H2203 H2203
pitch, tar (bituminous substance)
A noun denoting pitch or tar, a waterproofing agent. Moses' mother 'daubed' his basket 'with bitumen and pitch' (Exod 2:3), and Isaiah prophesies that Edom's 'streams shall be turned to pitch' and 'her land shall become burning pitch' (Isa 34:9, twice). The Spanish brea and French poix reflect the sticky, flammable substance used both for preservation (Moses' ark) and as a symbol of judgment (Edom's desolation). Pitch evokes both protection and destruction—sealing life or sealing doom.
Senses
1. sense 1 — Refers to bituminous pitch in three contexts: waterproofing Moses' basket (Exod 2:3) and prophetic imagery of Edom's streams and land turned to burning pitch (Isa 34:9, twice). The multilingual glosses (pitch, brea, poix) uniformly denote the tar-like substance. The word carries dual valence: protective sealant and apocalyptic fire fuel. 3×
AR["إِلَى-زِفْتٍ", "زِفْتًا", "وَ-بِ-الْقَارِ"]·ben["আলকাতরায়", "ও-রজনে"]·DE["[לזפת]", "und-mit-Pech"]·EN["and-with-pitch", "burning", "into-pitch"]·FR["[לזפת]", "et-avec-poix"]·heb["ו-ב-זפת", "ל-זפת"]·HI["और-राल", "तारकोल", "तारकोल-में"]·ID["dan-dengan-bitumen", "menjadi-ter"]·IT["[לזפת]", "e-con-pece"]·jav["dados-ter", "lan-kanthi-aspal", "ter"]·KO["그것을", "에-역청으로"]·PT["e-com-piche", "em-piche"]·RU["в-смолу", "и-дёгтем", "смолой"]·ES["en-brea", "y-con-la-brea"]·SW["kuwa-lami", "lami", "na-kwa-ubani"]·TR["ve-katranla", "zift", "zift-olacak"]·urd["اور-رال-سے", "رال-میں"]
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
† זֶ֫פֶת n.f. Is 34:9 pitch (cf. on format. Ol§ 164 c Sta§ 187a. Word is Armenian according to LagArm. Stud. 1351, BN 219; on Egyptian deriv. cf. CookSpeaker’s Comm. i. 484; Arabic زِفْتٌ according to Frä 151, if Shemit., is Aramaic loan-wd. v also Ethiopic ዝፍት Di 1068)—pitch:—וַתַּחְמְרָה בַחֵמָר וּבַזָּ֑פֶת Ex 2:3 of ark of bulrushes; Is 34:9a וְנֶהֶפְכוּ נְחָלֶיהָ לְזֶפֶת וַעֲפָרָהּ לְגָפְרִ֑ית, v 9b והיתה אַרְצָהּ לְזֶפֶת בֹּעֵרָֽה ׃.