4246. mecholah
Lexical Summary
mecholah: Dance

Original Word: מְחֹלָה
Part of Speech: Noun Feminine
Transliteration: mchowlah
Pronunciation: mekh-oh-LAW
Phonetic Spelling: (mek-o-law')
KJV: company, dances(-cing)
NASB: dancing, dances, dance, danced
Word Origin: [feminine of H4284 (מַחֲשָׁבָה מַחֲשֶׁבֶת - thoughts)]

1. a dance

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
company, dancing

Feminine of machashabah; a dance -- company, dances(-cing).

see HEBREW machashabah

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
fem. of machol
Definition
a dance
NASB Translation
dance (1), danced (1), dances (2), dancing (4).

Brown-Driver-Briggs
[מְחוֺלָה] noun feminine id.; — construct מְחֹלַת Cant 7:1; plural מְחֹלֹת Exodus 32:19; מְחֹלוֺת Exodus 15:20 5t.; dancing, token of joyousness after victory, Judges 11:34; 1 Samuel 18:16; 1 Samuel 21:12; 1 Samuel 29:5; in worship, at feast Judges 21:21; act of praise to ׳י Exodus 15:20 (song); in idolatrous worship Exodus 32:19 (E); as graceful and beautiful Cant 7:1; accompare by timbrel Exodus 15:20; Judges 11:34, and by singing Exodus 15:20; 1 Samuel 18:6 (where however read probably Po`lel Participle הַמְּחֹלְלוֺת, compare verb חוּל above; so ᵐ5 We Dr), 1 Samuel 21:12; 1 Samuel 29:5.

Topical Lexicon
Definition and Overview

מְחֹלָה denotes a festive, usually circular dance performed to the accompaniment of hand-held percussion (timbrels, tambourines). Scripture links the word almost exclusively with moments of intense communal emotion—either grateful celebration before the LORD or misplaced revelry in idolatry.

Biblical Occurrences

1. Exodus 15:20 – Miriam leads the women after the Red Sea deliverance: “all the women followed her with tambourines and dancing.”
2. Exodus 32:19 – The camp dances around the golden calf, provoking Moses’ righteous anger.
3. Judges 11:34 – Jephthah’s daughter greets her father “dancing to the sound of tambourines,” unaware of the vow that will cost her life.
4. Judges 21:21 – The Benjaminites seize wives while the girls of Shiloh “perform the dances.”
5. 1 Samuel 18:6 – Women welcome Saul’s army “with singing and dancing… tambourines and three-stringed instruments.”
6. 1 Samuel 21:11 – Philistine courtiers recall the victory song sung “in their dances” that exalted David.
7. 1 Samuel 29:5 – Achish’s commanders cite the same refrain to bar David from battle.
8. Song of Songs 6:13 – Spectators long to gaze on the Shulammite “as at the dance of Mahanaim,” a vision of graceful, covenantal unity.

Themes and Theological Insights

• Victory and Thanksgiving

The earliest use (Exodus 15:20) establishes מְחֹלָה as a spontaneous response to divine salvation. The redeemed cannot remain still; their bodies join their voices in praise. The pattern recurs whenever Israel receives national triumph (1 Samuel 18:6).

• Warning against Misplaced Celebration

Exodus 32:19 counterbalances Miriam’s worship. Identical external actions—music, movement, communal joy—become sin when the object is an idol. Scripture thus distinguishes holy dance from profane revelry, reminding worshipers that motivation and object determine acceptability before God.

• Female Leadership in Worship

Six of the eight texts place women at the center of the dance. Far from marginal, their artistic leadership reinforces the corporate nature of covenant life. Miriam’s prophetic role (Exodus 15:20), the maidens of Shiloh (Judges 21:21), and the Shulammite (Song 6:13) together testify that the adornment of holiness includes feminine expression.

• Communal Memory and Identity

The refrain about David (1 Samuel 18:6; 21:11; 29:5) shows how the מְחֹלָה fixed national memory in song and movement. What the people danced, they remembered; what they remembered shaped loyalty and hope.

• Covenant Joy Shadowing Eschatological Fulfillment

Song of Songs 6:13 elevates the dance to poetic symbol—the “dance of Mahanaim” (literally “two camps”). The mutual gaze on the beloved anticipates the final union of Christ and His Bride, when every redeemed tongue and limb will celebrate the Lamb’s victory.

Historical Context

Archaeological finds from the Late Bronze and Iron Ages depict line and circle dances with tambourines identical to biblical descriptions. Such dances marked military victories, harvest festivals, and covenant renewals across the Ancient Near East. Israel adopted the form but reoriented its meaning: the dance served Yahweh, not the fertility gods. Instruments named with מְחֹלָה (timbrels, three-stringed lutes) were portable, allowing immediate, outdoor celebration.

Ministry Application

1. Embodied Worship: Scripture affirms the legitimacy of physical expression when directed to the LORD. Congregations may incorporate choreographed or spontaneous movement that reflects reverence, order, and joy.
2. Discernment: Exodus 32 cautions leaders to assess both content and context of artistic worship. Dance must never eclipse or contradict the holiness of God.
3. Intergenerational Participation: The prominence of women and youth in the biblical dances encourages full-body, whole-church celebration.
4. Catechesis through Art: Like the Davidic refrain, faithful lyrics set to memorable movement can disciple believers, embedding doctrine in heart and muscle memory.

Christological Reflection

Miriam’s post-exodus dance foreshadows the greater exodus accomplished by Christ (Luke 9:31). Just as Israel’s redemption erupted in מְחֹלָה, so the ultimate victory in the Resurrection summons the Church to holistic praise. Revelation anticipates a final, universal song; the biblical dance hints that redeemed bodies will join redeemed voices in everlasting celebration.

Summary

מְחֹלָה portrays the heartbeat of covenant life: bodies rejoicing in God’s salvation, yet ever mindful of the danger of misplaced worship. From the shores of the Red Sea to the poetic heights of Solomon’s Song, the dance calls believers to celebrate rightly, remember faithfully, and anticipate the consummate joy when “mourning will turn to dancing” forever (echoing Psalm 30:11).

Forms and Transliterations
בַּמְּחֹל֖וֹת בַּמְּחֹלוֹת֒ בַמְּחֹלוֹת֙ במחלות וְהַמְּחֹל֔וֹת וּבִמְחֹל֑וֹת וּבִמְחֹלֹֽת׃ וּמְחֹלֹ֑ת ובמחלות ובמחלת׃ והמחלות ומחלת כִּמְחֹלַ֖ת כמחלת bam·mə·ḥō·lō·wṯ ḇam·mə·ḥō·lō·wṯ bammecholOt bamməḥōlōwṯ ḇamməḥōlōwṯ kim·ḥō·laṯ kimchoLat kimḥōlaṯ ū·ḇim·ḥō·lō·wṯ ū·ḇim·ḥō·lōṯ ū·mə·ḥō·lōṯ ūḇimḥōlōṯ ūḇimḥōlōwṯ umechoLot ūməḥōlōṯ uvimchoLot vammecholOt vehammechoLot wə·ham·mə·ḥō·lō·wṯ wəhamməḥōlōwṯ
Links
Interlinear GreekInterlinear HebrewStrong's NumbersEnglishman's Greek ConcordanceEnglishman's Hebrew ConcordanceParallel Texts
Englishman's Concordance
Exodus 15:20
HEB: אַחֲרֶ֔יהָ בְּתֻפִּ֖ים וּבִמְחֹלֹֽת׃
NAS: her with timbrels and with dancing.
KJV: her with timbrels and with dances.
INT: after timbrels dancing

Exodus 32:19
HEB: אֶת־ הָעֵ֖גֶל וּמְחֹלֹ֑ת וַיִּֽחַר־ אַ֣ף
NAS: the calf and [the] dancing; and Moses'
KJV: the calf, and the dancing: and Moses'
INT: saw the calf and dancing burned anger

Judges 11:34
HEB: לִקְרָאת֔וֹ בְתֻפִּ֖ים וּבִמְחֹל֑וֹת וְרַק֙ הִ֣יא
NAS: him with tambourines and with dancing. Now she was his one
KJV: him with timbrels and with dances: and she [was his] only child;
INT: to meet tambourines dancing but now she

Judges 21:21
HEB: שִׁילוֹ֮ לָח֣וּל בַּמְּחֹלוֹת֒ וִֽיצָאתֶם֙ מִן־
NAS: out to take part in the dances, then you shall come
KJV: to dance in dances, then come ye out
INT: of Shiloh to take the dances shall come out

1 Samuel 18:6
HEB: (לָשִׁ֣יר ק) וְהַמְּחֹל֔וֹת לִקְרַ֖את שָׁא֣וּל
NAS: singing and dancing, to meet
KJV: singing and dancing, to meet
INT: of Israel sing and dancing to meet Saul

1 Samuel 21:12
HEB: לָזֶ֗ה יַעֲנ֤וּ בַמְּחֹלוֹת֙ לֵאמֹ֔ר הִכָּ֤ה
INT: he testify company answer beat

1 Samuel 29:5
HEB: יַעֲנוּ־ ל֛וֹ בַּמְּחֹל֖וֹת לֵאמֹ֑ר הִכָּ֤ה
NAS: they sing in the dances, saying,
KJV: of whom they sang one to another in dances, saying,
INT: of whom sang the dances saying has slain

Songs 6:13
HEB: תֶּחֱזוּ֙ בַּשּׁ֣וּלַמִּ֔ית כִּמְחֹלַ֖ת הַֽמַּחֲנָֽיִם׃
NAS: at the Shulammite, As at the dance of the two companies?
KJV: in the Shulamite? As it were the company of two armies.
INT: gaze the Shulammite the dance armies

8 Occurrences

Strong's Hebrew 4246
8 Occurrences


bam·mə·ḥō·lō·wṯ — 2 Occ.
kim·ḥō·laṯ — 1 Occ.
ū·mə·ḥō·lōṯ — 1 Occ.
ū·ḇim·ḥō·lōṯ — 2 Occ.
ḇam·mə·ḥō·lō·wṯ — 1 Occ.
wə·ham·mə·ḥō·lō·wṯ — 1 Occ.

4245b
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