4935. mishi
Lexical Summary
mishi: Support, refuge, or salvation.

Original Word: מִשְׁעִי
Part of Speech: Noun Feminine
Transliteration: mish`iy
Pronunciation: MEE-shee
Phonetic Spelling: (mish-ee')
KJV: to supple
NASB: cleansing
Word Origin: [probably from H8159 (שָׁעָה - have regard)]

1. inspection

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
to supple

Probably from sha'ah; inspection -- to supple.

see HEBREW sha'ah

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
from an unused word
Definition
a cleansing
NASB Translation
cleansing (1).

Brown-Driver-Briggs
מִשְׁעִי noun feminine (? = מִשְׁעִית compare Thes Sm) cleansing, only ׳לֹא רֻחַצְתְּ לְמ Ezekiel 16:4 thou wast not washed for cleansing (compare ᵑ7 Thes and Add98 Sm RV and others; ᵑ9 ad salutem, as if from ישׁע; ᵐ5 omitted, and so Co Be SS, compare Buhl; form strange, and word at best dubious)

מִשְׁעוֺל see I. שׁעל.

Topical Lexicon
Definition and Imagery

The term designates the narrow bands of cloth used to bind the limbs of a newborn so the body could grow straight and warm. In the single biblical occurrence, these bands are conspicuously absent, becoming a striking symbol of neglect.

Ancient Near Eastern Midwifery Practices

Midwives typically performed four acts immediately after delivery: cutting the umbilical cord, washing the child, rubbing the skin with salt or oil for antiseptic purposes, and finally wrapping the body in long strips of cloth. Archaeology confirms these customs throughout Syro-Palestine, and Scripture alludes to them in Ezekiel 16:4 and Luke 2:7. The wrapping stabilized fragile bones and signified that the infant was welcomed and protected.

Usage in Ezekiel 16:4

Ezekiel employs the birth-scene to portray Jerusalem’s origins:

“As for your birth, on the day you were born your cord was not cut… you were not rubbed with salt or wrapped in cloths” (Ezekiel 16:4).

The prophet’s picture of an exposed infant, ignored and unbound, condemns Judah’s spiritual condition. The missing swaddling cloths dramatize utter helplessness and the absence of human or covenantal care.

Theological Significance of Neglected Swaddling

1. Depravity Exposed: Without the bands, the infant is limp and vulnerable, mirroring Jerusalem’s moral collapse (Ezekiel 16:5).
2. Undeserved Grace: God later declares, “I passed by you and saw you kicking about in your blood, and I said to you, ‘Live!’” (Ezekiel 16:6). The Lord alone provides the nurturing Israel never received from earthly allies or idols.
3. Covenant Reminder: The image recalls Deuteronomy 32:10-12, where God finds Israel in a “howling wasteland” and encircles her with care. Ezekiel’s oracle shows how far the nation has strayed from that first grace.

Contrast with Divine Compassion

Where Judah’s caretakers failed, the Lord binds, clothes, and adorns His people (Ezekiel 16:8-14). The progression from nakedness to royal attire underscores the covenant pattern: election, purification, clothing, and commissioning. Isaiah later echoes the same motif of gracious clothing: “He has clothed me with garments of salvation” (Isaiah 61:10).

Prophetic and Typological Echoes

The narrative throws forward to the Gospel:
Luke 2:7 presents the Messiah Himself “wrapped… in swaddling cloths,” identifying with Israel’s infancy yet receiving the care Judah lacked.
Job 38:9 speaks of God “swaddling” the sea in clouds, hinting that the Creator alone supplies order to what is chaotic.

Thus, the neglected bands in Ezekiel magnify both Israel’s need and Christ’s fulfillment as the perfectly nurtured Son who will nurture His people (John 10:11).

Practical Ministry Applications

• Pastoral Care: Just as abandoned Israel needed intervention, the vulnerable in any congregation require tangible acts of love—provision, protection, and patient instruction.
• Discipleship: New believers resemble spiritual infants; shepherds “wrap” them through sound teaching and accountability (1 Thessalonians 2:7).
• Assurance of Grace: Believers once spiritually abandoned find security in the God who now “binds up the broken-hearted” (Isaiah 61:1).

Key References

Ezekiel 16:4–14; Deuteronomy 32:10-12; Job 38:9; Isaiah 61:1, 10; Luke 2:7.

Forms and Transliterations
לְמִשְׁעִ֑י למשעי lə·miš·‘î ləmiš‘î lemishI
Links
Interlinear GreekInterlinear HebrewStrong's NumbersEnglishman's Greek ConcordanceEnglishman's Hebrew ConcordanceParallel Texts
Englishman's Concordance
Ezekiel 16:4
HEB: לֹֽא־ רֻחַ֖צְתְּ לְמִשְׁעִ֑י וְהָמְלֵ֙חַ֙ לֹ֣א
NAS: with water for cleansing; you were not rubbed
KJV: in water to supple [thee]; thou wast not salted
INT: nor were you washed cleansing rubbed nor

1 Occurrence

Strong's Hebrew 4935
1 Occurrence


lə·miš·‘î — 1 Occ.

4934
Top of Page
Top of Page