Hebrew word · H7685
שָׂגָה
yisgeh
to increase
To grow, become great, increase. A rare word found only in poetry (Job 8:7, 11; Ps 73:12; 92:12 [Eng. 92:12–13]), related to Aramaic sgʾ 'to be great'. Used of plants growing tall and of wealth increasing.
Appears 4 times in 4 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·
What it means
1) to grow, increase
1a) (Qal) to grow (great)
1b) (Hiphil) to increase
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
- Range of meaning
To grow, become great, increase. A rare word found only in poetry (Job 8:7, 11; Ps 73:12; 92:12 [Eng. 92:12–13]), related to Aramaic sgʾ 'to be great'. Used of plants growing tall and of wealth increasing.
- Against the English
KJV/WEB 'greatly increase', BSB 'flourish', ESV 'be very great'. 'Flourish' keeps the plant picture. 'Increase' can sound like money alone.
- Used elsewhere in the period
Job 8:11 ('Can papyrus grow tall without marsh?'); Ps 92:12 ('the righteous… grow like a cedar in Lebanon'); Ps 73:12 (the wicked 'increase in riches', the very thing that troubles the psalmist).
- Range of meaning
To grow, become great. In the causative form used here, to make great or increase. A rare poetic word with an Aramaic flavour, found mostly in Job and the Psalms.
- Against the English
Most versions say "increase." NASB's "have increased" keeps the completed sense of the Hebrew form. NIV's "go on amassing" and BSB's "as they increase" make it sound like an ongoing process, which is fine in meaning but shifts the emphasis from a finished result to a continuing activity.
- Used elsewhere in the period
Job 8:7: "your latter end will grow very great (yisgeh)." Job 8:11: "Can papyrus grow (yigʾeh)… can reeds grow (yisgeh) without water?" Psalm 92:12 (Heb. 92:13): the righteous "will grow (yisgeh) like a cedar in Lebanon," in a psalm that also says the wicked sprout like grass only to be destroyed forever (92:7).
- Range of meaning
To grow, become great, increase. It is rare and poetic (Job 8:7, 11; Psalm 73:12; Job 36:24 has a related form). It is used of a plant growing large and of wealth or estate increasing.
- Against the English
'Grow' is correct but plain. The verb carries the sense of becoming large or abundant, not just getting older.
- Used elsewhere in the period
Job 8:11 asks whether papyrus can 'grow great' without marsh, which is about a plant needing a water source. Psalm 73:12 describes the wicked who 'increase in wealth' with this verb. That is the very problem Psalm 92 answers.
Where it appears
Job · 2
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Job 8:7 יִשְׂגֶּ֥ה it will grow
Though your beginnings were modest, your latter days will flourish.
Here: A rare, poetic verb for growing large, used of plants shooting up. Bildad uses it again four verses later of papyrus that cannot 'grow' without water (8:11). He is picturing Job's future as a thriving plant.
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Job 8:11 יִשְׂגֶּה־ will it grow?
Does papyrus grow where there is no marsh? Do reeds flourish without water?
Psalms · 2
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Psalm 73:12 הִשְׂגּוּ־ they increase
Behold, these are the wicked—always carefree as they increase their wealth.
Here: "They have made great / have increased." A rare poetic verb for growing large. The form describes something done and its lasting result: they have built up their wealth and now have it.
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Psalm 92:12 יִשְׂגֶּֽה׃ he will grow
The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, and grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
Here: 'He will grow great.' This is a rare verb for growing large or increasing. Psalm 73:12 uses it of the wicked who 'increase' in wealth. Here the lasting increase belongs to the righteous. It pairs with 'sprout' in the first line: first new growth, then great size.
Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.