H4135 — מוּל (muwl)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: H4135
Original: מוּל
Transliteration: muwl
Pronunciation: mool
Part of Speech: Verb
Root: Primitive root
Occurrences: 32 unique verses (47 tokens) in 7 OT books
First Occurrence: Gen 17:10 — "This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child among you shall be circumcised."
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

A primitive root; to cut short, i.e. curtail (specifically the prepuce, i.e. to circumcise); by implication, to blunt; figuratively, to destroy: — circumcise(-ing, selves), cut down (in pieces), destroy, must needs.

Verb Stem Distribution¶

Stem	Count	Typical Meaning
Niphal	18	be circumcised (passive/reflexive) — the most common stem
Qal	12	circumcise (active) — subject performs circumcision on another
Hiphil	3	cut off, destroy — extended/figurative sense (Psa 118:10-12 only)

Notes: The Niphal predominates, reflecting the covenantal formulation "every male shall be circumcised" (Gen 17:10-14). The Qal appears in narrative contexts where someone actively circumcises others (Abraham circumcising his household, Joshua circumcising Israel). The Hiphil occurs only in Psa 118:10-12 with the meaning "cut off / destroy," extending the root sense of cutting to hostile action.

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Verses	%
circumcised / be circumcised / was circumcised / were circumcised	22	69%
circumcise / did circumcise / will circumcise	4	12%
circumcising	1	3%
I will destroy them / will I destroy them	3	9%
cut in pieces	1	3%
it is cut down	1	3%

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
Genesis	14	0.91
Joshua	6	0.91
Psalms	5	0.20
Deuteronomy	2	0.21
Exodus	2	0.16
Jeremiah	2	0.15
Leviticus	1	0.12

Concentration: Overwhelmingly Pentateuchal + Joshua (25 of 32 verses, 78%). Genesis 17 alone has 10 of the 14 Genesis occurrences — the Abrahamic covenant institution. Joshua 5 contains all 6 Joshua occurrences — the Gilgal circumcision after the wilderness generation. The 5 Psalms uses are exclusively the extended "cut off/destroy" meaning, not physical circumcision. The 2 Deuteronomy occurrences are the only OT passages commanding heart circumcision (10:16, 30:6). Jeremiah's 2 uses continue this figurative trajectory (4:4, 9:25).

Semantic Categories¶

1. Covenant Sign — Physical Circumcision Commanded¶

Gen 17:10 — "Every man child among you shall be circumcised"
Gen 17:12 — "He that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you"
Gen 17:13 — "He that is born in thy house... must needs be circumcised: and my covenant shall be in your flesh"
Lev 12:3 — "In the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised"

2. Covenant Obedience — Circumcision Performed¶

Gen 17:23 — "Abraham took Ishmael... and circumcised the flesh of their foreskin in the selfsame day"
Gen 21:4 — "Abraham circumcised his son Isaac being eight days old, as God had commanded him"
Josh 5:3 — "Joshua made him sharp knives, and circumcised the children of Israel"

3. Covenant Exclusion — Failure to Circumcise¶

Gen 17:14 — "The uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken my covenant"
Josh 5:5 — "All the people that were born in the wilderness by the way... them they had not circumcised"

4. Prerequisite for Covenant Participation¶

Exo 12:44 — "Every man's servant that is bought for money, when thou hast circumcised him, then shall he eat thereof"
Exo 12:48 — "When a stranger shall sojourn with thee, and will keep the passover to the LORD, let all his males be circumcised"
Gen 34:15 — "In this will we consent unto you: If ye will be as we be, that every male of you be circumcised"

5. Heart Circumcision — Figurative / Spiritual Application¶

Deut 10:16 — "Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no more stiffnecked"
Deut 30:6 — "The LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart"
Jer 4:4 — "Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and take away the foreskins of your heart"

6. Cut Off / Destroy (Extended Sense)¶

Psa 118:10 — "All nations compassed me about: but in the name of the LORD will I destroy them"
Psa 58:7 — "Let them melt away as waters which run continually: when he bendeth his bow to shoot his arrows, let them be as cut in pieces"
Psa 90:6 — "In the morning it flourisheth, and groweth up; in the evening it is cut down, and withereth"

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
כֹּל (kol)	H3605	15x (47%)	"every male" — universal scope of circumcision command
בֵּן (ben)	H1121	11x (34%)	"man child / son" — subject of circumcision
זָכָר (zakar)	H2145	9x (28%)	"male" — specifying who must be circumcised
עׇרְלָה (orlah)	H6190	9x (28%)	"foreskin" — the object removed in circumcision
יְהֹוָה (Yehovah)	H3068	8x (25%)	"the LORD" — source of command; heart circumcision by God
בָּשָׂר (basar)	H1320	6x (19%)	"flesh" — "flesh of his foreskin" / "covenant in your flesh"
אִישׁ (iysh)	H376	6x (19%)	"man" — every man child shall be circumcised
יוֹם (yowm)	H3117	6x (19%)	"day" — eighth day; "in the selfsame day"
בְּרִית (beriyth)	H1285	3x (9%)	"covenant" — circumcision as covenant sign

Word Family / Cognates¶

No direct cognate nouns from this root appear in the OT. The noun מוּלָה (mulah, H4139) occurs once (Exo 4:26, "a bloody husband... because of the circumcision").

Synonyms (from SDBH)¶

H3001 יָבֵשׁ (yabesh) — to dry up, wither (shares the "cut down" / destruction semantic field)
H3988 מָאַס (maas) — to reject, refuse
H5034 נָבֵל (nabel) — to wither, fade, fall
H4355 מָכַךְ (makak) — to be low, sink down

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
περιτέμνω (peritemno)	G4059	"circumcised"	Greek NT equivalent; used for both physical and spiritual circumcision in the NT
περιτομή (peritome)	G4061	"circumcision" (noun)	Greek noun for the rite/condition; H4135 is the Hebrew verb

LXX Mapping¶

Greek Equivalent	Co-occurrences	PMI Score	Notes
περιτέμνω (peritemno) G4059	25	9.31	Primary — strong 1:1 mapping for circumcision contexts
ἀκροβυστία (akrobystia) G203	8	8.66	Appears in same verses — the "uncircumcision" concept
ἀμύνομαι (amynomai) G292	3	8.47	"Ward off / defend" — for Psa 118 "destroy" usage
ἀπερίτμητος (aperitmetos) G564	4	6.71	"Uncircumcised" — negative adjective form
σάρξ (sarx) G4561	6	4.86	"Flesh" — collocates as "flesh of foreskin"