H1357 H1357
locusts - swarming grasshoppers, named from their collective gathering behavior
This term designates a type of locust or grasshopper, derived from a root meaning 'to gather' or 'swarm,' emphasizing their collective behavior. Related to Ethiopic words for locusts, it captures one of the most feared agricultural pests of the ancient Near East. Isaiah uses the image metaphorically to describe rapid, swarming movement. Locusts represented both devastating judgment (when they destroyed crops) and countless multitudes—their sheer numbers and coordinated movement making them powerful symbols.
Senses
1. sense 1 — Isaiah 33:4 depicts plunder being gathered 'like the rushing of locusts' and people swarming over it. The simile emphasizes speed, numbers, and voracious consumption. The context describes spoil taken from Assyria. Spanish 'langostas' and English 'locusts' both capture the insect identification, while French and German preserve the Hebrew form in brackets, perhaps acknowledging this as a less common locust term among several Hebrew synonyms. 1×
AR["الْجَرَادِ"]·ben["পতঙ্গের"]·DE["[גבים]"]·EN["of-locusts"]·FR["[גבים]"]·heb["גבים"]·HI["टिड्डियों-का"]·ID["belalang"]·IT["[גבים]"]·jav["walang"]·KO["랼들이"]·PT["gafanhotos"]·RU["саранчи"]·ES["langostas"]·SW["kwa-nzige"]·TR["cekirgelerin"]·urd["ٹڈیوں-کے"]
Related Senses
H6629 1. flock, sheep/goats (small livestock) (274×)H1241 1. cattle, herd (bovine livestock) (183×)H0352a 1. ram (male sheep) (156×)H6499 1. young bull, bullock (130×)H3532 1. lamb, young male sheep (105×)H2543 1. donkey (male ass) (96×)H7794 1. ox, bull (79×)H7462b 1. shepherd (agent noun) (76×)H5795 1. she-goat(s), female goat(s) (68×)H7462b 2. to shepherd, tend, pasture (60×)H1581 1. camel (domestic animal) (54×)H0738b 1. lion (46×)G4263 1. sheep (39×)H5739 1. flock or herd of livestock (38×)H5695 1. calf, young bull (35×)H0738a 1. lion (large predatory feline) (34×)H0860 1. female donkey (34×)H3611 1. dog (animal) (32×)H3715a 1. young lion, lion cub (31×)G0721 1. Lamb (29×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† I. [גֵּבֶה] n.[p.] locust (name from swarm, collection, Ethiopic ጉባኤ cf. also Ethiopic ���ንበጣ locust √ = Arabic نَبَطَ scaturivit, manavit), only pl. גֵּבִים Is 33:4 (in sim. of leaping).—גֵּב ii, iii, v. sub גוב.