Original Word: נֶגַע
Part of Speech: Noun Masculine
Transliteration: nega`
Pronunciation: neh-gah
Phonetic Spelling: (neh'-gah)
KJV: plague, sore, stricken, stripe, stroke, wound
NASB: mark, infection, plague, affliction, assault, another, plagues
Word Origin: [from H5060 (נָגַע - touches)]

1. a blow
2. (figuratively) an infliction
3. (by implication) a spot, sore
4. (concretely) a leprous person or dress

plague, sore, stricken, stripe, stroke, wound

From naga'; a blow (figuratively, infliction); also (by implication) a spot (concretely, a leprous person or dress) -- plague, sore, stricken, stripe, stroke, wound.

see HEBREW naga'

Word Origin
from naga
Definition
a stroke, plague, mark
NASB Translation
affliction (2), another (1), assault (2), infection (30), mark (32), plague (6), plagues (1), stripes (1), stroke (1), strokes (1), wounds (1).

נֶ֫גַע₇₈ noun masculine^{Genesis 12:17} stroke, plague, mark, plague-spot; — ׳נ absolute Exodus 11:1 +, נָ֑גַע Leviticus 13:13 +; construct Deuteronomy 24:8 +; suffix נִגְעִי Psalm 38:12; נִגְעֶ֑ךָ Psalm 39:11; נִגְעוֺ Leviticus 13:44; 2Chronicles 6:29; plural נְגָעִים Genesis 12:17; Psalm 89:33; construct נִגְעִי 2 Samuel 7:14; —

1 stroke, wound, inflicted by man on man Deuteronomy 17:8; Deuteronomy 21:5 ("" רִיב, Proverbs 6:33.

2 stroke, metaphor, especially of a disease, regarded as sent by a divine chastisement, Genesis 12:17 (J), Exodus 11:1 (E), 2 Samuel 7:14 (בְנֵי אָדָם ׳נ, "" שֵׁבֶט אֲנָשִׁים, i.e. customary, ordinary), 1 Kings 8:37 2Chronicles 6:28 (both "" מַחֲלָה); 1 Kings 8:38 (לְבָבוֺ ׳נ = 2 Chronicles 6:29 (נִגְעוֺ); Psalm 91:10 ("" רָעָה); of Israel Psalm 38:12; Psalm 39:11 ("" תִּגְרַת יָָֽדְךָ), Psalm 89:33 ("" שֵׁכֶט); see also Isaiah 53:8 (of suffering servant of ׳י, נֶגַע לָ֑מוֺ).

3 mark (60 t. Leviticus 13:14), indeterm. Leviticus 13:5,6 (מִסְמַּחַת), Leviticus 13:17; Leviticus 13:29; Leviticus 13:30; Leviticus 13:32; Leviticus 13:43; Leviticus 13:44; of leprosy, regarded as the heavy touch or stroke of a disease, צָרַ֫עַת ׳נ Leviticus 13:2 +; Leviticus 13:51 (׳צָרַעַת מַמְאֶרֶת הַנּ), Leviticus 13:59; Leviticus 14:3,32,54, Deuteronomy 24:8; also הַנֶּתֶק ׳נ Leviticus 13:31; לָבָן אֲדַמְדָּם ׳נ Leviticus 13:42; identification with person having it Leviticus 13:4,12,13,17,31; in garment, etc. Leviticus 13:47 15t. Leviticus 13; in house Leviticus 14:34,35,36,43,44,48 (twice in verse); i.e. house-wall Leviticus 14:37; Leviticus 14:37; Leviticus 14:39; in stones of wall Leviticus 14:40; = garment, etc., with plague-spot Leviticus 13:50.

Scope and Distribution

נֶגַע appears about seventy-eight times, most densely in Leviticus 13–14 (roughly fifty-five occurrences), with additional instances in Genesis, Exodus, Deuteronomy, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 2 Chronicles, Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Isaiah, and Zechariah. The word is applied to people, houses, garments, crops, and even national calamities, forming a thematic bridge between personal uncleanness and corporate judgment.

Affliction as Divine Stroke

The earliest occurrence links נֶגַע to a direct act of God against Pharaoh: “But the LORD afflicted Pharaoh and his household with severe plagues because of Abram’s wife Sarai” (Genesis 12:17). The term reappears when Moses warns of covenant curses (Deuteronomy 28:59) and when Solomon prays for relief from any “plague or affliction” that might befall Israel (1 Kings 8:37). In these texts נֶגַע underscores the Lord’s sovereign right to discipline nations and rulers.

Levitical Regulations and Ritual Purity

Leviticus 13–14 employs נֶגַע in its technical sense for skin eruptions, mildew in clothing, and mold in houses. The priest’s task is to “examine the plague” (Leviticus 13:3) and declare either uncleanness or restoration. The procedures—quarantine, shaving, washing, sacrifice, and atonement—teach Israel that sin, like leprosy, alienates, spreads, and can be removed only by God-ordained means. The painstaking detail also preserves community health and typologically points to the comprehensive cleansing accomplished in Christ.

Royal and Prophetic Illustrations

Kings who violated covenant boundaries experienced נֶגַע. Uzziah was “leprous to the day of his death” (2 Chronicles 26:20-21), dramatizing how pride invites divine stroke. In prophetic literature, נֶגַע expands metaphorically. Isaiah records Israel’s condition: “The whole head is sick and the whole heart faint. From the sole of the foot even to the head there is no soundness—only wounds, welts, and festering sores” (Isaiah 1:5-6). The language of physical sores exposes a deeper moral ulcer.

Poetic and Wisdom Usage

Psalms and Proverbs use נֶגַע to convey both physical pain and inward anguish. “My loved ones and friends stand at a distance because of my plague, and my relatives stand afar off” (Psalm 38:11). Proverbs warns the adulterer that he “will receive wounds and dishonor” (Proverbs 6:33), reminding readers that moral folly bears tangible scars.

Messianic Resonance

Isaiah 53:4 declares, “Surely He took on our infirmities and carried our sorrows; yet we considered Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.” Though the noun form is not used, the concept of God-inflicted נֶגַע reaches its climax at Calvary, where the righteous Servant bears the ultimate stroke, securing cleansing for lepers of soul and body alike (Matthew 8:2-3).

Ministry and Pastoral Implications

1. Confronting Sin: נֶגַע warns that hidden corruption must be exposed. Faithful church discipline mirrors the priestly duty to diagnose and, by the gospel, pronounce either condemnation or cleansing (Galatians 6:1).
2. Compassionate Care: Jesus’ readiness to touch lepers guides modern ministry toward the marginalized, combining purity with mercy.
3. Holistic Healing: While respecting the Lord’s providence in sickness, believers pray confidently: “No plague will approach your tent” (Psalm 91:10), balancing trust and submission.
4. Eschatological Hope: Revelation promises a new creation where “there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain” (Revelation 21:4). The final removal of every נֶגַע seals God’s redemptive plan.

Theological Summary

נֶגַע functions as a tangible reminder that sin leaves visible marks, that holiness requires separation and sacrifice, and that God alone provides the remedy. From Pharaoh’s palace to the leper’s hut and from Israel’s national crises to the wounds borne by Christ, the motif of נֶגַע threads through Scripture, calling every generation to seek cleansing in the covenant faithfulness of the LORD.

בְּנֶֽגַע־ בַּנֶּ֜גַע בנגע בנגע־ הַנֶּ֔גַע הַנֶּ֖גַע הַנֶּ֗גַע הַנֶּ֙גַע֙ הַנֶּ֜גַע הַנֶּ֣גַע הַנֶּ֤גַע הַנֶּ֥גַע הַנֶּגַע֮ הַנָּ֑גַע הַנָּֽגַע׃ הנגע הנגע׃ וְ֝נֶ֗גַע וְהַנֶּ֣גַע וּבְנִגְעֵ֖י וּבִנְגָעִ֥ים ובנגעי ובנגעים והנגע ונגע כְּנֶ֕גַע כנגע לְנֶ֣גַע לָנֶ֔גַע לנגע נְגָעִ֥ים נִגְעִ֣י נִגְעֶ֑ךָ נִגְעֽוֹ׃ נִגְעוֹ֙ נֶ֖גַע נֶ֙גַע֙ נֶ֣גַע נֶ֤גַע נֶ֥גַע נֶֽגַע־ נָ֑גַע נָֽגַע׃ נגע נגע־ נגע׃ נגעו נגעו׃ נגעי נגעים נגעך ban·ne·ḡa‘ banNega banneḡa‘ bə·ne·ḡa‘- benega bəneḡa‘- han·nā·ḡa‘ han·ne·ḡa‘ hanNaga hannāḡa‘ hanNega hanneḡa‘ kə·ne·ḡa‘ keNega kəneḡa‘ lā·ne·ḡa‘ laNega lāneḡa‘ lə·ne·ḡa‘ leNega ləneḡa‘ nā·ḡa‘ Naga nāḡa‘ ne·ḡa‘ ne·ḡa‘- nə·ḡā·‘îm Nega neḡa‘ neḡa‘- nəḡā‘îm negaIm niḡ‘eḵā niḡ‘î niḡ‘ōw niḡ·‘e·ḵā niḡ·‘î niḡ·‘ōw nigEcha nigI nigO ū·ḇə·niḡ·‘ê ū·ḇin·ḡā·‘îm ūḇəniḡ‘ê ūḇinḡā‘îm uvenigEi uvingaIm vehanNega veNega wə·han·ne·ḡa‘ wə·ne·ḡa‘ wəhanneḡa‘ wəneḡa‘Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts