H6327b H6327b
scatterer, disperser (one who scatters or breaks up)
A Hebrew participle functioning as a noun, meaning 'scatterer' or 'disperser,' appearing in Nahum 2:1 (MT 2:2). The term describes an enemy advancing against Nineveh, one who will scatter or disperse the city's defenders. Some scholars suggest emending the text to read 'hammer' or 'club' instead, which would emphasize destructive violence rather than dispersion. The image fits Nahum's prophecy of Nineveh's violent downfall—an attacker comes who will break apart Assyria's seemingly invincible power.
Senses
1. sense 1 — Refers to an agent of scattering or dispersion, appearing in Nahum 2:1 to describe the enemy advancing against Nineveh. 'The scatterer' comes up against the Assyrian capital, threatening to break apart its defenses and disperse its forces. The term emphasizes the enemy's role in fragmenting and dispersing Nineveh's power. Some suggest reading 'hammer' instead, but multilingual evidence (Spanish dispersador, French disperser) supports the sense of one who scatters. 1×
AR["مُشَتِّتٌ"]·ben["ছত্রভঙ্গকারী"]·DE["[מפיץ]"]·EN["a-scatterer"]·FR["disperser"]·heb["מפיץ"]·HI["बिखेरने-वाला"]·ID["penghancur"]·IT["[מפיץ]"]·jav["tiyang-kang-nyebar"]·KO["흩뜨리는-자-가"]·PT["um-dispersador"]·RU["рассеиватель"]·ES["dispersador"]·SW["mtawanya"]·TR["dağıtan"]·urd["تتر-بتر-کرنے-والا"]
Related Senses
H0935 1. come, arrive (Qal) (2413×)G1473 1. first person singular pronoun (2084×)H3318 1. Qal: go out, depart, come forth (891×)H7725 1. to return, come/go back (Qal) (874×)H5927 1. go up, ascend (Qal) (779×)H7971 1. to send, dispatch (Qal) (701×)G2064 1. come / arrive (physical movement toward) (588×)H5307 1. Qal: fall down physically (339×)H5375 1. Qal: to lift up, raise (330×)H5975 1. to stand, stand up (310×)H5674a 1. Qal: pass by, pass through (256×)H3381 1. Qal: to go down, descend (physical movement) (242×)G1831 1. go/come out physically (193×)H5337 1. deliver, rescue, save (Hifil) (188×)H7901 1. lie down, rest, sleep (183×)G1525 1. enter a place physically (179×)H7812 1. prostrate oneself, bow down, worship (173×)H3318 2. Hifil: bring out, lead out, take out (persons) (172×)H7725 2. to bring back, restore (Hifil) (151×)H5674a 2. Qal: cross over (134×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† מֵפִיץ n.m. scatterer, disperser;—Na 2:2 (si vera l.), but read perhaps מַפֵּץ club, hammer JD Mich We Now; so also Pr 25:18, cf. Toy.