H4621 H4621
an axe or cutting tool used for woodworking, including idol-making
This term for an axe or cutting implement appears in two prophetic denunciations of idolatry. Jeremiah 10:3 describes the craftsman cutting a tree 'from the forest with an axe' to fashion an idol. Isaiah 44:12 mentions the ironsmith with his axe (though some delete this verse as textually suspect). Both contexts mock the absurdity of idol-making: humans cut down a tree with a tool, then worship what they carve from it. The word specifically denotes a woodworking implement, likely an axe or adze used for shaping timber.
Senses
1. sense 1 — An axe or cutting tool used in woodworking and carving. The prophetic use is uniformly ironic: the very tool that enables idol production demonstrates the idol's creaturely nature. Jeremiah's fuller description shows the step-by-step process: felling the tree with the axe, then decorating the carved product with silver and gold. The Spanish 'azuela' (adze) and 'hacha' (axe) reflect the tool's function in shaping wood. The implements of idol-making become witnesses against idolatry itself. 2×
AR["بِالقَدُومِ", "فَأْسٌ"]·ben["কুঠার", "বাটালি-দিয়ে"]·DE["[במעצד]", "[מעצד]"]·EN["an-axe", "with-an-axe"]·FR["[במעצד]", "[מעצד]"]·heb["ב-מעצד", "מעצד"]·HI["कुल्हाड़ी", "छेनी-से"]·ID["dengan-kapak", "kapak"]·IT["[במעצד]", "[מעצד]"]·jav["mawi-wadung", "piranti"]·KO["도끼-로", "도끼로"]·PT["com-machado", "machado"]·RU["топором"]·ES["con-la-azuela", "hacha"]·SW["kwa-shoka", "shoka"]·TR["balta", "balta-ile"]·urd["کلہاڑی-سے", "کلہاڑی-لیتا-ہے"]
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
† מַעֲצָד n.[m.] axe;—Je 10:3; in Is 44:12 prob. del. (so Du CheHpt. Skinner).