H6639 H6639
swollen, swelling (adjective); describing bodily distension as a curse
This adjective describes a swollen or distended condition, used in the ritual of jealousy in Numbers. If a woman accused of adultery is guilty, the curse will cause her body to swell—a graphic and specific physical sign of divine judgment. The word captures the visible manifestation of guilt, a bodily symptom that cannot be hidden. It's part of an ancient ordeal ritual, where the body itself testifies to truth or falsehood.
Senses
1. sense 1 — Appears in Numbers 5:21 describing the physical consequence of the curse: the woman's body will become swollen. The Spanish "hinchado" (swollen) and French "enflure" (swelling) confirm the medical imagery. This is not metaphorical—it's a literal, observable condition that would publicly confirm guilt in a society without modern forensic tools. 1×
AR["مُنْتَفِخَةً"]·ben["ফোলা।"]·DE["Schwellung"]·EN["swelling"]·FR["enflure"]·heb["צבה"]·HI["सूजा-हुआ"]·ID["kembung"]·IT["gonfiore"]·jav["abuh"]·KO["붓는"]·PT["inchado"]·RU["вздувшимся"]·ES["hinchado"]·SW["Tsbh"]·TR["şişmiş"]·urd["پھولا-ہوا"]
Related Senses
H7200 1. Qal: to see, perceive (1257×)G4771 2. you (singular address) (1077×)H8085 1. Qal: hear, perceive aurally (921×)H0859a 1. you (2nd person masculine singular pronoun) (743×)H0398 1. eat (consume food) (697×)H4191 1. die (Qal: natural/general death) (645×)G3708 1. see, perceive visually (419×)G0191 1. hear, perceive sound (360×)H???? 3. (352×)G3708 2. behold, look (exclamatory) (256×)H7272 1. foot (body part) (236×)H8354 1. drink, consume liquid (209×)H3205 1. Qal active: bear/give birth (female subject) (204×)H3205 2. Qal active: beget/father (male subject) (198×)H2421 1. Qal: live, be alive (177×)H8085 2. Qal: listen, heed, pay attention (172×)H2416a 1. alive, living (state/attribute) (146×)H2416e 1. life, lifespan, lifetime (145×)G2198 1. be alive, have life (133×)H8193 1. lip, lips (body part) (123×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† [צָבֶה] adj. swelling, swollen;—f. צָבָה Nu 5:21 (as foregoing).