StrongerBible

zamam

זָמַם

HebrewH2161“scheme, purpose, ...”

Appears 13 times · tap a cell to see the verses

Gen 11:6Deu 19:19Psa 17:3Psa 31:13(14)Psa 37:12Pro 30:32Pro 31:16Jer 4:28Jer 51:12Lam 2:17Zec 1:6Zec 8:14Zec 8:15
Root family
Word studyResearch-gradezah-MAMverb

What zamam means

to settle the mind on a course of action and mean to carry it out: to purpose, resolve, deliberately intend.

TranslatabilityPartialCertaintyStrong

At its core this is a simple and morally neutral idea: to fix the mind on something and mean to do it. It is the Hebrew word for premeditation, for deciding on a course of action and then committing to it. English Bibles reach for "scheme" or "plot" so often that the word can look sinister, but that darkness comes from the company it keeps, not from the word itself.

The same verb runs across three settings:

  • In ordinary life it is neutral or even admirable: the capable woman who "considered a field and bought it," or the worshiper who resolves not to sin with his mouth.
  • When the one doing it is wicked, it becomes plotting: the false witness who schemed to harm his neighbor, or enemies who plan to take a life.
  • When God is the one purposing, it becomes a firm decree: what he has determined to do, he will surely do.

The most striking case is in Zechariah, where the prophet uses the very same verb for God's purpose to bring harm and, in the next breath, for his purpose to do good. Same word, opposite outcomes, because what makes a purpose fearful or wonderful is not the word but who stands behind it and what they intend.

The related noun מְזִמָּה names the plan or the shrewd forethought itself, while this verb is the act of forming it; and the broader verb חָשַׁב covers thinking and calculating in general, where this word narrows to settled, committed intent.

Nuances

1ato purpose or resolve on a course of action, with no wrongdoing implied: neutral or even admirable human intent.
TranslatabilityApproximate
Gen 11:6Psa 17:3Pro 31:16
1bto plot or scheme: to form a deliberate plan to do harm.
TranslatabilityDirect
Deu 19:19Psa 31:13(14)Psa 37:12Pro 30:32
1cof God: to purpose and firmly determine to act, whether to bring judgment or to bring blessing.
TranslatabilityApproximate
Jer 4:28Jer 51:12Lam 2:17Zec 1:6Zec 8:14Zec 8:15

Disputed

Whether the verb's core sense is morally neutral ("to purpose, resolve," with its good or evil color supplied by context) or whether wickedness is built into the word itself.

  • majorityNeutral at the core: the word means deliberate, considered intent and is colored good or evil only by who is planning and what they aim at.; Sigurdur Orn Steingrimsson, "זמם," in Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament (TDOT) 4:87-90; DCH (Clines, ed.), s.v. זמם; HALOT (Koehler-Baumgartner), s.v. זמם; John N. Oswalt, "זמם," in NIDOTTE (1997) #2372
  • minorityWeighted toward evil: the word carries a pejorative default, since most of its occurrences describe wicked scheming.; BDB (Brown-Driver-Briggs), s.v. זמם; Herbert Wolf, "זמם," in TWOT (1980) #556

What scholars say about zamam

Modern lexicography treats זָמַם as a single root whose core is the neutral idea of deliberate purposing, with any good or evil coloring supplied by context. Steingrimsson (TDOT 4:87-90) holds that the root carries only "the neutral idea of planning," edging toward "decree" where YHWH is subject; DCH (Clines) and HALOT catalog "plan, purpose, devise" without splitting homonyms. Older treatments (BDB; Wolf, TWOT #556) preserve a pejorative default, while Oswalt (NIDOTTE #2372) grants the neutral core but notes that the object of the planning is usually judgment or wrongdoing. The thirteen occurrences fall into three zones: neutral or positive human intention (Gen 11:6; Prov 31:16; Ps 17:3), malicious human plotting (Deut 19:19; Ps 31:13; 37:12; Prov 30:32), and divine purposing (Jer 4:28; 51:12; Lam 2:17; Zech 1:6; 8:14-15). Zechariah 8:14-15 pairs the same verb with opposite objects ("to do harm" and "to do good"), which Meyers and Meyers and Petersen read as proof of the verb's neutrality and as a theological signature framing the book. The Septuagint confirms the range, choosing warmly rational verbs (βουλεύομαι, ἐνθυμέομαι, διανοέομαι) for neutral and divine uses and the ethical πονηρεύομαι only where the Hebrew context demands censure, with no default equivalent. The wisdom literature's reclamation of the cognate noun מְזִמָּה as a virtue (Fox; Waltke) rests on the same neutral core. The word's etymology remains unresolved: Gesenius derived it first from Arabic zamma "to bind" and later from zamzama "to murmur," and the standard lexicons list both without deciding.

Where scholars disagree about zamam

The origin of the root, which remains unresolved.

  • contestedFrom an Arabic word meaning "to bind, tie" (a cord or muzzle), taking scheming as a metaphor of twining or binding a plan together.; Wilhelm Gesenius, Thesaurus Philologicus Criticus Linguae Hebraeae
  • contestedFrom an Arabic word meaning "to murmur, mutter," taking planning as silent inward deliberation.; Gesenius, 18th ed. (Meyer, Donner, Ruterswoerden), s.v. זמם
In-depth research

This is a research paper, so it may be hard to read without scholarly background. It is useful if you want to dig even deeper into this word.

Sources

  • Sigurdur Orn Steingrimsson, "זמם," in Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament (TDOT) 4:87-90 (1980)dictionary
  • HALOT (Koehler-Baumgartner), s.v. זמםlexicon
  • BDB (Brown-Driver-Briggs), s.v. זמםlexicon
  • DCH (Clines, ed.), s.v. זמםlexicon
  • John N. Oswalt, "זמם," in NIDOTTE (1997) #2372dictionary
  • Herbert Wolf, "זמם," in TWOT (1980) #556dictionary
  • Carol L. Meyers and Eric M. Meyers, Haggai, Zechariah 1-8, Anchor Bible (1987)commentary
  • David L. Petersen, Haggai and Zechariah 1-8, OTL (1984)commentary
  • Jack R. Lundbom, Jeremiah 1-20, Anchor Bible (1999)commentary
  • Adele Berlin, Lamentations, OTL (2002)commentary
  • Jeffrey H. Tigay, Deuteronomy, JPS Torah Commentary (1996)commentary
  • Michael V. Fox, Proverbs 1-9, Anchor Bible (2000)commentary
  • Bruce K. Waltke, The Book of Proverbs, NICOT (2004-2005)commentary

AI-generated word study · claude-opus-4-8

All attested forms of זָמַם

qal perfect 1cs

זָמַמְתִּי, זַמֹּתִי

Zec 8:14, Zec 8:15, Psa 17:3, Jer 4:28

qal perfect 3ms

זָמַם, זָמָם

Deu 19:19, Jer 51:12, Zec 1:6, Lam 2:17

qal imperfect 3mp

יָזְמוּ

Gen 11:6

qal participle m s absolute

זֹמֵם

Psa 37:12

qal perfect 2ms

זַמּוֹתָ

Pro 30:32

qal perfect 3cp

זָמָמוּ

Psa 31:13

qal perfect 3fs

זָמְמָה

Pro 31:16