---
title: צָבָא — wage war · The Tanakh dictionary
description: צָבָא (6633), a word of Biblical Hebrew, used 14 times: wage war. BDB 1906: vb. wage war, serve. With 2 verses in Hebrew, word for word and JPS 1917.
---

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# צָבָא

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«צָבָא» in the Tanakh dictionary: **wage war** — how often it is used, MACULA's glosses, its meanings in the printed dictionaries and why they were chosen, and 2 verses in layers.

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**Used:** 14 times · **Key:** 6633 · **BDB:** צָבָא

### Glosses

mustered (2); serve (2); to.war (2)

### Meaning (OSHB)

wage war [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1510/6633/#m1)

### Meaning (BDB 1906)

vb. wage war, serve [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1510/6633/#m2)

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**The whole BDB entry:** vb. wage war, serve (Sab. צֿבא wage war with, also n. army, campaign HomChrest. 125 CIS iv. 299, 1. 2 DHM VOJ i. 28; Ethiopic ጸብአ: (\> ፀብአ:) wage war; Assyrian ṣâbu, man, soldier; NöZMG xl (1886), 726 al. cp. (on account of Sab. Ethiopic ץֿ) Arabic ضَبَأَ conceal oneself, hence lie in wait; this is phonetically suitable, but better in meaning would be صَبَأَ go or come forth (against one), etc., so Thes LagBN 21; Frä232 cp. صَبِىٌّ young man);— Pf. 3 mpl. צָֽבְאוּ Ex 38:8 Zc 14:12; Impf. 3 mpl. יִצְבְּאוּ Nu 31:7; Inf. cstr. לִצְבֹּא Is 31:4; לִצְבֹא Nu 4:23; 8:24; Pt. pl. צֹבְאִים Nu 31:42; Is 29:7, 8; sf. צֹבֶיהָ Is 29:7 (Ges§ 75 oo; Di צָרֶיהָ); fpl. צֹבְאֹת Ex 38:8; צֹבְאוֹת 1 S 2:22;— wage war, fight, c. עַל against, Nu 31:7 (P) Is 29:7, 8; 31:4; Zc 14:12, c. sf. Is 29:7 (?); abs. Nu 31:42 (P). serve at sacred tent, Levites, c. acc. צָבָא Nu 4:23; 8:24 (P); women Ex 38:8(×2) (P) 1 S 2:22. Pt. הַמַּצְבִּא אֶת־עַם וגו׳ 2 K 25:19 = Je 52:25 muster.

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Why these entries: BDB: headword, part of speech agrees, 12 of its verses cited, 2 words shared with the glosses, lists its Strong's number (5 candidates); OSHB: headword, part of speech agrees, 2 words shared with the BDB entry, 1 with the glosses (6 candidates)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every English meaning of «צָבָא» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1510/6633/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.

### In the verses

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[Numbers 31:42](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/torah/NUM.31.42/)

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וּמִֽמַּחֲצִ֖ית בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל אֲשֶׁר֙ חָצָ֣ה מֹשֶׁ֔ה מִן־הָאֲנָשִׁ֖ים הַצֹּבְאִֽים׃

*Word for word:* and from the.half of.the.people of.Israel which he.had.divided Moses from the men \[who had\].gone.to.war

*JPS 1917:* And of the children of Israel's half, which Moses divided off from the men that warred —

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[Numbers 31:7](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/torah/NUM.31.7/)

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וַֽיִּצְבְּאוּ֙ עַל־מִדְיָ֔ן כַּאֲשֶׁ֛ר צִוָּ֥ה יְהוָ֖ה אֶת־מֹשֶׁ֑ה וַיַּֽהַרְג֖וּ כָּל־זָכָֽר׃

*Word for word:* and they.went.to.war on Midian just as he.had.commanded Yahweh (et) Moses and they.killed every male

*JPS 1917:* And they warred against Midian, as the LORD commanded Moses; and they slew every male.

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