Lexical Summary
masos: Joy, gladness, exultation
Original Word:מָשׂוֹשׂ
Part of Speech:Noun Masculine
Transliteration:masows
Pronunciation:mah-SOCE
Phonetic Spelling:(maw-soce')
KJV: joy, mirth, rejoice
NASB:joy, gaiety, delight, exceedingly, gladness, joyful, rejoice
Word Origin:[fromH7797 (שׂוּשׂ שִׂישׂ - rejoice)]
1. delight
2. (concretely) the cause or object of delight
3. (abstractly) the feeling of delight
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
joy, mirth, rejoice
Fromsuws; delight, concretely (the cause or object) or abstractly (the feeling) -- joy, mirth, rejoice.
see HEBREWsuws
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Originfrom
susDefinitionexultation, rejoicing
NASB Translationdelight (1), exceedingly (1), gaiety (4), gladness (1), joy (7), joyful (1), rejoice (1), rejoices (1).
Brown-Driver-Briggs
:
Isaiah 24:8 id.; — absolute
Isaiah 32:13 +, construct
Job 8:19 +; suffix
Jeremiah 49:25,
Hosea 2:13; —
exultation, in General,
Lamentations 5:15 (opposed to ),
Isaiah 24:11;
Isaiah 66:10 (accusative of congnate meaning with verb); of bridegroom
Isaiah 62:5; ,
Isaiah 24:8,
Isaiah 24:8;
Isaiah 33:13; of Jerusalem (as causing joy)
Isaiah 60:15;
Psalm 48:3;
Lamentations 2:15, compare
Jeremiah 49:25 (; "" ),
Isaiah 65:18 ("" ); (of godless man)
Job 8:19;
Isaiah 32:14, i.e. desert. —
Isaiah 8:6, si vera lectio, is construct before preposition, but () , Hi Gie Che Du Kit Marti and others
see
Topical Lexicon
OverviewMasos signifies exuberant gladness that springs from covenant relationship. The term is used for the delight of a bridegroom, the festive atmosphere of Zion, the misplaced glee of idol-trusting nations, and the anticipated jubilation of the renewed Jerusalem. Its flow through narrative, poetry, and prophecy offers a canonical portrait of joy that is both present and eschatological, personal and communal.
Distribution of Occurrences
Seventeen appearances span eight books. One occurs in Wisdom literature (Job), one in Psalms, twelve in Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, and Ezekiel, and one each in Hosea and Job. The clustering in Isaiah (nine references) highlights its prophetic and eschatological thrust, while Job, Psalms, and Lamentations show that joy—or its loss—touches every era of redemptive history.
Zion: The Joy of All the Earth
Psalm 48:2 declares, “Beautiful in loftiness, the joy of all the earth, like the peaks of Zaphon is Mount Zion, the city of the great King.” Zion’s elevation is not merely geographic; it is theological—the place where God’s reign is celebrated.Lamentations 2:15 records the enemy’s derision when the city that once embodied masos lies in ruins. The contrast underscores that true joy is inseparable from the presence and favor of the Lord.
Misplaced or Forfeited Joy
Isaiah 8:6 exposes counterfeit exultation: the nation “rejoiced in Rezin and the son of Remaliah,” delighting in political alliances rather than in God.Isaiah 24 depicts the global unraveling of revelry under judgment: “All joy turns to gloom; rejoicing is exiled from the land” (Isaiah 24:11).Hosea 2:11 links the cessation of joy to idolatry—celebrations end because they had become divorced from covenant fidelity.
Joy Removed as Discipline
Ezekiel 24:25 foretells the day when Israel will lose “their joy and glory, the desire of their eyes and the delight of their hearts.”Lamentations 5:15 laments, “Joy has left our hearts; our dancing has turned to mourning.” These verses reveal that God may suspend outward joy to awaken inward repentance. The absence of masos is meant to drive hearts back to its Source.
Joy Restored in Prophetic Hope
Isaiah reverses the losses with lavish promises. InIsaiah 60:15 the once-despised city becomes “a joy from age to age.”Isaiah 62:5 pictures covenant renewal: “As a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so your God will rejoice over you.” The culmination appears inIsaiah 65:18: “I will create Jerusalem to be a joy and its people a delight.” The note of permanence—“forever”—roots masos in the coming new creation.
Marriage Imagery and Covenant Joy
Isaiah 62:5 pulls masos into the intimacy of wedding festivities, showing that covenant with God is not a contract but a celebration. The bridegroom metaphor anticipates New Testament fulfillment in Christ’s union with the Church (Ephesians 5:25–32;Revelation 19:7).
Wisdom Perspective
Job 8:19 uses masos proverbially: “Surely this is the joy of His way, and out of the soil others will spring.” Bildad argues that the wicked may bloom briefly, but their joy is fleeting. The verse serves as a sobering reminder that authentic gladness must be rooted in righteousness.
Contrast with Other Joy Terms
While simchah often describes general happiness and gîl denotes jubilant spinning, masos emphasizes a settled delight grounded in what God Himself esteems—His city, His covenant, and His redemptive purposes. The term thereby conveys depth and permanence beyond momentary elation.
Theological Insights
1. Joy is covenantal: It flourishes where God’s presence is treasured (Psalm 48;Isaiah 62).
2. Joy is moral: Misplaced delight invites judgment (Isaiah 8;Hosea 2).
3. Joy is eschatological: Future Zion will be an everlasting joy (Isaiah 65:18).
4. Joy is communal: It involves the land, the city, and the people (Isaiah 60:15).
Ministry Applications
• Worship: Anchor public praise in the redemptive realities that produce enduring joy, rather than in transient emotions.
• Discipleship: Teach believers to discern between fleeting pleasures and covenantal delight.
• Counseling: Use passages of lost joy (Lamentations 5:15) to show that lament is legitimate and can lead to restored gladness.
• Missions: Point to Zion’s destiny as the “joy of all the earth” (Psalm 48:2) to underscore God’s global purpose for salvation.
Forms and Transliterations
וּמְשׂ֤וֹשׂ וּמְשׂ֥וֹשׂ ומשוש מְשׂ֖וֹשׂ מְשׂ֣וֹשׂ מְשׂ֥וֹשׂ מְשׂ֪וֹשׂ מְשׂוֹשִֽׂי׃ מְשׂוֹשָׂ֔הּ מָשֽׂוֹשׂ׃ מָשׂ֔וֹשׂ מָשׂ֖וֹשׂ משוש משוש׃ משושה משושי׃ mā·śō·wś maSos māśōwś mə·śō·w·śāh mə·śō·w·śî mə·śō·wś meSos mesoSah mesoSi məśōwś məśōwśāh məśōwśî ū·mə·śō·wś umeSos ūməśōwś
Links
Interlinear Greek •
Interlinear Hebrew •
Strong's Numbers •
Englishman's Greek Concordance •
Englishman's Hebrew Concordance •
Parallel Texts
