What does מַטֶּה · אֱלֹהִים mean in the Bible?
מַטֶּה · אֱלֹהִים is a Hebrew phrase meaning "staff of God".
Hebrew · H4294, H430
מַטֵּה הָאֱלֹהִים
A branch (as extending ); figuratively, a tribe ; also a rod , whether for chastising (figuratively, correction ), ruling (a sceptre ), throwing (a lance ), or walking (a staff ; figuratively, a support of life, e.g. bread) · gods in the ordinary sense; but specifically used (in the plural thus, especially with the article) of the supreme God ; occasionally applied by way of deference to magistrates ; and sometimes as a superlative
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Words in this compound — expand to study each participant
מַטֶּה H4294 a branch (as extending ); figuratively, a tribe ; also a rod , whether for chastising (figuratively, correction ), ruling (a sceptre ), throwing (a lance ), or walking (a staff ; figuratively, a support of life, e.g. bread)
Pronunciation maṭeh
Branch extending into rod: physical support becomes symbol of authority, correction, and tribal identity.
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אֱלֹהִים H430 gods in the ordinary sense; but specifically used (in the plural thus, especially with the article) of the supreme God ; occasionally applied by way of deference to magistrates ; and sometimes as a superlative
Pronunciation ʾĕlōhiym
Plural form persistently denotes the singular God of Israel; signals transcendent power and authority in every application.
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What does מַטֵּה הָאֱלֹהִים (matteh ha'elohim) mean in the Bible?
מַטֶּה · אֱלֹהִים is a Hebrew phrase meaning "staff of God".
Full entry for מַטֵּה הָאֱלֹהִים (H4294, H430) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How many biblical occurrences are listed for H4294, H430?
H4294, H430 is connected to 2,852 lexical occurrence verses in the lexicon data.
Evidence Summary
Hebrew phrase. staff of God
Strong's H4294, H430
Lexical occurrences 2,852 verses Source Gloss
staff of God
Grammatical Forms
How this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.
Word Origins
מַטֵּה הָאֱלֹהִים is built from this root:
Sources
MorphGNT Strong's Dictionary XML — CC0 1.0 Public Domain
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible (morphhb/OSHB) — CC BY 4.0
Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon — CC BY 4.0
Berean Standard Bible (BSB) source-word alignment - CC0 Public Domain