Hebrew word · H4744

מִקְרָא

mikra'-

assembly

From qara', 'to call': (1) a convocation, an assembly summoned for worship, especially the 'holy convocations' of the festival calendar (Lev 23:2–37; Num 28:18–26); (2) the act of calling an assembly together (Num 10:2; Isa 1:13); (3) by extension, perhaps the place where people assemble; (4) in...

Appears 23 times in 22 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

1) convocation, convoking, reading, a calling together

1a) convocation, sacred assembly

1b) convoking

1c) reading

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 Isaiah 4:5

Range of meaning

From qara', 'to call': (1) a convocation, an assembly summoned for worship, especially the 'holy convocations' of the festival calendar (Lev 23:2–37; Num 28:18–26); (2) the act of calling an assembly together (Num 10:2; Isa 1:13); (3) by extension, perhaps the place where people assemble; (4) in late biblical Hebrew, a 'reading' aloud (Neh 8:8), which later became the rabbinic word for Scripture.

Against the English

BSB, KJV and WEB say 'assemblies' and YLT says 'convocations', which keeps the formal, called-together, worshipping sense. NIV's 'those who assemble there' shifts the focus to people. The Vulgate's 'where he has been called upon' turns it toward prayer.

How it drifted

To a modern ear 'assemblies' can sound like any meeting, or like a church congregation. The Hebrew word is liturgical: gatherings summoned at set sacred times.

Used elsewhere in the period

Leviticus 23 uses miqra' qodesh ('holy convocation') again and again for Sabbath, Passover, Weeks, Trumpets, Atonement and Booths. Isaiah 1:13 has 'new moon and sabbath, the calling of convocation (qero' miqra'): I cannot bear iniquity with solemn assembly.'

From the study of Leviticus 23:27

Range of meaning

Miqra' comes from qara', 'to call, summon, proclaim'. It means a calling-together, an assembly, or a proclamation (in later Hebrew also 'reading', that is, Scripture read aloud). Qodesh means holiness: something belonging to God and withdrawn from common use. The phrase is the standard term in Leviticus 23 and Numbers 28–29 for the fixed sacred days.

Against the English

'Holy convocation' (KJV, WEB) and 'sacred assembly' (BSB) are both fair. 'Assembly' may suggest everyone gathered in one building, but the phrase stresses a day officially proclaimed and set apart, marked above all by stopping work.

Used elsewhere in the period

The phrase recurs throughout Leviticus 23 (vv. 2–4, 7–8, 21, 24, 27, 35–36) and Numbers 28–29. Isaiah 1:13 and 4:5 use miqra' of festal gatherings.

From the study of Leviticus 23:2

Range of meaning

A noun from qārāʾ, 'to call, call out, proclaim, summon, read aloud'. Senses: (1) a calling together or summons (Num 10:2, trumpets 'for the calling of the congregation'); (2) a proclaimed occasion or assembly (Isa 1:13, 'the calling of assemblies'; Isa 4:5); (3) what is read aloud, a reading (Neh 8:8, 'they understood the reading'). In Leviticus 23 and Numbers 28–29 it occurs almost always in the fixed phrase miqrāʾ qōdeš.

Against the English

'Holy convocation' (KJV, WEB, YLT) is accurate but archaic; 'sacred assembly' (BSB, NIV) suggests a crowd gathered in one place. NJPS prefers 'sacred occasion', stressing the proclaimed day rather than a gathering.

How it drifted

Not a deep drift, but modern readers tend to picture a congregation meeting in a building. The Sabbath in v. 3 is a miqrāʾ qōdeš 'in all your dwellings', which shows the term did not require everyone to gather at one sanctuary.

Used elsewhere in the period

Outside the Pentateuch: Isa 1:13; 4:5; Neh 8:8. Later Hebrew uses miqrāʾ for 'Scripture' (what is read aloud), a development of the 'reading' sense; that later meaning should not be read back here. The LXX renders the phrase klētē hagia, 'a called/summoned holy [day]', which keeps the 'calling' idea.

Where it appears

Exodus · 2

  1. Exodus 12:16 מִקְרָא־ מִקְרָא־ a convocation of

    On the first day you are to hold a sacred assembly, and another on the seventh day. You must not do any work on those days, except to prepare the meals—that is all you may do.

    Here: A noun from the verb 'to call': an occasion that is called, announced or summoned. Whether the stress is on people being called together or on the day being proclaimed is debated (see debates).

Leviticus · 11

  1. Leviticus 23:2 מִקְרָאֵ֣י convocations of

    “Speak to the Israelites and say to them, ‘These are My appointed feasts, the feasts of the LORD that you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies.

    Here: 'Callings of…': occasions that are called out, proclaimed, and to which people are summoned. It names the day as an officially announced event rather than describing a building or a crowd.

  2. Leviticus 23:3 מִקְרָא־ a convocation of

    For six days work may be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of complete rest, a day of sacred assembly. You must not do any work; wherever you live, it is a Sabbath to the LORD.

    Here: From "to call." The day is something called or proclaimed. Whether that means people physically gathered, or simply that the day was declared holy, is debated (see debates).

  3. Leviticus 23:4 מִקְרָאֵ֖י convocations of

    These are the LORD’s appointed feasts, the sacred assemblies you are to proclaim at their appointed times.

  4. Leviticus 23:7 מִקְרָא־ a convocation of

    On the first day you are to hold a sacred assembly; you are not to do any regular work.

  5. Leviticus 23:8 מִקְרָא־ a convocation of

    For seven days you are to present a food offering to the LORD. On the seventh day there shall be a sacred assembly; you must not do any regular work.’”

  6. Leviticus 23:21 מִֽקְרָא־ a convocation of

    On that same day you are to proclaim a sacred assembly, and you must not do any regular work. This is to be a permanent statute wherever you live for the generations to come.

  7. Leviticus 23:24 מִקְרָא־ a convocation of

    “Speak to the Israelites and say, ‘On the first day of the seventh month you are to have a day of rest, a sacred assembly announced by trumpet blasts.

    Here: From 'to call, summon, proclaim.' It names a day on which the people are called together, or which is proclaimed holy. The same word is used in Num 10:2 for the trumpets that 'summon' the congregation.

  8. Leviticus 23:27 מִֽקְרָא־ a convocation of

    “The tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement. You shall hold a sacred assembly and humble yourselves, and present a food offering to the LORD.

    Here: 'A calling (of)'. It comes from qara', 'to call'. The day is formally proclaimed and the people are summoned. It is an official sacred occasion, not a private observance.

  9. Leviticus 23:35 מִקְרָא־ a convocation of

    On the first day there shall be a sacred assembly. You must not do any regular work.

  10. Leviticus 23:36 מִקְרָא־ a convocation of

    For seven days you are to present a food offering to the LORD. On the eighth day you are to hold a sacred assembly and present a food offering to the LORD. It is a solemn assembly; you must not do any regular work.

  11. Leviticus 23:37 מִקְרָאֵ֣י convocations of

    These are the LORD’s appointed feasts, which you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies for presenting food offerings to the LORD—burnt offerings and grain offerings, sacrifices and drink offerings, each on its designated day.

Numbers · 7

  1. Numbers 10:2 לְמִקְרָ֣א for [the] convocation of

    “Make two trumpets of hammered silver to be used for calling the congregation and for having the camps set out.

  2. Numbers 28:18 מִקְרָא־ a convocation of

    On the first day there is to be a sacred assembly; you must not do any regular work.

  3. Numbers 28:25 מִקְרָא־ a convocation of

    On the seventh day you shall hold a sacred assembly; you must not do any regular work.

  4. Numbers 28:26 מִֽקְרָא־ a convocation of

    On the day of firstfruits, when you present an offering of new grain to the LORD during the Feast of Weeks, you are to hold a sacred assembly; you must not do any regular work.

  5. Numbers 29:1 מִֽקְרָא־ a convocation of

    “On the first day of the seventh month, you are to hold a sacred assembly, and you must not do any regular work. This will be a day for you to sound the trumpets.

  6. Numbers 29:7 מִֽקְרָא־ a convocation of

    On the tenth day of this seventh month, you are to hold a sacred assembly, and you shall humble yourselves; you must not do any work.

    Here: From the verb 'to call'. It names a day that is 'called', meaning summoned or officially proclaimed, and probably also the gathering that answered the call. Bound to the next word: 'a calling of holiness'.

  7. Numbers 29:12 מִֽקְרָא־ a convocation of

    On the fifteenth day of the seventh month, you are to hold a sacred assembly; you must not do any regular work, and you shall observe a feast to the LORD for seven days.

    Here: From the verb 'to call'. Something 'called': either the people called together, or the day called out (proclaimed) as sacred. It is in a bound form, 'a calling of…'.

Nehemiah · 1

  1. Nehemiah 8:8 בַּמִּקְרָֽא׃ ס <in> the reading

    So they read from the Book of the Law of God, explaining it and giving insight, so that the people could understand what was being read.

Isaiah · 2

  1. Isaiah 1:13 מִקְרָ֔א convocation[s]

    Bring your worthless offerings no more; your incense is detestable to Me. New Moons, Sabbaths, and convocations—I cannot endure iniquity in a solemn assembly.

    Here: 'Convocation.' This is the technical term behind the 'holy convocation' (miqra' qodesh) of the festival calendar in Leviticus 23. 'Calling a calling' is a sound-play from the same root.

  2. Isaiah 4:5 מִקְרָאֶ֗הָ convocations its

    Then the LORD will create over all of Mount Zion and over her assemblies a cloud of smoke by day and a glowing flame of fire by night. For over all the glory there will be a canopy,

    Here: 'Her sacred convocations', meaning the festival assemblies called together for worship (Lev 23). It may also mean the places where those assemblies meet. In Isa 1:13 God said he could not bear Jerusalem's convocations. Here, after the cleansing, they are covered by his presence.

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