שׁוּם (shum)
shum
garlic
H:N-MQuick Reference
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
- Testament
- Old Testament
- Occurrences
- 1 verses
- Root
- —
- Part of speech
- H:N-M
Word Overview
The Hebrew noun shum refers to garlic, a pungent vegetable well known in the ancient Near East. It appears only once in the Old Testament, found in Numbers 11:5. In this verse, the Israelites recall the foods they ate in Egypt, listing cucumbers, melons, leeks, and garlic among the delights they miss.
Its single occurrence highlights the tension between memory and reality. The people use shum to represent a time of relative comfort, contrasting it with their current hardship in the wilderness. This brief mention shows how everyday food items served as powerful symbols of home and stability for travelers far from their roots.
As a common agricultural product, garlic likely held both culinary and medicinal value in ancient diets. Its strong flavor made it a memorable staple, capable of evoking vivid nostalgia. The word’s rarity in Scripture suggests it was a familiar household item rather than a subject of theological discussion.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The word shum appears only once in the Bible, nestled in a complaint list in Numbers 11:5. The Israelites, wandering in the wilderness, long for the garlic and onions of Egypt. This single mention reminds us that memory can be selective. We often recall the comfort of the past while forgetting the chains that held us there.
Your faith journey may include seasons where the familiar feels safer than the unknown. It is human to miss what was easy. Yet God meets you in the wilderness, not just in the comfort of home. He provides manna when the old ways are gone. Trust that His presence is sufficient, even when the food changes.
This verse invites honesty before God. You can bring your cravings and your confusion to Him. He knows your heart. Let this small word encourage you to seek spiritual nourishment that lasts, rather than temporary satisfaction.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 1 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- the/ garlic<s>1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- הַ/שּׁוּמִֽים\׃1×
Key Verses
-
Numbers 11:5
We remember the fish, which we ate in Egypt for nothing; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlic;
This verse lists shum among foods the Israelites missed in the wilderness, highlighting their nostalgia for Egypt despite its slavery.