טָבַע
ta.va
to sink
Lexicon Entry
Lexicon data from STEPBible TIPNR, Tyndale House, Cambridge. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
What Original Readers Understood
ExploredThe Hebrew word "טָבַע" (ta.va) with Strong's number H2883 means "to sink". This verb is used 10 times in the Bible, indicating its significance in various contexts. When "טָבַע" is used, it often refers to the act of sinking into a liquid, such as water, or a physical descent into a lower position. The range of usage for "טָבַע" is quite broad, encompassing descriptions of natural phenomena, human actions, and even spiritual states. For example, it can describe a ship sinking into the sea or a person falling into a pit. This verb's versatility highlights its importance in conveying the idea of downward movement or immersion. The significance of "טָבַע" lies in its ability to convey a sense of loss of control, stability, or security. When something or someone sinks, it often implies a loss of balance or a descent into chaos. This verb's usage in the Bible may suggest that it is not just a physical action, but also a metaphor for the human experience of uncertainty, vulnerability, and the unknown.
Source data & methodology
Occurrences in Scripture
10 total occurrences across the text
What were its foundations fastened on? Or who laid its cornerstone,
Psalms 9:15The nations have sunk down in the pit that they made. In the net which they hid, their own foot is taken.
Psalms 69:2I sink in deep mire, where there is no foothold. I have come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me.
Psalms 69:14Deliver me out of the mire, and don’t let me sink. Let me be delivered from those who hate me, and out of the deep waters.
Proverbs 8:25Before the mountains were settled in place, before the hills, I was born;
Jeremiah 38:6Then they took Jeremiah and threw him into the dungeon of Malchijah the king’s son, that was in the court of the guard. They let down Jeremiah with cords. In the dungeon there was no water, but mire; and Jeremiah sank in the mire.
Jeremiah 38:22‘Behold, all the women who are left in the king of Judah’s house will be brought out to the king of Babylon’s princes, and those women will say, “Your familiar friends have turned on you, and have prevailed over you. Your feet are sunk in the mire, they have turned away from you.”
Lamentations 2:9Her gates have sunk into the ground. He has destroyed and broken her bars. Her king and her princes are among the nations where the law is not. Yes, her prophets find no vision from Yahweh.
Exodus 15:4He has cast Pharaoh’s chariots and his army into the sea. His chosen captains are sunk in the Red Sea.
1 Samuel 17:49David put his hand in his bag, took a stone, and slung it, and struck the Philistine in his forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on his face to the earth.