to lust
a.gav marks desire directed after lovers or other desired persons, often in sexually charged descriptions.
The attested use chiefly describes a woman’s desire directed after particular men or groups: Assyrians, Chaldeans, and concubines in Ezekiel 23. A masculine plural participle in Jeremiah 4:30 occurs in the clause where the APB speaks of “your lovers,” presenting the desired relationship as a plural group.
Senses in use
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Desiring particular lovers or groups · dominant
The Qal perfect and sequential imperfect forms describe desire directed after named people or groups. In Ezekiel 23:5 the APB renders that Oholah “lusted after her lovers,” toward Assyria; Ezekiel 23:16 links her desire after them with seeing their appearance and sending messengers toward Chaldea. Ezekiel 23:7, Ezekiel 23:9, Ezekiel 23:12, and Ezekiel 23:20 continue this pattern of desire after Assyrians, lovers, or concubines.
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Plural designation within a lover relationship · rare
In Jeremiah 4:30, the masculine plural active participle occurs in the closing clause after efforts at adornment; the APB renders the clause, “your lovers despise you; they seek your soul.” The participial plural presents the persons in that relationship as a group rather than narrating a single feminine-singular action.
In the Anselm Project Bible: Across the Ezekiel verses, the APB repeatedly uses “lusted” or “lusted after” in clauses of desire directed toward people. In Jeremiah 4:30 it instead renders the surrounding participial clause with “your lovers”; This variation should be read as verse-level presentation rather than a separate fixed English equivalent.