Lexical Summary
uts: To counsel, advise, plan
Original Word:אוּץ
Part of Speech:Verb
Transliteration:uwts
Pronunciation:oots
Phonetic Spelling:(oots)
KJV: (make) haste(-n, -y), labor, be narrow
NASB:hasty, hasten, hurried, hurries, makes haste, narrow, pressed
Word Origin:[a primitive root]
1. to press
2. (by implication) to be close, hurry, withdraw
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
make hasten labor, be narrow
A primitive root; to press; (by implication) to be close, hurry, withdraw -- (make) haste(-n, -y), labor, be narrow.
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origina prim. root
Definitionto press, be pressed, make haste
NASB Translationhasten (1), hasty (2), hurried (1), hurries (1), makes haste (1), narrow (1), pressed (1), try (1), urged (1).
Brown-Driver-Briggs
[] —
PerfectJoshua 10:13;Joshua 17:15;Jeremiah 17:16ParticipleProverbs 19:2 3t. Proverbs;Exodus 5:13; —
press, hasten (transitive but object not expressed)Exodus 5:13 (E).
(intransitive)be pressed, confined, narrowJoshua 17:15 .
hasten, make haste, followed by + InfinitiveJoshua 10:13 (J, of sun);Proverbs 28:20 ; followed byJeremiah 17:16 ; followed by (of particular in which one hastens)Proverbs 19:2 ();Proverbs 29:20 (); compare alsoProverbs 21:5 .
ImperfectGenesis 19:15;Isaiah 22:4 —hasten (transitive) followed byGenesis 19:15 (J); followed by + InfinitiveIsaiah 22:4. (May be Qal Imperfect, & verb.)
Topical Lexicon
Overviewאוּץ portrays both literal speed and figurative impulsiveness. When someone אוּץ in Scripture, action is driven forward—sometimes in obedience to divine warning, at other times in reckless self-interest. The verb therefore acts as a literary signal for urgency, compulsion, or impatience, and the surrounding context usually clarifies whether that urgency is wise or foolish.
Narrative occurrences
•Genesis 19:15 presents the most vivid life-and-death instance. “At dawn the angels hurried Lot, saying, ‘Up! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or you will be swept away…’ ”. The haste is gracious: God hastens the righteous out of judgment.
•Exodus 5:13 shows Pharaoh’s taskmasters “pressing” Israel to labor harder. Human tyranny weaponizes haste, contrasting sharply with the redemptive urgency ofGenesis 19.
•Joshua 10:13 records that “the sun… hastened not to set for about a whole day.” Here אוּץ is negated; creation itself slows its normal pace so that Israel may finish the divine battle. God can either accelerate or restrain time according to covenant purposes.
•Joshua 17:15 recounts Joshua’s charge to the tribes of Joseph to “go up to the forest and clear ground for yourselves.” They are told to act quickly rather than complain, emphasizing responsibility over entitlement.
Wisdom literature
Proverbs concentrates almost half of the occurrences, using אוּץ to warn against precipitous choices:
–Proverbs 19:2: “He who hurries his footsteps misses the mark.”
–Proverbs 21:5: “Everyone who is hasty comes surely to poverty.”
–Proverbs 28:20: “He who hastens to be rich will not go unpunished.”
–Proverbs 29:20: “Do you see a man who speaks in haste? There is more hope for a fool than for him.”
In each case haste is condemned when it bypasses knowledge, diligence, faithfulness, or careful speech. The underlying theology affirms that God’s created order rewards steady obedience but exposes impulsive self-promotion.
Prophetic usage
Isaiah 22:4 andJeremiah 17:16 employ אוּץ negatively but with subtle distinctions: Isaiah weeps over Zion’s impending judgment and refuses to be “hurried” into superficial consolation; Jeremiah protests that he has not “hurried away” from shepherding duty despite looming disaster. Both prophets reject escapist haste and instead embrace patient faithfulness amid crisis.
Themes and theological trajectory
1. Redemptive urgency versus oppressive haste: The verb can serve either salvation (Genesis 19) or slavery (Exodus 5), depending on who initiates it.
2. Dominion over time:Joshua 10 highlights God’s sovereignty to suspend or speed events, teaching that time itself submits to covenantal purposes.
3. Moral discernment: Wisdom literature transforms אוּץ into a diagnostic term. Hasty decisions reveal misplaced trust—whether in quick profit, impulsive words, or zeal divorced from knowledge.
4. Prophetic steadfastness: True servants do not flee their calling. Jeremiah’s refusal to אוּץ away models pastoral endurance in the face of opposition.
Ministry implications
• Urgency is commendable when it aligns with divine revelation (e.g., fleeing judgment or seizing missionary opportunities) but destructive when motivated by fear, greed, or impatience.
• Leaders must distinguish between God-given immediacy and flesh-driven impulsiveness; the former rescues, the latter enslaves.
• Congregational teaching on stewardship of time should draw on Proverbs’ repeated linkage between haste and poverty—material, relational, and spiritual.
• Pastoral counseling can applyJeremiah 17:16 by encouraging perseverance rather than flight when ministry becomes difficult.
• In evangelism, Lot’s rescue illustrates compassionate haste: missionaries “urge” hearers toward salvation without manipulation, trusting God to command the timetable.
Summary
אוּץ is a concise Hebrew reminder that speed is morally ambivalent. The same verb that rushes Lot to safety can rush a fool to ruin. Scripture therefore invites believers to calibrate their pace to God’s timing—swift in obedience, slow in presumption, and unyielding in faithfulness.
Forms and Transliterations
אַ֣צְתִּי ׀ אָ֝֗ץ אָ֣ץ אָ֥ץ אָצִ֣ים אץ אצים אצתי וְאָ֖ץ וְאָ֥ץ וַיָּאִ֥יצוּ ואץ ויאיצו תָּאִ֣יצוּ תאיצו ’ā·ṣîm ’āṣ ’aṣ·tî ’āṣîm ’aṣtî atz aTzim Atzti tā’îṣū tā·’î·ṣū taItzu vaiyaItzu veAtz way·yā·’î·ṣū wayyā’îṣū wə’āṣ wə·’āṣ
Links
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Englishman's Greek Concordance •
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