H5706 H5706
Booty, prey, spoil; that upon which one advances or falls in conquest
This noun denotes the spoils of war or hunting, the prize seized in conquest. Jacob's blessing of Benjamin in Genesis 49:27 pictures him as a ravenous wolf devouring prey, a prophecy of the tribe's fierce reputation. Isaiah 33:23 speaks of 'prey of great spoil,' an abundant haul of plunder. The root suggests the idea of advancing upon or falling upon something to seize it. Zephaniah 3:8 uses it in a divine oracle where God describes His own 'rising up to the prey'—a startling reversal where Yahweh Himself becomes the predator against the nations.
Senses
1. sense 1 — The three occurrences show semantic range from literal hunting prey (Benjamin as wolf) to military spoil (Isaiah) to theological metaphor (Yahweh's judgment). Interestingly, some translations render Isaiah 9:5 as 'everlasting father' rather than 'father of booty,' showing textual complexity. The multilingual evidence reveals confusion: some versions treat it as temporal ('jusqu'à,' 'until'), suggesting this entry has been conflated with a different homograph meaning 'witness' or 'duration.' The Genesis and Zephaniah contexts clearly support the 'prey' sense. 3×
AR["سَلْبٌ", "فَرِيسَةً", "لِلشَّهَادَةِ"]·ben["-পর্যন্ত-", "শিকার", "সাক্ষী-রূপে"]·DE["Beute", "bis", "zu-bis"]·EN["as-a-witness", "plunder", "prey"]·FR["jusqu’à", "pour-jusqu'à", "proie"]·heb["ל-עד", "עד"]·HI["-तक", "के-लिए-साक्षी।", "शिकार"]·ID["mangsa", "sampai", "sebagai-saksi"]·IT["[לעד]", "fino-a", "prey"]·jav["kangge-rampasan", "kanggé-", "mangsan"]·KO["까지-", "먹이를", "에게-노획물"]·PT["até-", "para-presa", "presa"]·RU["добыча-", "добычу", "на-свидетельство"]·ES["botín-de", "como-testigo", "presa"]·SW["akamruka", "kama-shahidi", "nyara-za-"]·TR["av", "kadar-", "yağma-için"]·urd["تک", "شکار", "گواہی-کے-لیے"]
Related Senses
H3117 1. day, specific time (2231×)H5704 1. until, unto, as far as (1238×)H8141 1. year, unit of time (880×)H6258 1. and now (421×)G2250 1. day (388×)H5750 1. again, more, further (288×)H5769 1. forever, to eternity (280×)H6256 1. time, period (264×)H2320 1. month, calendar period (260×)H0310a 2. after (temporal) (258×)H3915 1. night, period of darkness (234×)H1242 1. morning (214×)H5750 2. still, yet (continuative) (166×)G5119 1. then (160×)G3568 1. now (147×)G2193 1. until (143×)G3825 1. (141×)G3752 1. (123×)H6153 1. evening, time of day (123×)H0227a 1. then (122×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† II. עַד n.[m.] booty, prey (upon which one advances, falls); cf. 𝔗 עֲדִי booty, Is 10:2; 33:23 +.—יֹאכַל עַד Gn 49:27 devour prey (‖ שָׁלָל); עַד שָׁלָל מַרְבֶּה Is 33:23 prey of great spoil; קוּמִי לְעַד Zp 3:8 (of God) my rising up to the prey (BrMP); אֲבִי עַד Is 9:5 father (i.e. distributor) of booty (Hi Kn Kue BrMP Du CheHpt; > Ges Ew Di al. everlasting father).