What does סָמַךְ · נֶפֶשׁ mean in the Bible?
סָמַךְ · נֶפֶשׁ is a Hebrew phrase meaning "among the upholders of my life".
Hebrew · H5564, H5315
בְּסֹמְכֵי נַפְשִׁי
To prop (literally or figuratively); reflexively, to lean upon or take hold of (in a favorable or unfavorable sense) · properly, a breathing creature , i.e. animal of (abstractly) vitality ; used very widely in a literal, accommodated or figurative sense (bodily or mental)
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What this page is: Each lexicon entry shows the original Hebrew or Greek word behind the English translation: its meaning, its range of use, and where it appears in Scripture.
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Where it appears: The witness passages show where this word is used in context. Click any to open the study page for that passage.
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Words in this compound — expand to study each participant
סָמַךְ H5564 to prop (literally or figuratively); reflexively, to lean upon or take hold of (in a favorable or unfavorable sense)
Pronunciation sômēḵ
Physical support becomes relational dependence—leaning on God signals covenant trust; leaning wrongly signals faithlessness.
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נֶפֶשׁ H5315 properly, a breathing creature , i.e. animal of (abstractly) vitality ; used very widely in a literal, accommodated or figurative sense (bodily or mental)
Pronunciation nafsho
Vitality or lifeforce of a creature; ranges from physical breath to desire, appetite, and personal identity or selfhood.
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What does בְּסֹמְכֵי נַפְשִׁי (besomkhei nafshi) mean in the Bible?
סָמַךְ · נֶפֶשׁ is a Hebrew phrase meaning "among the upholders of my life".
Full entry for בְּסֹמְכֵי נַפְשִׁי (H5564, H5315) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How many biblical occurrences are listed for H5564, H5315?
H5564, H5315 is connected to 805 lexical occurrence verses in the lexicon data.
Evidence Summary
Hebrew phrase. among the upholders of my life
Source Gloss
among the upholders of my life
Grammatical Forms
How the stem changes the meaning of this verb across the biblical text.
This verb appears through different tense, voice, mood, or stem patterns. Those forms help readers see how the action is presented in context.
Form groups 2 Aligned forms 15
Qal basic active stem — the word in its most common, direct sense 11×
Participle active Ezek 30:6 · Isa 63:5 · Ps 37:24 · Ps 145:14 4×
Participle passive Isa 26:3 · Ps 111:8 · Ps 112:8 3×
Perfect Deut 34:9 · Ezek 24:2 · Ps 88:8 3×
Imperfect Num 8:12 1×
Niphal passive or reflexive — the subject receives or experiences the action 4×
Imperfect 2Kgs 18:21 · Isa 36:6 2×
Perfect Isa 48:2 · Ps 71:6 2×
Word Origins
בְּסֹמְכֵי נַפְשִׁי is a primitive root - no further derivation.
Cross-Language Connections
Greek words that correspond to or develop the meaning of this Hebrew word in the New Testament.
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