סוּת (sut)
sut
to incite
H:VQuick Reference
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
- Testament
- Old Testament
- Occurrences
- 17 verses
- Root
- —
- Part of speech
- H:V
Word Overview
The Hebrew verb sut describes the act of provoking or stirring someone into action, often with a persuasive or manipulative edge. In the Hiphil stem, it frequently carries a negative connotation, meaning to instigate trouble or lure someone toward wrongdoing. This usage appears prominently in books like Job and Jeremiah, where characters are depicted as being goaded into conflict or rebellion.
Its root sense involves drawing out a response through pressure or temptation rather than direct command. For instance, in Job 2:9, Satan incites (sut) Job’s wife to curse God, highlighting how the word implies an active, often malicious, influence on another’s will. The term captures the subtle art of turning someone against their better judgment or moral stance.
Translators typically render sut as "incite," "provoke," or "entice," depending on context. Its presence in historical and poetic texts underscores its role in shaping human interactions, whether through persuasion or coercion. By examining sut, we see how ancient writers understood the power of external forces to shape decisions.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The word sut describes a subtle pressure, often persuasive or manipulative, that draws someone toward a specific action or attitude. In its most common negative usage, it refers to inciting trouble or stirring up conflict through temptation rather than direct force. This highlights the reality that our choices are frequently influenced by external voices seeking to undermine our stability or faith.
Understanding this concept helps us recognize the difference between divine testing and malicious provocation. While God may allow circumstances to test our resolve, as seen in Job’s story, there is a distinct line when human agents or spiritual forces attempt to lure us into sin or despair. It reminds us to guard our hearts against those who seek to turn us away from what is good.
By identifying these inciting influences, we can respond with discernment rather than reaction. This awareness invites us to anchor our decisions in truth and community, ensuring that we are not swayed by pressures designed to lead us astray. It offers a path toward peace by recognizing the source of the conflict before it takes root.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 17 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- and/ she incited/ him2×
- and/ he incited2×
- they misled/ you1×
- she incited1×
- misleading1×
- it should entice/ you1×
- he should mislead1×
- he misleads1×
- he mislead1×
- he has incited/ you1×
- he has allured/ you1×
- and/ you incited/ me1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- יַסִּ֨ית2×
- וַ/תְּסִיתֵ֙/הוּ֙2×
- מַסִּ֥ית1×
- מַסִּ֣ית1×
- יַסִּ֤ית1×
- יְסִֽיתְ/ךָ֣1×
- וַ/תְּסִיתֵ֥/נִי1×
- וַ/יָּ֨סֶת1×
- וַ/יָּ֙סֶת֙1×
- וַ/יְסִיתֵ֥/ם1×
- וַ/יְסִיתֵ֕/הוּ1×
- הֵסַ֥תָּה1×
Key Verses
-
Job 2:3
Yahweh said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? For there is no one like him in the earth, a blameless and an upright man, one who fears God, and turns away from evil. He still maintains his integrity, although you incited me against him, to ruin him without cause.”
This verse explicitly uses sut to describe Satan inciting God against Job, highlighting the word's role in malicious provocation that seeks ruin without cause.
-
I Kings 21:25
But there was no one like Ahab, who sold himself to do that which was evil in Yahweh’s sight, whom Jezebel his wife stirred up.
Here, Jezebel is said to have stirred up Ahab, illustrating how sut can describe a persistent, manipulative influence leading a leader to do evil.
-
II Chronicles 32:15
Now therefore don’t let Hezekiah deceive you nor persuade you in this way. Don’t believe him, for no god of any nation or kingdom was able to deliver his people out of my hand, and out of the hand of my fathers. How much less will your God deliver you out of my hand?”
The Assyrian officials use persuasive tactics to incite the people against Hezekiah’s trust in God, showing sut in the context of psychological warfare and deception.
-
Jeremiah 43:3
but Baruch the son of Neriah has turned you against us, to deliver us into the hand of the Chaldeans, that they may put us to death or carry us away captive to Babylon.”
Baruch is accused of turning the people against Jeremiah, demonstrating how sut can be used to describe inciting discord within a community or relationship.