Hebrew word · H7779

שׁוּף

yeshufeni

to bruise

Uncertain. It occurs only here (twice), in Job 9:17 ('he crushes me with a tempest') and possibly in Psalm 139:11 (where the text is often thought to be corrupt). Suggested meanings: 'crush, bruise'; 'strike'; or 'snap at, lunge'.

Appears 4 times in 3 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

1) to bruise, crush, gape upon, desire?, seize?, strike out?

1a) (Qal) to fall upon, bruise

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 Genesis 3:15

Range of meaning

Uncertain. It occurs only here (twice), in Job 9:17 ('he crushes me with a tempest') and possibly in Psalm 139:11 (where the text is often thought to be corrupt). Suggested meanings: 'crush, bruise'; 'strike'; or 'snap at, lunge'. The last may involve a similar-sounding verb, šāʾap, 'pant after, gasp'. HALOT and others discuss whether one verb or two similar-looking verbs are involved.

Against the English

KJV and ESV use 'bruise' for both clauses. BSB and NIV use 'crush… strike', which brings out the difference in outcome but hides that the Hebrew uses one verb twice. WEB repeats 'bruise'. NLT uses 'strike… strike'.

How it drifted

In 1611 'bruise' meant to crush, break or batter (from Old English brysan, 'to crush'; compare KJV Isa 53:5, 'bruised for our iniquities'). Today a bruise is a surface discoloration, so the KJV/ESV wording now sounds far milder than the Hebrew.

Used elsewhere in the period

Septuagint: tērēsei / tērēseis, 'he will watch for / you will watch for' (perhaps reading the similar verb, or guessing). Vulgate: conteret ('will crush') for the first blow and insidiaberis ('you will lie in wait for') for the second. Paul's 'the God of peace will soon crush (syntripsei) Satan under your feet' (Rom 16:20) seems to echo the verse.

From the study of Job 9:17

Range of meaning

A rare verb meaning to crush, bruise, strike at or snap at. It occurs with certainty only in Genesis 3:15 (twice) and here. Psalm 139:11 is a disputed third use, where many scholars read a different verb ('cover'). Some lexicons ask whether two similar roots ('crush' and 'snap at, pant after') have merged.

Against the English

KJV and WEB 'breaks', BSB/NIV/ESV 'crush', YLT/NASB 'bruise'. All are within range. 'Bruise' sounds milder to modern ears than the Hebrew, which describes a disabling blow.

How it drifted

'Bruise' in older English (KJV Gen 3:15) meant to crush or batter. Today it suggests a minor mark on the skin, so the force of the verb fades.

Used elsewhere in the period

Genesis 3:15 (the serpent's head and the heel). The Septuagint here uses ektribō, 'rub out, crush, destroy'. The Vulgate has conteret, 'will grind down'.

From the study of Psalm 139:11

Range of meaning

A rare verb. Its clear uses mean to strike, crush or bruise: Genesis 3:15 (twice: "he will crush your head, you will strike his heel") and Job 9:17 ("he crushes me with a storm"). Some scholars propose a second root meaning "to snap at, lie in wait for," and others link it to sha'af, "to pant after, snatch." In Psalm 139:11 the lexicons (BDB, HALOT) mark the sense as doubtful.

Against the English

Nearly all English versions say "hide" or "cover" (KJV, BSB, NIV, ESV, NRSV). WEB and NASB say "overwhelm," and YLT says "bruiseth." "Hide" and "cover" follow a proposed correction of the Hebrew, not the Hebrew as it stands. "Overwhelm" tries to keep some of the force of the verb without making it violent.

How it drifted

The issue is a translation decision more than drift over time. Since "darkness will crush me" seems to clash with the theme of hiding, translators since antiquity have smoothed it. The Hebrew letters for "crush me" (yshwpny) and "cover me" (yswkny) look alike, and the editors of the standard critical Hebrew Bible suggest the "cover" reading. Jerome's translation from the Hebrew also has "cover."

Used elsewhere in the period

The Greek Septuagint (Psalm 138:11) has katapatēsei me, "will trample me," which shows its translators read a crushing verb like the Hebrew text we have. The Latin Vulgate (Gallican Psalter) follows with conculcabunt me, "they will trample me." The identical form yeshufeni in Job 9:17, where it means being crushed by God, is the strongest internal parallel.

Where it appears

Genesis · 2

  1. Genesis 3:15 יְשׁוּפְךָ֣ תְּשׁוּפֶ֥נּוּ he will bruise you, you will bruise him

    And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed. He will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”

    Here: A rare verb for a damaging blow. Its exact shade (crush? strike? snap at?) is uncertain. The serpent is the direct object: 'he will strike you'.

Job · 1

  1. Job 9:17 יְשׁוּפֵ֑נִי he crushes me

    For He would crush me with a tempest and multiply my wounds without cause.

    Here: 'He crushes me' or 'he would crush me'. This is a rare, physical verb: it appears elsewhere only in Genesis 3:15 (the serpent's head and the human heel) and possibly Psalm 139:11. The form can describe what God keeps doing or what he would do if Job summoned him.

Psalms · 1

  1. Psalm 139:11 יְשׁוּפֵ֑נִי it will crush me

    If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me, and the light become night around me”—

    Here: In the Hebrew text as it stands: "it will crush me" or "bruise me." This is the same verb used for the serpent and the woman's offspring in Genesis 3:15, and the exact same form appears in Job 9:17 ("he crushes me with a tempest"). Because "crush" sits oddly with hiding, many read a near-identical word meaning "cover me." Either way, the picture is darkness pressing down over the speaker.

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