H2230 H2230
A violent rainstorm, downpour, or flood of rain; used in prophetic imagery for divine judgment and overwhelming force.
This noun evokes the sudden, violent downpour that overwhelms everything in its path -- rain that lashes against walls and sweeps through mountain valleys. Isaiah uses it repeatedly as a metaphor for divine judgment and, conversely, for the shelter God provides against it: 'a refuge from the storm' (Isa 25:4), 'a covert from the tempest' (Isa 32:2). In Habakkuk 3:10, the mountains see God and writhe as a zerem of waters passes by. Job 24:8 gives a poignant literal image: the poor, having no shelter, are drenched by the mountain downpour. The word captures nature's raw, ungovernable power.
Senses
1. flood of rain, rainstorm, downpour — A violent rainstorm, downpour, or deluge -- often appearing in poetic and prophetic contexts as a figure for divine judgment or overwhelming destructive force. French uses 'averse' (downpour), Spanish 'tempestad' (tempest), and German 'Sturzregen' (torrential rain), each capturing a slightly different aspect of the storm's fury. Frequently paired with hail (Isa 28:2; 30:30) and used in contrast with the divine shelter offered to the righteous (Isa 4:6; 25:4; 32:2). The mountain setting of Job 24:8 emphasizes the storm's ferocity in exposed terrain. 9×
AR["السَّيْلِ","سَيْلُ","كَسَيْلٍ","كَـ-عَاصِفَةِ","مِنَ-السَّيْلِ","مِنَ-العَاصِفَةِ","مِنْ-مَطَرِ","وَ-سَيْلٍ"]·ben["-ঝড়-থেকে","ও-ঝড়","ঝড়-থেকে","ঝড়ের","পাহাড়ের-বৃষ্টিতে","প্রবাহ-","যেমন-ঝড়"]·DE["Sturzregen","[זרם]","[מזרם]","und-Sturzregen","wie-ein-Sturzregen"]·EN["a-shade","a-torrent-of","against-a-wall","and-hailstones","from-storm","from-storm-of","like-a-storm","like-streams"]·FR["averse","de-מזרם","et-averse","tempête"]·heb["ו-זרם","זרם","כ-זרם","מ-זרם"]·HI["आँधी-से","और-आंधी","जैसे-आंधी","तूफान-से","बारिश-से","बौछार","से-आंधी"]·ID["banjir","dan-hujan-deras","dari-badai","dari-hujan-deras","dari-hujan-lebat","hujan-badai","seperti-hujan-deras"]·IT["[זרם]","come-diluvio","da-da-storm-di","da-diluvio","diluvio","e-diluvio"]·jav["banjir","kados-udan-deres","kados-udan-es","lan-udan-deres","saking-udan","saking-udan-deres","udan-deras"]·KO["같이-폭풍우","그리고-폭풍우와","비에서","폭우-가","폭풍-같으니","폭풍-에서","폭풍우-에서","폭풍우의"]·PT["Da-chuva","como-tempestade-de","de-tempestade","e-tempestade","tempestade","torrente-de-"]·RU["бури","и-бурей","как-буря","от-бури","от-ливня","поток"]·ES["De-la-lluvia-de","como-tempestad-de","de-tempestad","de-tormenta","tormenta","un-torrente-de-","y-tormenta"]·SW["Kutoka-mvua","kama-dhoruba","kutoka-dhoruba","kutokana-na-dhoruba","mafuriko-ya","na-mafuriko","ni-kama-dhoruba","ya-dhoruba"]·TR["firtina-gibi","firtinadan","sel","ve-sel","yağmurundan"]·urd["آندھی-کی-طرح","اور-سیلاب","بارش","بارش-سے","طوفان-سے","طوفان-کی-طرح"]
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
† זֶ֫רֶם n.m. Hb. 3:10 flood of rain, rain-storm, downpour (Aramaic זַרְמִית id.)—abs. ז׳ Is 4:6 + 2 times; זָ֑רֶם Is 32:2; cstr. זֶרֶם Jb 24:8 + 4 times; Is 4:6 (‖ מָטָר)); ז׳ מַיִם Is 28:2 Hb 3:10; ז׳ הָרִים Jb 24:8, i.e. such as falls among mts. cf. Di; ז׳ בָּרָד Is 28:2; מַחְסֶה מִזֶּרֶם 25:4, זֶרֶם קִיר v 4 i.e. such as dashes against a wall, 32:2 (‖ רוּחַ), נֶפֶץ וָזֶרֶם וְאֶבֶן בָּרָד 30:30.