Lexical Summary nagas: To oppress, to drive, to exact, to press, to urge Original Word: נָגַשׂ Strong's Exhaustive Concordance distress, driver, exactor, oppressor, raiser of taxes, taskmaster A primitive root; to drive (an animal, a workman, a debtor, an army); by implication, to tax, harass, tyrannize -- distress, driver, exact(-or), oppress(-or), X raiser of taxes, taskmaster. NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Origina prim. root Definition to press, drive, oppress, exact NASB Translation drive hard (1), driver (1), exact (2), exacted (1), hard-pressed (2), oppressed (2), oppressor (4), oppressors (2), overseers (1), ruler (1), taskmaster (1), taskmasters (5). Brown-Driver-Briggs [נָגַשׂ verb press, drive, oppress, exact (Assyrian naga&198;šu, throw down, overthrow, DlHWB 448; Arabic  rouse and drive game, drive vehemently; Ethiopic  reign, wield power,  king); — Qal Perfect ׳נ 2 Kings 23:25; Imperfect יִגּשֹׁ Deuteronomy 15:2; 2masculine singular תִּגּשֹׁ Deuteronomy 15:3; 2masculine plural תִּנְגּ֑שֹׁוּ Isaiah 58:3; — Participle נֹגֵשׂ Isaiah 9:3 +, etc.; — 1 press, drive to work (object עַצְּבֵיכֶם your workmen), Isaiah 58:3 (GesComm., De Di Du; exact [changing ׳ע, q. v.] Che, etc.); see 2 exact with accusative כֶּסֶף, 2 Kings 23:35; followed by accusative of person only Deuteronomy 15:2,13. 3 Participle (= substantive) driver, task-master Exodus 3:7; Exodus 5:6,10,13,14; Job 3:18; (ass-) driver Job 39:7; of (arbitrary) ruler Isaiah 3:12, ruler (good sense) Zechariah 10:4; = foreign oppressor, tyrant Isaiah 9:3 (with בְּ) Isaiah 14:2,4; Zechariah 9:8; exactor of tribute, Daniel 11:20; plural abstract lordship = lord, ruler, figurative of צְדָקָה (personified) Isaiah 60:17 ("" מְּקֻדָּתֵךְ שָׁלוֺם). Niph`al Perfect נִגַּשׂ 1 Samuel 13:6 2t. + Isaiah 3:5 (וְ consecutive); — hard pressed by enemy 1 Samuel 13:6, and so 1 Samuel 14:24 (but omitted by emendation, after ᵐ5, Th We Dr Kit Bu HPS); treated harshly, of suffering servant of ׳י Isaiah 53:7; reciprocal tyrannize over (׳ב) each other Isaiah 35.. Topical Lexicon Overview Strong’s Hebrew 5065 (nāgaś) portrays the act of pressing, driving, exacting, or oppressing. From forced labor under Pharaoh to the silent suffering of the Servant, the word traces a red thread through Scripture that highlights human tyranny, divine compassion, covenantal ethics, and ultimate deliverance. Usage in Torah: Bondage and Deliverance Exodus sets the paradigm. Pharaoh’s “taskmasters” (nāgaś) afflict Israel (Exodus 3:7; 5:6, 10, 13–14). The LORD’s response—“I have surely seen the affliction of My people… I have heard them crying out because of their oppressors” (Exodus 3:7)—establishes His covenant character as Redeemer who intervenes when oppression peaks. Covenant Economics: Release from Debt Deuteronomy translates the term into Israel’s social life. “Every creditor shall cancel what he has loaned… he shall not demand payment from his neighbor or brother” (Deuteronomy 15:2). The Sabbatical release forbids creditors from acting as oppressors, embedding mercy in the nation’s economic rhythms and foreshadowing the Gospel proclamation of remission. Monarchy and Military Pressures In the turbulent period of the monarchy, nāgaś surfaces in civic and military stress. Saul’s rash oath “pressed” the troops (1 Samuel 14:24), while Israel under Philistine threat was “hard-pressed” (1 Samuel 13:6). Later, King Jehoiakim “taxed the land and exacted the silver and gold” to satisfy Pharaoh Necho (2 Kings 23:35). Human kings easily become taskmasters when they abandon God’s rule. Wisdom Literature: Longing for Relief Job’s laments widen the lens. The grave is pictured as a place where captives “do not hear the voice of the oppressor” (Job 3:18), and the wild donkey “hears no shouts from the driver” (Job 39:7). Oppression is woven into the very fabric of a fallen world, and even creation groans for a realm without it. Prophetic Indictment of Oppression Isaiah brings the sharpest rebuke. “The people will oppress one another” (Isaiah 3:5); “Youths oppress My people” (Isaiah 3:12); “you oppress all your workers” while fasting (Isaiah 58:3). The prophets expose systemic sin and call Judah back to covenant justice. The promise follows: “You have shattered… the staff of their oppressor” (Isaiah 9:4), pledging divine intervention. Messianic Fulfillment and Suffering Servant The climax occurs in Isaiah 53:7: “He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth.” The Servant voluntarily bears oppression, transforming the term from a mark of tyranny to the doorway of atonement. By absorbing unjust pressure without retaliation, He liberates the oppressed and the oppressor alike. Eschatological Reversal and Hope Judgment and hope mingle in later passages. Babylon, the archetypal tyrant, is felled: “How the oppressor has ceased!” (Isaiah 14:4). Peace replaces oppression in Zion: “I will appoint peace as your overseers and righteousness as your oppressors” (Isaiah 60:17). Daniel predicts an “exactor of tribute” who will be destroyed (Daniel 11:20), while Zechariah hears the LORD promise, “No oppressor will march against them again” (Zechariah 9:8). History bends toward a kingdom where oppression is impossible. Ministry Implications 1. Compassionate Advocacy: Scripture’s consistent denunciation of nāgaś calls believers to defend the vulnerable and resist exploitative systems. Nāgaś warns against the misuse of power, witnesses to the God who hears the cry of the oppressed, and directs faith toward the Day when the rod of every taskmaster will be broken forever. Forms and Transliterations בְּנֹגְשֵׂיהֶֽם׃ בנגשיהם׃ הַנֹּגְשִׂ֣ים הַנֹּגֵ֣שׂ הנגש הנגשים וְהַנֹּגְשִׂ֖ים וְנִגַּ֣שׂ וְנֹגְשַׂ֖יִךְ והנגשים ונגש ונגשיך יִגֹּ֤שׂ יגש נ֝וֹגֵ֗שׂ נִגַּ֖שׂ נִגַּ֨שׂ נָגַ֞שׂ נֹֽגְשָׂ֔יו נֹגְשֵׂ֤י נֹגְשֵׂ֥י נֹגְשָׂ֣יו נֹגֵ֑שׂ נֹגֵ֔שׂ נֹגֵֽשׂ׃ נגש נגש׃ נגשי נגשיו נוֹגֵ֖שׂ נוגש תִּגֹּ֑שׂ תִּנְגֹּֽשׂוּ׃ תגש תנגשו׃ bə·nō·ḡə·śê·hem bənōḡəśêhem benogeseiHem han·nō·ḡə·śîm han·nō·ḡêś hannoGes hannōḡêś hannogeSim hannōḡəśîm nā·ḡaś naGas nāḡaś nig·gaś nigGas niggaś nō·ḡə·śāw nō·ḡə·śê nō·ḡêś nō·w·ḡêś noGes nōḡêś nogeSav nōḡəśāw nōḡəśê nogeSei nōwḡêś tig·gōś tigGos tiggōś tin·gō·śū tinGosu tingōśū vehannogeSim venigGas venogeSayich wə·han·nō·ḡə·śîm wə·nig·gaś wə·nō·ḡə·śa·yiḵ wəhannōḡəśîm wəniggaś wənōḡəśayiḵ yig·gōś yigGos yiggōśLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel TextsEnglishman's Concordance Exodus 3:7 HEB: שָׁמַ֙עְתִּי֙ מִפְּנֵ֣י נֹֽגְשָׂ֔יו כִּ֥י יָדַ֖עְתִּי NAS: because of their taskmasters, for I am aware KJV: by reason of their taskmasters; for I know INT: given reason of their taskmasters for I am aware Exodus 5:6 Exodus 5:10 Exodus 5:13 Exodus 5:14 Deuteronomy 15:2 Deuteronomy 15:3 1 Samuel 13:6 1 Samuel 14:24 2 Kings 23:35 Job 3:18 Job 39:7 Isaiah 3:5 Isaiah 3:12 Isaiah 9:4 Isaiah 14:2 Isaiah 14:4 Isaiah 53:7 Isaiah 58:3 Isaiah 60:17 Daniel 11:20 Zechariah 9:8 Zechariah 10:4 23 Occurrences |
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