Lexicon
דָּבֵק
da.veq
H1695
H:A Hebrew

cleaving

3
Occurrences
3
Books
Hebrew
Language

da.veq describes close attachment, whether wings meet physically or people remain closely joined.

The dominant attested use describes people in close, enduring attachment: those attached to the LORD in Deuteronomy 4:4 and a friend closer than a brother in Proverbs 18:24. A physical use describes one cherub's wing meeting the other in 2 Chronicles 3:12.

Senses in use

  1. Close personal attachment · dominant

    In Deuteronomy 4:4, the masculine plural adjective identifies those attached to the LORD their God, whom the APB renders as “cleaving to the LORD your God.” In Proverbs 18:24, the masculine singular form describes a friend whose closeness exceeds that of a brother; the APB renders the clause “a friend who clings more closely than a brother.”

  2. Physical contact or joining · occasional

    In 2 Chronicles 3:12, the feminine singular adjective occurs in the description of the cherubs' wings, where one wing meets the wing of the other cherub. The APB renders this relation as “cleaving to the wing of the other cherub.”

In the Anselm Project Bible: The APB uses “cleaving” for attachment to the LORD and for the joined wings, and “clings more closely” for the friend in Proverbs 18:24. These renderings confirm the clauses' presentation rather than establish separate English equivalents.

Passages featuring this word

Across Scripture