Original Word: סוֹד
Part of Speech: Noun Masculine
Transliteration: cowd
Pronunciation: sode
Phonetic Spelling: (sode)
KJV: assembly, consel, inward, secret (counsel)
NASB: council, secret counsel, secret, secrets, circle, company, consultation
Word Origin: [from H3245 (יָסַד - founded)]

1. a session, i.e. company of persons (in close deliberation)
2. (by implication) intimacy, consultation, a secret

assembly, counsel, inward, secret counsel

From yacad; a session, i.e. Company of persons (in close deliberation); by implication, intimacy, consultation, a secret -- assembly, consel, inward, secret (counsel).

see HEBREW yacad

Word Origin
from an unused word
Definition
council, counsel
NASB Translation
circle (1), company (1), consultation (1), council (5), fellowship (1), friendship (1), gathering (1), intimate (1), plans (1), secret (2), secret counsel (3), secrets (2).

סוֺד noun [masculine] council, counsel; — ׳ס absolute Proverbs 11:13 +; construct Jeremiah 6:11 +; suffix סוֺדִי Jeremiah 23:22; Job 19:19; סוֺדוֺ Amos 3:7; Proverbs 3:32; סֹדָם Genesis 49:6; —

1 council, in familiar conversation; —

a. divan or circle of familiar friends, בַּחוּרִים ׳ס Jeremiah 6:11, משׂחקים ׳מ Jeremiah 15:17; ׳מְתֵי סוֺדִ Job 19:19 men of my intimate circle; ׅ׳עמד בסוד (י Jeremiah 23:18,22 in the intimate circle of ׳י; בסוד אלוה Job 15:8; in bad sense, מְרֵעִים ׳ס Psalm 64:3.

b. assembly, company, יְשָׁרִים ׳ס Psalm 111:1 ("" עֵדָה; סוֺד עמי Ezekiel 13:9; קדשׁים ׳ס Psalm 89:8 (of angels); in bad sense, בסוד בא Genesis 49:6 ("" קהל).

2 counsel, taken by those in familiar conversation:

a. counsel itself, מחשׁבות באין סוד Proverbs 15:22 thoughts without counsel; of intimate friendship, Psalm 55:15 נַמְתִּיק סוֺד; in bad sense, of crafty plotting Psalm 83:4 יַעֲרִימוּ סוֺד

b. secret counsel, which may be revealed (גלה), Amos 3:7; Proverbs 11:13; Proverbs 20:19; Proverbs 25:9.

c. familiar converse with God, intimacy, ׳י ׳ליראיו ס Psalm 25:14 intimacy with ׳י have those who fear him ("" ברית), אתיֿשׁרים סודוֺ Proverbs 3:22 with the upright is his intimacy; here also Job 29:4 (si vera lectio) Di De and others; Siegf Du compare Buhl^Lex בְּסֹךְ when Eloah sheltered my tent.

Meaning and Scope

סוֹד describes the sphere of confidential counsel, intimate fellowship, and strategic planning. In Scripture it may point upward to the divine council, inward to personal friendship, or downward to sinister conspiracies.

Distribution in the Canon

Occurrences span Torah (Genesis 49:6), Wisdom (Job, Psalms, Proverbs), Prophets (Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Amos), revealing a concept woven through every era of Israel’s history.

Divine Council and Covenant Intimacy

Psalm 25:14: “The LORD confides in those who fear Him, and reveals His covenant to them.” The word pictures God drawing the reverent into His inner circle, granting covenantal assurance and direction. Job 29:4 recalls “the friendship of God … over my tent,” highlighting personal communion that guided Job’s leadership. Psalm 89:7 portrays heavenly beings assembled in the “council of the holy ones,” underscoring God’s unchallenged supremacy even among celestial attendants.

Prophetic Revelation

Amos 3:7 anchors biblical prophecy: “Surely the Lord GOD does nothing without revealing His plan to His servants the prophets.” Jeremiah 23:18 contrasts true and false spokesmen, asking, “Who has stood in the council of the LORD to see and hear His word?” Authentic ministry flows from access to the סוֹד; counterfeit voices lack that privilege (Jeremiah 23:22).

Wisdom for Community Life

Proverbs uses the term to regulate speech and relationships:
• Proverbs 11:13 warns that “a gossip betrays confidence, but a trustworthy person keeps a secret,” safeguarding social cohesion.
• Proverbs 15:22 links “plans” to the collective counsel of advisers, encouraging humility and collaboration.
• Proverbs 3:32 contrasts the perverse—excluded from the LORD’s circle—with the upright who share His favor.

These texts teach that participation in God’s intimate counsel demands integrity and discretion.

Human Counsel Turned Wicked

Psalm 64:2 pleads for deliverance from “the scheming of evildoers”; Psalm 83:3 speaks of nations who “conspire against Your people.” Genesis 49:6 laments the violent “council” of Simeon and Levi. סוֹד thus becomes a mirror: righteous intimacy or rebellious plotting.

Corporate Worship

Psalm 111:1 voices the psalmist’s delight “in the council of the upright and in the assembly,” showing that shared reverence forms a sanctified inner circle on earth, anticipating the heavenly one.

Judgment for Spurning the Council

Jeremiah 6:11 and Jeremiah 15:17 depict the prophet isolated because he carries the LORD’s words that his contemporaries refused. Ezekiel 13:9 promises exclusion from God’s people for false prophets who fabricate visions without standing in the סוֹד.

Ministry Implications

1. Intimacy precedes insight. Leaders serve best after lingering in God’s presence.
2. Prophetic authority derives from participation in the divine council, not personal charisma.
3. Confidentiality is ethical; betrayal of trust erodes community.
4. Fellowship with God is inseparable from reverent obedience; moral compromise forfeits divine intimacy.

Historical Trajectory

From clan politics in Genesis to post-exilic prophecy, סוֹד tracks Israel’s story: God gathers a people, invites them into His plans, and measures their faithfulness by how they handle that trust.

Christological Fulfillment and New Testament Echoes

Jesus embodies ultimate access: “No longer do I call you servants … I have called you friends, for everything I have learned from My Father I have made known to you” (John 15:15). The apostolic community inherits the pattern: “the mystery hidden for ages … revealed to His saints” (Colossians 1:26). Thus the Old Testament סוֹד matures into the unveiled gospel, inviting believers today to guarded yet global proclamation of God’s redemptive counsel.

Practical Reflection

Believers are summoned into a living סוֹד—maintained by reverence, expressed through faithful counsel, guarded by holy discretion, and proclaimed in Spirit-empowered witness to the nations.

בְּס֖וֹד בְּס֣וֹד בְּס֥וֹד בְּס֧וֹד בְּסֹדָם֙ בְּסוֹדִ֑י בְּסוֹד־ בְסוֹד־ בסדם בסוד בסוד־ בסודי הַבְס֣וֹד הבסוד וְס֖וֹד וסוד מִסּ֣וֹד מסוד ס֑וֹד ס֣וֹד ס֥וֹד סּ֑וֹד סּ֭וֹד סוֹד֔וֹ סוֹדִ֑י סוֹדֽוֹ׃ סוד סודו סודו׃ סודי bə·sō·ḏām bə·sō·w·ḏî bə·sō·wḏ bə·sō·wḏ- ḇə·sō·wḏ- beSod besoDam bəsōḏām besoDi bəsōwḏ bəsōwḏ- ḇəsōwḏ- bəsōwḏî haḇ·sō·wḏ haḇsōwḏ havSod mis·sō·wḏ misSod missōwḏ sō·w·ḏî sō·w·ḏōw sō·wḏ Sod soDi soDo sōwḏ sōwḏî sōwḏōw veSod wə·sō·wḏ wəsōwḏInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts