H5483b H5483b
Horse — the domesticated animal used for war, transport, and royal display throughout biblical narrative.
The Hebrew sus appears across nearly every genre of Scripture, from patriarchal narrative (Gen 47:17) to apocalyptic vision (Zech 1:8). Horses in Israel's world were overwhelmingly associated with military power — Pharaoh's chariot horses drowning in the Sea (Exod 15:1, 21), Canaanite war chariots (Josh 11:4), and Solomon's controversial cavalry imports from Egypt (1 Kgs 10:28). The prophets repeatedly warned against trusting in horses rather than in the LORD (Isa 31:1; Ps 20:7). Every major translation language renders this with its standard equine term — caballo, cheval, Pferd, cavallo — reflecting the word's semantic transparency.
Senses
1. horse (the animal) — The domesticated horse as animal, overwhelmingly in military and royal contexts: chariot teams (Judg 5:22), cavalry mounts (2 Kgs 2:11), trade commodities (Gen 47:17), and prophetic symbols of earthly power opposed to divine trust (Isa 31:1; Mic 5:9). All 138 occurrences share this core zoological referent, rendered uniformly across languages — caballos, chevaux, Pferde — with no semantic ambiguity. 138×
AR["أَحْصِنَةٌ", "الْخَيْلِ", "خَيلًا", "خَيْلاً", "خَيْلًا", "خَيْلٍ", "سُوسِيم", "فَرَسٍ", "وَ-أَطْيَابًا"]·ben["ঘোড়া", "ঘোড়াগুলি-", "ঘোড়াদের", "ঘোড়াদের-জন্য", "ঘোড়ায়", "ঘোড়ার"]·DE["Pferd", "Pferde"]·EN["horses", "if"]·FR["cheval", "chevaux", "סוסים"]·heb["סוּסִים", "סוסים"]·HI["घोड़े", "घोड़ों", "घोड़ों-से", "सूसीम"]·ID["Kuda-kuda", "kuda", "kuda-kuda", "kuda-kuda,"]·IT["cavalli", "cavallo"]·jav["Kapal-kapal", "jaran", "jaran-jaran", "kapal", "kuda", "kuda-kuda", "kuda.", "saged-panjenengan"]·KO["말들", "말들-과", "말들과", "말들로", "말들에", "말들을", "말들의", "말들이다", "말을"]·PT["Cavalos", "cavalos"]·RU["едущих", "коней", "кони", "конями", "конях", "конях,", "на-конях", "юношей"]·ES["Caballos", "caballos", "de-caballos"]·SW["farasi", "kwa-magari-yake"]·TR["at", "atlar", "atlarin", "atların"]·urd["گھوڑوں", "گھوڑوں-سے", "گھوڑوں-پر", "گھوڑوں-کا", "گھوڑوں-کے", "گھوڑے"]
Gen 49:17, Exod 15:1, Exod 15:21, Deut 17:16, Deut 17:16, Deut 20:1, Josh 11:4, 1 Kgs 4:26, 1 Kgs 10:25, 1 Kgs 10:29, 1 Kgs 18:5, 1 Kgs 20:20 (+38 more)
2. sense 2 — A single anomalous occurrence at Neh 7:68, where the Masoretic text appears to contain a section marker or textual disruption rather than a genuine use of 'horse.' English renders it as a section break, Spanish as 'S,' and the verse is absent from some manuscript traditions entirely. Most modern critical editions treat this as a scribal artifact rather than a distinct lexical sense. 1×
AR["ס"]·ben["স"]·DE["Pferd"]·EN["[section]"]·FR["cheval"]·heb["סוס"]·HI["ס"]·ID["S"]·IT["cavallo"]·jav["(setunggal)"]·KO["[세투마]"]·PT["§"]·RU["[сетума]"]·ES["S"]·SW["S"]·TR["S"]
Related Senses
G3588 1. definite article (18298×)H0853 1. definite direct object marker (10915×)G2532 1. (8312×)H3068 1. YHWH (the divine name) (6522×)H0834a 1. relative pronoun (who/which/that) (4839×)H3588a 1. causal: because, for (3498×)G1161 1. and (2806×)H3478 1. Israel (proper name and nation) (2507×)G4771 1. you (plural address) (1853×)H1931 1. personal pronoun he/she/it (1431×)G3739 1. relative pronoun who/which/that (1149×)H1732 1. David (proper name) (1075×)H2088 1. this, this one (demonstrative) (1059×)G1063 1. (1047×)G3778 1. this thing, these things (1003×)H???? 2. (1002×)G2424 1. (924×)G3754 1. that (content clause) (881×)H2009 1. presentative particle: behold, look (881×)H0589 1. I (first person singular pronoun) (874×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
II. סוּס138 n.m. Ex 15:1 horse (NH סוּס, סוּסָה, Aramaic סוּסְיָא, ܣܽܘܣܝܳܐ, Mand. סוסיא, Sin. id., Lzb 328; Assyrian sisû (sîsû?) DlHWB 506; Tel Am. su-u[su] WklTA. 191, 24; prob. foreign word cf. NöM 147 Erman Ägypten 649; Eng. tr. 490);—ס׳ abs. 1 K 20:20 +; cstr. Ex 15:19 +; pl. סוּסִים Gn 47:17 +, סֻסִים 2 S 15:1; cstr. סוּסֵי 2 K 2:11; sf. סוּסַי 1 K 22:4; 2 K 3:7, סוּסֶיךָ Mi 5:9 + 4 times,…