H5695 H5695
calf, young bull — a young bovine, literal or as a molten idol (the golden calf)
Egel denotes a young bull, appearing 35 times across both pastoral and polemical contexts. Its most notorious uses center on the golden-calf episodes: Aaron's molten calf at Sinai (Exod 32:4-35) and Jeroboam's twin calves at Bethel and Dan (1 Kgs 12:28-32), which became bywords for idolatry. Hosea wields the image with particular scorn — 'your calf, O Samaria' (Hos 8:5-6) and 'they kiss calves!' (Hos 13:2). In non-polemical settings the word describes stall-fed calves for sacrifice or feasting (1 Sam 28:24; Mal 4:2) and appears in Isaiah's messianic peaceable-kingdom vision alongside the lion (Isa 11:6). Cognates across the Semitic family — Aramaic igla, Arabic ijl — confirm the straightforward zoological meaning.
Senses
1. calf, young bull — A young bovine animal, used literally of a calf raised for food or sacrifice (1 Sam 28:24; Mal 4:2) and figuratively as a molten idol. The golden calf at Sinai (Exod 32:4-24) and Jeroboam's calves at Bethel and Dan (1 Kgs 12:28) dominate polemical usage. Hosea's 'your calf, O Samaria' (8:5) and Isaiah's peaceable kingdom (11:6) extend the image. 35×
AR["العِجلَ", "العِجلُ", "الْعِجْلَ", "الْعِجْلُ", "الْعِجْلِ", "عُجُولُ", "عِجلاً", "عِجلًا", "عِجْلًا", "عِجْلٍ", "عِجْلَيْ", "كَعُجُولِ", "كَعُجُولِ-"]·ben["-বাছুর", "-বাছুরের", "পুষ্ট-বাছুরগুলির-মতো", "বাছুর", "বাছুরের", "বাছুরের-মতো", "স্বর্ণের-বাছুর"]·DE["Kalb", "[העגל]", "[כעגלי]", "[עגל]", "calves-von", "der-Kalb", "der-calf", "ein-Kalb", "ein-calf"]·EN["a-calf", "calf", "calves-of", "like-calves-of", "the-calf"]·FR["[עגל]", "calves-de", "le-veau", "un-veau", "veau"]·heb["ה-עגל", "כ-עגלי", "עֶגְלֵי", "עגל", "עגלי"]·HI["एग्ले", "जैसे-बछड़े", "बछड़ा", "बछड़े", "बछड़े-के"]·ID["anak-anak-lembu", "anak-lembu", "anak-lembu-itu", "seperti-anak-anak-lembu", "seperti-anak-lembu"]·IT["[כעגלי]", "[עגל]", "il-calf", "il-vitello", "un-calf", "un-vitello", "vitelli-di", "vitello"]·jav["kados-pedet", "kados-pédhèt", "pedhel", "pedhet", "pedhet,", "pedhet-pedhet", "pedhèt"]·KO["같이-송아지들", "그-송아지가", "그-송아지를", "그-송아지와", "금-송아지들", "살진-처럼", "송아지", "송아지-를", "송아지-처럼", "송아지가", "송아지를", "송아지의"]·PT["bezerro", "bezerro-de-", "bezerros-de", "como-bezerros-de", "o-bezerro", "o-novilho", "um-bezerro"]·RU["-тельца", "как-тельцы", "телец", "тельца", "тельцов", "тельцом", "тельцы", "телёнка", "телёнок"]·ES["becerro", "becerro-de", "becerros-de", "como-becerros-de", "el-becerro", "un-becerro"]·SW["kama-ndama-wa", "kama-ndama-za", "ndama", "ndama-za"]·TR["-buzağıları-gibi", "-gibi-buzagıları", "buzagi", "buzağı", "buzağıları", "buzağının", "buzağıyı", "dana-o", "dananın-o"]·urd["-بچھڑا", "-بچھڑے", "بچھڑا", "بچھڑوں-جیسے", "بچھڑوں-کی-طرح", "بچھڑے", "بچھڑے-کے"]
Exod 32:4, Exod 32:8, Exod 32:19, Exod 32:20, Exod 32:24, Exod 32:35, Lev 9:2, Lev 9:3, Lev 9:8, Deut 9:16, Deut 9:21, 1 Sam 28:24 (+23 more)
Related Senses
H6629 1. flock, sheep/goats (small livestock) (274×)H1241 1. cattle, herd (bovine livestock) (183×)H0352a 1. ram (male sheep) (156×)H6499 1. young bull, bullock (130×)H3532 1. lamb, young male sheep (105×)H2543 1. donkey (male ass) (96×)H7794 1. ox, bull (79×)H7462b 1. shepherd (agent noun) (76×)H5795 1. she-goat(s), female goat(s) (68×)H7462b 2. to shepherd, tend, pasture (60×)H1581 1. camel (domestic animal) (54×)H0738b 1. lion (46×)G4263 1. sheep (39×)H5739 1. flock or herd of livestock (38×)H0738a 1. lion (large predatory feline) (34×)H0860 1. female donkey (34×)H3611 1. dog (animal) (32×)H3715a 1. young lion, lion cub (31×)G0721 1. Lamb (29×)H6260 1. male goat, he-goat (28×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† עֵ֫גֶל n.m. Ex 32:24 calf (as rolling or gamboling? cf. כַּר fr. כָּרַר; NH id.; Ph. (Pu.) עגל id. Lzb 336; עגילו Palm. n.pr. id. Cook89; Aramaic ܥܶܓܠܴܐ, ܥܓܶܠܬܳܐ, עִיגְלָא, עֲגַלְתָּא, id.; Assyrian [agalu], pl. agalê prob. calves DlHWB 16 (cf. against this JenKosmol. 110, but v. also JägerBAS ii. 2, 286); Arabic عِجْلٌ, id.; Ethiopic እጕል, እጉልት, cf. also HomNS 226);—ע׳ abs. Ex 32:19 +; cstr. 1…