Lexical Summary
tsuwr: To bind, besiege, confine, cramp
Original Word:צוּר
Part of Speech:Verb
Transliteration:tsuwr
Pronunciation:tsoor
Phonetic Spelling:(tsoor)
KJV: adversary, assault, beset, besiege, bind (up), cast, distress, fashion, fortify, inclose, lay siege, put up in bags
Word Origin:[a primitive root]
1. to cramp, i.e. confine (in many applications, literally and figuratively, formative or hostile)
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
adversary, assault, beset, besiege, bind up, cast, distress, fashion,
A primitive root; to cramp, i.e. Confine (in many applications, literally and figuratively, formative or hostile) -- adversary, assault, beset, besiege, bind (up), cast, distress, fashion, fortify, inclose, lay siege, put up in bags.
Brown-Driver-Briggs
II. (Late Hebrew
id., wrap (rare); Aramaic
besiege, beleaguer); —Perfect2masculine singularDeuteronomy 14:25, etc.;Imperfect3masculine singular1 Kings 20:1 +, 2 masculine singularDeuteronomy 20:19, etc.;Imperative feminine singularIsaiah 21:2 (after Köi. 444, compare Ges§ 72s
);
Infinitive construct1 Samuel 23:8;
Participle plural
1 Kings 15:27 +; —
confine, secure ("" I. ), accusative of thing + of receptacleDeuteronomy 14:25;2 Kings 5:23;Ezekiel 5:3; complem. omitted2 Kings 12:11.
shut in, besiege, with of city2 Samuel 11:1;1 Kings 15:27;1 Kings 16:17;1 Kings 20:1;2 Kings 6:24,25;2 Kings 17:5;2 Kings 18:9;2 Kings 24:11;Isaiah 29:3 (+ accusative of siege-works),Jeremiah 32:2;Jeremiah 37:5;Jeremiah 39:9;Deuteronomy 20:12;Ezekiel 4:3;Daniel 1:1; with person (within city)2 Samuel 20:15;2 Kings 16:5;Jeremiah 21:4,9; with of city (for )Deuteronomy 20:19; with person1 Samuel 23:8; with of city only1 Chronicles 20:1 (""2 Samuel 11:1 above); absoluteIsaiah 21:2. —Judges 9:31 is corrupt; FrankenbRichterbuch 28 Bu GFMHpt Nowinciting against.
shut up, enclose:Songs 8:9 ( of maid [under figure of door] + accusative mater., compareIsaiah 29:3 above); with suffix personPsalm 139:5 (figurative, subject).
III. [] (with accusative of person) (akin to II. , to which SS assign the forms, but compare Arabic
act unjustly, alsodefraud; Syriac
,rival wife); —
Perfect1singularExodus 23:22 (subject ; "" );Imperfect2masculine singularDeuteronomy 2:9; 2masculine plural suffixDeuteronomy 2:19;ParticipleEsther 8:11.
IV. [] (Late Hebrewid.; so Aramaic ,
,
;
picture, Sabean , plural HomChrest.125 MordtmHim. Inschr. 14.15; Arabic
is loan-word according to Frä272); —Perfect2masculine singularEzekiel 43:11 (for ) according to . We Sm Co Toy Berthol Krae,and thou shalt delineate the house (compareEzekiel 43:10,Ezekiel 43:11);Imperfect3masculine singularExodus 32:4 (E)and fashioned it [the gold]with a graving-tool;1 Kings 7:15 (+ accusative mater.), read , so SS Kit Benz compare Th; 1 singular suffixJeremiah 1:5 Kt, see
Topical Lexicon
OverviewThe verb צוּר (Strong’s 6696) portrays the purposeful act of hemming in—whether by an enemy army, by difficult circumstances, or by the Lord Himself. Its roughly thirty-six occurrences fall largely into military narratives, covenant warnings, wisdom reflections, and prophetic oracles. The word’s range moves from hostile siege to benevolent encirclement, revealing the Lord’s sovereign control of both judgment and protection.
Israelite Siege Warfare and Covenant Ethics
Deuteronomy 20:19–20 introduces Israel to the ethics of siege: fruit trees must not be destroyed, but non-fruit trees may be used for siege works. The legislation assumes that Israel will at times surround hostile cities, yet it tempers military necessity with reverence for God’s bounty. Later, the covenant curses warn that if Israel turns from the Lord, foreign powers will do the same to her: “They will besiege all the cities throughout the land that the LORD your God has given you” (Deuteronomy 28:52). Thus siege becomes a measurable index of covenant fidelity or violation.
Narratives of National Crisis
1. Joab “besieged Rabbah” on David’s behalf (2 Samuel 11:1), demonstrating how siege warfare marked royal power.
2. The Arameans surrounded Samaria and provoked famine so severe that “a donkey’s head sold for eighty shekels of silver” (2 Kings 6:24–25).
3. The Assyrian king “marched against Samaria and besieged it for three years” (2 Kings 17:5), culminating in the Northern Kingdom’s fall.
4. Babylon’s final encirclement of Jerusalem (2 Kings 25:2;2 Chronicles 32:10) realized the Deuteronomic curse and ushered in exile.
These accounts underline the historical reality of siege in the Ancient Near East while affirming prophetic warnings that unfaithfulness would invite divine discipline through foreign armies.
Wisdom and Poetic Reflections
Job translates military pressure into personal anguish: “Know then that God has wronged me and drawn His net around me” (Job 19:6). Yet the same verb can describe comforting enclosure: “You hem me in behind and before” (Psalm 139:5). InLamentations 3:5 Jeremiah laments, “He has besieged me and surrounded me with bitterness and hardship,” voicing the nation’s collective sorrow. The contrasting uses show how the experience of being ‘surrounded’ can signal either overwhelming distress or intimate security, depending on one’s relationship with the Lord.
Prophetic Oracles of Judgment and Hope
Isaiah 29:3 speaks of God Himself laying siege to Ariel: “I will camp against you on all sides; I will besiege you with towers.” YetZechariah 9:8 reverses the image: “I will camp around My house because of an army… never again will an oppressor overrun them.” The same verb that once announced judgment becomes a pledge of protection, foreshadowing ultimate deliverance.
Theological Themes
1. Sovereign control: God employs siege to discipline or to shelter, demonstrating mastery over human warfare.
2. Covenant accountability: Siege fulfills covenant blessings or curses, linking military events to spiritual realities.
3. Protective encirclement: For the faithful, being ‘hemmed in’ signifies safety within God’s providence.
4. Eschatological preview: The transition from judgment to protection anticipates the consummate security of God’s people in the Messianic age.
Ministry Application
• Pastoral Counsel: When believers feel confined by trials,Psalm 139:5 invites them to interpret the “hemming in” as God’s purposeful care rather than mere limitation.
• Intercession for Nations: Biblical sieges warn modern societies that persistent rebellion invites divine discipline; prayer should therefore combine repentance with appeal for mercy.
• Spiritual Warfare: Christians may build “siege works” of prayer and Scripture against strongholds of sin (cf.2 Corinthians 10:4), appropriating the constructive use of the verb.
• Hope in Christ: Just as Zechariah foresaw God’s encampment around His house, believers rest in the risen Christ who “will never leave you nor forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5), the ultimate assurance that no hostile encirclement can prevail.
Representative Occurrences
Deuteronomy 20:19–20; 28:52–57
2 Samuel 11:1;2 Samuel 24:16
1 Chronicles 20:1
2 Kings 6:24–25; 17:5; 18:9; 25:2
Psalm 139:5
Job 19:6–8
Isaiah 29:3
Lamentations 3:5
Zechariah 9:8
Summary
Strong’s Hebrew 6696 presents siege not merely as an ancient military tactic but as a theological instrument revealing the Lord’s righteous judgment, protective care, and redemptive purpose. Whether depicting armies at city walls or God’s hand surrounding His own, the verb summons every generation to covenant faithfulness and confident trust in the One who alone controls the boundaries of distress and deliverance.
Forms and Transliterations
הַצָּרִ֣ים הַצָּרִ֤ים הַצָּרִ֥ים הצרים וְצַרְתִּ֖י וְצַרְתִּ֤י וְצַרְתָּ֖ וְצַרְתָּ֣ וְצַרְתָּ֥ וַיָּ֖צַר וַיָּ֙צַר֙ וַיָּ֛צַר וַיָּ֣צַר וַיָּ֥צַר וַיָּצֻ֖רוּ וַיָּצֻ֙רוּ֙ וַיָּצֻ֣רוּ ויצר ויצרו וצרת וצרתי יָֽצַר־ יצר־ לָצ֥וּר לצור נָצ֥וּר נצור צַרְתָּ֑נִי צָרִ֖ים צָרִ֣ים צָרִ֥ים צוּרִ֣י צורי צרים צרתני תְּצֻרֵ֖ם תָּ֙צַר֙ תָצ֣וּר תצור תצר תצרם haṣ·ṣā·rîm haṣṣārîm hatztzaRim lā·ṣūr lāṣūr laTzur nā·ṣūr nāṣūr naTzur ṣā·rîm ṣar·tā·nî ṣārîm ṣartānî ṣū·rî ṣūrî tā·ṣar ṯā·ṣūr tāṣar ṯāṣūr tatzar taTzur tə·ṣu·rêm təṣurêm tetzuRem tzaRim tzarTani tzuRi vaiYatzar vaiyaTzuru vetzarTa vetzarTi way·yā·ṣar way·yā·ṣu·rū wayyāṣar wayyāṣurū wə·ṣar·tā wə·ṣar·tî wəṣartā wəṣartî yā·ṣar- yāṣar- yatzar
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