִי] n.f. pipe (cf. Syriac (rare));—emph. מַשְׁרוֹקִיתָא Dn 3:5, 7, 15, מַשְׁרֹק׳ 3:10.