עֲדָשָׁה (a.dash)
a.dash
lentil
H:N-FQuick Reference
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
- Testament
- Old Testament
- Occurrences
- 3 verses
- Root
- —
- Part of speech
- H:N-F
Word Overview
The noun adashah refers simply to the lentil, a small, nutritious legume that served as a staple food in the ancient Near East. It appears only three times in the Hebrew Bible, grounding its meaning in everyday sustenance rather than abstract theology.
Its most notable occurrence is in 2 Samuel 17:29, where David’s supporters bring supplies to him and his men during their flight from Absalom. The text lists adashah alongside bread, honey, and oil, highlighting its role as a practical, energy-rich provision for travelers and soldiers. In Genesis 25:34, the related plural form adashim describes the stew Esau sells his birthright for, illustrating how lentils were a common, humble meal rather than a delicacy.
As a word, adashah carries no mystical weight; it points to the ordinary, reliable food that sustained life in a agrarian society. Its brevity in Scripture reflects its status as a mundane but essential part of daily diet, reminding readers of the physical realities of biblical characters’ lives.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The word adashah simply means lentil, a small, nutritious legume that served as a staple food in the ancient Near East. It appears only three times in the Hebrew Bible, grounding its meaning in everyday sustenance rather than abstract theology. Its most notable occurrence is in 2 Samuel 17:29, where David’s supporters bring supplies to him and his men during their flight from Absalom. The text lists adashah alongside bread, honey, and oil, highlighting its role as a practical, energy-rich provision for travelers and soldiers.
In Genesis 25:34, the related plural form adashim describes the stew Esau sells his birthright for, illustrating how lentils were a common, humble meal rather than a delicacy. As a word, adashah carries no mystical weight; it points to the ordinary, reliable food that sustained life in an agrarian society. Its brevity in Scripture reflects its status as a mundane but essential part of daily diet, reminding readers of the physical realities of biblical characters’ lives.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 3 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- of lentils1×
- lentils1×
- and/ lentils1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- עֲדָשִׁ֔ים2×
- וַ/עֲדָשִׁ֖ים1×
Key Verses
-
II Samuel 17:28
brought beds, basins, earthen vessels, wheat, barley, meal, parched grain, beans, lentils, roasted grain,
This verse lists lentils among other provisions brought to support David and his men during a time of crisis, emphasizing their role as practical sustenance.
-
Genesis 25:34
Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew. He ate and drank, rose up, and went his way. So Esau despised his birthright.
Here the plural form describes the stew Esau traded away his birthright for, showing lentils as a common, humble meal rather than a delicacy.
-
II Samuel 23:11
After him was Shammah the son of Agee a Hararite. The Philistines had gathered together into a troop where there was a plot of ground full of lentils; and the people fled from the Philistines.
This reference highlights a specific plot of ground full of lentils where Shammah stood firm against the Philistines, connecting the food source to a place of courage.