Hebrew word · H931

בֹּ֫הֶן

bohen

thumb|big toe

The 'thumb' of the hand or the 'big toe' of the foot: one word for the large digit of either limb, told apart by adding 'of the hand' or 'of the foot'.

Appears 16 times in 9 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

thumb, great (big) toe (always used of both together)

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 1:7

Range of meaning

The 'thumb' of the hand or the 'big toe' of the foot: one word for the large digit of either limb, told apart by adding 'of the hand' or 'of the foot'.

Against the English

English needs two words (thumb, big toe), and translations rightly supply both. What gets lost is that the Hebrew pictures one matched set of 'great digits' on all four limbs.

Used elsewhere in the period

Outside Judges 1:6–7 the word appears almost only in priestly ritual. At the ordination of Aaron's sons and the cleansing of a healed leper, blood or oil is put on the right ear, the right thumb and the right big toe (Exod 29:20; Lev 8:23–24; 14:14–28). In Greek history Athens is said to have cut off the thumbs of captured Aeginetans so they could never row or fight again (Aelian, Varia Historia 2.9; Valerius Maximus 9.2 ext. 8).

From the study of Leviticus 14:14

Range of meaning

'The big digit': thumb or big toe, depending on whether hand or foot follows. Outside this formula it appears in Judg 1:6–7, where Adoni-bezek and seventy kings have their thumbs and big toes cut off, a disabling and shaming mutilation that left them unable to fight or stand firm.

Against the English

English has to use two words, 'thumb' and 'big/great toe'. Hebrew repeats one word, which gives the verse its strict matching pattern.

Used elsewhere in the period

Exod 29:20; Lev 8:23–24; 14:14, 17, 25, 28; Judg 1:6–7. The LXX in these rites seems to use 'akron' (tip, extremity) of the hand and foot rather than a separate word for thumb or toe, which highlights the idea of extremities.

From the study of Leviticus 14:17

Range of meaning

The 'chief digit': the thumb of the hand or the big toe of the foot. Which one is meant depends on whether 'hand' or 'foot' follows.

Against the English

Translations handle it accurately ('thumb', 'big toe', 'great toe'). The English just cannot show that Hebrew uses the same word twice.

Used elsewhere in the period

Exod 29:20; Lev 8:23–24; 14:14–28. In Judg 1:6–7, cutting off thumbs and big toes was done to defeated kings to disable them for war, a sign that these digits stood for a person's capacity to act.

Where it appears

Exodus · 2

  1. Exodus 29:20 בֹּ֤הֶן בֹּ֥הֶן [the] thumb of, [the] big toe of

    Slaughter the ram, take some of its blood, and put it on the right earlobes of Aaron and his sons, on the thumbs of their right hands, and on the big toes of their right feet. Splatter the remaining blood on all sides of the altar.

Leviticus · 12

  1. Leviticus 8:23 בֹּ֤הֶן בֹּ֥הֶן [the] thumb of, [the] big toe of

    Moses slaughtered the ram and took some of its blood and put it on Aaron’s right earlobe, on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot.

  2. Leviticus 8:24 בֹּ֤הֶן בֹּ֥הֶן [the] thumb of, [the] big toe of

    Moses also presented Aaron’s sons and put some of the blood on their right earlobes, on the thumbs of their right hands, and on the big toes of their right feet. Then he splattered the blood on all sides of the altar.

  3. Leviticus 14:14 בֹּ֤הֶן בֹּ֥הֶן [the] thumb of, [the] big toe of

    The priest is to take some of the blood from the guilt offering and put it on the right earlobe of the one to be cleansed, on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot.

    Here: One Hebrew word for 'the big digit', used for both thumb and big toe. Here, with 'hand', it is the thumb.

  4. Leviticus 14:17 בֹּ֤הֶן בֹּ֥הֶן [the] thumb of, [the] big toe of

    And the priest is to put some of the oil remaining in his palm on the right earlobe of the one to be cleansed, on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot, on top of the blood of the guilt offering.

    Here: Hebrew uses one word for both the thumb and the big toe, the 'chief digit'. Here it is the thumb.

  5. Leviticus 14:25 בֹּ֤הֶן בֹּ֥הֶן [the] thumb of, [the] big toe of

    And after he slaughters the lamb for the guilt offering, the priest is to take some of the blood of the guilt offering and put it on the right earlobe of the one to be cleansed, on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot.

  6. Leviticus 14:28 בֹּ֤הֶן בֹּ֥הֶן [the] thumb of, [the] big toe of

    The priest shall also put some of the oil in his palm on the right earlobe of the one to be cleansed, on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot—on the same places as the blood of the guilt offering.

Judges · 2

  1. Judges 1:6 בְּהֹנ֥וֹת [the] thumbs of

    As Adoni-bezek fled, they pursued him, seized him, and cut off his thumbs and big toes.

  2. Judges 1:7 בְּֽהֹנוֹת֩ [the] thumbs of

    Then Adoni-bezek said, “Seventy kings with their thumbs and big toes cut off have gathered the scraps under my table. As I have done to them, so God has repaid me.” And they brought him to Jerusalem, where he died.

    Here: Hebrew has one word, bohen, for both the thumb and the big toe: the 'great digit' of hand or foot. Losing them leaves a man unable to grip a sword or bow or to stand and run steadily in battle.

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