--- title: מִשְׁפָּחָה — clan · The Tanakh dictionary description: מִשְׁפָּחָה (4940), a word of Biblical Hebrew, used 303 times: clan. BDB 1906: n.f.clan. With 2 verses in Hebrew, word for word and JPS 1917. --- [Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/tanakh/w/4940.html) [home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [dictionaries](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/) / [Tanakh](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/tanakh/) / [מ](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/tanakh/1502-10.md)‎ / מִשְׁפָּחָה‎ # מִשְׁפָּחָה «מִשְׁפָּחָה» in the Tanakh dictionary: **clan** — how often it is used, MACULA's glosses, its meanings in the printed dictionaries and why they were chosen, and 2 verses in layers. **Used:** 303 times · **Key:** 4940 · **BDB:** מִשְׁפָּחָה² ### Glosses clans (102); the.clan (93); the.clans (29) ### Meaning (OSHB) clan [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1502/4940/#m1) ### Meaning (BDB 1906) n.f.clan [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1502/4940/#m2) **The whole BDB entry:** n.f.clan (RSSem i. 258, 2nd ed. 276; K149, 2nd ed. 175 BaNB § 161 a);—abs. מ׳ Am 3:1 +; cstr. מִשְׁפַּ֫חַת Ju 9:1 +; sf. מִשְׁפַּחְתִּי Gn 24:38 +, etc.; pl. מִשְׁפָּחוֹת Na 3:4 +; cstr. מִשְׁפְּחוֹת Am 3:2 +; sf. מִשְׁפְּחֹתֵיהֶם Gn 8:19 + 2 times, usually -תָם Nu 1:18 + 84 times, etc.;— clan: family connexion of individ. Gn 24:38 (+ בֵּית־אָבִי), v 40 (+ id.), v 41 (all J; = מוֹלַדְתִּי v 4), 2 S 14:7, united in sacrifice 1 S 20:6, 29, in passover Ex 12:21 (JE; cf. BenzEncy. Bib. Passover, §§ 9, 12); cf. Lv 20:5 (H), 25:10, 41 (P), v 49 (P; defined as כִשְּׁאֵר בְּשָׂרוֹ), non-Heb. v 47 (H), v 45 (P), Ju 1:25; מִשְׁפְּחוֹתֶיהָ Jos 6:23 (E or R) is unintelligible, probably del. (cf. Steuern Holz; בֵּית אָבִיהָ in v 25 \[J\]), cf. Nu 27:4, 11 (P); מ׳ בֵּית אֲבִי אִמּוֹ Ju 9:1 clan of his mother’s father-house; incl. individuals, and included by שֵׁבֶט 1 S 9:21(×2) 10:21; with specif. name, in series גֶבֶר, בַּיִת, מ׳, שֵׁבֶט Jos 7:14(×2), 17b, c (all J; v 17a read pl. Di Benn, or שֵׁבֶט GFM Ju 13:2; Steuern allows either); cf. Dt 29:17; Ju 21:24, מ׳ אָבִי בְּיִשׂ׳ 1 S 18:18 (+ חַיַּי, v. ii. \[חַי\]); אִישׁ … מִמּ׳ בֵּית־שָׁאוּל 2 S 16:5; with name also Ru 2:1, 3 and (non-Isr.) Jb 32:2. in loose, popular sense = tribe, Ju 13:2; 17:7; 18:19, cf. v 2 (‖ שֵׁבֶט v 1), v 11 (yet in these two read poss. pl., v. GFM). techn. divisions of people of Isr. Nu 11:10 (J) Je 2:4; 31:1, cf. 3:14; Nu 1:2, 18; 2:34; 33:54 (all P), so (post-ex.) Ne 4:7: Est 9:28 (מְדִינָה, מ׳, דּוֹד). usually (P) techn. divisions of tribes of Israel, Ex 6:14, 15, 19, 25; Nu 3:15 + 112 times Nu (93 times Nu 26, incl. v 43 where הַשּׁוּחָמִי appar. = Dan), 34 times Jos 13–21; also 1 Ch 6:4, 45; 7:5; Zc 12:13; divisions of Gershom, etc. (in Levi) Nu 3:18, 19, 20 + 41 times Ex Nu Jos Ch; subdivisions of these divisions (in Levi) Nu 3:21(×2) + 6 times Nu 3 + 4:18; cf. (in other tribes) 1 Ch 2:53; 4:2, 8, 21, 27, 38; 5:7; also Zc 12:12b, c. 13 b, 14 a, and (distrib.) v 12a 14b, pleonast. מ׳ מַטֵּה אֲבִיהֶם Nu 36:6 cf. v 8, and (מַטֵּה מ׳ א׳) v 12. late, div. of other peoples 1 Ch 16:28 = ψ 96:7, ψ 22:28; in Edom Gn 36:40 (P). in wider sense = people, nation; כֹּל מִשְׁפְּחֹת הָאֲדָמָה Am 3:2; Gn 12:3; 28:14 (both J), cf. Je 10:25; Ez 20:32; Na 3:4 (all ‖ גּוֹיִם), Zc 14:17; Je 1:15; 25:9; as one’s posterity Gn 10:30, 31, 32 (all P), so prob. v 5 (P; Di Dr); = all Isr. Am 3:1, Judah Mi 2:3; Je 8:3 (הַמּ׳ הָרָעָה הַזֹּאת), Isr. + Judah, שְׁתֵּי הַמּ׳ 33:24; מִשְׁפַּחַת מִצְרַיִם Zc 14:18; cf. ψ 107:41. = guild 1 Ch 2:55 (of scribes; orig. hereditary in families). = species, kind: of judgments Je 15:3. animals Gn 8:19 (P). pl. = aristocrats Jb 31:34 (cf. Eng. ‘the classes’). Why these entries: BDB: headword, part of speech agrees, 97 of its verses cited, 1 words shared with the glosses, lists its Strong's number (2 candidates); OSHB: headword, part of speech agrees, 1 words shared with the BDB entry, 1 with the glosses (1 candidates) ### Trees and pragmatics [Every English meaning of «מִשְׁפָּחָה» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1502/4940/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames. ### In the verses [Exodus 6:17](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/torah/EXO.6.17/) בְּנֵ֥י גֵרְשׁ֛וֹן לִבְנִ֥י וְשִׁמְעִ֖י לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָֽם׃ *Word for word:* the.sons of.Gershon \[were\].Libni and Shimei to clans their *JPS 1917:* The sons of Gershon: Libni and Shimei, according to their families. [Numbers 26:28](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/torah/NUM.26.28/) בְּנֵ֥י יוֹסֵ֖ף לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָ֑ם מְנַשֶּׁ֖ה וְאֶפְרָֽיִם׃ *Word for word:* the.sons of.Joseph to clans their Manasseh and Ephraim *JPS 1917:* The sons of Joseph after their families: Manasseh and Ephraim. - ← previous: [מִשְׂפָּח](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/tanakh/w/4939.md) - next →: [מִשְׁפָּט](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/tanakh/w/4941.md) - ↑ back to [מ](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/tanakh/1502-10.md)