Hebrew word · H6182

עֲרִיסָה

'arisotekhem

dough

A rare word, found only in Numbers 15:20–21, Nehemiah 10:37 and here. HALOT and BDB lean toward 'coarse meal / dough'.

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

What it means

1) dough, meal, coarse meal, kneading trough

1a) meaning uncertain

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 44:30

Range of meaning

A rare word, found only in Numbers 15:20–21, Nehemiah 10:37 and here. Proposed meanings include 'dough' (Septuagint of Numbers 15 and most moderns), 'coarse meal' or 'groats' (meal partly milled for baking, a view supported by later Hebrew and Aramaic usage), and 'kneading trough' (some older interpreters). HALOT and BDB lean toward 'coarse meal / dough'.

Against the English

Most versions have 'dough' (KJV, ESV, NASB, WEB, YLT). BSB has 'first batch of dough'. NIV has 'ground meal'. The differences are small. All of them point to grain prepared at home for the family's bread.

Used elsewhere in the period

Numbers 15:17–21 says that when Israel enters the land, 'the first of your ʿarisah you shall present as a cake, a terumah… throughout your generations'. Nehemiah 10:37 shows the post-exilic community actually pledging it. Later Judaism built the practice of challah on these texts: a piece of dough is separated from each batch (Mishnah, tractate Hallah).

From the study of Nehemiah 10:37

Range of meaning

Rare: it appears only in Numbers 15:20–21, Ezekiel 44:30 and here. It is usually taken as 'dough'. Some lexicons suggest 'coarse meal' or 'groats', based on later Hebrew and Aramaic cognates. A minority view is 'kneading trough'.

Against the English

KJV, YLT, WEB, BSB, ESV and NASB say 'dough'. NIV's 'ground meal' follows the coarse-meal view.

Used elsewhere in the period

The Greek translation (Septuagint) of Numbers 15:20 renders it with a word for a kneaded lump, phyrama. The Aramaic translations and later Hebrew point toward meal or groats.

Where it appears

Numbers · 2

  1. Numbers 15:20 עֲרִסֹ֣תֵכֶ֔ם dough<s> your

    From the first of your dough, you are to lift up a cake as a contribution; offer it just like an offering from the threshing floor.

  2. Numbers 15:21 עֲרִסֹ֣תֵיכֶ֔ם dough<s> your

    Throughout your generations, you are to give the LORD an offering from the first of your dough.

Nehemiah · 1

  1. Nehemiah 10:37 עֲרִיסֹתֵ֣ינוּ dough our

    Moreover, we will bring to the priests at the storerooms of the house of our God the firstfruits of our dough, of our grain offerings, of the fruit of all our trees, and of our new wine and oil. A tenth of our produce belongs to the Levites, so that they shall receive tithes in all the towns where we labor.

    Here: 'Our doughs': the household's kneaded grain. The phrase echoes Numbers 15:20–21, where the first loaf or cake of each batch went to the priest. The plural points to every household and every batch.

Ezekiel · 1

  1. Ezekiel 44:30 עֲרִסֽוֹתֵיכֶם֙ dough<s> your

    The best of all the firstfruits and of every contribution from all your offerings will belong to the priests. You are to give your first batch of dough to the priest, so that a blessing may rest upon your homes.

    Here: A rare word, used only here, in Numbers 15:20–21 and in Nehemiah 10:37. It means the dough or meal prepared for baking, so the gift reaches into ordinary kitchen life.

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