H2347 H2347
Pity, have compassion; spare from destruction; look with regret at something's loss
The Hebrew verb chus (חוּס) names the inner movement of mercy that stays a hand raised to strike. Nearly always used with the idiom 'the eye shall (not) pity' (lo tachos einkha), it appears overwhelmingly in negative commands: 'your eye shall not pity' the idolater (Deut 13:8), the murderer (Deut 19:13), or the false witness (Deut 19:21). Ezekiel's visions of judgment repeat the divine declaration 'my eye will not spare, nor will I have pity' (Ezek 5:11; 7:4, 9; 8:18; 9:5, 10). Yet the verb also surfaces positively: Saul's soldiers 'spared' the best livestock in defiance of the ban (1 Sam 15:9), and God tells Jonah that he 'had pity' on the plant, then asks why God should not pity Nineveh (Jonah 4:10-11). Spanish captures both dimensions — perdonar for sparing, compadecer for feeling pity.
Senses
1. spare, refrain from destroying — To spare or refrain from destroying — the act of withholding punishment, violence, or the execution of judgment. David 'spared' Saul's life when he cut his robe instead of killing him (1 Sam 24:10), Isaiah declares that Babylonian bows 'will not spare' children (Isa 13:18), and Ezekiel repeatedly voices God's resolve not to spare Jerusalem (Ezek 5:11; 7:4, 9; 8:18; 9:5, 10). Jeremiah 13:14 and 21:7 echo the same divine refusal. Spanish perdonar/perdonará and the negated constructions across languages confirm that this sense centers on the decision to destroy or not, rather than on the emotion behind it. 12×
AR["أَشْفِقْ", "أَعْفُو", "تُشْفِقُ", "وَأشفَقَت", "وَأَشْفَقَتْ", "يُشْفِقُ"]·ben["আমার-দয়া-হবে", "আর-করুণা-করল", "এবং-দয়া-করেছিল", "দয়া-কর", "দয়া-করবে", "দয়া-করুক", "রেহাই-করবে", "রেহাই-দেব-আমি", "সে-দয়া-করবে"]·DE["[אחוס]", "[חוסה]", "[יחוס]", "[תחוס]", "du-wirst-schonen", "schonen", "und-schonen", "und-sie-spared"]·EN["I-will-spare", "and-she-spared", "and-spared", "he-will-spare", "shall-spare", "spare", "will-pity"]·FR["[אחוס]", "[יחוס]", "[תחוס]", "et-elle-spared", "et-pitié", "pitié"]·heb["אחוס", "ו-חסה", "ו-תחס", "חוּסָה", "יחוס", "תחוס"]·HI["और-तरस-खाई", "और-तरस-खाया", "तरस-खाए", "तरस-खाएगा", "तरस-खाएगी", "तरसेगी", "दया-कर", "बचाऊंगा"]·ID["Aku-akan-mengampuni", "Sayangilah,", "akan-berbelas-kasihan", "akan-ia-mengasihani", "akan-mengasihani", "berbelas-kasihan", "dan-mengasihani", "mengasihani"]·IT["[אחוס]", "[יחוס]", "[תחוס]", "avere-pietà", "e-avere-pietà", "e-ella-risparmiò"]·jav["Ingsun-badhé-ngéman", "Nanging-nresnani", "badhe-ngeman", "badhé-welas", "lan-piyambakipun-welas", "mesakaken", "welasa"]·KO["그가-아끼지", "그리고-아껴다", "그리고-아꼼다", "내가-돌보리라", "돈보리라", "불쌍히-여기소서", "아끼라", "아끼리라"]·PT["e-poupou", "poupa", "pouparei", "poupará", "poupe", "terá-piedade"]·RU["Пощади", "и-пожалел", "и-пожалела", "пожалеет", "помилую", "пощадит", "сжалится", "щадит"]·ES["Y-perdonó", "perdona", "perdonará", "perdonaré", "tendrá-compasión", "y-perdonó"]·SW["Na-liliwahurumia", "Wahurumie", "halitahurumia", "halitakuhurumia", "hifadhi", "huruma", "jicho-lenu-lihurumie", "na-ikakuacha", "waonea-huruma"]·TR["aciyacak", "acıyacak", "esirgeğeceğim", "esirgе", "gözünüz", "ve-acıdı"]·urd["اور-بخشا", "اور-ترس-کھائی", "بخشوں-گا", "بخشے-گی", "ترس-کھائے-گا", "ترس-کھائے-گی", "رحم-کر", "رحم-کرے", "رحم-کرے-گی"]
2. feel pity, have compassion — To feel pity or have compassion — the emotional response of mercy toward someone's suffering or vulnerability. The Deuteronomic formulae command 'your eye shall not pity' the covenant-breaker (Deut 7:16; 13:8; 19:13, 21; 25:12), implying that natural compassion must be overridden by covenant faithfulness. Ezekiel 16:5 says no eye 'had compassion' on infant Jerusalem, cast out in the open field. Psalm 72:13 prays that the king 'will have pity' on the weak and needy. Spanish compadecer/tener-compasión and the eye-idiom across Semitic languages mark the visceral, emotional core of this sense. 11×
AR["أَشْفُقُ", "أُشْفِقُ", "تُشْفِقُ", "تُشْفِقْ", "شَفَقْتَ", "وَاشْفِقْ", "يُشْفِقُ"]·ben["আর-দয়া-করুন", "করুণা-করবে", "করুণা-করল", "দয়া-করব-আমি", "দয়া-করবে", "ব্যথিত-হব", "ব্যথিত-হয়েছ", "সে-দয়া-করবে"]·DE["[אחוס]", "[וחוסה]", "[חסת]", "er-wird-haben-pity", "schonen", "soll-pity"]·EN["I-will-pity", "and-have-compassion", "had-pity", "he-will-have-pity", "pitied", "shall-pity", "should-I-have-pity"]·FR["[וחוסה]", "avoir-pitié", "devra-pity", "pitié"]·heb["אחוס", "ו-חוסה-ה", "חסה", "חסת", "יחוס", "תחוס"]·HI["और-मुझ-पर-दया-कर", "तरस-खाई", "तरस-खाऊं", "तरस-खाए", "तरसेगी", "दया-करेगा", "दया-करेगी", "वह-दया-करेगा"]·ID["Aku-akan-mengasihani", "Ia-akan-berbelas-kasihan", "belas-kasihan", "berbelas-kasihan", "dan-kasihanilah", "kasihan", "mengasihani", "sayang"]·IT["[וחוסה]", "[יחס]", "avere-pietà", "dovra-pity"]·jav["Kawula-badhe-welas", "Piyambakipun-badhé-welas", "badhé-ngeman", "kedah-welas", "lan-welasa", "ngeman", "nresnani", "panjenengan-welas", "welas"]·KO["그리고-긍휼히-여기소서", "불쌍히-여겼다", "불쌍히-여기리라", "불쌍히-여기시리이다", "불쌍히-여기지-말라", "아껴리라", "아껴서", "아껴야-하겠느냐", "아끼리라"]·PT["Tenha-piedade", "e-poupa-me", "pouparei", "poupou", "terei-pena", "terá-compaixão", "terá-pena", "tiveste-pena"]·RU["жалей", "и-пощади", "пожалеет", "пожалею", "пощажу", "сжалился", "сожалеешь"]·ES["Tendrá-compasión", "perdonará", "se-compadeció", "tendre-compasion", "tendrá-compasión", "tendrá-piedad", "tendré-piedad", "tuviste-compasion", "y-ten-compasión"]·SW["Atahurumia", "hurumia", "hurumie", "itahurumia", "litahurumia", "mhurumie", "na-unihurumie", "ulihurumia", "usimuonee"]·TR["acıdı", "acıdın", "acıyacak", "acıyacağım", "ve-acı"]·urd["اور-رحم-کر", "ترس-کھاؤں", "ترس-کھاؤں-گا", "ترس-کھائی", "ترس-کھائے", "ترس-کھاتا-ہے", "رحم-کرے-گی", "وہ-ترس-کھائے-گا"]
3. look with regret, feel reluctant loss — To look with regret or feel reluctant loss over something valuable — a sense of wistfulness about what must be given up. In Genesis 45:20, Joseph tells his brothers not to let their eye 'look with regret' on their possessions left behind in Canaan, because the best of Egypt awaits them. The construction parallels the other eye-idioms but shifts from mercy toward persons to attachment toward things. Spanish tener-lástima ('feel sorry about') and the singular occurrence confirm this as a specialized extension: not compassion for a person, but reluctance to part with valued property. 1×
AR["تُشْفِقْ"]·ben["দুঃখ-করুক"]·DE["bedaure"]·EN["look-with-regret"]·FR["regarder-avec-regret"]·heb["תחס"]·HI["तरसे"]·ID["sayang"]·IT["guardare-con-regret"]·jav["ngrumosi"]·KO["아까워하지"]·PT["tenha-pena"]·RU["жалеет"]·ES["tenga-lástima"]·SW["hasira"]·TR["acısın"]·urd["ترس-کھائے"]
Related Senses
G2309 1. want, desire (166×)G0025 1. to love actively (133×)H0157 1. love (verb, active Qal) (129×)H8055 1. Qal: rejoice, be glad (123×)H7453 1. neighbor, fellow man (120×)G0026 1. of love (115×)H1058 1. Qal: to weep, cry (112×)H0954 1. to be ashamed, feel shame (Qal) (95×)H8057 1. joy, gladness, delight (90×)H2781 1. disgrace, shame, dishonor (68×)G2307 1. will, desire, purpose (63×)G5463 1. rejoice, be glad (63×)G0027 1. beloved (61×)H8130 1. Qal: to hate, detest (60×)G5479 1. (59×)G1680 1. (53×)H8130 2. Qal ptcp: hater, enemy (53×)H0014 1. be willing, want (51×)H0157 2. lover, friend (Qal participle substantive) (51×)H1945 1. woe (50×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† [חוּס] vb. pity, look upon with compassion (Aramaic ܚܳܣ, חוּס pity, spare; Assyrian ḫûs, in n.pr. cf. DlPr 181)— Qal Pf. 3 fs. חָסָה Ez 16:5, 2 ms. חַ֫סְתָּ Jon 4:10; Impf. 3 ms. יָחוּס Je 21:7; יָחֹס ψ 72:13; 3 fs. תָּחוּס Is 13:18; תָּחוֹס Dt 7:16 + 9 times (Ges§ 72 R 4 Bö§ 1133 (2)); תָּחֹס Gn 45:20 Ez 9:5; וַתָּ֫חָס 1 S 24:11 Ez 20:17; 1 s. אָחוּס Je 13:14 + 2 times; Imv. חוּ֫סָה Jo 2:17 Ne…