H0933 H0933
harmless skin eruption (bohak)
A medical term for a harmless, non-contagious skin condition appearing in Levitical purity laws. Unlike serious skin diseases that rendered one unclean, bohak was explicitly deemed non-threatening and did not require quarantine. The condition involved pale or white spots on the skin but lacked the characteristics of serious disease. Cognate terms appear in Aramaic and Arabic, suggesting a recognized dermatological category in ancient Near Eastern medicine.
Senses
1. sense 1 — Identifies a benign skin eruption in Leviticus 13:39, distinguished from serious conditions requiring isolation. The priestly diagnosis declares bohak clean and non-threatening, unlike other skin diseases. The Hebrew term (and its cognates) likely refers to a specific dermatological condition recognized as harmless—perhaps a fungal infection or pigmentation disorder. The ritual concern is distinguishing truly dangerous conditions from benign ones. 1×
AR["بَهَقٌ"]·ben["তিল"]·DE["tetter"]·EN["tetter"]·FR["tetter"]·heb["בהק"]·HI["बोहक"]·ID["bohak"]·IT["tetter"]·jav["gudik"]·KO["피부병"]·PT["bohaq"]·RU["лишай"]·ES["bohaq"]·SW["upele"]·TR["leke"]·urd["برص"]
Related Senses
H7200 1. Qal: to see, perceive (1257×)G4771 2. you (singular address) (1077×)H8085 1. Qal: hear, perceive aurally (921×)H0859a 1. you (2nd person masculine singular pronoun) (743×)H0398 1. eat (consume food) (697×)H4191 1. die (Qal: natural/general death) (645×)G3708 1. see, perceive visually (419×)G0191 1. hear, perceive sound (360×)H???? 3. (352×)G3708 2. behold, look (exclamatory) (256×)H7272 1. foot (body part) (236×)H8354 1. drink, consume liquid (209×)H3205 1. Qal active: bear/give birth (female subject) (204×)H3205 2. Qal active: beget/father (male subject) (198×)H2421 1. Qal: live, be alive (177×)H8085 2. Qal: listen, heed, pay attention (172×)H2416a 1. alive, living (state/attribute) (146×)H2416e 1. life, lifespan, lifetime (145×)G2198 1. be alive, have life (133×)H8193 1. lip, lips (body part) (123×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† בֹּ֫הַק n.m. a harmless eruption on the skin (NH id., Aramaic בּוֹהֲקָא; Arabic بَهَقٌ ) Lv 13:39.