Hebrew word · H6843

צְפִירָה

hatzefirah

diadem|doom

Found only three times: Isaiah 28:5, where it clearly means a crown or diadem (perhaps originally something plaited), and Ezekiel 7:7 and 7:10, where the meaning is disputed.

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

What it means

1) plait, chaplet, wreath, crown

1a) plait, coronet, diadem

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 7:10

Range of meaning

Found only three times: Isaiah 28:5, where it clearly means a crown or diadem (perhaps originally something plaited), and Ezekiel 7:7 and 7:10, where the meaning is disputed. Proposals include a "turn" or "cycle" that comes round, hence a turn of fate, and also "morning." "Doom" is a contextual inference.

Against the English

KJV and YLT say "morning." BSB, NIV and others say "doom," and WEB, ESV and NASB say "your doom," though the Hebrew has "the," not "your" (the "you" comes from v. 7). The Latin Vulgate has contritio, "crushing." The Jewish Publication Society's translation uses the idea of a "cycle" coming round.

How it drifted

"Morning" relies on the Aramaic word for morning (ṣaprāʾ), a reading known from medieval Jewish interpreters. "Doom" looks like a firm dictionary meaning, but it is a sensible guess from the mood of the passage.

Used elsewhere in the period

The diadem sense is secure in Isaiah 28:5. The "turning" idea appeals to a Semitic root meaning to twist or plait (compare Arabic ḍafara) and perhaps to the obscure verb in Judges 7:3. BDB and HALOT both signal uncertainty for the Ezekiel uses.

From the study of Isaiah 28:5

Range of meaning

A rare word. Here it is almost certainly a head ornament: a plaited wreath, chaplet or diadem. Most lexicons connect it to a root meaning "to plait, twist" (compare Arabic ḍafara, "to braid"). The same spelling turns up in Ezekiel 7:7, 10 with a different and disputed sense, often translated "doom" or "the turn [of fate]". That is why the supplied lexicon gives "diadem|doom".

Against the English

"Diadem" (KJV, BSB, ESV) suggests a jeweled royal band. "Wreath" (NIV) is probably closer to a woven circlet and fits the banquet garlands of verse 1 better.

Used elsewhere in the period

The Greek Old Testament seems to translate it with a participle of πλέκω, "to plait" ("the woven [wreath] of glory"), and the Latin Vulgate uses sertum, "garland". Both early translators understood a woven circlet. HALOT and BDB give "plait, chaplet" for Isa 28:5 and list Ezekiel 7 separately.

Where it appears

Isaiah · 1

  1. Isaiah 28:5 וְלִצְפִירַ֖ת and <into> a diadem of

    On that day the LORD of Hosts will be a crown of glory, a diadem of splendor to the remnant of His people,

    Here: "And into a wreath of": a rare word, most likely a plaited or woven circlet worn on the head. It continues the picture of festive headwear from the banquet scene in verse 1.

Ezekiel · 2

  1. Ezekiel 7:7 הַצְּפִירָ֛ה <the> doom

    Doom has come to you, O inhabitants of the land. The time has come; the day is near; there is panic on the mountains instead of shouts of joy.

  2. Ezekiel 7:10 הַצְּפִרָ֔ה <the> doom

    Behold, the day is here! It has come! Doom has gone out, the rod has budded, arrogance has bloomed.

    Here: A rare word whose meaning is not settled. In this chapter it names something dreaded that arrives on the land's inhabitants (v. 7); "the turn" or "the doom" fits, though "doom" is an inference from context more than a known dictionary meaning.

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