Hebrew word · H8156

שָׁסַע

veshosa'at

to cleave

'To split, divide, tear in two.' In its basic form it describes the split hoof of clean animals (Leviticus 11:3, 7, 26; Deuteronomy 14:6–7).

Appears 9 times in 8 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

1) to divide, cleave, part, split

1a) (Qal) cleaving, cleft (participle)

1b) (Piel) to tear in two, cleave in two

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 14:6

Range of meaning

'To split, divide, tear in two.' In its basic form it describes the split hoof of clean animals (Leviticus 11:3, 7, 26; Deuteronomy 14:6–7). In the intensive form used here it means to tear something apart: of a bird in sacrifice (Leviticus 1:17, 'tear it open by the wings but not divide it'), of the lion here, and figuratively of tearing someone apart with words (1 Samuel 24:7 [8 in Hebrew]).

Against the English

KJV 'rent' is accurate but old-fashioned. BSB, NIV, WEB and ESV give 'tore (apart / in pieces)'. NLT says he 'ripped the lion's jaws apart'. The jaws are not in the Hebrew: they come from a long artistic tradition that shows Samson prising open the lion's mouth.

Used elsewhere in the period

The Leviticus 1:17 use shows the verb could describe tearing a small animal by hand in sacrifice, which suits the kid comparison here. The verb is used twice in a row, as an action and then as a verbal noun ('tore it as the tearing of'). This is a common Hebrew way of making a comparison exact.

From the study of Leviticus 11:3

Range of meaning

The verb shasa' means to tear or split apart. Samson 'tore' the lion (Judg 14:6), and the bird for a sacrifice is 'torn open' by its wings (Lev 1:17). The noun shesa', 'cleft', occurs only in Lev 11:3, 7, 26 and Deut 14:6. The pairing 'cleaving a cleft' sets a verb beside its own noun for emphasis, like English 'dream a dream'.

Against the English

KJV 'clovenfooted', WEB 'cloven-footed', BSB 'completely divided', YLT 'cleaving the cleft of the hoofs'. BSB's 'completely' captures the emphasis well. 'Cloven-footed' is accurate but loses the forceful repetition.

Used elsewhere in the period

Deut 14:6 expands it to 'cleaving a cleft of two hooves'. The LXX of Leviticus has 'clawing claws of two hooves' (onychistēras onychizon dyo chēlōn). Lev 11:7 says the pig both divides the hoof and 'cleaves a cleft', so it passes the foot test and is excluded only because it does not chew the cud.

Where it appears

Leviticus · 4

  1. Leviticus 1:17 וְשִׁסַּ֨ע and he will tear apart

    He shall tear it open by its wings, without dividing the bird completely. And the priest is to burn it on the altar atop the burning wood. It is a burnt offering, a food offering, a pleasing aroma to the LORD.

  2. Leviticus 11:3 וְשֹׁסַ֤עַת and [which] cleaves

    You may eat any animal that has a split hoof completely divided and that chews the cud.

    Here: 'And cleaving.' A second participle describing the same animal. The verb means a real tear or split; elsewhere it is used of Samson tearing a lion in two (Judges 14:6). It sharpens the first feature: the hoof is not merely notched but split right through.

  3. Leviticus 11:7 וְשֹׁסַ֥ע and [is] cleaving

    And the pig, though it has a split hoof completely divided, does not chew the cud; it is unclean for you.

  4. Leviticus 11:26 שֹׁסַ֗עַת [is] cleaving

    Every animal with hooves not completely divided or that does not chew the cud is unclean for you. Whoever touches any of them will be unclean.

    Here: 'Cleaving' or 'splitting'. Together with the noun from the same root, it means 'it does not split a split', i.e. its foot is not fully cloven.

Deuteronomy · 2

  1. Deuteronomy 14:6 וְשֹׁסַ֤עַת and [which] cleaves

    You may eat any animal that has a split hoof divided in two and that chews the cud.

  2. Deuteronomy 14:7 הַשְּׁסוּעָ֑ה <the> cloven

    But of those that chew the cud or have a completely divided hoof, you are not to eat the following: the camel, the rabbit, or the rock badger. Although they chew the cud, they do not have a divided hoof. They are unclean for you,

Judges · 2

  1. Judges 14:6 וַֽיְשַׁסְּעֵ֙הוּ֙ כְּשַׁסַּ֣ע and he tore apart it, as tears apart

    and the Spirit of the LORD came powerfully upon him, and he tore the lion apart with his bare hands as one would tear a young goat. But he did not tell his father or mother what he had done.

    Here: 'And he tore it apart.' This is the intensive form of the verb, used for ripping something open or in two. 'It' is the masculine young lion of v.5. The Hebrew does not name the lion again; BSB supplies the word.

1 Samuel · 1

  1. 1 Samuel 24:7 וַיְשַׁסַּ֨ע and he reprimanded

    With these words David restrained his men, and he did not let them rise up against Saul. Then Saul left the cave and went on his way.

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