Grow With Me
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פָּלָא

pala · be wonderful, too hard

Hebrew word · Strong’s number H6381 · appears 71 times in the Bible

What is the Strong number?Strong’s number identifies this word: use it to find the same word in other study tools.

What it means

pala (פָּלָא) is a Hebrew word of the Bible that means “be wonderful, too hard”.

Be extraordinary, beyond what one can do; be wonderful. "Is anything too hard for YHWH?"

How to say it

pa·la

Approximate pronunciation. Vowels sound as in Spanish (a as in father, e as in bed, i as in machine, o as in note, u as in rule); the syllable in bold is stressed. The voice is your device's.

Its senses in the Bible

  1. To be beyond reach: "is anything impossible for YHWH?".
  2. What YHWH does, beyond what a person can do or understand.
  3. To promise YHWH something out of the ordinary: a special vow.

From Brown-Driver-Briggs (1906)

Word study

To be extraordinary, beyond what one can do or understand; from there to be difficult, and as a plural participle, the wonders, God's astonishing deeds. Of the same root is פֶּלֶא (wonder).

How we translate it

“Wonders” 40 times in the Psalms and narratives, “wonderful” 6, “marvels” in Exodus 3:20; “too difficult” 3 and “too hard” 2 when the extraordinary is what cannot be done or settled (Genesis 18:14; Deuteronomy 17:8). In the law of vows and sacrifices (Leviticus 22:21; 27:2; Numbers 15:3, 8) the causative form is translated “fulfill” or “makes a special” vow, because there it names a vow beyond the ordinary.

How it is translated

The words this translation uses for it, most frequent first.

  • wonders ×40
  • wonderful ×6
  • fulfill ×3
  • too difficult ×3
  • makes a special ×2
  • things too wonderful ×2
  • too hard ×2
  • wonder ×2
  • wondrously ×2
  • astonishing things ×1
  • others ×8

Related words

Words that come from it

Words of the same family, by Strong’s numbering.

Where it appears

  • Genesis 18:14

    Is anything too hard for YHWH? At the appointed time I will return to you, at this time next year, and Sarah will have a son.”

  • Exodus 3:20

    So I will stretch out my hand and strike Egypt with all my marvels that I will do in its midst; and after that he will let you go.

  • Exodus 34:10

    And he said, “Look, I am making a covenant. Before all your people I will do wonders that have not been created in all the earth or in any nation; and all the people among whom you are shall see the work of YHWH, for it is fearsome, what I am doing with you.

  • Leviticus 22:21

    And when a man presents a sacrifice of peace to YHWH to fulfill a vow or as a freewill offering, from the herd or from the flock, it shall be without defect to be accepted; no defect shall be in it.

  • Leviticus 27:2

    “Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them: When a man makes a special vow to YHWH according to the valuation of persons,

  • Numbers 6:2

    “Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them: When a man or a woman makes a special vow, the vow of a Nazirite, to separate himself to YHWH,

  • Numbers 15:3

    and you offer a fire offering to YHWH, a burnt offering or a sacrifice, to fulfill a vow or as a freewill offering or at your appointed times, to make a pleasing aroma to YHWH from the herd or from the flock,

  • Numbers 15:8

    And when you offer a young bull as a burnt offering or a sacrifice, to fulfill a vow, or as peace offerings to YHWH,

  • Deuteronomy 17:8

    If a matter for judgment is too difficult for you, between blood and blood, between case and case, and between blow and blow, matters of dispute within your gates, then you shall arise and go up to the place that YHWH your Elohim chooses.

  • Deuteronomy 28:59

    then YHWH will make extraordinary your blows and the blows of your offspring, blows great and lasting, and sicknesses severe and lasting.

  • Deuteronomy 30:11

    For this commandment that I am commanding you today is not too hard for you, nor is it far away.

  • Joshua 3:5

    Then Joshua said to the people, “Sanctify yourselves, for tomorrow YHWH will do wonders among you.”

  • Judges 6:13

    Gideon said to him, “Pardon, my lord, if YHWH is with us, why has all this found us? And where are all his wonders that our fathers recounted to us, saying, ‘Did not YHWH bring us up from Egypt?’ But now YHWH has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian.”

  • Judges 13:19

    So Manoah took the young goat and the grain offering and offered them up on the rock to YHWH; and he did a wonder while Manoah and his wife were watching.

  • 2 Samuel 1:26

    I am in distress over you, my brother Jonathan; you were very pleasant to me; your love to me was more wonderful than the love of women.

  • 2 Samuel 13:2

    Amnon was so distressed that he made himself ill because of Tamar his sister, for she was a virgin, and it seemed impossible in the eyes of Amnon to do anything to her.

  • 1 Chronicles 16:9

    Sing to him, sing psalms to him; speak of all his wonders.

  • 1 Chronicles 16:12

    Remember his wonders that he has done, his portents and the judgments of his mouth,

  • 1 Chronicles 16:24

    Tell among the nations his glory, among all the peoples his wonders.

  • 2 Chronicles 2:9

    to prepare timber for me in abundance, for the house that I am building will be great and wonderful.

  • 2 Chronicles 26:15

    He made in Jerusalem devices, the invention of an inventor, to be on the towers and on the corners, to shoot arrows and large stones. And his name went out far, for he was marvelously helped until he was strong.

  • Nehemiah 9:17

    They refused to listen, and did not remember your wonders that you had done with them; and they hardened their neck and appointed a head to return to their servitude in their rebellion. But you are an Eloah of pardons, gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in loyal love, and you did not abandon them.

  • Job 5:9

    who does great things that cannot be searched out, wonders without number;

  • Job 9:10

    who does great things that cannot be searched out, and wonders without number.

  • Job 10:16

    And if it rises, like a fierce lion you hunt me, and again you work wonders against me.

  • Job 37:5

    El thunders with his voice wondrously; he does great things, and we do not know them.

  • Job 37:14

    Give ear to this, Job; stand still and consider the wonders of El.

  • Job 42:3

    ‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’ Therefore I declared what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.

  • Psalms 9:1

    For the director. Almut labben. A psalm of David. I will give thanks to YHWH with all my heart; I will recount all your wonders.

  • Psalms 26:7

    to make heard the voice of thanksgiving and to recount all your wonders.

  • Psalms 31:21

    Blessed be YHWH, for he has made wonderful his loyal love to me in a city under siege.

  • Psalms 40:5

    Many things you have done, you, YHWH my Elohim, your wonders and your thoughts toward us; there is none to compare with you; were I to declare and speak of them, they are too many to count.

  • Psalms 71:17

    Elohim, you have taught me from my youth, and until now I declare your wonders.

  • Psalms 72:18

    Blessed be YHWH Elohim, the Elohim of Israel, who does wonders, he alone.

  • Psalms 75:1

    For the director. Do Not Destroy. A psalm of Asaph. A song. We give you thanks, Elohim, we give thanks, and near is your name; they recount your wonders.

  • Psalms 78:4

    We will not hide them from their children; to the generation to come we will recount the praises of YHWH, and his strength and his wonders that he has done.

  • Psalms 78:11

    And they forgot his deeds, and his wonders that he had shown them.

  • Psalms 78:32

    In spite of all this they still sinned, and did not believe in his wonders.

  • Psalms 86:10

    For you are great and one who does wonders; you are Elohim, you alone.

  • Psalms 96:3

    Tell among the nations his glory, among all the peoples his wonders.

And 31 more times.