H0734 H0734
A path or road, literally or figuratively; way of life, moral conduct; a traveler or caravan (by metonymy)
A predominantly poetic noun for 'path' or 'way,' cognate with Akkadian urḫu and Aramaic ʾoraḥ. Unlike the more common derek ('road, way'), ʾoraḥ tends toward intimate, personal paths — the narrow trail rather than the highway, the individual's moral course rather than the nation's. It appears most densely in Job, Psalms, and Proverbs, where it serves as a master metaphor for how one lives before God: 'the path of the righteous is like the dawning light' (Prov 4:18). Judges 5:6 preserves the vivid literal sense — in Deborah's time 'the paths ceased' and travelers took winding byways. By extension, the word occasionally denotes the traveler who walks the path (Job 31:32) or the caravan that traverses it (Job 6:19).
Senses
1. path, road, way — A literal path, road, or route for travel. This covers physical thoroughfares: the highways that ceased in the days of Shamgar (Judg 5:6), the snake lying 'beside the path' (Gen 49:17), the road blocked by God (Job 19:8), and the route the sun traverses across the sky (Ps 19:5). German 'Pfad' and French 'sentier' consistently mark this concrete sense. The word often appears in parallel with derek or mesillâ, but ʾoraḥ tends toward narrower, less-trafficked ways. 28×
AR["السَّبِيلِ","الطُّرُقُ","سَبيلُ","سَبِيلٌ","سَبِيلَ","طَريقٍ","طَرِيقًا","طَرِيقٍ","طَرِيقَهُ","طَرِيقُ","طَرِيقِي","طُرُقاً","في-سَبيلِ-","فِي-سَبِيلِ","فِي-سَبِيلِ-","فِي-طَرِيقِ"]·ben["-এ-পথে","আমার-পথ","তার-পথ","পথ","পথগুলি","পথে","পথে-","পথের"]·DE["-der-Pfade-von","-der-caravans","Pfad","Pfad-von","der-Pfad-von","sein-Pfad","sein-course"]·EN["-the-caravans","-the-paths-of","The-path","a-path","his-course","his-path","in-the-path-of","my-path","on-the-path-of","on-the-road","path","path-of","the-path","the-path-of","the-way"]·FR["-le-caravans","-le-sentiers-de","dans-sentier","mon-sentier-moi","sentier"]·heb["אורח","אורחו","אורחות","אורחי","ב-אורח","ב-אורח־"]·HI["अपनी-दौड़","पथ-में","पथ-में-","मार्ग","मार्ग-","मार्ग-को","मार्ग-में","मेरा-मार्ग","रास्ते-का","राह"]·ID["Di-jalan","Di-jalan-","Jalan","di-jalan","jalan","jalan-jalan","jalan-nya","jalanku"]·IT["-il-caravans","-il-sentieri-di","in-sentiero","sentiero","sentiero-mio"]·jav["dalan","ing-dalan","ing-dalan-saking","margi","margi-kawula","margininé"]·KO["그-의-길-을","길-에","길-에서","길-은","길-을","길들","길들-이","길은","길을","길이라","나의-길을","악한","행로에"]·PT["Caminho","Caminho-de","Em-vereda-de","Meu-caminho","Na-vereda-de","Vereda","Vereda-de","caminho","caminho-de","caminhos","o-caminho","seu-caminho"]·RU["На-путь","По-стезе-","Путь","дорогами","дороги","на-пути-","пути","путь","путь-мой","стезю-свою","стезя"]·ES["En-senda-de","Mi-camino","Senda","Senda-de","camino","caminos","en-el-camino-de","en-senda-de","por-caminos","senda","senda-de","senda-de-él","sendero","sendero-de"]·SW["Njia","katika-njia","katika-njia-ya","kumtenea","njia","njia-kuu","njia-ya","njia-yake","njia-yangu"]·TR["Yolu","patikadan","yol","yoldan","yollar","yolu","yolu-","yolumu","yoluna-","yolunda","yolunda-","yolunu"]·urd["اپنی-راہ","بری-راہ","راستا","راستوں","راستہ","راستے","راستے-میں","راہ","راہ-میری","راہ-میں"]
2. way of life, moral conduct — The figurative way of life or moral conduct one follows. This is the most theologically rich sense, dominating Proverbs, Psalms, and Job: 'the path of the righteous' (Prov 4:18), 'the paths of the wicked are crooked' (Prov 2:15), God watching 'all my paths' (Job 13:27; 33:11). Spanish alternates between 'senda' (path) and 'camino' (way), while French uses 'sentier' for both literal and figurative, reflecting how the metaphor lives in the word itself. Ps 119:15 — 'I meditate on your paths' — shows the word carrying the full weight of divine instruction. 28×
AR["[طرقه]","سُبُلَ","سُبُلَهُمْ","سُبُلُ","سُبُلِ","سُبُلِي","طُرُقَ","طُرُقُهُمْ","طُرُقِي","فِي-سُبُلِهِ","مَسالِكُ","وَ-سَبيلُ","وَ-سَبِيلُ"]·ben["-এর-পথ","-তাঁর-রাস্তায়","আমার-পথ","এবং-পথ","ও-পথ","তাঁর-পথগুলিতে","তাদের-পথ","তাদের-রাস্তায়","তার-পথগুলি","পথ","পথগুলি","পথগুলো"]·DE["Pfad","der-Pfade-von","der-Wege-von","und-Pfad"]·EN["[his-path]","are-the-paths-of","but-the-path-of","in-His-paths","my-paths","paths","paths-my","paths-of","the-paths-of","the-ways-of","their-paths"]·FR["et-sentier","leur-sentier-eux","mon-sentier-moi","sentier","sentiers","son-sentier-lui"]·heb["[ארחתו]","אורחות","אורחותי","אורחותם","ארחות","ארחותיהם","ב-אורחותיו","ו-אורח"]·HI["[मार्ग-उसके]","उस-के-पथों-में","उसके-पथों-में","और-पथ","और-मार्ग","पथ","पथों-में","मार्ग","मार्गों-को","मार्गों-मेरे","मार्गों-से","मेरे-मार्ग","रास्ते","राहें-अपनी","राहें-जिनकी","राहों-को"]·ID["Tetapi-jalan","[jalan-jalannya]","dalam-jalan-jalan-Nya","dari-jalan-jalan","di-jalur-jalur-Nya","jalan-jalan","jalan-jalan-mereka","jalan-jalanku","tetapi-jalan"]·IT["[בארחתיו]","e-sentiero","sentiero","sentiero-loro","sentiero-mio","sentiero-suo"]·jav["dalan","dalan-saking","ing-dalan-dalanipun","ing-dalanipun","lan-dalan-saking","margi","margi-kawula","margi-kula","margi-margi","margi-marginipun","margi-saking","marginipun"]·KO["[길들-을-그-의]","그-들-의-길-들-은","그-들-의-길-들-을","그-첩경들-에","그러나-길-은","그러나-길은","길-들-은","길-들-을","길들-은","길들-을","길들-이","길들을","길들이","나의-길들-을","나의-길들을","에-행로들-그의"]·PT["Mas-vereda-de","[caminhos-seus]","caminhos-de","dos-caminhos","e-senda-de","em-suas-veredas","em-veredas-Suas","meus-caminhos","pelas-veredas","suas-veredas","são-as-veredas-de","veredas-de","veredas-deles","veredas-do"]·RU["[ктив:путям-его]","А-путь","а-стезя","от-путей","по-тропам-Его","путей","пути","пути-их","пути-мои","путями","путями-их","стезями-Его"]·ES["Pero-la-senda-de","[sus-caminos]","caminos","caminos-de","en-sus-sendas","mis-caminos","mis-senderos","sendas-de","sendas-de-ellos","senderos-de","son-los-caminos-de","y-senda-de"]·SW["katika-mapito-yake","lakini-njia-ya","njia","njia-za","njia-zake","njia-zangu","njia-zao"]·TR["[yollarını]","patikalarinda","patikalarında-onun","ve-yolu","yolları","yollarımı","yollarına","yollarını","yollarını-onların"]·urd["اس-کے-راستوں-میں","اور-راہ","اُس-کے-راستوں-پر","راستوں-سے","راستے","راہوں-اپنی-پر","راہیں","راہیں-ان-کی","لیکن-راستہ","میرے راستوں کی","میرے-راستوں-کو"]
3. sense 3 — By metonymy, a traveler or wayfarer — the person who walks the path. Job 31:32 says 'to the traveler (ʾoraḥ) I opened my door,' where the path-word stands for the one who travels it. Spanish 'viajero' and English 'traveler' make the metonymic shift explicit. This is a natural semantic extension found across Semitic languages, where road-words frequently denote those who use them. 1×
AR["لِ-المُسافِرِ"]·ben["পথিকের-জন্য"]·DE["Pfad"]·EN["to-the-traveler"]·FR["sentier"]·heb["ל-אורח"]·HI["यात्री-के-लिए"]·ID["untuk-pengembara"]·IT["al-sentiero"]·jav["kanggé-musafir"]·KO["나그네-에게"]·PT["para-o-viajante"]·RU["для-путника"]·ES["al-viajero"]·SW["kwa-msafiri"]·TR["yolcuya"]·urd["مسافر کے لیے"]
4. sense 4 — A caravan or traveling company — another metonymic extension, this time collective. Job 6:19 speaks of 'the caravans (ʾorḥôt) of Tema,' where the plural paths become the merchant trains that traverse them. The multilingual glosses consistently render this as 'caravans' across English, Spanish, and German, distinguishing it from the individual traveler of sense 3. Sheba's caravans in the same verse reinforce the commercial-journey connotation. 1×
AR["قَوافِلُ"]·ben["কাফেলাগুলি"]·DE["Pfad"]·EN["caravans-of"]·FR["sentier"]·heb["אורחות"]·HI["कारवाँ"]·ID["kafilah-kafilah"]·IT["sentiero"]·jav["margi-marginipun"]·KO["대상들-이"]·PT["caravanas-de"]·RU["пути"]·ES["caravanas-de"]·SW["misafara-ya"]·TR["kervanları"]·urd["قافلے"]
5. sense 5 — The natural way or course of things — used idiomatically in Gen 18:11 where Sarah had ceased to have 'the way (ʾoraḥ) of women,' meaning menstruation. English 'way,' Spanish 'camino,' and French 'chemin' all deploy their most general path-words here, reflecting a euphemistic idiom where the regular course of nature is called a 'path.' This is neither literal road nor moral conduct but biological regularity. 1×
AR["عَادَةُ"]·ben["পথ"]·DE["der-Weg"]·EN["way"]·FR["chemin"]·heb["ארח"]·HI["तरिक"]·ID["kebiasaan"]·IT["via"]·jav["cara"]·KO["방식이"]·PT["caminho"]·RU["путь"]·ES["camino"]·SW["njia"]·TR["yolu"]·urd["راستہ"]
6. sense 6 — One's personal life-path or daily course, viewed intimately. Ps 139:3 — 'you search out my path (ʾorḥî) and my lying down' — uses the word for the totality of the psalmist's daily movements and habits under God's omniscient gaze. While close to sense 2, the emphasis here is not moral evaluation but intimate knowledge: God knows every step. The possessive 'my path' and the parallel with 'lying down' give this a biographical, almost domestic warmth. 1×
AR["مَسْلَكِي"]·ben["পথ-আমার"]·DE["mein-Pfad"]·EN["my-path"]·FR["sentier"]·heb["אורחי"]·HI["मेरा-मार्ग"]·ID["Jalanku"]·IT["sentiero"]·jav["Lampah-kula"]·KO["나-의-걸음-과"]·PT["Meu-andar"]·RU["хождение-моё"]·ES["Mi-caminar"]·SW["njia-yangu"]·TR["yolumu"]·urd["میری-راہ"]
Related Senses
H3808 1. simple negation (not) (4839×)G1722 1. locative: in, within (2442×)H1004b 1. house, dwelling, building (2015×)G3756 1. not (negation particle) (1635×)H4480a 1. source or separation (1198×)H5892b 1. city, town (1093×)G1519 1. direction: into, to, toward (1061×)H3427 1. Qal: to dwell, inhabit (937×)G1537 1. from, out of (source/origin) (886×)H8034 1. Name (designation / identifier) (856×)G3361 1. subjective negation (not) (834×)G1909 1. on, upon (spatial surface) (757×)H0369 1. existential negation: there is not (738×)H5869a 1. in the eyes/sight of (evaluative) (734×)H5650 1. Servant, attendant, subject (723×)H0408 1. prohibitive negation do-not (712×)G2443 1. so that, in order that (purpose/result) (665×)G0575 1. from (649×)G1223 1. through, by means of (582×)H3541 1. thus, so, in this manner (569×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† אֹ֫רַח n.m. Jb 6:18 (f. Pr 15:19) way, path (Assyrian urḫu COTGloss, Aramaic אֹרַח, ܐܘܽܪܚܳܐ )—א׳ abs. ψ 19:6 +; cstr. Pr 4:18 +; sf. אָרְחִי Jb 19:8 ψ 139:3 אֳרָחוֹת Ju 5:6(×2); cstr. אָרְחוֹת Jb 8:13 +; sf. אָרְחֹתָ֑י Jb 13:27; 33:11; אָרְחוֹתָם Jo 2:7 אֹ׳ Pr 9:15; אָרְחֹתֵיהֶם Pr 2:15; also אֹרְחֹתָיו Is 2:3 +; אֹרְחֹתֶיךָ ψ 119:15 + etc.;—way, path (in Heb. mostly poet.) 1. lit. Ju 5:6(×2)…