חֶ֫רֶב411 H2719
Sword, the primary bladed weapon of warfare and divine judgment; rarely 'knives' (flint blades) or 'ruins' (by homophonic confusion).
Cherev is the quintessential weapon word of the Hebrew Bible, appearing over 400 times to denote the sword in every dimension of Israelite experience -- from Cain's world to the apocalyptic visions of the prophets. It names the literal blade at a warrior's side (1 Sam 21:9), the instrument of judicial execution, and the terrifying 'sword of the LORD' that sweeps through prophetic judgment oracles (Jer 12:12; Ezek 21). Two marginal senses emerge from the data: in Joshua 5:2-3, multilingual glosses like 'cuchillos-de' and 'knives-of' point to flint knives for circumcision rather than war swords. A lone occurrence in 2 Chronicles 34:6 appears connected to the homophone chorvot meaning 'ruins.'
3. sense 3 — A probable textual-semantic anomaly in 2 Chronicles 34:6, where glosses read 'in-their-ruins' (English) and 'en-sus-ruinas' (Spanish), suggesting the underlying text reflects the homophone chorvot (ruins, from charav 'to be desolate') rather than the weapon sense. French and German glosses retain 'épée'/'Schwert,' showing translation traditions diverge at this crux. 1×
AR["(فِي-خَرَائِبِهَا)"]·ben["তাদের-ধ্বংসাবশেষে"]·DE["Schwert"]·EN["in-their-ruins"]·FR["épée"]·heb["ב-חרב-ם"]·HI["उनके-खंडहरों-में"]·ID["di-reruntuhan-mereka"]·IT["spada"]·jav["réruntuhanipun"]·KO["에-그들의-황폐한-곳들"]·PT["(Q: em-suas-ruínas)"]·RU["в-развалинах-их"]·ES["en-sus-ruinas"]·SW["(bּcharboteyhem)"]·TR["(harabelerinde)"]·urd["(اُن-کے-کھنڈروں-میں)"]
▼ 2 more senses below
Senses
1. sword, weapon of war — A bladed weapon used in combat, execution, and divine judgment, covering virtually all occurrences. Includes literal swords wielded by soldiers and kings (Gen 34:26; Exod 17:13), the flaming sword guarding Eden (Gen 3:24), and the personified 'sword of YHWH' as an instrument of covenant curse and prophetic wrath (Lev 26:25; Jer 14:12). Glosses across languages are remarkably consistent: 'espada,' 'épée,' 'Schwert,' all pointing to the standard war sword. 410×
AR["السَّيفِ","السَّيْفُ","السَّيْفِ","سَيْفًا","سَيْفٌ","سَيْفٍ"]·ben["খড্গ","খড্গের","তরবারি","তরবারি;","তরবারির","তরবারির।","তলোয়ারের"]·DE["Schwert","der-Schwert","des-Schwertes","ein-Schwert"]·EN["a-sword","sword","the-sword"]·FR["l'-épée","un-épée","épée"]·heb["חרב"]·HI["तलवार","तलवार-की"]·ID["dari-pedang","pedang"]·IT["il-spada","spada","un-spada"]·jav["pedhang","pedhang."]·KO["검의","칼","칼-이","칼날의","칼을","칼의","칼이"]·PT["espada","espada."]·RU["меч","меча","мечом","от-меча"]·ES["espada","la-espada"]·SW["upanga","wakakamata","ya-upanga"]·TR["kılıcı","kılıcın","kılıç"]·urd["تلوار","تلوار-سے","تلوار-کی","تلوار-کے"]
2. sense 2 — Flint knives, as in Joshua 5:2-3 where God commands Joshua to make 'knives of flint' for circumcision. Multilingual glosses shift decisively here: English 'knives-of,' Spanish 'cuchillos-de,' and French 'knives-de' all indicate a cutting tool distinct from the war sword. The plural construct form chavrot tzurim (knives of flint) marks these as ritual implements rather than battlefield weapons. 2×
AR["سَكاكينَ"]·ben["ছুরিগুলি-"]·DE["knives-von"]·EN["knives-of"]·FR["knives-de"]·heb["חרבות"]·HI["छुरियाँ"]·ID["pisau-pisau"]·IT["knives-di"]·jav["lading-lading"]·KO["칼들을"]·PT["facas-de"]·RU["ножи"]·ES["cuchillos-de"]·SW["visu-vya"]·TR["bıçaklar"]·urd["چھریاں"]
BDB / Lexicon Reference
חֶ֫רֶב411 n.f. Is 21:15 sword (as weapon; Aramaic חַרְבָּא, ܚܰܪܒܳܐ, Zinj. חרב; Arabic حَرْبَةٌ dart, javelin) —abs. חֶ֫רֶב Gn 3:24 +; חָ֑רֶב Ex 17:13 +; cstr. חֶ֫רֶב Dt 33:29 +; sf. חַרְבִּי Ex 15:9 + 13 times; חַרְבְּךָ Gn 27:40 + 7 times; חַרְבֶּ֑ךָ 1 S 17:33 ψ 17:13; חַרְבּוֹ Nu 22:23 + 24 times; חַרְבְּכֶם Je 2:30 Ez 33:26; חַרְבָּם ψ 37:15; 44:4; pl. חֲרָבוֹת Is 21:15 + 5 times; cstr.…