H3456 H3456
to be desolate, laid waste (synonym of שמם, found only in J, E, and Ezekiel)
This verb, a synonym of the more common shamem, describes land becoming desolate or laid waste. It appears in contexts of judgment and devastation—the land of Egypt filled with dead frogs, the land made desolate by drought, the high places destroyed, the land stripped of inhabitants. Ezekiel particularly favors this term in his oracles against Israel and surrounding nations, using it to depict the aftermath of divine judgment.
Senses
1. sense 1 — The verb appears in Qal imperfect and consecutive forms describing land becoming desolate. In Genesis, Joseph's brothers feared 'the land will be desolate' if they didn't sow during famine (Gen 47:19, J source). Ezekiel uses it three times: 'your high places shall be desolate' (Ezek 6:6), 'the land shall be desolate' of inhabitants (Ezek 12:19), and 'the land was made desolate' by the lioness's roaring (Ezek 19:7). French and German translators left the forms in Hebrew brackets, recognizing the term's rarity and overlap with the more common shamem root, while Spanish sea/será/serán asolada tracks the passive devastation across all instances. 4×
AR["تَخْرَبَ", "تَخْرَبُ", "تَقْفِرُ", "فَخَرِبَتِ"]·ben["আর-বিহ্বল-হল", "উজাড়-হবে", "উজাড়-হয়", "বিরান-হবে"]·DE["[ותשם]", "[תישמנה]", "[תשם]", "veröde"]·EN["and-was-desolate", "be-desolate", "shall-be-desolate"]·FR["[ותשם]", "[תישמנה]", "[תשם]", "être-desolate"]·heb["ו-תשם", "תישמנה", "תשם"]·HI["उजड़-हो", "उजड़े", "और-वीरान-हुई", "वे-वीरान-होंगी"]·ID["akan-menjadi-sunyi", "dan-menjadi-sunyi", "menjadi-sunyi", "menjadi-tandus"]·IT["[ותשם]", "[תישמנה]", "[תשם]", "essere-desolate"]·jav["badhé-dados-suwăng", "dados-suwung", "lan-sepi-mamring", "suwăng"]·KO["그리고-황폐해졌다", "황무하리라", "황폐하리라", "황폐할"]·PT["e-ficou-desolada", "seja-desolada", "será-desolada", "serão-assolados"]·RU["и-опустела", "опустеет", "опустела", "опустеют"]·ES["sea-asolada", "será-desolada", "serán-desolados", "y-quedó-desolada"]·SW["ibaki-ukiwa", "kubaliwa", "na-ikawa-ukiwa", "pataachwa"]·TR["ve-harap-oldu", "viran-olacak", "ıssız-kalmasının", "ıssız-kalır"]·urd["اجڑے", "اور-سنسان-ہوئی", "سنسان-ہوں-گی", "ویران-ہو-جائے"]
Related Senses
H4421 1. war, battle, armed conflict (319×)H0341 1. enemy, adversary, foe (284×)H3898a 1. Nifal: to fight, wage war (167×)H2026 1. kill, slay (active) (146×)H2451 1. wisdom, discernment (146×)H5483b 1. horse (the animal) (138×)H0006 1. to perish, be destroyed (105×)H7843 1. Hifil: destroy, annihilate (83×)H2491a 1. slain, fatally pierced (74×)H6862c 1. adversary, enemy, foe (69×)H8045 1. destroy, exterminate (69×)G0615 1. kill, put to death (60×)H6571b 1. horseman, cavalryman (52×)H8077a 1. desolation, waste (abstract state) (52×)G4678 1. of wisdom (51×)G4717 1. crucify, fasten to a cross (46×)H2763a 1. utterly destroy (Hifil active) (44×)G0622 1. perish, be destroyed (intransitive) (41×)H0006 2. to destroy, annihilate (Piel) (38×)H8074 1. be desolate, lie waste (36×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† [יָשַׁם] vb. be desolate (cf. שָׁמַם)— Qal Impf. 3 fs. תֵּשַׁם Ez 12:19; תֵּשָׁ֑ם Gn 47:19; וַתֵּ֫שַׁם Ez 19:7; 3 fpl. תִּישָׁ֑מְנָה 6:6 (Co תֵּשׁמנה);—be desolate, subj. ארץ Ez 12:19; 19:7; subj. אֲדָמָה Gn 47:19 (J); subj. במות Ez 6:6.