H2770 H2770
sickle, curved blade for harvesting grain
This agricultural implement appears in Deuteronomy's laws governing harvest practices. The sickle marks the beginning of the grain harvest count (Deuteronomy 16:9), establishing a calendrical reference point for the Feast of Weeks. The law also protects neighbors' rights by permitting travelers to pluck grain by hand while prohibiting the use of a sickle in another's field (Deuteronomy 23:25), distinguishing casual snacking from systematic harvesting. All translations preserve this as the standard curved harvesting blade.
Senses
1. sense 1 — Both occurrences appear in Deuteronomic legal material regulating agricultural life. Deuteronomy 16:9 uses the sickle's first cut as the calendar trigger for counting seven weeks to Pentecost, making this tool central to Israel's sacred calendar. Deuteronomy 23:25 employs it to distinguish between casual gleaning (permitted) and intentional harvesting (theft). The consistency across Spanish (hoz), French, and German glosses confirms universal recognition of this as the standard ancient harvesting implement. 2×
AR["الْمِنْجَلُ", "وَمِنْجَلًا"]·ben["এবং-কাস্তে", "কাস্তে"]·DE["sickle", "und-sickle"]·EN["and-sickle", "sickle"]·FR["et-sickle", "sickle"]·heb["ו-חרמש", "חרמש"]·HI["और-दरांती", "दरांती"]·ID["dan-sabit", "sabit"]·IT["e-sickle", "sickle"]·jav["arit", "nanging-arit"]·KO["그리고-낫을", "낫을"]·PT["e-foice", "foice"]·RU["а-серп", "серпа"]·ES["hoz", "y-hoz"]·SW["mundu", "na-mundu"]·TR["orasın", "ve-orak"]·urd["اور-درانتی", "درانتی"]
Related Senses
H2719 1. sword, weapon of war (410×)H4196 1. altar (place of sacrifice) (403×)H7393 1. chariot, chariotry (117×)H7198 1. bow (weapon) (72×)H7979 1. table (71×)H7782 1. ram's horn trumpet (69×)H4294 2. staff, rod, scepter (63×)H4043 1. shield, defensive weapon (60×)H0646 1. ephod (priestly garment) (49×)H8504 1. blue (violet-blue yarn/fabric) (49×)H2595 1. spear, lance (48×)H2671 1. arrow, projectile weapon (46×)H4818 1. chariot, war-chariot (44×)H3658 1. lyre, harp (stringed instrument) (42×)H1537 1. Gilgal (place name) (41×)H0713 1. purple (fabric/dye) (38×)H0905 3. poles, staves (37×)H7392 1. Qal participle: rider, charioteer (37×)H4501 1. cultic lampstand (menorah) (36×)H0212 1. wheel (35×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† חֶרְמֵשׁ n.[m.] sickle (on form v. Ges§ 85 xii. 55)—Dt 16:9; 23:26.