H6105b H6105b
To break bones; used metaphorically of Nebuchadnezzar's devastation of Israel (Jeremiah 50:17)
This denominative Piel verb derives from the word for 'bone' and means to break or crush bones. Jeremiah 50:17 uses it in a striking metaphor: after Assyria devoured Israel, Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon 'broke his bones'—finishing the destruction completely. However, there's textual uncertainty here; some manuscripts may reflect a different root meaning 'to close' or 'shut,' found in Isaiah's passages about God closing eyes. The bone-breaking image fits Jeremiah's context of total devastation.
Senses
1. sense 1 — A Piel verb describing forceful breaking or crushing. The BDB notes denominative origin from 'bone,' making 'broke his bones' the expected meaning in Jeremiah 50:17. However, the glosses show confusion: some languages preserve the bone imagery ('os' in French), while others reflect 'shut/close' glosses, suggesting manuscript variation or interpretive uncertainty. The Jeremiah context strongly favors the bone-breaking metaphor for Babylon's thorough destruction of Israel. 2×
AR["وَ-أَغْلَقَ", "وَ-الْمُغْمِضُ"]·ben["ও-বন্ধ-করেছেন", "ও-যে-বন্ধ-করে"]·DE["[ויעצם]", "[ועצם]"]·EN["and-He-has-closed", "and-shuts"]·FR["[ויעצם]", "et-os"]·heb["ו-עוצם", "ו-עצם"]·HI["और-बंद-कर-दी", "और-बंद-करनेवाला"]·ID["dan-Dia-menutup", "dan-yang-memejamkan"]·IT["[ויעצם]", "[ועצם]"]·jav["lan-meremaken"]·KO["그리고-감기셨다", "그리고-감는-자이다"]·PT["e-fecha", "e-fechou"]·RU["и-закрывающий", "и-закрыл"]·ES["y-cerró", "y-el-que-cierra"]·SW["na-afunge", "na-amefunga"]·TR["ve-kapatan", "ve-kapatti"]·urd["اور-بند-کرنے-والا", "اور-بند-کیں"]
Related Senses
H3808 1. simple negation (not) (4839×)G1722 1. locative: in, within (2442×)H1004b 1. house, dwelling, building (2015×)G3756 1. not (negation particle) (1635×)H4480a 1. source or separation (1198×)H5892b 1. city, town (1093×)G1519 1. direction: into, to, toward (1061×)H3427 1. Qal: to dwell, inhabit (937×)G1537 1. from, out of (source/origin) (886×)H8034 1. Name (designation / identifier) (856×)G3361 1. subjective negation (not) (834×)G1909 1. on, upon (spatial surface) (757×)H0369 1. existential negation: there is not (738×)H5869a 1. in the eyes/sight of (evaluative) (734×)H5650 1. Servant, attendant, subject (723×)H0408 1. prohibitive negation do-not (712×)G2443 1. so that, in order that (purpose/result) (665×)G0575 1. from (649×)G1223 1. through, by means of (582×)H3541 1. thus, so, in this manner (569×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† II. [עָצַם] Je 50:17. denom. Pi. עִצְּמוֹ broke his bones Je 50:17.*