Word Study for H5559 (סְלִק) | Strong's Concordance

çᵉliq /sel-eek'/ Ask about this word

Root(Aramaic) a primitive root

Meaningto ascend

KJV usagecome (up).

Word Study

In depth

A plain-language study of çᵉliq — the range of meaning it carries, how Scripture actually uses it, and where it points. Written for readers who don’t know the original language.

Core Meaning & Semantic Range

The Aramaic word çᵉliq, represented by H5559, is a primitive root meaning to ascend; come (up). It appears 5 times in 5 unique verses, primarily describing the emergence of figures, entities, or even thoughts.

Biblical Occurrences & Contextual Analysis

In biblical usage, H5559 appears in both prophetic visions and historical narratives. Within the book of Daniel, it is used to describe the emergence of symbolic powers, such as the "four great beasts" that came up from the sea Daniel 7:3 and the "little horn" that came up among the others (Daniel 7:8, Daniel 7:20). It is also used metaphorically to describe the king's thoughts that came into his mind Daniel 2:29. In Ezra, the word takes on a more literal meaning, referring to the Jews who came up to Jerusalem to rebuild the city Ezra 4:12.

Related Words & Concepts

Several related Aramaic words provide context for the action of ascending or arriving:

H1124 bᵉnâʼ (to build): This word is often paired with the arrival of people. After the Jews came up H5559 to Jerusalem, they began building the city Ezra 4:12.
H858 ʼâthâh (to arrive; (be-) come, bring): This term frequently appears alongside çᵉliq to describe a complete journey. In Ezra 4:12, the Jews came up H5559 from the king and have come H858 to Jerusalem.
H3635 kᵉlal (to complete; finish, make (set) up): This indicates the conclusion of an action initiated by movement. In the same passage, after coming up, the people have set up the city walls Ezra 4:12.

Theological Significance

The thematic weight of H5559 is centered on the concept of emergence and its consequences.

Prophetic Revelation: In Daniel, the word is used to signal the rise of significant powers in prophetic visions. The beasts that came up from the sea Daniel 7:3 and the horn that came up Daniel 7:8 represent the emergence of kingdoms and rulers that shape history.
Mental Conception: The word extends from the physical to the mental realm. In Daniel 2:29, the king's thoughts came into his mind, illustrating that ideas and revelations can "ascend" into consciousness just as physical entities rise into view.
Historical Movement: In Ezra, the act of coming up is tied to the historical movement of God's people returning to their land. This ascent to Jerusalem is a foundational step in the rebuilding of the city and its walls Ezra 4:12.

Summary

In summary, H5559 çᵉliq provides a dynamic description for the act of ascending or coming up. Though used only five times, it carries significant weight in its contexts. It is used to depict the literal migration of people returning to Jerusalem Ezra 4:12, the symbolic emergence of powerful beasts and horns in apocalyptic visions (Daniel 7:3, Daniel 7:8), and the internal dawning of thoughts in the mind Daniel 2:29. The word captures moments of beginning, whether it is the start of a building project or the rise of a new historical force.

How the KJV Renders It

Translation

Strong’s lists the renderings but not their weight. These are counted from the King James text of the tagged verses — the bar under each is how often the translators actually reached for it. Select one to filter the occurrences below.

Grammatical Forms

Morphology

In the Hebrew Old Testament, this word appears as a verb across 8 occurrences, inflected in 6 grammatical forms — each row is one form, and the bar is how often it is that form.

Peal Perfect 3rd Plural Masculine 2×
Peal Perfect 3rd Singular Feminine 2×
Haphel Perfect 3rd Plural Masculine 1×
Hiphil Infinitive Construct 1×
Hophal Perfect 3rd Singular Masculine 1×
Peal Participle Plural Feminine Absolute 1×

Singular: One.
Plural: More than one.
Masculine: Masculine grammatical gender.
Feminine: Feminine grammatical gender.
3rd: Third person — the one spoken about ("he"/"they").
Perfect: A completed act whose results continue.
Infinitive: The verb as a noun — "to do".
Participle: A verbal adjective — describes while carrying the verb's action.
Hiphil: The causative stem — the subject causes the action.
Hophal: The passive of the causative (Hiphil) stem.
Peal: The Aramaic simple stem — counterpart of Hebrew Qal.
Absolute: The independent form of a noun (not bound to another).
Construct: Bound to a following noun — "the X of…".

Theographic Context

Context

The people, places, and span of history the verses containing this word touch on — drawn from the theographic tagging of Scripture. Select any name to isolate its verses in the occurrence list.

Biblical Distribution

Distribution

Appears in 5 verses across 2 of the 39 books. Most frequent in Daniel (4 verses); never once in the other 37.

Ezra

Daniel

Every Occurrence

Concordance

Every verse where the word is tagged in the King James text. Filter by book, by the English word the translators chose, or search within the verses.

Sources. Definition and numbering: James Strong, Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (1890). Morphology: STEPBible / Tyndale House (CC BY). Verse tagging: the King James text keyed to Strong’s numbers. Every count on this page is computed from the tagged corpus, not estimated.