6763. tsela
Lexical Summary
tsela: side, side chambers, sides

Original Word: צֵלָע
Part of Speech: Noun Feminine
Transliteration: tsela`
Pronunciation: tseh-LAH
Phonetic Spelling: (tsay-law')
KJV: beam, board, chamber, corner, leaf, plank, rib, side (chamber)
NASB: side, side chambers, sides, boards, chambers, leaves, one another
Word Origin: [from H6760 (צָּלַע - lame)]

1. a rib (as curved), literally (of the body) or figuratively (of a door, i.e. leaf)
2. (hence) a side, literally (of a person) or figuratively (of an object or the sky, i.e. quarter)
3. architecturally, a (especially floor or ceiling) timber or plank (single or collective, i.e. a flooring)

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
beam, board, chamber, corner, leaf, plank, rib, side chamber

Or (feminine) tsaltah {tsal-aw'}; from tsala'; a rib (as curved), literally (of the body) or figuratively (of a door, i.e. Leaf); hence, a side, literally (of a person) or figuratively (of an object or the sky, i.e. Quarter); architecturally, a (especially floor or ceiling) timber or plank (single or collective, i.e. A flooring) -- beam, board, chamber, corner, leaf, plank, rib, side (chamber).

see HEBREW tsala'

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
from an unused word
Definition
rib, side
NASB Translation
boards (3), chambers (1), hillside* (1), leaves (1), one...another (1), rib (1), ribs (1), side (15), side chamber (1), side chambers (10), sides (5), walls (1).

Brown-Driver-Briggs
צֵלָע41 noun feminine (masculine 1 Kings 6:34, and apparently Exodus 26:26) rib, side; — absolute ׳צ Genesis 2:22 +, construct צֶ֫לַע Exodus 26:26 +, also צֵ֫לַע 2 Samuel 16:13; suffix צַלְעוֺ Exodus 25:12 +; plural צְלָעִים 1 Kings 6:34, צְלָעוֺת 1 Kings 6:3 +; construct צַלְעֹת Ezekiel 41:26 +; suffix צַלְעֹתָיו Genesis 2:21 +; —

1 rib of man Genesis 2:21,22 (J).

2 rib of hill, i.e. ridge, or terrace 2 Samuel 16:13.

3 side-chambers or cells (enclosing temple like ribs) 1 Kings 6:5,6 (read ׳הַצּ for היצוע, see [ יָצִיעַ]), 1 Kings 7:3, so of Ezekiel's temple Ezekiel 41:5 10t. 41 (on text see Co Toy Krae).

4 ribs of cedar and fir, i.e. planks, boards (plural), of temple wall 1 Kings 6:15,16 floor 1 Kings 6:15.

5 leaves of door 1 Kings 6:34.

6 (in P) side, of ark (אֶרוֺן) Exodus 25:12 (twice in verse); Exodus 25:14 = Exodus 37:3 (twice in verse); Exodus 37:5; of tabernacle (מִשְׁכָּן) Exodus 26:20 ("" מֵּאָה Exodus 26:18), Exodus 26:26; Exodus 26:27; Exodus 26:27 = Exodus 36:25 ("" ׳פ Exodus 36:23), Exodus 36:31; Exodus 36:32, Exodus 26:35 (twice in verse); of altar Exodus 27:7 = Exodus 38:7, Exodus 30:4 = Exodus 37:27. — Jeremiah 20:10; Job 18:12 see צֶלַע below II. צלע.

Topical Lexicon
Semantic Range and Patterns of Usage

צֵלָע (tzelāʿ) appears about forty-one times, always describing a “side,” whether of a person, an article of furniture, or a building. The contexts fall into four main groups: (1) the human body, (2) the Tabernacle and its furnishings, (3) Solomon’s Temple, and (4) Ezekiel’s visionary temple. In every setting the word points to something that comes alongside and supports, protects, or complements what it adjoins.

Genesis: The Rib and the Covenant of Marriage

The first occurrence shapes the theological center of the word. “So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he slept, He took one of the man’s ribs and closed up the flesh in that place. Then the LORD God fashioned from the rib He had taken from the man a woman, and He brought her to the man” (Genesis 2:21-22). The woman is neither from Adam’s head to rule over him nor from his foot to be trampled by him, but from his side—signifying fellowship, equality of essence, and complementarity in function. When Adam declares, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh” (Genesis 2:23), a covenant pattern is laid down that becomes the basis for marriage throughout Scripture (Genesis 2:24; Matthew 19:4-5; Ephesians 5:31).

Exodus: Boards, Beams, and Sides of the Tabernacle

Seventeen appearances are bound up with the wilderness sanctuary. Two examples illustrate the way צֵלָע underlines order and portability:
Exodus 25:12, 14 — golden rings are set “on its two sides” so that poles can be inserted and the Ark carried without human hands touching the holy object.
Exodus 26:20 — “twenty boards for the south side of the tabernacle” indicate a precisely measured structure, secure yet temporary, ready to move as the cloud moves (Numbers 9:17-23).

Every time the word is used for the Tabernacle it describes structural pieces that stabilize and unify the whole. The spiritual parallel is the orderly worship life of a redeemed people traveling toward promise (Hebrews 3:3-6).

1 Kings: Side Chambers of Solomon’s Temple

When Israel is settled in the land, צֵלָע shifts from nomadic boards to permanent side rooms: “Against the wall of the temple he built a structure around it, in which there were side rooms all around” (1 Kings 6:5). Verses 6-10 give detailed measurements, using צֵלָע seven times. The three-story annex housed priests, stored utensils, and safeguarded offerings (1 Kings 7:51; 2 Chronicles 31:11). Thus the “ribs” of the Temple sustained a worship ministry that now served not a moving camp but a settled nation.

Ezekiel: The Prophetic Temple

The final cluster occurs in Ezekiel’s vision of a future house of God (Ezekiel 41:5-11, 26). Again side chambers surround the sanctuary, yet the glory exceeds even Solomon’s day (Ezekiel 43:1-5). By reusing צֵלָע Ezekiel links God’s unchanging pattern—secure sides around a holy center—with an eschatological hope in which “the LORD is there” (Ezekiel 48:35).

Literary and Theological Themes

1. Complementarity. The woman from Adam’s side models mutuality. Psalm 128 sets wife “by the sides of your house,” a domestic echo (Psalm 128:3; the underlying Hebrew word differs, yet the image stands on Genesis 2).
2. Holiness protected. Whether Ark, Tabernacle, or Temple, the sacred core is never exposed. צֵלָע provides the buffer. Worship today likewise guards the gospel’s center while building supportive structures of service and discipleship (2 Timothy 1:13-14).
3. Progression from mobility to permanence to consummation. The boards of Exodus lead to stone chambers in Kings and to a visionary perfection in Ezekiel, tracing redemptive history from pilgrimage through kingdom to final glory.

Christological Echoes

In John 19:34 the Roman spear opens the Lord’s πλευρά (side). While Greek vocabulary differs, the conceptual parallel is powerful: from the pierced side of the second Adam flow blood and water—redemption and cleansing—for the birth of the Church (John 19:35-37; Ephesians 5:25-27). The original צֵלָע anticipates this greater act of creation.

Implications for Contemporary Ministry

• Marriage: Genesis 2 grounds permanence and mutual support; pastoral counseling must uphold this design.
• Church architecture and budgeting: the unseen “side rooms” of administration, storage, and maintenance, though rarely celebrated, enable corporate worship.
• Discipleship: believers stand beside one another as living stones (1 Peter 2:5), upholding the dwelling place of God in the Spirit (Ephesians 2:19-22).
• Eschatology: every faithful structure—marriage, congregation, or ministry—points toward the consummated temple where nothing unclean will enter, and “the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple” (Revelation 21:22).

Thus צֵלָע, from Eden to the New Jerusalem, consistently signifies the devoted “sides” that protect, support, and complete the dwelling and purpose of God among His people.

Forms and Transliterations
בְּצֵ֨לַע בְּצַלְע֣וֹת בְּצַלְע֥וֹת בצלע בצלעות הַצְּלָעֹת֙ הַצְּלָעוֹת֙ הַצֵּלָ֛ע הַצֵּלָע֙ הַצֵּלָע֩ הצלע הצלעות הצלעת וְהַצְּלָעוֹת֩ וְצַלְע֥וֹת וּלְצֶ֧לַע והצלעות ולצלע וצלעות לְצַלְעֽוֹ׃ לַצְּלָע֗וֹת לַצְּלָע֛וֹת לַצֵּלָ֛ע לצלע לצלעו׃ לצלעות מִצַּלְעֹתָ֔יו מצלעתיו צְלָע֖וֹת צְלָעִ֜ים צֵלָ֜ע צֵלָ֨ע צֶ֣לַע צֶ֥לַע צֶֽלַע־ צַלְע֖וֹ צַלְעֹ֣ת צַלְעֹ֥ת צַלְעֹתָ֔יו צַלְעוֹ֙ צלע צלע־ צלעו צלעות צלעים צלעת צלעתיו bə·ṣal·‘ō·wṯ bə·ṣê·la‘ bəṣal‘ōwṯ bəṣêla‘ betzalot beTzela haṣ·ṣê·lā‘ haṣ·ṣə·lā·‘ō·wṯ haṣ·ṣə·lā·‘ōṯ haṣṣêlā‘ haṣṣəlā‘ōṯ haṣṣəlā‘ōwṯ hatztzeLa hatztzelaOt laṣ·ṣê·lā‘ laṣ·ṣə·lā·‘ō·wṯ laṣṣêlā‘ laṣṣəlā‘ōwṯ latztzeLa latztzelaot lə·ṣal·‘ōw ləṣal‘ōw letzalO miṣ·ṣal·‘ō·ṯāw miṣṣal‘ōṯāw mitztzaloTav ṣal‘ōṯ ṣal‘ōṯāw ṣal‘ōw ṣal·‘ō·ṯāw ṣal·‘ōṯ ṣal·‘ōw ṣe·la‘ ṣê·lā‘ ṣe·la‘- ṣə·lā·‘îm ṣə·lā·‘ō·wṯ ṣela‘ ṣêlā‘ ṣela‘- ṣəlā‘îm ṣəlā‘ōwṯ tzalO tzalOt tzaloTav tzela tzelaIm tzelaot ū·lə·ṣe·la‘ ūləṣela‘ uleTzela vehatztzelaOt vetzalot wə·haṣ·ṣə·lā·‘ō·wṯ wə·ṣal·‘ō·wṯ wəhaṣṣəlā‘ōwṯ wəṣal‘ōwṯ
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Englishman's Concordance
Genesis 2:21
HEB: וַיִּקַּ֗ח אַחַת֙ מִצַּלְעֹתָ֔יו וַיִּסְגֹּ֥ר בָּשָׂ֖ר
NAS: one of his ribs and closed
KJV: one of his ribs, and closed up
INT: took one of his ribs and closed the flesh

Genesis 2:22
HEB: אֱלֹהִ֧ים ׀ אֶֽת־ הַצֵּלָ֛ע אֲשֶׁר־ לָקַ֥ח
NAS: into a woman the rib which
KJV: And the rib, which the LORD God
INT: the LORD God the rib which had taken

Exodus 25:12
HEB: טַבָּעֹ֗ת עַל־ צַלְעוֹ֙ הָֽאֶחָ֔ת וּשְׁתֵּי֙
NAS: shall be on one side of it and two
KJV: [shall be] in the one side of it, and two
INT: rings and side one and two

Exodus 25:12
HEB: טַבָּעֹ֔ת עַל־ צַלְע֖וֹ הַשֵּׁנִֽית׃
NAS: rings on the other side of it.
INT: rings and side the other

Exodus 25:14
HEB: בַּטַּבָּעֹ֔ת עַ֖ל צַלְעֹ֣ת הָאָרֹ֑ן לָשֵׂ֥את
NAS: into the rings on the sides of the ark,
KJV: into the rings by the sides of the ark,
INT: the rings on the sides of the ark to carry

Exodus 26:20
HEB: וּלְצֶ֧לַע הַמִּשְׁכָּ֛ן הַשֵּׁנִ֖ית
NAS: and for the second side of the tabernacle,
KJV: And for the second side of the tabernacle
INT: side of the tabernacle the second

Exodus 26:26
HEB: חֲמִשָּׁ֕ה לְקַרְשֵׁ֥י צֶֽלַע־ הַמִּשְׁכָּ֖ן הָאֶחָֽד׃
NAS: of one side of the tabernacle,
KJV: of the one side of the tabernacle,
INT: five the boards side of the tabernacle of one

Exodus 26:27
HEB: בְרִיחִ֔ם לְקַרְשֵׁ֥י צֶֽלַע־ הַמִּשְׁכָּ֖ן הַשֵּׁנִ֑ית
NAS: of the other side of the tabernacle,
KJV: of the other side of the tabernacle,
INT: bars the boards side of the tabernacle of the other

Exodus 26:27
HEB: בְרִיחִ֗ם לְקַרְשֵׁי֙ צֶ֣לַע הַמִּשְׁכָּ֔ן לַיַּרְכָתַ֖יִם
NAS: for the boards of the side of the tabernacle
KJV: for the boards of the side of the tabernacle,
INT: bars the boards of the side of the tabernacle the rear

Exodus 26:35
HEB: הַשֻּׁלְחָ֔ן עַ֛ל צֶ֥לַע הַמִּשְׁכָּ֖ן תֵּימָ֑נָה
NAS: the table on the side of the tabernacle
KJV: the table on the side of the tabernacle
INT: the table on the side of the tabernacle the south

Exodus 26:35
HEB: תִּתֵּ֖ן עַל־ צֶ֥לַע צָפֽוֹן׃
NAS: the table on the north side.
KJV: the table on the north side.
INT: shall put and side the north

Exodus 27:7
HEB: עַל־ שְׁתֵּ֛י צַלְעֹ֥ת הַמִּזְבֵּ֖חַ בִּשְׂאֵ֥ת
NAS: shall be on the two sides of the altar
KJV: shall be upon the two sides of the altar,
INT: upon the two sides of the altar is carried

Exodus 30:4
HEB: עַ֚ל שְׁתֵּ֣י צַלְעֹתָ֔יו תַּעֲשֶׂ֖ה עַל־
NAS: side walls-- on opposite
KJV: of it, by the two corners thereof, upon the two
INT: and two walls shall make and

Exodus 36:25
HEB: וּלְצֶ֧לַע הַמִּשְׁכָּ֛ן הַשֵּׁנִ֖ית
NAS: Then for the second side of the tabernacle,
KJV: And for the other side of the tabernacle,
INT: side of the tabernacle the second

Exodus 36:31
HEB: חֲמִשָּׁ֕ה לְקַרְשֵׁ֥י צֶֽלַע־ הַמִּשְׁכָּ֖ן הָאֶחָֽת׃
NAS: of one side of the tabernacle,
KJV: of the one side of the tabernacle,
INT: five the boards side of the tabernacle of one

Exodus 36:32
HEB: בְרִיחִ֔ם לְקַרְשֵׁ֥י צֶֽלַע־ הַמִּשְׁכָּ֖ן הַשֵּׁנִ֑ית
NAS: of the other side of the tabernacle,
KJV: of the other side of the tabernacle,
INT: bars the boards side of the tabernacle of the other

Exodus 37:3
HEB: טַבָּעֹ֗ת עַל־ צַלְעוֹ֙ הָֽאֶחָ֔ת וּשְׁתֵּי֙
NAS: rings on one side of it, and two rings
KJV: upon the one side of it, and two
INT: rings and side one and two

Exodus 37:3
HEB: טַבָּע֔וֹת עַל־ צַלְע֖וֹ הַשֵּׁנִֽית׃
NAS: rings on the other side of it.
KJV: rings upon the other side of it.
INT: rings and side the other

Exodus 37:5
HEB: בַּטַּבָּעֹ֔ת עַ֖ל צַלְעֹ֣ת הָאָרֹ֑ן לָשֵׂ֖את
NAS: into the rings on the sides of the ark,
KJV: into the rings by the sides of the ark,
INT: the rings on the sides of the ark to carry

Exodus 37:27
HEB: עַ֚ל שְׁתֵּ֣י צַלְעֹתָ֔יו עַ֖ל שְׁנֵ֣י
NAS: on its two sides-- on opposite
KJV: thereof, by the two corners of it, upon the two
INT: on two sides and two

Exodus 38:7
HEB: בַּטַּבָּעֹ֗ת עַ֚ל צַלְעֹ֣ת הַמִּזְבֵּ֔חַ לָשֵׂ֥את
NAS: into the rings on the sides of the altar,
KJV: into the rings on the sides of the altar,
INT: the rings on the sides of the altar to carry

2 Samuel 16:13
HEB: וְשִׁמְעִ֡י הֹלֵךְ֩ בְּצֵ֨לַע הָהָ֜ר לְעֻמָּת֗וֹ
NAS: went along on the hillside parallel
KJV: on the hill's side over against
INT: and Shimei went side the hill's parallel

1 Kings 6:5
HEB: וְלַדְּבִ֑יר וַיַּ֥עַשׂ צְלָע֖וֹת סָבִֽיב׃
NAS: thus he made side chambers all around.
KJV: and he made chambers round about:
INT: and the inner made side all

1 Kings 6:8
HEB: פֶּ֗תַח הַצֵּלָע֙ הַתִּ֣יכֹנָ֔ה אֶל־
NAS: for the lowest side chamber [was] on the right
KJV: for the middle chamber [was] in the right
INT: the doorway side the lowest about

1 Kings 6:15
HEB: הַבַּ֤יִת מִבַּ֙יְתָה֙ בְּצַלְע֣וֹת אֲרָזִ֔ים מִקַּרְקַ֤ע
NAS: on the inside with boards of cedar;
KJV: within with boards of cedar,
INT: of the house of the house boards of cedar the floor

41 Occurrences

Strong's Hebrew 6763
41 Occurrences


bə·ṣal·‘ō·wṯ — 3 Occ.
bə·ṣê·la‘ — 1 Occ.
haṣ·ṣê·lā‘ — 4 Occ.
haṣ·ṣə·lā·‘ōṯ — 2 Occ.
laṣ·ṣê·lā‘ — 1 Occ.
laṣ·ṣə·lā·‘ō·wṯ — 2 Occ.
lə·ṣal·‘ōw — 1 Occ.
miṣ·ṣal·‘ō·ṯāw — 1 Occ.
ṣal·‘ōw — 4 Occ.
ṣal·‘ōṯ — 4 Occ.
ṣal·‘ō·ṯāw — 2 Occ.
ṣe·la‘- — 9 Occ.
ṣə·lā·‘îm — 1 Occ.
ṣə·lā·‘ō·wṯ — 2 Occ.
ū·lə·ṣe·la‘ — 2 Occ.
wə·haṣ·ṣə·lā·‘ō·wṯ — 1 Occ.
wə·ṣal·‘ō·wṯ — 1 Occ.

6762
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