Biblica Analytica

מְשׂוּרָה

me.su.rah (H4884)

capacity

4 verses 3 books OT 4 / NT 0
AI Word Study

# Meshurah (H4884): Capacity and Measure The Hebrew word *meshurah* appears four times in the biblical text and carries the fundamental meaning of "capacity"—that is, the amount something can hold or contain. As a noun form, it functions in contexts where the physical or practical limits of a container or vessel are being discussed or specified. The term belongs to a semantic field concerned with measurement and quantification, reflecting ancient Hebrew's vocabulary for assessing and describing spatial dimensions. Given its limited occurrence (only four instances), *meshurah* represents a specialized rather than common term in biblical Hebrew. This rarity suggests it was employed in specific contexts where precision about capacity or containment mattered—likely in discussions of vessels, storage, or construction where exact measures were relevant. The word's appearance is concentrated enough that it functioned as a technical rather than everyday term in biblical writing, reserved for particular practical or legal situations requiring clarity about how much something could hold. The significance of *meshurah* lies in its role within biblical Hebrew's broader vocabulary of measurement and material reality. It reflects the ancient community's practical concern with quantifiable space and functional limits, terms necessary for commerce, construction, and religious practice where specified amounts and containers were essential.

AI synthesis uses only provided lexicon data -- never training knowledge.

Leviticus 19:35

“ ‘You shall do no unrighteousness in judgment, in measures of length, of weight, or of quantity.

1 Chronicles 23:29

for the show bread also, and for the fine flour for a meal offering, whether of unleavened wafers, or of that which is baked in the pan, or of that which is soaked, and for all measurements of quantity and size;

Ezekiel 4:11

You shall drink water by measure, the sixth part of a hin. From time to time you shall drink.

Ezekiel 4:16

Moreover he said to me, “Son of man, behold, I will break the staff of bread in Jerusalem. They will eat bread by weight, and with fearfulness. They will drink water by measure, and in dismay;