Hebrew word · H4964

מֶ֫תֶג

meteg

bridle

Bridle or bit: gear at an animal's mouth used to restrain and steer it. The word is used figuratively for God restraining a proud ruler (2 Kings 19:28 / Isaiah 37:29, 'my hook in your nose and my bridle in your lips', said of Sennacherib).

Appears 4 times in 4 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

1) bridle

1a) bridle (for animals)

1b) control, authority (fig.)

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 26:3

Range of meaning

Bridle or bit: gear at an animal's mouth used to restrain and steer it. The word is used figuratively for God restraining a proud ruler (2 Kings 19:28 / Isaiah 37:29, 'my hook in your nose and my bridle in your lips', said of Sennacherib).

Against the English

'Bridle' is accurate. Some versions give 'bit'. Either way, the point is control from outside.

Used elsewhere in the period

Psalm 32:9: 'Do not be like the horse or the mule, which have no understanding, whose trappings must be bit and bridle (meteg wā-resen) to restrain them.' The Septuagint renders it differently here, with kentron, 'goad'. The Vulgate has camus, a muzzle or curb.

From the study of 2 Kings 19:28

Range of meaning

Bridle or bit, the gear by which a rider or driver steers a horse or donkey. 'A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, and a rod for the back of fools' (Prov 26:3). It also appears in 2 Sam 8:1 in an obscure place-name or phrase.

Against the English

KJV/WEB/YLT 'bridle in thy lips' keeps the Hebrew 'lips'. BSB 'bit in your mouth' is natural English but loses 'lips', which in Hebrew also means speech.

Used elsewhere in the period

Rare. Proverbs pairs it with the whip as an instrument for beasts that need forcing. The Greek has χαλινός, 'bridle', the word used in James 3:3 for the bit in a horse's mouth.

From the study of Isaiah 37:29

Range of meaning

Bridle, including the bit, for horses and donkeys (Prov 26:3). It is a steering device, not a weapon. In Ps 32:9 the general idea, 'bit and bridle' for an animal without understanding, appears with other words.

Against the English

'Bit' (BSB, NIV) is more precise for the part in the mouth. 'Bridle' (KJV, WEB) names the whole headgear. Both are sound. BSB's 'in your mouth' smooths over the Hebrew 'in your lips'.

Used elsewhere in the period

Also in 2 Kgs 19:28. Isa 30:28 uses a related image of a bridle (resen) 'that leads astray' put in the jaws of the peoples.

Where it appears

2 Kings · 1

  1. 2 Kings 19:28 וּמִתְגִּי֙ and bridle my

    Because your rage and arrogance against Me have reached My ears, I will put My hook in your nose and My bit in your mouth; I will send you back the way you came.’

    Here: 'And my bridle': the headgear and bit used to steer a horse or donkey (Prov 26:3, 'a bridle for the donkey'). It is a tool for controlling a beast that will not go where it should.

Psalms · 1

  1. Psalm 32:9 בְּמֶֽתֶג־ with bridle

    Do not be like the horse or mule, which have no understanding; they must be controlled with bit and bridle to make them come to you.

    Here: 'With bit'. The control gear put in or on an animal's mouth; the same word is used for God's 'bit' that turns back the Assyrian king (2 Kings 19:28).

Proverbs · 1

  1. Proverbs 26:3 מֶ֣תֶג a bridle

    A whip for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, and a rod for the backs of fools!

    Here: The bridle or bit that steers an animal from the mouth. It is control by restraint, not by understanding. Psalm 32:9 uses the same word for animals 'without understanding' that have to be held in with bit and bridle.

Isaiah · 1

  1. Isaiah 37:29 וּמִתְגִּי֙ and bridle my

    Because your rage and arrogance against Me have reached My ears, I will put My hook in your nose and My bit in your mouth; I will send you back the way you came.’

    Here: 'And my bridle': the headgear and bit used to steer a horse or donkey (Prov 26:3, 'a bridle for the donkey'). The proud king is steered like a pack animal.

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