H3452 H3452
A desolate waste or wilderness; often used as a quasi-proper noun for the Jeshimon desert region near the Dead Sea.
Derived from the root meaning 'to be desolate,' this noun paints a vivid picture of barren, uninhabitable terrain. With the definite article, it functions almost as a place name for the Jeshimon, the stark wilderness region overlooking the Dead Sea where David hid from Saul (1 Sam 23:19, 24; 26:1, 3). Numbers uses it for the wasteland visible from the heights of Pisgah and Peor (Num 21:20; 23:28). Without the article, it carries a more abstract poetic force, evoking primordial desolation in the 'howling waste' of Deuteronomy 32:10 or God's power to make rivers flow through the wasteland (Isa 43:19-20). German 'der Jeshimon' preserves the toponym, while Spanish 'el desierto' and 'la soledad' capture both the geographic and emotional dimensions.
1. wilderness, wasteland (specific locale) — The concrete, often semi-proper usage designating specific desert regions, particularly the Jeshimon wilderness near the Dead Sea. Nearly all occurrences take the definite article, functioning as a recognizable geographic reference. The Samuel narratives place David in 'the Jeshimon' as a fugitive (1 Sam 23:19, 24; 26:1, 3), while Numbers locates it as the vista from Pisgah (21:20) and Peor (23:28). The Psalms extend the locative sense to describe wandering 'in the wilderness, in a wasteland' (Ps 107:4). Spanish consistently uses 'el desierto' or 'el yermo,' French employs transliterations alongside 'désolation,' and German preserves 'der Jeshimon' as a topographic marker. 12×
AR["القَفرِ","الْقَفْرِ","الْيَشِيمُون","الْيَشِيمُونِ","في-القَفر","في-القَفْرِ","في-قَفر","فِي-القَفْرِ","فِي-الْقَفْرِ"]·ben["নির্জন-স্থানে","প্রান্তরে","মরুপ্রান্তরে","মরুভূমিতে","মরুভূমির","যিশীমোনের"]·DE["[בישימן]","[בישמון]","der-Jeshimon","der-Wueste","der-wasteland","durch-der-Wüste","in-der-Wüste","in-der-wasteland","in-ein-wasteland"]·EN["in-a-wasteland","in-the-desert","in-the-wasteland","the-Jeshimon","the-wasteland","the-wilderness","through-the-wilderness"]·FR["[בישימן]","[בישמון]","dans-désolation","le-Jeshimon","le-désert","le-wasteland"]·heb["ב-ישימון","ה-ישימון","ה-ישימן"]·HI["उजाड़-में","जेशीमोन-के","निर्जन-स्थान-में","में-सूखी-भूमि","यशीमोन-के"]·ID["di-padang-belantara","di-tempat-sunyi","melalui-padang-belantara","padang-belantara","padang-tandus"]·IT["[בישימן]","[בישמון]","desolazione","il-Jeshimon","il-deserto","il-wasteland"]·jav["ara-ara-samun","gung-liwang-liwung","ing-ara-ara-samun","ing-panggenan-sepi","ing-pasamunan","wonten-ing-papan-samun"]·KO["광야-에서","그-광야","그-광야의","에-황야에","예시몬의","황무지","황무지-에서","황폐한-땅-에서"]·PT["na-solidão","no-ermo","o-deserto","pelo-deserto","por-caminho-deserto"]·RU["Йешимона","в-пустыне","в-степи","по-пустыне","пустыни"]·ES["el-desierto","en-el-yermo","en-la-soledad","en-soledad","por-desierto"]·SW["jangwa","jangwani","nyikani","wa-Yeshimoni"]·TR["-Yeşimon'un","Yeşimon'un","boş-yerde","issiz-yerde","çölde","ıssız-yerde","ıssızlıkta"]·urd["بِ-بیابان","بِ-بیابان-میں","بیابان","بیابان۔","صحرا-میں","ویرانی-میں","ویرانے-میں","یشیمون"]
Num 21:20, Num 23:28, 1 Sam 23:19, 1 Sam 23:24, 1 Sam 26:1, 1 Sam 26:3, Ps 68:7, Ps 78:40, Ps 106:14, Ps 107:4, Isa 43:19, Isa 43:20
▼ 1 more sense below
Senses
2. desolation, waste (abstract) — The abstract, poetic sense of utter desolation and barrenness, stripped of geographic specificity. Deuteronomy 32:10 describes finding Israel 'in a howling waste' (yeshimon), where the parallelism with 'desert land' and 'howling wilderness' underscores the word's evocative, non-locative force. English renders 'desolation,' Spanish 'soledad,' French 'désolation,' and German 'Verwüstung,' all emphasizing the emotional and spiritual emptiness of the landscape rather than any particular place. Isaiah 43:19-20 similarly uses the word for the generic wasteland that God will transform with rivers and springs. 1×
AR["قَفْرٍ"]·ben["প্রান্তরের"]·DE["Verwuestung"]·EN["desolation"]·FR["desolation"]·heb["ישימון"]·HI["वीराने-की"]·ID["tanah-tandus"]·IT["desolazione"]·jav["mubeng"]·KO["황무지의"]·PT["ermo"]·RU["пустыни"]·ES["soledad"]·SW["nyika"]·TR["ıssızlığın"]·urd["علاقے-کے"]
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† יְשִׁימוֹן n.m. waste, wilderness;—abs. יְשִׁימוֹן 1 S 23:19 + 5 times; יְשִׁימֹן Nu 21:20 + 3 times; יְשִׁמוֹן Is 43:19; יְשִׁמֹן Dt 32:10; cstr. יְשִׁימוֹן ψ 107:4;—waste, wilderness: a. c. art., alm. n.pr. Nu 21:20 (commanded by Pisgah), 23:28 (by Peʿor; both JE), frequented by David as an outlaw 1 S 23:19, 24; 26:1, 3. Probably some part of the wilderness of Judah, bordering on Dead Sea…