H0830 H0830
Ash heap, refuse pile, dunghill; a place of waste symbolizing extreme poverty and degradation.
A masculine noun denoting a heap of ashes, refuse, or dung — the ancient Near Eastern equivalent of a city dump. In Scripture it functions powerfully as a symbol of utter destitution. Hannah's song celebrates that God raises the poor from the ash heap to seat them among princes (1 Sam 2:8), a theme echoed in Psalm 113:7. Lamentations 4:5 reverses the image with devastating effect: those who once feasted on delicacies now embrace ash heaps. In Nehemiah, the 'Dung Gate' (literally the gate of the ash heaps) served as a practical landmark in Jerusalem's walls (Neh 2:13; 3:13-14; 12:31).
Senses
1. ash heap, dunghill, refuse pile — A heap of ashes, dung, or refuse, serving both as a literal location and a powerful symbol of poverty and degradation. Spanish 'muladar' (dunghill) and 'basura' (garbage) capture the range from formal refuse site to general waste. The word appears in two distinct contextual clusters: as a symbol of extreme lowliness from which God lifts the needy (1 Sam 2:8; Ps 113:7; Lam 4:5), and as a topographic feature in Jerusalem — the Ash-heap Gate (שַׁעַר הָאַשְׁפֹּת) through which waste was carried out of the city (Neh 2:13; 3:13-14; 12:31). The theological force lies in the contrast: God transforms the ash heap into a throne. 7×
AR["الدِّمنَةِ", "الزُّبْلَةِ", "الْمَزَابِلَ", "مِنَ-الـ-مَزْبَلَةِ", "مِنَ-المَزبَلَة"]·ben["-আবর্জনার", "আবর্জনা-থেকে", "আবর্জনার", "আবর্জনার-স্তূপ"]·DE["[אשפתות]", "[האשפות]", "[האשפת]", "[השפות]", "von-ash-heap", "von-der-ash-heap"]·EN["ash-heaps", "from-ash-heap", "from-the-ash-heap", "the-Dung"]·FR["[אשפתות]", "[האשפות]", "[האשפת]", "[השפות]", "de-ash-heap", "de-tas-de-fumier"]·heb["אשפתות", "ה-אשפות", "ה-אשפת", "ה-שפות", "מ-אשפות"]·HI["कूड़े-के", "कूड़े-के-ढेरों-को", "कूड़े-से"]·ID["Sampah", "dari-tempat-sampah", "dari-tumpukan-sampah", "sampah", "tumpukan-tumpukan-sampah"]·IT["[אשפתות]", "[מאשפת]", "da-ash-heap", "letamaio"]·jav["Uwuh", "saking-tumpukan-uwuh", "saking-uwuh", "tumpukan-lebu", "uwuh"]·KO["-에서-재더미", "거름더미-에서", "그-분문의", "그-재더미-의", "그-재더미들-의", "쓰레기-더미들-을"]·PT["do-monturo", "monturo", "o-Esterco", "o-Lixo", "o-Lixão"]·RU["Мусора", "из-грязи", "из-навозной-кучи", "кучи-мусора", "мусорным", "мусорных"]·ES["del-muladar", "el-muladar", "la-basura", "muladares"]·SW["Takataka", "jalala", "kutoka-jalani", "takataka"]·TR["-çöplükten", "gülrenin", "Çöp'ün", "çöp-yığınları", "çöplükten", "çöpün"]·urd["کوڑے-سے", "کوڑے-کے", "کوڑے-کے-ڈھیر", "کوڑے-کے-ڈھیر-سے"]
Related Senses
H4325 1. water, waters (582×)H6965b 1. Qal: to rise, arise, get up (432×)H2091 1. gold (the metal) (389×)H0068 1. stone, rock (material/object) (267×)H5178a 1. bronze/copper as metal (131×)H6083 1. dust, dry earth, soil (108×)H8313 1. burn, set fire to (94×)H2734 1. anger was kindled (82×)G5204 1. water (80×)H2822 1. darkness, absence of light (80×)G5457 1. light (illumination) (71×)G0450 1. rise, stand up (physical) (69×)H6965b 2. Qal: to stand firm, endure, be valid (50×)H6999a 2. burn sacrifice on altar (Hifil) (45×)H5553 1. rock, cliff (physical feature) (43×)H6965b 4. Hifil: to establish, confirm (covenant/kingdom/word) (40×)H1197a 1. burn, be on fire (39×)H4306 1. rain, showers (38×)H1653 1. rain, precipitation (34×)G4655 1. darkness (30×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† אַשְׁפֹּת n.[m.] ash-heap (?), refuse-heap, dung-hill (prob. orig. fire-place stone, cf. Arabic sub √);—א׳ abs. as beggars’ resting-place 1 S 2:8 = ψ 113:7 (both ‖ עָפָר; cf. Jb 2:8 Wetzstap. De); so pl. אַשְׁפַּתּוֹת La 4:5; שַׁעַר הָאַשְׁפֹּת Ne 2:13; 3:14; 12:31 = שׁ׳ הָֽשְׁפוֹת 3:13 (Ges§ 35 d).