מוֹעֵצָה
mo.e.tsah
counsel
Lexicon Entry
Lexicon data from STEPBible TIPNR, Tyndale House, Cambridge. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
What Original Readers Understood
Supported# מוֹעֵצָה (Mo'etsah): Counsel in Ancient Hebrew The Hebrew word מוֹעֵצָה (mo'etsah) denotes "counsel"—a term referring to advice, deliberation, or the act of giving guidance. With seven biblical occurrences, this word appears with modest but meaningful frequency in the Hebrew scriptures. Its presence across these passages suggests it held significance in depicting moments when wisdom or strategic direction was sought or offered. The limited corpus of seven uses indicates that mo'etsah functioned as one among several Hebrew terms for counsel and advice. While the lexicon data provided does not specify the exact contexts of each occurrence, the consistency of translation as "counsel" suggests the word maintained a stable semantic range throughout its biblical usage. This stands in contrast to other cognate terms that might emphasize different aspects of advice-giving, such as the formal structure of a council or the inherent wisdom of advice itself. Without access to the specific biblical passages, it is not possible to determine whether mo'etsah appears in political, military, legal, or wisdom contexts, or whether it carries particular theological weight in any section of scripture. The word's modest frequency and straightforward definition suggest it served as a reliable term for conveying the concept of counsel when biblical authors needed that particular vocabulary choice.
Source data & methodology
Occurrences in Scripture
7 total occurrences across the text
Hold them guilty, God. Let them fall by their own counsels. Thrust them out in the multitude of their transgressions, for they have rebelled against you.
Psalms 81:12So I let them go after the stubbornness of their hearts, that they might walk in their own counsels.
Proverbs 1:31Therefore they will eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own schemes.
Proverbs 22:20Haven’t I written to you thirty excellent things of counsel and knowledge,
Jeremiah 7:24But they didn’t listen or turn their ear, but walked in their own counsels and in the stubbornness of their evil heart, and went backward, and not forward.
Hosea 11:6The sword will fall on their cities, and will destroy the bars of their gates, and will put an end to their plans.
Micah 6:16For the statutes of Omri are kept, and all the works of Ahab’s house. You walk in their counsels, that I may make you a ruin, and her inhabitants a hissing; And you will bear the reproach of my people.”