Exodus 25:34 — Word Study
WLCוּבַמְּנֹרָ֖ה אַרְבָּעָ֣ה גְבִעִ֑ים מְשֻׁקָּדִ֔ים כַּפְתֹּרֶ֖יהָ וּפְרָחֶֽיהָ׃
BSAAnd on the lampstandmᵉnôwrâh [candlestick] there shall be fourʼarbaʻ [a simple counting number] cupsgᵉbîyaʻ [goblets] shaped like almond blossomsshâqad [almonds, meshukkadim] with budskaphtôr [knobs] and petalsperach [flowers, including the calyx and blossoms]
| Greek | English | Parsing |
|---|---|---|
| וּבַמְּנֹרָ֖ה | and [will be] on the lampstand | Conjunction, preposition, noun common feminine singular absolute |
| אַרְבָּעָ֣ה | four | Adj |
| גְבִעִ֑ים | cups | Noun common, masculine plural absolute |
| מְשֻׁקָּדִ֔ים | shaped like almond blossoms | Verb, Pual, participle (active) masculine plural |
| כַּפְתֹּרֶ֖יהָ | bulbs its | Noun common masculine plural construct, suffix |
| וּפְרָחֶֽיהָ׃ | and blossoms its | Conjunction, noun common masculine plural construct, suffix |
Every word in the verse. Click a row to open it in the panel on the left.
| BSB | And on the lampstand there shall be four cups shaped like almond blossoms with buds and petals. |
| KJV | And in the candlestick shall be four bowls made like unto almonds, with their knops and their flowers. |
| ASV | and in the candlestick four cups made like almond-blossoms, the knops thereof, and the flowers thereof; |
| YLT | 'And in the candlestick [are] four calyxes made like almonds, its knops and its flowers; |
| WEB | and in the lamp stand four cups made like almond blossoms, its buds and its flowers; |
| BBE | And on the pillar, four cups like almond flowers, every one with its bud and its flower: |
Where they part company is מְשקָּדִים — see How Translations Differ.
The sentence has one main clause with two phrases providing further detail about the cups.
7 commentators on this verse
Gill, Jamieson, Poole, Trapp & more — read them ›
clause
verbמְשֻׁקָּד
The sentence as the grammar sees it Open the tree ›
Every word here is used elsewhere in the Old Testament.
Bars are logarithmic — אֵת, the commonest word in the Hebrew Bible, stands about 11,000 times, so a linear scale would leave everything else invisible. Click a row to open that word.
Deep Study — Exodus 25:34
Sections marked generated are written from the data on this page rather than by a named author. Everything else — the lexicon entries, the cross references, the manuscript readings, the counts — is quoted from its source unchanged.
Context — The Instructions for the Lampstandgenerated
Exodus 25:34 is part of God's detailed instructions to Moses regarding the construction of the Tabernacle and its furnishings. The lampstand, or menorah, is a prominent feature, symbolizing light and the presence of God among His people. This verse highlights the artistic design elements that reflect the beauty and significance of the worship space.
Cross References
The Key Word — מְנוֹרָה, me.no.Rahgenerated
The Hebrew word מְנוֹרָה (mĕnôrâ) means 'lampstand' and specifically refers to a type of chandelier or candlestick. It is derived from a feminine form of another Hebrew word related to light, emphasizing its function as a source of illumination.
In the context of the Tabernacle, the lampstand symbolizes God's presence and guidance. The specific design details, such as the almond shape, reflect the artistry and significance of the worship practices in ancient Israel.
How Translations Differ — measured against the Berean Standard Biblegenerated
This study reads the verse in the Berean Standard Bible, so the BSB is the wording every comparison below is made against.
Sentence Structuregenerated
The main clause is structured around the finite verb וּבַמְּנֹרָ֖ה, and on the lampstand, which introduces the subject of the sentence. The sentence then elaborates with a series of noun phrases describing the elements of the lampstand.
The phrase אַרְבָּעָ֣ה גְבִעִ֑ים is a clear subject that specifies the quantity and type of cups, while the subsequent phrases describe their shape and additional features, creating a detailed picture of the lampstand's design.
Septuagint Backgroundgenerated
The Septuagint translates מְנוֹרָה as ἐν (en), which indicates a location rather than a direct rendering of 'lampstand.' This choice reflects a different approach to the text, focusing on the spatial aspect rather than the object itself.
The Greek word for אַרְבָּעָה is τέσσαρες (tessares), maintaining the numerical aspect, while the translation of גְבִעִ֑ים as κρατῆρες suggests a different interpretation of the type of vessels.
In plain words — the whole versegenerated
Exodus 25:34 describes the lampstand in the Tabernacle, detailing that it should have four cups shaped like almond blossoms, with additional features like buds and petals. This design is important for the worship practices of the Israelites, symbolizing God's presence.
Frequently Asked Questionsgenerated
The almond shape symbolizes watchfulness and divine presence, reflecting God's vigilance over His people.
The lampstand provides light in the sacred space, representing God's guidance and presence among the Israelites.
The intricate design, including almond blossoms, shows the importance of beauty and craftsmanship in items used for worship.
The lampstand was made of pure gold, emphasizing its significance and the value placed on items used in the Tabernacle.
Reflection Questionsgenerated
- What does the lampstand symbolize in your understanding of God's presence in your life?
- How can the design elements of the lampstand inspire creativity in your own worship practices?
- In what ways do you see God's guidance in your life, similar to the light provided by the lampstand?
- Why is it important to consider the details of worship items in the context of the Tabernacle?
Commentators on this verse — 7 expositors, verse by verse
Each of these wrote on Exodus 25:34 itself, not merely on the chapter around it.
John Gill1697–1771Gill's Exposition of the Entire BibleAnd in the candlestick shall be four bowls,.... That is, in the trunk or body of it; the branches had but three apiece, but this being larger had four: and these were also made like unto almonds,
Read John Gill on Exodus 25 →Robert Jamieson1802–1880Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's CommentaryThree bowls made like unto almonds, with a knop and a flower in one branch; and three bowls made like almonds in the other branch, with a knop and a flower: so in the six branches that come out of the candlestick.
Read Robert Jamieson on Exodus 25 →Matthew Poole1624–1679Matthew Poole's Commentary on the Holy BibleIn the candlestick, i.e. in the shaft or trunk of the candlestick, which is here distinguished from its branches, shall be four bowls, whereas there were but three in each of the branches.
Read Matthew Poole on Exodus 25 →John Trapp1601–1669Trapp's Complete Commentary on the Old and New TestamentsExodus 25:34 And in the candlestick [shall be] four bowls made like unto almonds, [with] their knops and their flowers.Ver. 34. And in the candlestick,] i.e., In the shaft of the candlestick. See Exodus 25:33.
Read John Trapp on Exodus 25 →Charles John Ellicott1819–1905Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(34) In the candlestick.—By “the candlestick” in this place must be meant the central shaft or stem, which is viewed as that whereto all the rest is accessory. Here the triple series was to be repeated four times.
Read Charles John Ellicott on Exodus 25 →CambridgeThe Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges34, 35. There were also four similar cups in the candlestick itself, i.e. in its central shaft. Vv. 34, 35 are commonly understood to mean that there were four cups altogether in the central shaft, one towards the top, and the other three so placed that the ‘knop’ was just below the points where the three pairs of branches diverged from the central shaft; but (observe ‘and’ at the beginning of v. 35) Kennedy (p. 664a) may be right in supposing the meaning to be that there were to be four ‘knops and flowers’ combined on the upper and lower parts of the shaft, and three ‘knops’ alone under the points where the three pairs of branches diverged from it.
Read Cambridge on Exodus 25 →Daniel Denison Whedon1808–1885Whedon's Commentary on the Bible34. In the candlestick — That is, in the main shaft of it. Four bowls — Four cups like those in each of the branches just described in Exodus 25:33. These, like those, were to have their knops and their flowers.
Read Daniel Denison Whedon on Exodus 25 →The verse in English, compared — 17 translations, and where they part company
Every translation on this page is a decision someone had to make and commit to. Read down a column and you see one translator's judgement; read across a row and you see the range the Greek actually allows. The BSB is the wording the rest of this page is measured against, so it is listed first.
Modern formal
And on the lampstand there shall be four cups shaped like almond blossoms with buds and petals.
and in the lamp stand four cups made like almond blossoms, its buds and its flowers;
And on the lampstand there shall be four cups shaped like almond blossoms with buds and petals.
On the lampstand there are to be four cups shaped like almond flowers with buds and blossoms,
Tyndale line
And in the candlestick shall be four bowls made like unto almonds, with their knops and their flowers.
and in the candlestick four cups made like almond-blossoms, the knops thereof, and the flowers thereof;
and in the candlestick four cups made like almond-blossoms, the knops thereof, and the flowers thereof:
And in the candlesticks shall be four bowls made like to almonds, with their knobs and their flowers.
And in the shaft of the Candlesticke shalbe foure boules like vnto almondes, his knops and his floures.
Strictly literal
And in the lamp-stand four cups shaped like almonds, its knobs and its flowers;
'And in the candlestick [are] four calyxes made like almonds, its knops and its flowers;
And in the lampstand [are] four calyxes made like almonds, its knobs and its flowers;
And on the candlestick itself shall be four bowls, almond-shaped, [with] its knobs and its flowers.
On the lampstand itself, the central shaft, there must be four cups made like almond blossoms, with their leafy bases and the flowers.
From the Latin
And in the candlestick itself shall be four cups in the manner of a nut, and at every one, bowls and lilies.
Simplified
On the main shaft of the lampstand make four cups shaped like almond flowers, complete with buds and petals.
And on the pillar, four cups like almond flowers, every one with its bud and its flower:
Counted from the translations carried on this site, not from a survey of every English Bible. A rendering shared by many versions is usually inherited rather than independently arrived at — the Tyndale line in particular runs through most of them.
The sentence as the grammar sees it — from the MACULA Hebrew treebank
This is not our own analysis: it is the scholarly syntax tree for the verse, showing how the clause actually holds together.
Boxes are the grammarian's groupings — clause, noun phrase, prepositional phrase.
The four witnesses to this verse — Masoretic, Septuagint, Samaritan, Qumran
The Masoretic Text aligns closely with the Septuagint, but the Samaritan Pentateuch differs by using the word מנורה instead of the Masoretic וּבַמְּנֹרָ֖ה. The Dead Sea Scrolls contain fragments that partially match the Masoretic Text, indicating some consistency across these ancient witnesses.
וּבַמְּנֹרָ֖ה אַרְבָּעָ֣ה גְבִעִ֑ים מְשֻׁקָּדִ֔ים כַּפְתֹּרֶ֖יהָ וּפְרָחֶֽיהָ׃
5 of the 6 words are matched. This is the word-by-word correspondence, not the Septuagint's own sentence — its word order and its articles are its own.
ובמנורה ארבעה גבעים משׁקדים כפתריה ופרחיה
1 word differs from the Masoretic Text: מנורה (lamp stand)
[ובמנורה] ארבעה [גבעים]
3 words of the verse are on this fragment — 1 partly restored, 2 supplied entire by an editor.
Four traditions, not one. “On the leather” means the letters physically survive on the scroll, as against letters an editor has supplied to fill a hole in it — a restoration is a scholar’s reading, not a reading of the manuscript. Words in [square brackets] are supplied; the notes count them apart from what survives.
The map of this verse — what each word keeps company with
This is a map of two things, both counted rather than judged. Company kept: which words stand within three words of each of these, anywhere in the Hebrew Bible — the thicker the line, the more often the pair meet compared with chance. Built from: the words a word is made out of, taken from its own Strong’s entry. It is not a map of meaning: nothing here claims two words mean the same thing. Click any circle to see the numbers behind it.
Lexicons — every word in Exodus 25:34
One dossier per word, with every reference work grouped by kind — Hebrew lexicons, morphology, Bible dictionaries, topical chains and the English of the translators themselves. The verse sits at the head of each block with the word under study lit, so you never lose your place. The panel above gives the short answer; this is the long one, and it is the part of the page worth indexing.
Every entry below is the lexicographer's own text. On the Hebrew: Brown-Driver-Briggs entire and its gloss set, Strong's Hebrew Dictionary, and Tyndale House's Translators Brief lexicon. Where a cell says a work has no entry, that work genuinely has none for this word.
מְנוֹרָה (mĕnôrâ) means 'lampstand' and refers specifically to a type of chandelier or candlestick. It is noted in the context of both private homes and the temple, particularly the seven-branched lampstand used in the tabernacle. The word is derived from a feminine form of another Hebrew word related to light.
מְנוֹרָה, מְנֹרָה 42 n.f. lampstand
in private house
ten lampstands in temple
seven-branched lampstand in tabern.
base
H4501 מְנוֹרָה, מְנֹרָה lampstand
4501 mnowrah men-o-raw'
or mnorah {men-o-raw'}; feminine of 4500 (in the original
sense of 5216); a chandelier:--candlestick.
see HEBREW for 04500
see HEBREW for 05216
מְנוֹרָה (me.no.rah) — lampstand.
lamp stand
Conj | Prep | N-fs — Conjunction · preposition · noun common feminine singular absoluteHC/Rd/Ncfsa
אַרְבַּע (arba) means 'four' in Hebrew. It is a masculine noun derived from the root associated with the number four. The entries consistently affirm this meaning without any significant disagreement among lexicons.
אַרְבַּע, אַרְבָּעָה four
base
H702 אַרְבַּע, אַרְבָּעָה four
702 'arba` ar-bah'
masculine oarbaah {ar-baw-aw'}; from 7251; four:--four.
see HEBREW for 07251
אַרְבַּע (ar.ba) — four.
four
Adj — AdjHAcbsa
for ('arba`; tessares): "Four" (cardinal number) was a sacred and complete number with the Hebrews, as well as with several other peoples. It occurs very frequently in the Old Testament and the New Testament.
(1) It indicates completeness. We have the four rivers of Paradise (Ge 2:10); the four winds of heaven (Eze 37:9; Da 7:2; 8:8; 11:4; Zec 6:5, the Revised Version, margin "spirits"; /APC 2Esdras 13:5); "the four winds" (Mt 24:31; Mr 13:27); "the four corners of the earth" (Isa 11:12;
גָּבִיעַ (gbiya`) refers to a cup or bowl, derived from an unused root meaning to be convex. It can also denote a goblet or, by analogy, the calyx of a flower. The entries consistently describe this word as related to vessels used for holding liquids.
גָּבִיעַ n.m. cup, bowl
base
H1375 גָּבִיעַ cup, bowl
1375 gbiya` gheb-ee'-ah
from an unused root (meaning to be convex); a goblet; by
analogy, the calyx of a flower:--house, cup, pot.
גָּבִיעַ (ge.vi.a) — cup.
cup, bowl
N-mp — Noun common · masculine plural absoluteHNcmpa
The Hebrew word שָׁקַד (*sha.qad*) is a denominative verb meaning to be almond-shaped or to make something almond-shaped. It specifically refers to cups shaped like almond blossoms, as noted in the Brown-Driver-Briggs entry. The word is derived from another Hebrew term related to almonds, but no specific Old Testament verses are cited in the entries.
שָׁקַד vb. Pu. denom. cups shaped like almond (blossoms)
base
H8246 שָׁקַד vb. Pu. denom. cups shaped like almond (blossoms)
8246 shaqad shaw-kad'
a denominative from 8247; to be (intensively, make)
almond-shaped:--make like (unto, after the fashion of)
almonds.
see HEBREW for 08247
שָׁקַד (sha.qad) — be almond shaped.
(Pual) cups shaped like almond blossoms (participle)
V-Pual-Inf-c — Verb · Pual · participle (active) masculine pluralHVPrmpa
כַּפְתּוֹר (kaphtor) refers to architectural elements, specifically a capital, which is the top part of a column, as well as a knob or bulb-like ornament. The word likely derives from a root meaning to encircle, and is used in contexts related to design and decoration, such as in the construction of a candelabrum.
כַּפְתּוֹר, כַּפְתֹּר n.m. 1. capital. 2. knob, bulb
base
H3730 כַּפְתּוֹר, כַּפְתֹּר 1. capital. 2. knob, bulb
3730 kaphtor kaf-tore'
or (Am. 9:1) kaphtowr {kaf-tore'}; probably from an unused
root meaning to encircle; a chaplet; but used only in an
architectonic sense, i.e. the capital of a column, or a
wreath-like button or disk on the candelabrum: knop, (upper)
lintel.
כַּפְתּוֹר (kaph.tor) — capital.
1) bulb, knob, capital, capital of a pillar
1a) knob, bulb (as ornament)
1b) capital (of a pillar)
N-mp | Suff — Noun common masculine plural construct · suffixHNcmpc/Sp3fs
פֶּ֫רַח (perach) refers to a bud or sprout, encompassing meanings such as bloom and flower. It is derived from a related term and is used in contexts related to natural growth. The entries consistently highlight its association with flowering and budding.
פֶּ֫רַח n.m. bud, sprout
base
H6525 פֶּ֫רַח bud, sprout
6525 perach peh'-rakh
from 6524; a calyx (natural or artificial); generally,
bloom:--blossom, bud, flower.
see HEBREW for 06524
פֶּ֫רַח (pe.rach) — flower.
bud, sprout
Conj | N-mp | Suff — Conjunction · noun common masculine plural construct · suffixHC/Ncmpc/Sp3fs