Lexical Summary masar: To deliver, to hand over, to give up Original Word: מָסַר Strong's Exhaustive Concordance commit, deliver A primitive root; to sunder, i.e. (transitively) set apart, or (reflex.) Apostatize -- commit, deliver. NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Origina prim. root Definition to deliver up, offer NASB Translation furnished (1), trespass* (1). Brown-Driver-Briggs [מָסַר] verb si vera lectio deliver up, offer (Late Hebrew מָסַר; Aramaic  deliver up, denounce, betray, מְסַר; HomZMG xivi. 1892, 530 compare Sabean מסר take away); — Qal Infinitive construct ׳לִמְסָרמַֿ֫עַל בי Numbers 31:16 offer (commit) a trespass against ׳י, but read לִמְעֹל, compare Thes Di (see Numbers 5:6; 2Chronicles 36:14). Niph`al Imperfect וַיִּמָּֽסְרוּ Numbers 31:5 delivered over to, assigned to (of warriors), read perhaps וַיִּסָּֽפְרוּ (ᵐ5. ἐξηρίθμησαν) compare Thes. מֹסֵרוֺת, מָסֹ֫רֶת see אסר. [מֹסָר] see מוּסָר below יסר. Topical Lexicon Root Sense and Semantics מָסַר (māśar) conveys the idea of handing something or someone over to another party. The act may be positive or negative, voluntary or compulsory, sacred or profane. At its heart is the transfer of control: what is “delivered” passes out of one sphere and into another. Old Testament Usage The root appears twice, both in the Midianite narrative of Numbers 31. • Numbers 31:5 records the mustering of Israelite soldiers: “So there were delivered from the thousands of Israel, a thousand from each tribe, twelve thousand armed for war.” The verb describes the conscription of warriors placed at Moses’ disposal for holy war. Their lives, once ordinary, are now transferred to Yahweh’s cause in judgment on Midian. • Numbers 31:16 recounts Moses’ rebuke after battle: “Look, these women caused the sons of Israel, by the counsel of Balaam, to trespass against the LORD in the matter of Peor, and the plague came upon the congregation of the LORD.” Here מָסַר underlies “caused…to trespass,” depicting how Balaam’s scheme placed Israel into sin’s grip, with devastating covenantal consequences. The two occurrences form a deliberate contrast. In verse 5 Israel willingly gives men to God; in verse 16 Midianite women and Balaam give Israel over to impurity. The same verb frames both transferences, sharpening the moral lesson: what—and to whom—we hand ourselves over determines life or judgment. Historical Context Numbers 31 closes the wilderness generation. Israel stands on the verge of Canaan, called to remain distinct from surrounding nations. The Midian campaign, a divine command (Numbers 31:2), exemplifies holy war: warriors “delivered” for purging evil (verse 5). The Peor incident recalled in verse 16 had nearly derailed Israel’s future (Numbers 25). Moses links the two events so the next generation will remember the cost of being “handed over” to idolatry and immorality. Theological Themes 1. Sovereign Claim Yahweh reserves the right to claim and employ His people. The conscripted soldiers demonstrate that lives entrusted to God become instruments of His justice and salvation. 2. Moral Transfer Balaam’s counsel shows that influence can “deliver” others into sin. Scripture consistently warns against causing another to stumble (for example, Matthew 18:6), echoing the gravity seen in Numbers 31:16. 3. Retributive Justice Being handed over to sin invites divine judgment (compare Romans 1:24, where God “gave them over”). Numbers 31 links the act of masar with an ensuing plague, illustrating the inexorable link between surrender to sin and its penalty. Ministry Implications • Discipleship and Commissioning Pastors and leaders “entrust” (cf. 2 Timothy 2:2) believers to ministry. The positive use of מָסַר challenges churches to set apart members intentionally for God’s mission, counting the cost yet confident in divine purpose. • Guarding Influence Every believer wields influence that can hand others toward holiness or corruption. Vigilance in doctrine, relationships, and media choices flows naturally from the sobering example of Balaam’s strategy. • Counseling Repentance When someone feels captive to sin, the biblical precedent for being “delivered” can guide counsel: what has been handed over can also be reclaimed by grace. Confession and renewed consecration restore the right sphere of control. Christological and New Testament Echoes Jesus “gave Himself up” (paradidōmi, the Greek counterpart) for sinners (Ephesians 5:2). Where Israel’s army was handed over to inflict judgment, the greater Servant was handed over to bear it. Conversely, Romans 12:1 urges believers to “present your bodies as a living sacrifice,” a voluntary handing over that fulfills the positive side of מָסַר. Summary מָסַר spotlights the decisive act of transferring control. Whether drafting warriors for holy purposes or, tragically, seducing a nation into idolatry, the verb reminds readers that spiritual allegiance is never neutral. Scripture calls every generation to deliver itself wholly to the Lord, lest it be delivered to judgment. Forms and Transliterations וַיִּמָּֽסְרוּ֙ וימסרו לִמְסָר־ למסר־ lim·sār- limsār- limsor vaiyimmaseRu way·yim·mā·sə·rū wayyimmāsərūLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel TextsEnglishman's Concordance Numbers 31:5 HEB: וַיִּמָּֽסְרוּ֙ מֵאַלְפֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל NAS: So there were furnished from the thousands KJV: So there were delivered out of the thousands INT: were furnished the thousands of Israel Numbers 31:16 2 Occurrences |
    |