Hebrew word · H3558

כּוּמָז

vekhumaz

bracelet

Some gold ornament. Its form and function are unknown. It occurs only here and in Num 31:50, where it is listed with armlets, bracelets, signet rings and earrings taken as spoil from Midian. Proposals include a gold bead or bead necklace, a pendant, a bracelet, or an armlet.

Appears 2 times in 2 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

1) ornaments, golden ornament

1a) maybe-armlets of gold, exact meaning not known

2) (TWOT) tablets

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 Exodus 35:22

Range of meaning

Some gold ornament. Its form and function are unknown. It occurs only here and in Num 31:50, where it is listed with armlets, bracelets, signet rings and earrings taken as spoil from Midian. Proposals include a gold bead or bead necklace, a pendant, a bracelet, or an armlet.

Against the English

KJV 'tablets', BSB 'necklaces', WEB 'armlets', YLT 'necklace', NIV 'ornaments'. The spread itself shows the uncertainty.

Used elsewhere in the period

The Talmud (b. Shabbat 64a) famously explains it as an ornament worn over the private parts, by a wordplay on kan mĕqôm zimmāh, 'here is the place of lewdness'. That is a later play on the sound of the word, not a reliable explanation. Modern lexicons (BDB, HALOT) leave the meaning open and lean toward a bead or pendant ornament.

Where it appears

Exodus · 1

  1. Exodus 35:22 וְכוּמָז֙ and ornament[s]

    So all who had willing hearts, both men and women, came and brought brooches and earrings, rings and necklaces, and all kinds of gold jewelry. And they all presented their gold as a wave offering to the LORD.

    Here: 'And kumaz.' The word appears only here and in Numbers 31:50, and its meaning is uncertain. Proposals include a gold bead or pendant, a necklace, a bracelet or armlet, and (in KJV) 'tablets'.

Numbers · 1

  1. Numbers 31:50 וְכוּמָ֑ז and an ornament

    So we have brought to the LORD an offering of the gold articles each man acquired—armlets, bracelets, rings, earrings, and necklaces—to make atonement for ourselves before the LORD.”

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