tsum denotes fasting, often in mourning, prayer, petition, or communal appeal before God.

The verb denotes fasting across contexts of mourning for the dead, seeking God for a child, communal confession and appeal, and practices whose purpose is questioned. The supplied clauses show the same action in individual and collective settings rather than distinct lexical uses.

1. Fasting in mourning, prayer, and appeal · dominant

   Qal forms occur with mourning and seeking God: in 2 Samuel 12:16 the sequential imperfect stands after David sought God for the child, and the APB renders the clause “David fasted.” In 1 Samuel 7:6 the plural form accompanies confession, while Ezra 8:23 joins the first-person plural form to petitioning God; Esther 4:16 explicitly places the imperative within a call not to eat or drink. Isaiah 58:4 and Zechariah 7:5 show fasting being evaluated in relation to strife, mourning, and whether it was directed to God.

   2 Samuel 12:161 Samuel 7:6Ezra 8:23Esther 4:16Isaiah 58:4Zechariah 7:5

In the Anselm Project Bible: The APB consistently presents the verb with forms of “fasted” or “fast,” including the explicit explanation “do not eat and do not drink” in Esther 4:16. These renderings confirm the verse-level action rather than isolate every nuance of the Hebrew form.