Best
מֵיטָבStrong’s H4315metav (me-tav)
Appears in 5 verses of the Old Testament
In short
Metav is the Hebrew word usually translated “best of”. It appears in 5 verses of the Old Testament.
“The land of Egypt is before thee; in the best of the land make thy father and brethren to dwell; in the land of Goshen let them dwell: and if thou knowest any men of activity among them, then make them rulers over my cattle.”
Meaning
- The bestas superlative
How it's translated
- best of 3
- in best of 2
- and best of 1
Word-by-word English from the STEPBible tagged text.
Where it's used most
- Genesis 2
- 1 Samuel 2
- Exodus 1
3 books in all.
Related words
Explore in Scripture
- Genesis 47:11And Joseph placed his father and his brethren, and gave them a possession in the land of Egypt, in the best of the land, in the land of Rameses, as Pharaoh had commanded.
- Exodus 22:5If a man shall cause a field or vineyard to be eaten, and shall put in his beast, and shall feed in another man’s field; of the best of his own field, and of the best of his own vineyard, shall he make restitution.
- 1 Samuel 15:9But Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them: but every thing that was vile and refuse, that they destroyed utterly.
- 1 Samuel 15:15And Saul said, They have brought them from the Amalekites: for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen, to sacrifice unto the LORD thy God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed.
Hebrew dictionary
מֵיטָב metav · best
1) the best 1a) as superlative
From STEPBible’s Hebrew lexicon (based on Brown-Driver-Briggs).
Webster's 1828 Dictionary
How the English word “best” was understood when the King James Version was still the common Bible of English readers.
BEST, adjective
superlative. [Eng.but; ] Literally, most advanced, Hence,
- Most good; having good qualities in the highest degree; applied indifferently to physical or moral subjects; as, the best man; the best road; the best cloth; the best abilities.
- Most advanced; most accurate; as the best scholar.
- Most correct or complete; as the best view of a landscape, or of a subject.
- The best This phrase is elliptical, and may be variously interpreted; as, the utmost power; the strongest endeavor; the most, the highest perfection; as, let a man do his best; let him do a thing to the best of his power.
All definitions and other forms of “best”
- At best in the best manner, in the utmost degree or extent, applicable to the case; as, life is at best very short.
BEST, adverb
In the highest degree; beyond all other; as, to love one best; to like this best; to please best
- To the advantage; with the most ease; as, 'which instrument can you best use?'
- With most profit or success; as, money is best employed in manufactures; this medicine will answer best in the present case.
- Most intimately or particularly; most correctly; as, what is expedient is best known to himself.
Noah Webster, An American Dictionary of the English Language (1828). Verse references are checked against the KJV. Read the full entry.
Verses are from the King James Version. Word meanings come from the original Hebrew, not from any one translation.