מוּצֶ֫קֶת (mu.tsa.qah)
mu.tsa.qah
casting
H:N-FQuick Reference
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
- Testament
- Old Testament
- Occurrences
- 2 verses
- Root
- —
- Part of speech
- H:N-F
Word Overview
The noun muṣeqet refers to a pipe or channel, specifically one used for pouring liquid such as oil. Its root meaning centers on the act of casting or pouring, describing the vessel through which that flow is directed. In the biblical text, this word appears in only two verses, both located in historical accounts of temple construction.
Its usage is highly concrete and technical. In 2 Chronicles 4:5, it describes the spout of a large bronze basin used for ritual washing, indicating a functional part of the sanctuary’s furnishings rather than a metaphorical concept. The word emphasizes the physical mechanism of transfer, highlighting how materials were moved or dispensed within the sacred space.
Translators typically render muṣeqet as "mouth" or "spout" when referring to vessels, capturing its role as an opening through which contents are released. This precision distinguishes it from general terms for containers, focusing instead on the specific point of exit. The term remains a minor but clear example of ancient craftsmanship described in Scripture.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
A spout or pipe sounds like one of the least glamorous things in Scripture. Yet the Hebrew word muṣeqet shows up in exactly the places where God’s people meet with Him: the temple furnishings and a vision of a golden lampstand. It was the small opening through which oil flowed or water was poured for cleansing. The power was never in the pipe itself, but in what it carried. For a believer, that quiet redirecting of attention can be a relief. You do not have to be the reservoir, just the channel.
Zechariah saw seven pipes feeding olive oil to each lamp on the stand, a picture of constant, effortless supply. The prophet was told that the work of God would happen “not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit.” A muṣeqet simply receives and releases. When you feel spent, consider the spout. It rests in the vessel and lets the oil move. Your daily acts of service, hidden and unflashy, can carry exactly the grace someone else needs today.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 2 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- pipes1×
- in/ casting/ its1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- מֽוּצָק֔וֹת1×
- בְּ/מֻֽצַקְתּֽ/וֹ\׃1×
Key Verses
-
II Chronicles 4:3
Under it was the likeness of oxen, which encircled it, for ten cubits, encircling the sea. The oxen were in two rows, cast when it was cast.
While this verse uses the verb form from the same root as muṣeqet, the repeated imagery of casting reminds us that the molten sea and its supports were themselves products of a pouring process—an idea embedded in the noun that later names the vessel’s spout.
-
Zechariah 4:2
He said to me, “What do you see?” I said, “I have seen, and behold, a lamp stand all of gold, with its bowl on the top of it, and its seven lamps on it; there are seven pipes to each of the lamps which are on the top of it;
The seven muṣaqot (pipes) are the direct means by which oil reaches the lamps, showing the word’s concrete role as a channel that connects the supply to the light.