Lexical Summary
shagah: To err, to go astray, to wander, to sin unintentionally
Original Word:שָׁגָה
Part of Speech:Verb
Transliteration:shagah
Pronunciation:shah-GAH
Phonetic Spelling:(shaw-gaw')
KJV: (cause to) go astray, deceive, err, be ravished, sin through ignorance, (let, make to) wander
NASB:reel, wander, erred, exhilarated, commits error, committed a error, go astray
Word Origin:[a primitive root]
1. to stray (causatively, mislead), usually (figuratively) to mistake, especially (morally) to transgress
2. by extension (through the idea of intoxication) to reel, (figuratively) be enraptured
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
cause to go astray, deceive, err, be ravished, sin through ignorance, make to wander
A primitive root; to stray (causatively, mislead), usually (figuratively) to mistake, especially (morally) to transgress; by extension (through the idea of intoxication) to reel, (figuratively) be enraptured -- (cause to) go astray, deceive, err, be ravished, sin through ignorance, (let, make to) wander.
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origina prim. root
Definitionto go astray, err
NASB Translationcommits error (1), committed a error (1), erred (2), exhilarated (2), go astray (1), goes astray (1), intoxicated (1), leads the astray (1), misleader (1), misleads (1), reel (3), stray (1), unwittingly (1), wander (3), wandered (1).
Brown-Driver-Briggs
[] (Aramaic ,
id.); —
Perfect1singularJob 6:24;Job 19:4, etc.;Imperfect3masculine singularProverbs 5:23, etc.;Infinitive constructProverbs 19:27;ParticipleEzekiel 45:20;Proverbs 20:1, etc.; —
err, stray, of flockEzekiel 34:6 (figurative).
swerve, meander, reel orroll, in drunkenness, of drinkIsaiah 28:7 (twice in verse); =be intoxicated,Proverbs 20:1; so with () loveProverbs 5:19,20;Isaiah 28:7.
go astay, morally,1 Samuel 26:21;Proverbs 5:23;Job 6:24;Job 19:4, +1 Samuel 14:24 (reading ) Th We Dr Now (after ; otherwise Bu HPS); with , of s commandsPsalm 119:21;Psalm 119:118, of words of knowledgeProverbs 19:27.
specificallycommit sin of ignorance, inadvertenceLeviticus 4:13;Numbers 15:22 (P)Ezekiel 45:20 (compare ).
lead astray:
literal,ParticipleDeuteronomy 27:18 ().
mentally =misleadJob 12:16.
,ParticipleProverbs 28:10 ();Imperfect2masculine singular suffix , with of God's commandsPsalm 119:10; + perhapsJob 12:23leadeth nationsastray ( SvrVer, i.e. for ).
Topical Lexicon
OverviewShāgāh portrays the movement of a person, community, or leader off the path of covenant obedience—sometimes through ignorance, sometimes through conscious folly, sometimes under the clouding influence of wine or lust. The term is never a mere misstep; it signals moral and spiritual deviation that calls for correction, atonement, and shepherding restoration.
Unintentional Sin and Sacrificial Provision
Leviticus 4:13 andNumbers 15:22–29 legislate sacrifices “if the whole congregation of Israel strays unintentionally.” Here shāgāh highlights human fallibility even among God’s people. The remedy is blood atonement, underscoring that ignorance does not cancel guilt and foreshadowing Christ’s once-for-all sacrifice for sins “committed in ignorance” (compareHebrews 9:7, 28).Ezekiel 45:20 keeps the same pattern for the millennial temple: the need for cleansing remains until final redemption.
Moral Deviation and Covenant Faithfulness
Psalm 119 repeatedly couples shāgāh with God’s Torah:
• “With all my heart I have sought You; do not let me stray from Your commandments.” (Psalm 119:10)
• “You rebuke the arrogant—the cursed—who stray from Your commandments.” (Psalm 119:21)
• “You reject all who stray from Your statutes.” (Psalm 119:118)
The psalmist pleads for divine keeping because to wander from Scripture is to invite judgment. God’s word is the straight path; shāgāh is every detour.
Intoxication and Impaired Judgment
Proverbs 20:1 warns, “Wine is a mocker, strong drink is a brawler, and whoever is led astray by them is not wise.”Isaiah 28:7 applies the same verb three times to priests and prophets whose drinking ruins both vision and verdict. Physical drunkenness becomes a picture of spiritual stupor; leadership clouded by shāgāh endangers the whole community.
Seduction and Sexual Infidelity
Proverbs 5 employs shāgāh positively—“may you be captivated by her love” (Proverbs 5:19)—and negatively—“Why be captivated, my son, by an adulteress?” (Proverbs 5:20). What should intoxicate a husband is covenant love with his wife; to wander outside that bond is self-destructive folly (Proverbs 5:23).
Leading Others Astray
Deuteronomy 27:18 pronounces a curse on anyone who “leads a blind man astray on the road.”Proverbs 28:10 echoes, “He who leads the upright along the path of evil will fall into his own pit.” The principle is consistent: misleading another multiplies guilt. In1 Samuel 26:21 Saul confesses, “I have acted foolishly and erred greatly,” acknowledging that his persecution of David had become a national snare.
Wisdom Literature: Personal Responsibility
Job pleads, “Teach me… help me understand how I have erred” (Job 6:24), and admits, “Even if I have truly gone astray, my error concerns me alone” (Job 19:4). Shāgāh in Job underscores accountability and the need for truthful counsel so the sufferer does not compound pain with sin.
Sheep Imagery and Divine Restoration
“My flock went astray on all the mountains” (Ezekiel 34:6). The shepherd-king promises to seek and rescue the wandering sheep, anticipating Jesus’ declaration, “The Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” The motif culminates in the parable of the one lost sheep (Luke 15), though the verb changes languages; the theology remains: shāgāh invites shepherding grace.
Historical and Prophetic Significance
Shāgāh tracks Israel’s story—from wilderness legislation to prophetic indictment. Its presence in priestly law, wisdom sayings, royal narrative, and prophetic oracle testifies to Scripture’s unified witness: sin—whether careless or defiant—requires atonement, wisdom, and often discipline. Yet the same passages disclose God’s resolve to reclaim His people.
Ministry Implications
1. Preach the gravity of “small” deviations; ignorance does not equal innocence.
2. Offer the sufficiency of Christ’s atonement for every wanderer.
3. Guard personal sobriety—literal and figurative—so that leadership judgment is clear.
4. Shepherd straying believers with Ezekiel-like zeal, mirroring the Good Shepherd.
5. Cultivate marital faithfulness that “captivates” rightly, preventing captivity to sin.
Summary
Whether depicting an errant nation, a wandering sheep, a lustful heart, or a drunken prophet, shāgāh lays bare humanity’s propensity to drift from God and His word. Scripture answers with sacrificial provision, wise instruction, prophetic rebuke, and shepherding love—each strand converging in the redemptive work of Jesus Christ, who turns every honest confession of “I have erred” into a restored walk on the narrow way.
Forms and Transliterations
גיתי הַ֝שֹּׁגִים השגים וָאֶשְׁגֶּ֖ה וּמַשְׁגֶּֽה׃ ואשגה ומשגה׃ יִשְׁגֶּֽה׃ יִשְׁגּ֔וּ יִשְׁגּ֤וּ ישגה׃ ישגו לִ֝שְׁג֗וֹת לשגות מַשְׁגֶּ֤ה מַשְׁגֶּ֥ה משגה שָּׁ֝גִ֗יתִי שָׁג֔וּ שָׁג֨וּ שָׁגִ֑יתִי שָׁגוּ֙ שֹׁ֥גֶה שֹׁגֶ֖ה שׁוֹגִ֣ים שגה שגו שגיתי שוגים תִּשְׁגֶּ֥ה תִשְׁגֶּ֣ה תִשְׁגּ֔וּ תַּ֝שְׁגֵּ֗נִי תשגה תשגו תשגני ḡî·ṯî Giti ḡîṯî haš·šō·ḡîm Hashshogim haššōḡîm liš·ḡō·wṯ lišḡōwṯ lishGot maš·geh mašgeh mashGeh šā·ḡî·ṯî šā·ḡū šāḡîṯî šāḡū shaGiti shaGu Shogeh shoGim šō·ḡeh šō·w·ḡîm šōḡeh šōwḡîm taš·gê·nî tašgênî tashGeni tiš·geh ṯiš·geh ṯiš·gū tišgeh ṯišgeh ṯišgū tishGeh tishGu ū·maš·geh ūmašgeh umashGeh vaeshGeh wā’ešgeh wā·’eš·geh yiš·geh yiš·gū yišgeh yišgū yishGeh yishGu
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