Hebrew word · H5699

עֲגָלָה

'agalah

cart

A wheeled cart or wagon, usually pulled by oxen. It was used for carrying the ark (1 Sam 6:7–14; 2 Sam 6:3), grain at threshing (Isa 28:27–28; Amos 2:13) and household goods (Gen 45:19).

Appears 25 times in 20 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

cart, wagon

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 5:18

Range of meaning

A wheeled cart or wagon, usually pulled by oxen. It was used for carrying the ark (1 Sam 6:7–14; 2 Sam 6:3), grain at threshing (Isa 28:27–28; Amos 2:13) and household goods (Gen 45:19).

Against the English

English versions agree on 'cart rope(s)'. The image is clear, but modern readers may not see that the people are cast as draft animals, not drivers.

Used elsewhere in the period

1 Sam 6:7; 2 Sam 6:3; Amos 2:13; Isa 28:27–28. The Greek Septuagint read the same consonants (עגלה) as ʿeglâ, 'heifer': 'as with the strap of a heifer's yoke'.

From the study of Psalm 46:9

Range of meaning

Everywhere else in the Hebrew Bible ʿăgālâ means a wheeled cart or wagon, usually drawn by oxen. Examples are the wagons Joseph sent for Jacob (Gen 45:19), the carts for the tabernacle (Num 7:3–8), and the cart that carried the ark (1 Sam 6:7; 2 Sam 6:3). It is not the normal word for a war chariot, which is merkābâ or rekeb.

Against the English

KJV, WEB, ESV and NASB say "chariot(s)", which makes the vehicle military but blurs the word. BSB, NIV, NLT and NRSV say "shields", following the Greek translation and a proposed revocalisation. A literal rendering would be "wagons" or "carts".

How it drifted

The KJV tradition used "chariot" to fit the battle context, because a farm cart seemed out of place among weapons. Modern readers then picture the horse-drawn war chariot, which is a different Hebrew word.

Used elsewhere in the period

The Septuagint (Ps 45:10 in its numbering) has thyreous, "long shields", and the Gallican Latin psalter, made from the Greek, has scuta ("shields"). Jerome's Latin psalter translated directly from Hebrew has plaustra ("wagons"), which confirms that the Hebrew text he used read "wagons". Many scholars propose the vowelling ʿăgilôt, "round shields", from the root ʿgl ("round"; compare ʿāgîl, "ring, earring", Num 31:50). The parallel lists in Ps 76:3 and Ezek 39:9, which include shields among burned or broken weapons, are cited in support.

Where it appears

Genesis · 4

  1. Genesis 45:19 עֲגָל֗וֹת carts

    You are also directed to tell them: ‘Take wagons from the land of Egypt for your young children and your wives, and bring your father and come back.

  2. Genesis 45:21 עֲגָל֖וֹת carts

    So the sons of Israel did as they were told. Joseph gave them wagons as Pharaoh had instructed, and he also gave them provisions for their journey.

  3. Genesis 45:27 הָ֣עֲגָל֔וֹת the carts

    However, when they relayed all that Joseph had told them, and when he saw the wagons that Joseph had sent to carry him back, the spirit of their father Jacob was revived.

  4. Genesis 46:5 בָּעֲגָל֕וֹת in the carts

    Then Jacob departed from Beersheba, and the sons of Israel took their father Jacob in the wagons Pharaoh had sent to carry him, along with their children and wives.

Numbers · 5

  1. Numbers 7:3 עֶגְלֹ֥ת עֲגָלָ֛ה carts of, a cart

    They brought as their offering before the LORD six covered carts and twelve oxen—an ox from each leader and a cart from every two leaders—and presented them before the tabernacle.

  2. Numbers 7:6 הָעֲגָלֹ֖ת the carts

    So Moses took the carts and oxen and gave them to the Levites.

  3. Numbers 7:7 הָעֲגָלֹ֗ת the carts

    He gave the Gershonites two carts and four oxen, as their service required,

  4. Numbers 7:8 הָעֲגָלֹ֗ת the carts

    and he gave the Merarites four carts and eight oxen, as their service required, all under the direction of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest.

1 Samuel · 7

  1. 1 Samuel 6:7 עֲגָלָ֤ה בָּעֲגָלָ֔ה a cart, on the cart

    Now, therefore, prepare one new cart with two milk cows that have never been yoked. Hitch the cows to the cart, but take their calves away and pen them up.

  2. 1 Samuel 6:8 הָ֣עֲגָלָ֔ה the cart

    Take the ark of the LORD, set it on the cart, and in a chest beside it put the gold objects you are sending back to Him as a guilt offering. Then send the ark on its way,

  3. 1 Samuel 6:10 בָּעֲגָלָ֑ה on the cart

    So the men did as instructed. They took two milk cows, hitched them to the cart, and penned up their calves.

  4. 1 Samuel 6:11 הָעֲגָלָ֑ה the cart

    Then they put the ark of the LORD on the cart, along with the chest containing the gold rats and the images of the tumors.

  5. 1 Samuel 6:14 וְהָעֲגָלָ֡ה הָעֲגָלָ֔ה and the cart, the cart

    The cart came to the field of Joshua of Beth-shemesh and stopped there near a large rock. The people chopped up the cart and offered the cows as a burnt offering to the LORD.

2 Samuel · 2

  1. 2 Samuel 6:3 עֲגָלָ֣ה הָעֲגָלָ֥ה a cart, the cart

    They set the ark of God on a new cart and brought it from the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill. Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, were guiding the new cart,

1 Chronicles · 2

  1. 1 Chronicles 13:7 עֲגָלָ֣ה בָּעֲגָלָֽה׃ a cart, <in> the cart

    So they carried the ark of God from the house of Abinadab on a new cart, with Uzzah and Ahio guiding the cart.

Psalms · 1

  1. Psalm 46:9 עֲ֝גָל֗וֹת carts

    He makes wars to cease throughout the earth; He breaks the bow and shatters the spear; He burns the shields in the fire.

    Here: As vowelled in the Hebrew text it means wagons or carts, the ordinary wheeled transport also used for an army's supplies. It is not the usual word for a war chariot (merkābâ or rekeb). The Greek translation read it as "shields" (see textual notes). Either way it is war equipment that will burn.

Isaiah · 3

  1. Isaiah 5:18 הָעֲגָלָ֖ה <the> cart

    Woe to those who draw iniquity with cords of deceit and pull sin along with cart ropes,

    Here: The farm cart pulled by oxen (1 Sam 6:7). It turns the people into yoked animals straining to pull their own load. The Greek translators read the same letters as 'heifer'.

  2. Isaiah 28:27 עֲגָלָ֔ה a cart

    Surely caraway is not threshed with a sledge, and the wheel of a cart is not rolled over the cumin. But caraway is beaten out with a stick, and cumin with a rod.

  3. Isaiah 28:28 עֶגְלָת֛וֹ cart his

    Grain for bread must be ground, but it is not endlessly threshed. Though the wheels of the cart roll over it, the horses do not crush it.

Amos · 1

  1. Amos 2:13 הָעֲגָלָ֔ה the cart

    Behold, I am about to crush you in your place as with a cart full of grain.

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