H7696 H7696
shaga' -- to be mad, act insanely; madness both genuine and feigned, including prophetic frenzy
A verb whose Pual participle meshugga' has become one of Hebrew's most culturally enduring words. It describes the state of being maddened or behaving as a madman, covering a spectrum from the covenant curse of insanity (Deut 28:34), to David's feigned madness before Achish of Gath (1 Sam 21:14-16), to the contemptuous dismissal of prophets as madmen (Hos 9:7; Jer 29:26; 2 Kgs 9:11). The Hithpael stem adds the nuance of deliberately 'playing the madman,' as in David's ruse. Arabic cognates connect to the cooing of pigeons and the wailing of camels -- perhaps suggesting frenzied, uncontrolled vocalization as the core image. Spanish loco, French insense, and German Wahnsinniger all render the single concept of madness.
Senses
1. be mad, act insanely — To be driven mad or to behave as a madman, encompassing genuine insanity as a divine curse (Deut 28:34, 'you shall be maddened by what your eyes see'), feigned madness as a survival strategy (1 Sam 21:14-16, David before Achish), and contemptuous characterization of prophetic ecstasy (Hos 9:7 'the prophet is a fool, the man of the spirit is mad'; 2 Kgs 9:11 'why did this madman come to you?'). The Arabic cognate saga'a ('to coo, whinny wildly') may illuminate the original image of frenzied, uncontrolled behavior. Spanish loco and enloquecido capture both the state and the process of being maddened. 7×
AR["الْمَجْنونُ", "لِـ-يَتَظَاهَرَ-بِـ-الْجُنُونِ", "مَجنونٌ", "مَجَانِينَ", "مَجْنُونًا", "مَجْنُونٍ"]·ben["পাগল", "পাগল-", "পাগলদের", "পাগলামি-করতে"]·DE["[משגע]", "acting-madly", "der-madman", "maddened", "madmen", "zu-handle-madly"]·EN["acting-madly", "mad", "maddened", "madmen", "the-madman", "to-act-madly"]·FR["[משגע]", "agissant-madly", "insensé", "le-madman", "maddened", "madmen", "à-agis-madly"]·heb["ה-משוגע", "ל-השתגע", "משוגע", "משוגעים", "משתגע"]·HI["पअगल", "पअगल-होन", "पअगलोन-कि", "पागल", "हमशुग्गा"]·ID["-orang-gila", "gila", "orang-gila", "untuk-bertingkah-gila", "yang-gila"]·IT["[משגע]", "a-agisci-follemente", "agendo-follemente", "il-madman", "maddened", "madmen"]·jav["ingkang-èdan", "ingkang-édan", "kangge-tumindak-édan", "tiyang-édan", "édan"]·KO["미치게-하려고", "미친", "미친-자가", "미친-자들이", "미친도다"]·PT["louco", "loucos", "o-louco", "para-fazer-se-louco"]·RU["безумен", "безумец", "безумным", "сумасшедшего", "сумасшедших", "сумасшествовать"]·ES["el-loco", "enloquecido", "loco", "locos", "para-enloquecer", "que-enloquece"]·SW["akijifanya-kichaa", "kujifanya-kichaa", "mwendawazimu", "mwenye-wazimu", "wazimu"]·TR["deli", "deli-o", "deliler", "delilik-yapmak-için"]·urd["دیوانہ", "پاگل", "پاگل-بننے", "پاگلوں-کی"]
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
† [שָׁגַע] Pu. be mad (Arabic سَجَعَ coo, of male pigeon, utter long whinny, of camel (cf. HoffmZAW iii (1883), 89 RSJPhil. xiv. 119 f. GoldziherArabic Philol. i. 59 ff. LagBN 202); Ethiopic ዘንግዐ: be mad (n ins., Di1055 BAES 50); Assyrian šegû, rage, howl; on meaning in Heb. v. especially WeSkizzen iii. 130);—Pu. Pt. as adj.: pred. וְהָיִיתָ מְשֻׁגָּע Dt 28:34 thou shalt be maddened (מִן because…