Matzevah

Matzevah or masseva^[1] (Hebrew: מַצֵּבָה, romanized: maṣṣēḇā "pillar" or stele (Koinē Greek: στήλη, romanized: stēlē) in the Septuagint, is a term used in the Hebrew Bible for a baetyl, a type of sacred column or standing stone. Archaeologists have adopted the term for Israelite and related contexts, such as the Canaanite and the Nabataean ones. Massevot can also mark graves.

Ras Macalister found a circle of ten or more massevot in his work in Gezer

Etymology

The Hebrew word is derived from a Semitic root meaning 'to stand', which led to the meaning "pillar".^[2]

In transcription, many spellings are possible.^[3]

Biblical narrative

Use of the term can be found in Genesis 28:18, 28:22, 31:13, 31:45, 35:14, 35:20, Exodus 24:4, Deuteronomy 16:22 and Hosea 3:4.

Jacob

Jacob set up four massevot in the Hebrew Bible.

Bethel (the origin of the related term baetyl)
Mitzpah (Hebrew: וְהַמִּצְפָּה, romanized: wəhammiṣpā)
Bethel (again)
Rachel's grave

In Genesis 28:22, Jacob says, "'And this stone, which I have set up as a pillar, shall be God’s abode; and of all that You give me, I will set aside a tithe for You,'" and in Genesis 31:13, Yahweh says to Jacob, "I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed a pillar and where you made a vow to Me." "Over her grave Jacob set up a pillar; it is the pillar at Rachel’s grave to this day." (Genesis 35:20) It could also stand as a witness: upon confronting Jacob in Gilead: "And Laban said to Jacob, 'Here is this mound and here the pillar which I have set up between you and me: this mound shall be witness and this pillar shall be witness that I am not to cross to you past this mound, and that you are not to cross to me past this mound and this pillar, with hostile intent.'" (Genesis 31:52)

References

^ Oxford Biblical Studies Online, Oxford University Press. Accessed 14 February 2022.
^ Tombstone. Oxford University Press. 1999. ISBN 9780192800886. Retrieved 17 January 2022 – via oxfordreference.com. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
^ The Monument ("Matzeivah"), Maurice Lamm for Chabad.org. Accessed 17 Jan 2022.

External links

"matzeva" at Encyclopædia Britannica online

[1] Oxford Biblical Studies Online, Oxford University Press. Accessed 14 February 2022.

[2] Tombstone. Oxford University Press. 1999. ISBN 9780192800886. Retrieved 17 January 2022 – via oxfordreference.com. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)

[Lamm-3] The Monument ("Matzeivah"), Maurice Lamm for Chabad.org. Accessed 17 Jan 2022.

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