H5794 H5794
Strong, mighty, fierce; of persons, forces, or fortifications possessing great power, severity, or boldness
Describes something or someone possessing formidable strength or intensity. A wind that parts the sea (Exod 14:21), a people too powerful to conquer (Num 13:28), or love that rivals death itself (Song 8:6) — all share this quality of overwhelming force. The word can shade toward fierceness and harshness, as when Jacob rebukes the cruelty of Simeon and Levi (Gen 49:7), or toward brazen insolence, as in the 'bold-faced king' of Daniel 8:23. Spanish captures this range well: 'fuerte' for raw strength, 'feroz' for savage intensity.
Senses
1. strong, mighty, powerful — Denotes robust physical, military, or abstract power — a mighty nation, a strong east wind, waters too powerful to cross. The multilingual evidence clusters tightly around 'strong/fuerte/fort,' reflecting straightforward potency. Applied to people (Num 13:28), natural forces (Exod 14:21), and even love and death (Song 8:6), this is the core sense: raw, prevailing might. Amos 5:9 personifies destruction itself as 'the strong one.' 17×
AR["أَعَزُّ", "أَقوياءُ", "الأَعِزَّاءِ", "العَزِيزَةِ", "القَوِيِّ", "الْعَزِيزِ", "الْقَوِيِّ", "حَصِينٌ", "عَاصِفَةٍ", "عَزِيزٌ", "عَزِيزَةٌ", "عَنِيفٌ", "قَوِيٌّ", "قُوَّةٍ", "وَ-مِنَ-الْعَزِيزِ"]·ben["এবং-শক্তি-থেকে", "প্রচণ্ড", "প্রবল", "বলবানের", "শক্তি", "শক্তিতে", "শক্তিশালী", "শক্তিশালীতে", "শক্তিশালীদের", "শক্তিশালীরা"]·DE["[עז]", "[עזה]", "[עזים]", "an-Macht", "der-fierce", "stark", "stronger", "und-von-stark"]·EN["a-city", "and-from-strong", "fierce", "mighty", "mighty-ones", "power", "strong", "stronger", "the-fierce"]·FR["[עז]", "[עזים]", "et-de-fort", "force", "fort", "puissance", "stronger"]·heb["ו-מ-עז", "עָז", "עז", "עזה", "עזים"]·HI["और-बलवान-से", "क्योंकि", "ताकतवर", "प्रचंड", "प्रचण्ड", "प्रबल", "बलवान", "बलवानों", "मज़बूत", "शक्तिशाली", "सामर्थ्य-में"]·ID["dan-dari-yang-kuat", "kencang", "kuasa", "kuat", "lebih-kuat", "orang-orang-kuat", "yang-dahsyat", "yang-keras", "yang-kuat"]·IT["[עז]", "[עזים]", "e-da-forte", "forte", "forza", "potenza", "stronger"]·jav["ingkang-banter", "ingkang-kiyat", "ingkang-rosa", "kakiyatan", "kiyat", "kuwat", "lan-karisakan", "lan-saking-ingkang-kiyat", "saking-tiyang-rah", "tiyang-tiyang-kiyat"]·KO["강하네", "강하다", "강한", "강한-자", "강한-자-들-이", "강한-자들의", "강한가", "거센", "그리고-로부터-강한-것", "힘의"]·PT["e-do-forte", "forte", "fortes", "poder"]·RU["и-от-сильного", "крепка", "могучих", "силы", "сильна", "сильнее", "сильного", "сильные", "сильный", "сильным", "сильных", "силён"]·ES["el-fuerte", "fuerte", "fuertes", "impetuosas", "más-fuerte", "poder", "poderosos", "y-del-fuerte"]·SW["cha-wenye-nguvu", "imara", "makali", "mkali", "mwenye-nguvu", "na-kutoka-kwa-mkali", "nguvu", "wa-nguvu", "wenye-nguvu", "yenye-nguvu"]·TR["azgın", "guclu", "guclunun", "güçlü", "güçlüler", "güçlülerin", "güçlünün", "güçlüyüdü", "kudretle", "ve--den-güçlü"]·urd["اور-طاقتور-سے", "تیز", "زوراوروں-کا", "زوردار", "طاقت-میں", "طاقتور", "طاقتور-ہیں", "طاقتوَر", "مضبوط"]
Gen 49:3, Exod 14:21, Num 13:28, Num 21:24, Judg 14:14, Judg 14:18, 2 Sam 22:18, Neh 9:11, Ps 18:17, Ps 59:3, Prov 30:25, Song 8:6 (+5 more)
2. fierce, harsh, severe — Shifts from strength to its menacing edge: fierceness, harshness, severity. Jacob's dying oracle condemns his sons' anger as 'fierce' (Gen 49:7), and Proverbs 18:23 contrasts the poor man's entreaties with the rich man's 'harsh' replies. German 'heftig' and Spanish 'feroz' capture this emotional violence — strength turned cruel or unrelenting. 3×
AR["بِعُنْفٍ", "شَدِيدٌ", "شَدِيدَةً"]·ben["কঠিন", "প্রচণ্ড"]·DE["[עזה]", "[עזות]", "heftig-ist-er"]·EN["fierce", "harshly"]·FR["fierce", "fort"]·heb["עז", "עזה", "עזות"]·HI["कठोरता-से", "प्रचंड", "भीषण"]·ID["dengan-kasar", "ganas", "yang-kuat"]·IT["fierce", "harshly"]·jav["kasar", "kiyat"]·KO["강하다", "거칠게", "맹렬한"]·PT["duramente", "forte"]·RU["дерзостью", "сильную", "сильный"]·ES["durezas", "feroz", "fuerte"]·SW["kali", "kuwa-kali", "kwa-ukali"]·TR["sertlikle", "şiddetli"]·urd["سخت", "سختی-سے", "شدید"]
3. bold-faced, brazen, ruthless — Appears in construct phrases — 'fierce of face' (Deut 28:50, Dan 8:23), 'strong of appetite' (Isa 56:11) — to convey boldness, insolence, or voracity. The construction intensifies a quality into a defining trait: not merely strong but brazenly so. Spanish 'fiera-de' and German 'grimmig' reflect this shift from general strength to a character marked by shameless aggression or greed. 3×
AR["شَدِيدَةُ-", "صَلْبُ-", "قَاسِيَةُ"]·ben["কঠিন", "নির্লজ্জ-", "শক্তিশালী"]·DE["[עז]", "grimmig", "stark"]·EN["fierce", "fierce-of-", "strong-of-"]·FR["[עז]", "fierce", "fort"]·heb["עז", "עזי-"]·HI["कठोर", "कठोर-", "लालची"]·ID["keras", "kuat"]·IT["[עז]", "fierce", "forte"]·jav["galak", "keras", "kiyat-"]·KO["강한-", "굳센-", "험악한"]·PT["feroz-de", "fortes-de-"]·RU["дерзкий-", "жадные-", "жестокий"]·ES["fiera-de", "fuerte-de", "fuertes-de-"]·SW["kali", "mkali-wa-", "wenye-pupa-ya-"]·TR["acgozlu-", "sert", "sert-"]·urd["سخت"]
4. fortified, strong (of a city) — A transferred application to a city or stronghold: 'We have a strong city' (Isa 26:1). Here the adjective moves from personal might to architectural impregnability — walls, gates, and divine protection making a place unconquerable. Only one occurrence carries this fortification sense, but it bridges naturally from the core meaning of overwhelming force. 1×
AR["حَصِينَةٌ-"]·ben["শক্তিশালী-"]·DE["stark"]·EN["city"]·FR["fort"]·heb["עז"]·HI["शक्तिशाली-"]·ID["kuat-"]·IT["forte"]·jav["ingkang-kukuh-"]·KO["강하도다-"]·PT["força-"]·RU["сильный-"]·ES["fuerte"]·SW["wenye-nguvu-"]·TR["guclu-"]·urd["مضبوط"]
Related Senses
H3808 1. simple negation (not) (4839×)G1722 1. locative: in, within (2442×)H1004b 1. house, dwelling, building (2015×)G3756 1. not (negation particle) (1635×)H4480a 1. source or separation (1198×)H5892b 1. city, town (1093×)G1519 1. direction: into, to, toward (1061×)H3427 1. Qal: to dwell, inhabit (937×)G1537 1. from, out of (source/origin) (886×)H8034 1. Name (designation / identifier) (856×)G3361 1. subjective negation (not) (834×)G1909 1. on, upon (spatial surface) (757×)H0369 1. existential negation: there is not (738×)H5869a 1. in the eyes/sight of (evaluative) (734×)H5650 1. Servant, attendant, subject (723×)H0408 1. prohibitive negation do-not (712×)G2443 1. so that, in order that (purpose/result) (665×)G0575 1. from (649×)G1223 1. through, by means of (582×)H3541 1. thus, so, in this manner (569×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† עַז adj. strong, mighty, fierce;—ע׳ abs. Nu 13:28 + 2 times, עָז Ju 14:18, עָ֑ז Am 5:9 + 4 times; ע��ז cstr. Dt 28:50; Dn 8:23; f. עַזָּה Ex 14:21 + 2 times; pl. עַזִּים Ez 7:24 + 3 times; f. עַזּוֹת Pr 18:23; cstr. עַזֵּי Is 56:11;—strong, mighty, wind Ex 14:21 (J); border Nu 21:24 (JE), but read prob. יַעְזֵר (𝔊 Di al.) Yaʾzer was times border; of people Pr 30:25 (fig. of ants), מַיִם…