H5472 H5472
To turn back, retreat; to backslide or apostatize from God; to turn aside, go astray
A Hebrew verb whose Nifal and Qal forms trace a spectrum from physical retreat to spiritual apostasy. In the Psalms, the word frequently describes enemies being turned back or driven into retreat (Ps 35:4; 40:14; 70:2), and the multilingual evidence — Spanish retrocedan, French reculer — confirms a military register of forced withdrawal. Yet the prophets transform it into one of the Bible's sharpest terms for spiritual defection: the 'backslider in heart' of Proverbs 14:14, the anguished vow 'we will not turn back from you' in Psalm 80:18, and Zephaniah's indictment of those who 'turned back from following the LORD' (Zeph 1:6). A solitary Qal occurrence in Psalm 53:3 — 'all have turned aside' — captures moral wandering off the right path, a nuance distinct from both military retreat and deliberate apostasy.
Senses
1. turn back, retreat — To turn back, retreat, or be driven back, primarily in a military or physical sense. The Psalmist repeatedly prays that enemies be 'turned back' or 'driven backward' in shame (Ps 35:4; 40:14; 70:2; 129:5). In Psalm 44:18 the community laments that 'our heart has not turned back' even in defeat, while Isaiah 50:5 affirms 'I did not turn back' in steadfastness. Spanish retrocedan, French reculer, and German zuruckweichen all map onto this sense of retreat under pressure. The bow that 'turned back' in Psalm 78:57 extends the imagery to unreliable weaponry. 10×
AR["اِرْتَدُّوا", "رَجَعُوا", "رَجَعْتُ", "مُنْدَحِرِينَ", "وَارْتَدُّوا", "وَلْيَرْتَدُّوا", "يَرتَدّونَ", "يَرْتَدَّ", "يَرْتَدّوا", "يَرْتَدّونَ"]·ben["আমি-সরে-গেছিলাম", "এবং-তারা-পিছু-হটেছিল", "এবং-পিছিয়ে-যাক", "তারা-ফিরে-গেছে", "তারা-ফিরে-যাক", "পিছিয়ে-পড়েছে", "পিছিয়ে-যাচ্ছে", "ফিরে-যাক", "ফেরত-হয়েছে"]·DE["[נסגו]", "[נסגים]", "[נסוגתי]", "hat-wandte-zurück", "lass-ihnen-sein-wandte-zurück", "lass-wenden-zurück", "und-lass-ihnen-wenden", "und-sie-wandte-zurück"]·EN["I-turned", "They-turn-back", "and-let-them-turn", "and-they-turned-back", "has-turned-back", "let-them-be-turned-back", "let-turn-back", "they-turned", "turning"]·FR["[נסגו]", "[נסגים]", "[נסוגתי]", "et-reculer", "reculer"]·heb["ו-ייסוגו", "ו-יסוגו", "ייסוגו", "יסוגו", "נסוג", "נסוגו", "נסוגותי", "נסוגים"]·HI["और-पीछे-हटें", "और-वे-फिर-गए", "पीछे-फिरें", "पीछे-मुड़ें", "पीछे-हटते", "पीछे-हटेंगे", "फिरा", "मैं-हटा", "लौटें", "वे-लौट-गईं"]·ID["Aku-mundur", "Dan-mereka-berbalik", "Mereka-mundur", "biarlah-berbalik", "dan-mundur", "mundur"]·IT["[נסגו]", "[נסגים]", "[נסוגתי]", "e-si-ritiro'", "si-ritiro'"]·jav["Ingsun-sampun-mundur", "Mundur", "Saha-tiyang-tiyang-wangsul", "lan-mundur", "mugi-mundur", "mundur", "piyambakipun-mundur"]·KO["그리고-물러나리라", "돌아갔느니라", "돌아섰나이다", "돌아섰다", "돌이켜소서", "물러가게-하소서", "물러나는", "물러나리이다", "물러났도다", "물러서지-않았느니라"]·PT["E-desviaram-se", "e-retornem", "recuaram", "recuei", "recuou", "retiraram-se", "retrocedam", "retrocedendo"]·RU["да-отступят", "и-отступали", "и-отступят", "отступало", "отступают", "отступил", "отступили", "отступят"]·ES["Y-se-apartaron", "me-volví", "retrocedan", "retrocediendo", "se-volvieron", "se-volvió", "serán-vueltos", "y-volverán"]·SW["Na-wakarudi-nyuma", "Watarudishwa", "kurudi", "na-warudi", "nimerudi", "wakarudi", "wanarudi", "warudi", "warudishwe"]·TR["Geri-donduruler", "cekildim", "döndüler", "geri-döndü", "geri-dönsün", "geri-dönsünler", "geri-çekilenler", "ve-geri-döndüler", "ve-geri-dönsünler"]·urd["اور-پھرے", "اور-پیچھے-ہٹیں", "میں-ہٹا", "واپس-ہٹیں", "پیچھے-ہٹ-گئے", "پیچھے-ہٹا", "پیچھے-ہٹتے-ہیں", "پیچھے-ہٹیں", "پیچھے-ہٹے"]
2. backslide, turn away in apostasy — To backslide or apostatize — to turn away from loyalty to God, with a strong moral and covenantal connotation. Proverbs 14:14 coins the participial phrase sug lev, 'the backslider in heart,' as a character type. Psalm 80:18 contains the impassioned pledge 'we will not turn back from you,' and Zephaniah 1:6 denounces 'those who have turned back from following the LORD.' Spanish apartarse de Dios and Korean baegyohada ('to apostatize') capture the deliberate, willful nature of this turning. The sense is relational betrayal, not mere physical movement. 3×
AR["المُرْتَدِّينَ", "مُرْتَدٌّ", "نَرْتَدُّ"]·ben["আমরা-পিছু-হটব", "বিমুখ", "বিমুখদের"]·DE["abgewichen", "wird-wir-wenden-zurück"]·EN["the-backslider-of", "those-who-turn-back", "will-we-turn-back"]·FR["reculer", "se-retirer", "סוג"]·heb["ה-נסוגים", "נסוג", "סוג"]·HI["पीछे-हटने-वालों", "पीछे-हटनेवाला", "हम-फिरेंगे"]·ID["kami-murtad", "orang-berbalik", "yang-murtad"]·IT["il-backslider-di", "ritirarsi", "si-ritiro'"]·jav["kawula-sedaya-badhé-mundur", "murtad", "tiyang-kang-mundur"]·KO["돌아선", "물러가는-자들을", "우리가-물러가지"]·PT["desviado-de", "os-que-recuam", "retrocederemos"]·RU["отступающих", "отступивший", "отступим-мы"]·ES["apartado-de", "los-que-retroceden", "nos-apartaremos"]·SW["aliyerudi-nyuma", "geuka-nyuma", "wanaorudi-nyuma"]·TR["dönenleri", "dönük-", "geri-çekiliriz"]·urd["بڑکیں-گے-ہم", "پھرنے-والا", "پھرنے-والوں"]
3. turn aside, go astray — To turn aside or go astray, emphasizing deviation from the right path rather than retreat from a position or apostasy from a covenant. In Psalm 53:3 (paralleled in Ps 14:3) 'all have turned aside' describes humanity's collective moral wandering. The Qal stem here is noteworthy — simpler and less reflexive than the Nifal — suggesting a passive drifting rather than an active rebellion. Spanish desviaron and the broader semantic field of 'straying' distinguish this from the intentional apostasy of sense 2. 1×
AR["اِرْتَدُّوا"]·ben["সরে-গেছে"]·DE["haben-wandte-aside"]·EN["have-turned-aside"]·FR["reculer"]·heb["סג"]·HI["भटक-गए-हैं"]·IT["si-ritiro'"]·jav["saking-langit"]·KO["돌이켰도다"]·PT["se-desviaram"]·RU["уклонились"]·ES["se-desviaron"]·SW["wamerudi-nyuma"]·TR["geri-döndü"]·urd["پِھرا"]
Related Senses
G4102 1. faith, trust, belief (239×)G4100 1. believe / have faith in (233×)H0982 1. trust in, rely on (105×)H3988a 1. reject, refuse (56×)G4103 1. faithful, trustworthy, reliable (54×)H0530 1. faithfulness, fidelity, reliability (47×)H0539 1. believe, accept as true (42×)H3985 1. refuse, be unwilling (41×)H0539 2. faithful, trustworthy, sure (39×)H8582 1. lead astray, cause to err (22×)H2623 1. faithful ones / saints (community) (21×)G0571 1. unbelieving, unbeliever (20×)G3982 1. be persuaded or convinced (19×)H8582 2. go astray, err morally (19×)G4105 1. to deceive, lead astray (18×)G3982 2. trust or have confidence in (17×)H2186a 1. reject, spurn (Qal) (16×)H3988a 2. despise, scorn (14×)G3982 3. persuade or convince someone (13×)G4103 2. believing, a believer (13×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
I. [סוּג, seldom שׂוּג] vb. move away, backslide (שׂ׳ erron.; Arabic ((سوج), سَاجَ), go and come Lane 1459, سَوْجَانٌ abitus et adventus Frey (Kam.));— 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. Niph. Pf. 3 ms. נָסוֹג ψ…