Hebrew word · H2904

טוּל

yutal

to cast

To hurl, throw, cast, sometimes violently (Jonah 1:4–15; Jer 22:26–28; Ezek 32:4). The passive form here means 'be hurled, be cast down' (Ps 37:24; Job 41:9).

Appears 14 times in 14 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

1) to hurl, cast

1a) (Pilpel) to throw away, carry away, hurl

1b) (Hiphil) to throw, cast, cast out

1c)(Hophal)

1c1) to be hurled, hurled down

1c2) to be cast, be thrown, be cast out, be thrown down

Abridged from Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).

In depth

From the study of Proverbs 16:33

Range of meaning

To hurl, throw, cast, sometimes violently (Jonah 1:4–15; Jer 22:26–28; Ezek 32:4). The passive form here means 'be hurled, be cast down' (Ps 37:24; Job 41:9).

Against the English

'Is cast' is accurate. NLT's paraphrase, 'We may throw the dice', keeps the action but swaps the Israelite lot for an image from gambling.

Used elsewhere in the period

Its use for throwing people (Jonah into the sea, Jehoiachin into exile, Saul hurling a spear in 1 Sam 18:11; 20:33) shows it is a strong physical verb, not a technical word for divination.

From the study of Psalm 37:24

Range of meaning

Active forms mean to hurl, fling, throw a long way or with force. The passive form found here means to be hurled or cast. It is a strong word for violent throwing (BDB, HALOT).

Against the English

KJV 'utterly cast down' adds 'utterly' to bring out the force. ESV 'cast headlong' and NASB 'hurled down' are close to the Hebrew. BSB 'overwhelmed' gives the result but loses the picture of being thrown. NIV/WEB/NLT 'not fall' lose the difference between falling and being flung down.

Used elsewhere in the period

Saul hurls his spear at David and Jonathan (1 Sam 18:11; 20:33). The sailors hurl Jonah into the sea and Yahweh hurls a great wind (Jonah 1:4, 5, 12, 15). Jehoiachin is 'hurled' into a land he does not know (Jer 22:26, 28). Goliath's—no: Isaiah 22:17 has Yahweh hurling Shebna away. The passive form describes the lot 'cast' into the lap (Prov 16:33) and the man 'cast down' at the sight of Leviathan (Job 41:9 Eng.).

From the study of Jeremiah 16:13

Range of meaning

In the causative form it means to hurl, fling or cast: a spear (1 Sam 18:11; 20:33), cargo thrown overboard (Jonah 1:5), Jonah himself thrown into the sea (Jonah 1:12, 15), a person thrown out (Isa 22:17). In the simple passive forms it means to be thrown or tossed (Ps 37:24; Prov 16:33, of lots 'cast into the lap').

Against the English

KJV, BSB and WEB have 'cast'. In older English that word could carry force, but modern ears often hear 'cast out' as a formal expulsion. ESV and NASB keep the force with 'hurl'. NIV's 'throw' is in between.

How it drifted

'Cast out' has become religious vocabulary (casting out demons, excommunication) and lost the physical violence of a throw.

Used elsewhere in the period

Jeremiah uses the same verb of King Jehoiachin and his mother: 'I will hurl you… into another land where you were not born' (Jer 22:26), and 'Why are he and his offspring hurled out and cast into a land they do not know?' (22:28). That second passage pairs this verb with the same 'land they do not know' wording. Isaiah 22:17 uses it of the LORD hurling Shebna away 'as a strong man hurls'.

Where it appears

1 Samuel · 2

  1. 1 Samuel 18:11 וַיָּ֤טֶל and he threw

    and he hurled it, thinking, “I will pin David to the wall.” But David eluded him twice.

  2. 1 Samuel 20:33 וַיָּ֨טֶל and he threw

    Then Saul hurled his spear at Jonathan to kill him. So Jonathan knew that his father was determined to kill David.

Job · 1

  1. Job 41:9 יֻטָֽל׃ everyone is thrown down

    Surely hope of overcoming him is false. Is not the sight of him overwhelming?

Psalms · 1

  1. Psalm 37:24 יוּטָ֑ל he will be thrown down

    Though he falls, he will not be overwhelmed, for the LORD is holding his hand.

    Here: 'He is (not) hurled / flung down.' The passive of a forceful verb used for hurling a spear, throwing Jonah into the sea, or casting a king into exile. What is ruled out is a violent, final fall where someone is thrown down flat and left there.

Proverbs · 1

  1. Proverbs 16:33 יוּטַ֣ל it is thrown

    The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the LORD.

    Here: A passive form, 'is thrown', describing what is regularly done. The person throwing goes unnamed. Elsewhere the verb is used for forceful hurling (of Jonah, of Jehoiachin into exile), and here it names the human act of tossing the stones.

Isaiah · 1

  1. Isaiah 22:17 מְטַלְטֶלְךָ֔ [is] about to hurl away you

    Look, O mighty man! The LORD is about to shake you violently. He will take hold of you,

Jeremiah · 3

  1. Jeremiah 16:13 וְהֵטַלְתִּ֣י and I will throw out

    So I will cast you out of this land into a land that neither you nor your fathers have known. There you will serve other gods day and night, for I will show you no favor.’

    Here: This form of the verb means to hurl or fling something with force. The picture is of a spear thrown or cargo heaved overboard, not of a gentle sending away. The 'and' joins it to the charge in v. 12 as its result: 'so'.

  2. Jeremiah 22:26 וְהֵֽטַלְתִּ֣י and I will throw out

    I will hurl you and the mother who gave you birth into another land, where neither of you were born—and there you both will die.

    Here: God speaks: "and I will hurl." The causative form of a verb used for flinging something with force (cargo overboard, a spear, Jonah into the sea). The verb form continues the future threat begun in v. 25, so it reads "I will hurl," not "I have hurled."

  3. Jeremiah 22:28 הֽוּטֲלוּ֙ have they been thrown out

    Is this man Coniah a despised and shattered pot, a jar that no one wants? Why are he and his descendants hurled out and cast into a land they do not know?

    Here: 'They have been hurled,' a violent, long-distance throw. It is the passive of the verb God uses in v.26 ('I will hurl you') and 16:13, so the unnamed thrower is God.

Ezekiel · 1

  1. Ezekiel 32:4 אֲטִילֶ֑ךָ I will throw you

    I will abandon you on the land and hurl you into the open field. I will cause all the birds of the air to settle upon you, and all the beasts of the earth to eat their fill of you.

Jonah · 4

  1. Jonah 1:4 הֵטִ֤יל he threw

    Then the LORD hurled a great wind upon the sea, and such a violent storm arose that the ship was in danger of breaking apart.

    Here: A forceful verb, used for throwing a spear at someone (1 Sam 18:11) or flinging people into exile (Jer 22:26). YHWH does not just 'send' a wind; he throws it at the sea like a weapon. The verb comes back three more times in this chapter: the sailors throw the cargo (v.5), Jonah says 'throw me' (v.12), and they throw him in (v.15).

  2. Jonah 1:5 וַיָּטִ֨לוּ and they threw

    The sailors were afraid, and each cried out to his own god. And they threw the ship’s cargo into the sea to lighten the load. But Jonah had gone down to the lowest part of the vessel, where he lay down and fell into a deep sleep.

    Here: A strong verb meaning 'hurl, fling.' It is the same verb used one verse earlier for the LORD 'hurling' the great wind on the sea (1:4). God hurls the storm, and the sailors hurl their gear. Later they will hurl Jonah himself (1:12, 15).

  3. Jonah 1:12 וַהֲטִילֻ֣נִי and throw me

    “Pick me up,” he answered, “and cast me into the sea, so it may quiet down for you. For I know that I am to blame for this violent storm that has come upon you.”

  4. Jonah 1:15 וַיְטִלֻ֖הוּ and they threw him

    Then they picked up Jonah and cast him into the sea, and the raging sea grew calm.

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.