Hebrew word · H6391

פְּלֻגָּה

biflagot

division

'Division, section.' It is used of the subdivisions of a tribe or clan (2 Chronicles 35:5, 12, of family divisions; Job 20:17, 'streams', as a variant form). It is related to peleg, 'channel, stream' (Psalm 1:3, 'streams of water'), and to the verb pālag, 'to divide, split'.

Appears 3 times in 3 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

division

Aramaic equivalent: pe.lug.gah (פְּלֻגָּה "division" H6392)

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 Judges 5:16

Range of meaning

'Division, section.' It is used of the subdivisions of a tribe or clan (2 Chronicles 35:5, 12, of family divisions; Job 20:17, 'streams', as a variant form). It is related to peleg, 'channel, stream' (Psalm 1:3, 'streams of water'), and to the verb pālag, 'to divide, split'.

Against the English

'Clans/divisions' (BSB, KJV, ESV, NASB), 'districts' (some versions), 'watercourses' (WEB, taking the stream sense). YLT's 'For the divisions of Reuben' keeps the double meaning.

Used elsewhere in the period

2 Chronicles 35:5, 12 (family divisions). Related peleg in Psalm 1:3, 46:4 and 65:9 (channels of water). The verb is used of the earth being 'divided' in the days of Peleg (Genesis 10:25).

Where it appears

Judges · 2

  1. Judges 5:15 בִּפְלַגּ֣וֹת among [the] divisions of

    The princes of Issachar were with Deborah, and Issachar was with Barak, rushing into the valley at his heels. In the clans of Reuben there was great indecision.

  2. Judges 5:16 לִפְלַגּ֣וֹת to [the] divisions of

    Why did you sit among the sheepfolds to hear the whistling for the flocks? In the clans of Reuben there was great indecision.

    Here: 'In/among the divisions of.' It usually means tribal subdivisions or clans. A related word, peleg, means a water-channel, which is why WEB has 'watercourses'. The word 'divisions' also hints that Reuben was split in its mind.

2 Chronicles · 1

  1. 2 Chronicles 35:5 לִפְלֻגּוֹת֙ to [the] divisions of

    Moreover, stand in the Holy Place by the divisions of the families of your kinsmen the lay people, and by the divisions of the families of the Levites.

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