Hebrew word · H5409

נֵ֫תַח

netach

piece

A piece or joint of a cut-up animal. It is largely sacrificial vocabulary (Lev 1:6, 8, 12; 8:20; 9:13) and is also used of the Levite's concubine cut in pieces (Judg 19:29).

Appears 13 times in 9 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

piece, a piece of flesh or meat

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 Ezekiel 24:6

Range of meaning

A piece or joint of a cut-up animal. It is largely sacrificial vocabulary (Lev 1:6, 8, 12; 8:20; 9:13) and is also used of the Levite's concubine cut in pieces (Judg 19:29).

Against the English

English 'piece' loses the butchery and altar associations that the Hebrew carries.

Used elsewhere in the period

Verse 4 began, 'Gather its pieces into it, every good piece, thigh and shoulder'. Verse 6 reverses that: the same pieces are pulled out.

Where it appears

Exodus · 2

  1. Exodus 29:17 לִנְתָחָ֑יו נְתָחָ֖יו into pieces its, pieces its

    Cut the ram into pieces, wash the entrails and legs, and place them with its head and other pieces.

Leviticus · 6

  1. Leviticus 1:6 לִנְתָחֶֽיהָ׃ into pieces its

    Next, he is to skin the burnt offering and cut it into pieces.

  2. Leviticus 1:8 הַנְּתָחִ֔ים the pieces

    Then Aaron’s sons the priests are to arrange the pieces, including the head and the fat, atop the burning wood on the altar.

  3. Leviticus 1:12 לִנְתָחָ֔יו into pieces its

    He is to cut the animal into pieces, and the priest shall arrange them, including the head and fat, atop the burning wood that is on the altar.

  4. Leviticus 8:20 לִנְתָחָ֑יו הַנְּתָחִ֖ים into pieces its, the pieces

    He cut the ram into pieces and burned the head, the pieces, and the fat.

  5. Leviticus 9:13 לִנְתָחֶ֖יהָ to pieces its

    They brought him the burnt offering piece by piece, including the head, and he burned them on the altar.

Judges · 1

  1. Judges 19:29 נְתָחִ֑ים pieces

    When he reached his house, he picked up a knife, took hold of his concubine, cut her limb by limb into twelve pieces, and sent her throughout the territory of Israel.

Ezekiel · 4

  1. Ezekiel 24:4 נְתָחֶ֙יהָ֙ נֵ֥תַח pieces of meat its, piece of meat

    Put in the pieces of meat, every good piece—thigh and shoulder—fill it with choice bones.

  2. Ezekiel 24:6 לִנְתָחֶ֤יהָ לִנְתָחֶ֙יהָ֙ to piece of meat its

    Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Woe to the city of bloodshed, to the pot now rusted, whose rust will not come off! Empty it piece by piece; cast no lots for its contents.

    Here: The cut joints of an animal, the same word used for cutting up sacrifices (Lev 1:6) and for the 'pieces' gathered into the pot in v. 4. Here the pieces stand for the people inside the city.

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