Hebrew word · H8311

שָׂרַע

sarua'

to extend

To extend or stretch out. Elsewhere it appears only as a passive participle, śārûaʿ, 'having an overgrown or overlong limb', a defect that disqualified a priest or animal (Leviticus 21:18; 22:23). The reflexive form here, 'stretch oneself out', is found nowhere else.

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

What it means

1) to extend, stretch out

1a) (Qal) extended (participle)

1b) (Hithpael) to stretch oneself

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 Isaiah 28:20

Range of meaning

To extend or stretch out. Elsewhere it appears only as a passive participle, śārûaʿ, 'having an overgrown or overlong limb', a defect that disqualified a priest or animal (Leviticus 21:18; 22:23). The reflexive form here, 'stretch oneself out', is found nowhere else.

Against the English

'Stretch out on' (BSB, WEB), 'stretch himself on it' (KJV). All accurate.

Used elsewhere in the period

Leviticus 21:18; 22:23. Later Hebrew and Aramaic use the root for 'stretch out' (HALOT).

From the study of Leviticus 21:18

Range of meaning

From a root meaning 'stretch out, extend'. Of a body part, abnormally extended or overgrown.

Against the English

KJV 'anything superfluous', WEB/BSB 'deformity / deformed', YLT 'enlarged'. Some modern versions (e.g. ESV, NJPS) read the word as a limb that is too long.

Used elsewhere in the period

Lev 22:23 pairs saruaʿ with qalut ('stunted') for animals, which suggests 'too long' against 'too short'. The rabbis (m. Bekhorot 7) read it as one limb longer than its partner. The Septuagint oddly has ōtotmētos, 'ear-cut', probably a guess.

Where it appears

Leviticus · 2

  1. Leviticus 21:18 שָׂרֽוּעַ׃ [having] something enlarged

    No man who has any defect may approach—no man who is blind, lame, disfigured, or deformed;

    Here: Literally 'stretched out'. In Lev 22:23 it describes an animal and is paired with qalut, 'stunted', so it probably means a limb (or body part) that is abnormally long or out of proportion. Rabbinic tradition read it as one limb longer than its partner. The KJV's 'anything superfluous' reflects the idea of 'too much'.

  2. Leviticus 22:23 שָׂר֣וּעַ [having] something enlarged

    You may present as a freewill offering an ox or sheep that has a deformed or stunted limb, but it is not acceptable in fulfillment of a vow.

Isaiah · 1

  1. Isaiah 28:20 מֵֽהִשְׂתָּרֵ֑עַ for stretching oneself

    Indeed, the bed is too short to stretch out on, and the blanket too small to wrap around you.

    Here: 'Than stretching oneself out'. The prefix mē- ('from, than') makes 'short' into 'too short to'. The verb form means doing the action to oneself, and it appears only here. The picture is a sleeper who cannot lie at full length.

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