מְלָאכָה
Properly, deputyship , i.e. ministry ; generally, employment (never servile) or work (abstractly or concretely); also property (as the result of labor) · great (in any sense); hence, older ; also insolent
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What this page is: Each lexicon entry shows the original Hebrew or Greek word behind the English translation: its meaning, its range of use, and where it appears in Scripture.
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Canonical witness: The witness passages show where this word is used in context. Click any to open the study page for that passage.
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Words in this compound — expand to study each participant
מְלָאכָה H4399 properly, deputyship , i.e. ministry ; generally, employment (never servile) or work (abstractly or concretely); also property (as the result of labor)
גָּדוֹל H1419 great (in any sense); hence, older ; also insolent
What does מְלָאכָה (melakah gedolah) mean in the Bible?
מְלָאכָה · גָּדוֹל is a Hebrew word meaning "properly, deputyship , i.e. ministry ; generally, employment (never servile) or work (abstractly or concretely); also property (as the result of labor)". business, cattle, industrious, occupation, ( -pied), officer, thing (made), use, (manner of) work((-man), -manship). Nehemiah’s refusal to leave the wall underscores the gravity of covenant restoration. This term runs through the canonical themes of Covenant.
Full entry for מְלָאכָה (H4399, H1419) · Browse the biblical lexicon
Meaning
Work as purposeful task or craft—never mere servitude; emphasizes skill, agency, and productive results.
business, cattle, industrious, occupation, ( -pied), officer, thing (made), use, (manner of) work((-man), -manship).
Why This Word Matters
Nehemiah’s refusal to leave the wall underscores the gravity of covenant restoration. Nehemiah 6:1-14
Grammatical Forms
How this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.
Canonical Themes
Biblical Occurrences
Each occurrence shows the passage reference, the original language term as it appears in that context, its transliteration, and the contextual sense.