Astray
Wilson's Dictionary of Bible Types [1]
Psalm 58:3 (a) The tendency to commit sin and to deceive which is inherent in the human heart from birth, this is to go "astray" from GOD.
Psalm 119:176 (a) Here we see the sinner's path which is not along the path of GOD's righteousness nor according to His commandments.
Jeremiah 50:6 (a) This represents the path of wrong teaching into which people are led by false shepherds.
King James Dictionary [2]
ASTRA'Y, adv. a and stray. See Stray.
Out of the right way or proper place, both in a literal and figurative sense. In morals and religion, it signifies wandering from the path of rectitude, from duty and happiness.
Before I was afflicted, I want astray. Psalms 129 .
Cattle go astray when they leave their proper owners or inclosures. See Deuteronomy 22 .
Webster's Dictionary [3]
(adv. & a.) Out of the right, either in a literal or in a figurative sense; wandering; as, to lead one astray.
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia [4]
a - strā ´ (תּעה , tā‛āh , "to wander," "to err"; πλανάομαι , planáomai , "to go astray," each carrying the idea of being lost): With one exception ( Exodus 23:4 "his ass going astray") used metaphorically of moral wandering, going astray in paths of error and sin, like "sheep going astray" ( 1 Peter 2:25 the King James Version; Isaiah 53:6; Psalm 119:176 ). This wandering may be due (1) to inherent evil ( Psalm 58:3 ); (2) to false shepherds ( Jeremiah 50:6 ); contrast the beautiful and classic passage, Matthew 18:12 , Matthew 18:13 , the Son of man ( Matthew 18:12 ) seeketh that which is gone astray. No word more vividly portrays sin as a straying, a separation from God. To be morally "astray" is to be "lost."
