Hebrew word · H2954

טָפַשׁ

tafash

be insensitive

Grow fat or gross, and by extension become dull, insensible or stupid. The literal sense (an animal or tissue thickening with fat) and the figurative sense (dullness of mind) seem to have been closely linked.

Appears once in the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

(Qal) to be gross, be insensitive, be fat

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 Psalm 119:70

Range of meaning

Grow fat or gross, and by extension become dull, insensible or stupid. The literal sense (an animal or tissue thickening with fat) and the figurative sense (dullness of mind) seem to have been closely linked.

Against the English

BSB 'callous and insensitive' and NIV 'callous and unfeeling' make this mainly about emotion, a hard heart that lacks compassion. KJV, WEB, YLT and NASB keep the image of fat, which carries the sense of being dull and impervious.

How it drifted

Since the Bible uses the verb only once, translators lean on its cognates and on the fat image. 'Insensitive' in modern English usually means tactless or uncaring, which moves the meaning from not taking things in to not caring about people.

Used elsewhere in the period

This is the only occurrence in the Hebrew Bible. In later Jewish Aramaic and Hebrew the root טפש means 'foolish'; Modern Hebrew tipeš, 'stupid', comes from it. Lexicons (BDB, HALOT) cite related words in other Semitic languages meaning 'be fat'. Jerome's translation from the Hebrew renders it incrassatum est, 'has been made thick/fat'.

Where it appears

Psalms · 1

  1. Psalm 119:70 טָפַ֣שׁ it is insensitive

    Their hearts are callous and insensitive, but I delight in Your law.

    Here: This verb appears only here in the Hebrew Bible. Related words in other Semitic languages mean 'grow fat' and 'be stupid'. It describes a heart that has gone thick and unresponsive. It comes first in the sentence for emphasis and begins with the letter teth, which this stanza of the acrostic requires.

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