מָקוֹם (ma.qom)
ma.qom
place
H:N-MQuick Reference
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
- Testament
- Old Testament
- Occurrences
- 342 verses
- Root
- —
- Part of speech
- H:N-M
Word Overview
The Hebrew noun maqom literally means a "standing place," derived from the root for standing or rising. It refers to a specific spot, station, or locality where someone or something exists. In the Old Testament, it appears over three hundred times, often describing physical locations such as cities, regions, or the ground beneath one’s feet.
While it commonly denotes a geographic area, maqom also carries deeper theological weight. It frequently identifies the dwelling place of God, emphasizing His presence among His people. For instance, Genesis 28:17 records Jacob’s awe at realizing he was standing in a sacred space, while Deuteronomy 12:5 points to the specific location God would choose for His name to dwell.
The word can also refer to one’s position or status within a community. It appears in contexts discussing inheritance, office, or even metaphorical "room" for action. This versatility allows it to bridge the concrete reality of land with the abstract concept of belonging and purpose in Scripture.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The word maqom reminds us that God is not distant or abstract; He meets us in specific moments and locations. When Jacob woke up at Bethel, he realized the ordinary ground beneath him was actually sacred because God was there. This truth invites you to see your daily surroundings—your home, workplace, or local neighborhood—as potential places of encounter with the Divine.
Scripture also shows that maqom can refer to a spiritual position or standing before God. Abraham returned to the place where he had previously built an altar, suggesting that faithfulness involves returning to the spots where we have experienced God’s provision. You do not need to seek a distant holy site; instead, you can recognize that your current circumstances are part of a larger story where God is actively present and providing.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 342 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- the/ place107×
- in the/ place31×
- a place22×
- [the] place of19×
- the/ places12×
- in/ a place10×
- <to> the/ place10×
- place/ its9×
- place9×
- from/ place/ his9×
- place/ his8×
- from/ place/ its8×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- הַ/מָּק֖וֹם25×
- הַ/מָּק֥וֹם22×
- הַ/מָּק֣וֹם15×
- מָק֖וֹם13×
- מְק֣וֹם12×
- הַ/מָּקוֹם֙10×
- הַ/מָּק֔וֹם10×
- בַּ/מָּק֖וֹם10×
- הַ/מָּק֤וֹם8×
- הַ/מָּק֗וֹם8×
- בְּ/מָק֣וֹם8×
- בַּ/מָּק֥וֹם7×
Key Verses
-
Genesis 28:16
Jacob awakened out of his sleep, and he said, “Surely Yahweh is in this place, and I didn’t know it.”
Jacob’s realization that Yahweh was in this place highlights how maqom marks the intersection of the divine and the ordinary, transforming a simple sleeping spot into a sacred encounter.
-
Genesis 22:14
Abraham called the name of that place “Yahweh Will Provide”. As it is said to this day, “On Yahweh’s mountain, it will be provided.”
Abraham names the location Yahweh Will Provide, showing that maqom can become a permanent memorial of God’s specific intervention in a moment of crisis.
-
Genesis 13:4
to the place of the altar, which he had made there at the first. There Abram called on Yahweh’s name.
Abram returns to the place of the altar to call on Yahweh’s name, illustrating that maqom serves as a spiritual anchor for consistent worship and remembrance.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the basic meaning of maqom in Hebrew?
How does maqom differ from other words for land or earth?
Why is Genesis 28:16 significant for understanding this word?
Every Occurrence (342 verses across 30 books)
Genesis 41 verses
God said, “Let the waters under the sky be gathered together to one place, and let the dry land appear;” and it was so.
Genesis 12:6Abram passed through the land to the place of Shechem, to the oak of Moreh. At that time, Canaanites were in the land.
Genesis 13:3He went on his journeys from the South as far as Bethel, to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between…
Genesis 13:4to the place of the altar, which he had made there at the first. There Abram called on Yahweh’s name.
Genesis 13:14Yahweh said to Abram, after Lot was separated from him, “Now, lift up your eyes, and look from the place where you are,…
Genesis 18:24What if there are fifty righteous within the city? Will you consume and not spare the place for the fifty righteous who…
Genesis 18:26Yahweh said, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare the whole place for their sake.”
Genesis 18:33Yahweh went his way as soon as he had finished communing with Abraham, and Abraham returned to his place.
Genesis 19:12The men said to Lot, “Do you have anybody else here? Sons-in-law, your sons, your daughters, and whomever you have in…
Genesis 19:13for we will destroy this place, because the outcry against them has grown so great before Yahweh that Yahweh has sent…
Genesis 19:14Lot went out, and spoke to his sons-in-law, who were pledged to marry his daughters, and said, “Get up! Get out of this…
Genesis 19:27Abraham went up early in the morning to the place where he had stood before Yahweh.
Genesis 20:11Abraham said, “Because I thought, ‘Surely the fear of God is not in this place. They will kill me for my wife’s sake.’
Genesis 20:13When God caused me to wander from my father’s house, I said to her, ‘This is your kindness which you shall show to me.…
Genesis 21:31Therefore he called that place Beersheba, because they both swore an oath there.
Genesis 22:3Abraham rose early in the morning, and saddled his donkey; and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son.…
Genesis 22:4On the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place far off.
Genesis 22:9They came to the place which God had told him of. Abraham built the altar there, and laid the wood in order, bound…
Genesis 22:14Abraham called the name of that place “Yahweh Will Provide”. As it is said to this day, “On Yahweh’s mountain, it will…
Genesis 24:23and said, “Whose daughter are you? Please tell me. Is there room in your father’s house for us to stay?”
Genesis 24:25She said moreover to him, “We have both straw and feed enough, and room to lodge in.”
Genesis 24:31He said, “Come in, you blessed of Yahweh. Why do you stand outside? For I have prepared the house, and room for the…
Genesis 26:7The men of the place asked him about his wife. He said, “She is my sister,” for he was afraid to say, “My wife”, lest,…
Genesis 28:11He came to a certain place, and stayed there all night, because the sun had set. He took one of the stones of the…
Genesis 28:16Jacob awakened out of his sleep, and he said, “Surely Yahweh is in this place, and I didn’t know it.”
Genesis 28:17He was afraid, and said, “How awesome this place is! This is none other than God’s house, and this is the gate of…
Genesis 28:19He called the name of that place Bethel, but the name of the city was Luz at the first.
Genesis 29:3There all the flocks were gathered. They rolled the stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the sheep, and put the…
Genesis 29:22Laban gathered together all the men of the place, and made a feast.
Genesis 29:26Laban said, “It is not done so in our place, to give the younger before the firstborn.
Genesis 30:25When Rachel had borne Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, “Send me away, that I may go to my own place, and to my country.
Genesis 33:17Jacob traveled to Succoth, built himself a house, and made shelters for his livestock. Therefore the name of the place…
Genesis 35:7He built an altar there, and called the place El Beth El; because there God was revealed to him, when he fled from the…
Genesis 35:13God went up from him in the place where he spoke with him.
Genesis 35:14Jacob set up a pillar in the place where he spoke with him, a pillar of stone. He poured out a drink offering on it,…
Genesis 35:15Jacob called the name of the place where God spoke with him “Bethel”.
Genesis 36:40These are the names of the chiefs who came from Esau, according to their families, after their places, and by their…
Genesis 38:21Then he asked the men of her place, saying, “Where is the prostitute, that was at Enaim by the road?” They said, “There…
Genesis 38:22He returned to Judah, and said, “I haven’t found her; and also the men of the place said, ‘There has been no prostitute…
Genesis 39:20Joseph’s master took him, and put him into the prison, the place where the king’s prisoners were bound, and he was…
Genesis 40:3He put them in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, into the prison, the place where Joseph was bound.