Hebrew word · H4201
מְזוּזָה
mezuzat
doorpost
Doorpost: the upright beam on each side of a door, whether of a house, a city gate or the temple.
Appears 19 times in 17 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·
What it means
doorpost, gatepost
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 8:34
- Range of meaning
Doorpost: the upright beam on each side of a door, whether of a house, a city gate or the temple.
- Against the English
KJV 'posts of my doors' and WEB 'door posts' are accurate. NIV and NLT drop the posts and speak only of a doorway or home, which loses the picture of someone pressed right up against the frame.
- Used elsewhere in the period
Exodus 12:7 (the Passover blood on the doorposts). Exodus 21:6 (a slave who chooses to stay with his master is brought 'to the door or the doorpost' and has his ear pierced). Deuteronomy 6:9 and 11:20 ('write them on the doorposts of your house'). Later Jewish practice gave the name 'mezuzah' to the small scroll fixed to the doorpost.
From the study of Exodus 12:22
- Range of meaning
Doorpost, the upright side beam of a doorway or gateway (Exod 21:6; Deut 6:9; 11:20; 1 Sam 1:9; Ezek 45:19).
- Against the English
'Doorposts' (KJV 'side posts'); BSB merges lintel and posts into 'the top and sides of the doorframe', which is accurate but loses the separate named parts.
- Used elsewhere in the period
In Exod 21:6 a slave who chooses to stay is brought to the door or doorpost to have his ear pierced, so the doorpost is a place of household belonging. Deut 6:9 and 11:20 command God's words to be written on the mezuzot. Ezek 45:19 has blood put on the temple doorposts in a purification rite.
From the study of Exodus 12:23
- Range of meaning
Mezuzah: doorpost or gatepost. Mashqof: lintel, the beam over the door; the word is used only in this passage. Petach: an opening, doorway or entrance, including a city gate or tent opening.
- Against the English
KJV and WEB keep 'lintel… side posts… door'. BSB simplifies to 'top and sides of the doorframe… doorway'. Both are accurate.
- Used elsewhere in the period
Deuteronomy 6:9 and 11:20 command writing God's words on the mezuzot of house and gates. Later Jewish practice named the small scroll case on the doorframe after this word. In Exodus 21:6 a servant's ear is pierced at the door or doorpost, a legal threshold rite.
Where it appears
Exodus · 4
-
Exodus 12:7 הַמְּזוּזֹ֖ת the doorposts
They are to take some of the blood and put it on the sides and tops of the doorframes of the houses where they eat the lambs.
-
Exodus 12:22 הַמְּזוּזֹ֔ת the doorposts
Take a cluster of hyssop, dip it into the blood in the basin, and brush the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe. None of you shall go out the door of his house until morning.
Here: The vertical side posts of the doorway. It is the same word later used in Deut 6:9 ('write them on the doorposts of your house'), which gave the Jewish mezuzah its name.
-
Exodus 12:23 הַמְּזוּזֹ֑ת the doorposts
When the LORD passes through to strike down the Egyptians, He will see the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe and will pass over that doorway; so He will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses and strike you down.
Here: The vertical side-posts of the door. Deuteronomy 6:9 uses the same word for where God's words are written, and the later Jewish 'mezuzah' is named after it.
-
Exodus 21:6 הַמְּזוּזָ֑ה the doorpost
then his master is to bring him before the judges. And he shall take him to the door or doorpost and pierce his ear with an awl. Then he shall serve his master for life.
Deuteronomy · 2
-
Deuteronomy 6:9 מְזוּזֹ֥ת [the] doorposts of
Write them on the doorposts of your houses and on your gates.
-
Deuteronomy 11:20 מְזוּז֥וֹת [the] doorposts of
Write them on the doorposts of your houses and on your gates,
Judges · 1
-
Judges 16:3 הַמְּזוּז֔וֹת the doorposts
But Samson lay there only until midnight, when he got up, took hold of the doors of the city gate and both gateposts, and pulled them out, bar and all. Then he put them on his shoulders and took them to the top of the mountain overlooking Hebron.
1 Samuel · 1
-
1 Samuel 1:9 מְזוּזַ֖ת [the] doorpost of
So after they had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh, Hannah stood up. Now Eli the priest was sitting on a chair by the doorpost of the temple of the LORD.
1 Kings · 3
-
1 Kings 6:31 מְזוּז֖וֹת doorposts of
For the entrance to the inner sanctuary, Solomon constructed doors of olive wood with five-sided doorposts.
-
1 Kings 6:33 מְזוּז֣וֹת doorposts of
In the same way he made four-sided doorposts of olive wood for the sanctuary entrance.
-
1 Kings 7:5 וְהַמְּזוּז֖וֹת and the doorposts
All the doorways had rectangular frames, with the openings facing one another in three tiers.
Proverbs · 1
-
Proverbs 8:34 מְזוּזֹ֥ת [the] doorposts of
Blessed is the man who listens to me, watching daily at my doors, waiting at the posts of my doorway.
Here: The upright posts on either side of a doorway. The watcher stands right at the threshold, as close as an outsider can get without walking in. It is the same word as the doorposts of Deuteronomy 6:9.
Isaiah · 1
-
Isaiah 57:8 וְהַמְּזוּזָ֔ה and the doorpost
Behind the door and doorpost you have set up your memorial. Forsaking Me, you uncovered your bed; you climbed up and opened it wide. And you have made a pact with those whose bed you have loved; you have gazed upon their nakedness.
Ezekiel · 6
-
Ezekiel 41:21 מְזוּזַ֣ת a doorpost of
The outer sanctuary had a rectangular doorframe, and the doorframe of the sanctuary was similar.
-
Ezekiel 43:8 וּמְזֽוּזָתָם֙ מְזוּזָתִ֔י and doorpost their, doorpost my
When they placed their threshold next to My threshold and their doorposts beside My doorposts, with only a wall between Me and them, they defiled My holy name by the abominations they committed. Therefore I have consumed them in My anger.
-
Ezekiel 45:19 מְזוּזַ֣ת מְזוּזַ֔ת [the] doorpost of
And the priest is to take some of the blood from the sin offering and put it on the doorposts of the temple, on the four corners of the ledge of the altar, and on the gateposts of the inner court.
-
Ezekiel 46:2 מְזוּזַ֣ת [the] doorpost of
The prince is to enter from the outside through the portico of the gateway and stand by the gatepost, while the priests sacrifice his burnt offerings and peace offerings. He is to bow in worship at the threshold of the gate and then depart, but the gate must not be shut until evening.
Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.