H6986 H6986
destruction, pestilence; deadly calamity, often personified as an agent of judgment
This noun denotes destruction or deadly pestilence—a force of catastrophic judgment. Deuteronomy 32:24 pairs it with 'burning heat' (resheph) among the disasters God sends. Psalm 91:6 mentions 'the destruction that wastes at noonday,' parallel to 'the pestilence that walks in darkness.' Isaiah 28:2 speaks of a 'tempest of destruction.' Hosea 13:14 personifies it: 'O Death, where are your plagues? O Sheol, where is your destruction?'—divine forces summoned against Israel. The term evokes violent ruin, whether by disease, disaster, or divine wrath.
Senses
1. sense 1 — Four contexts present destruction as judgment: covenant curses (Deuteronomy), protection from disaster (Psalm), prophetic warning (Isaiah), and death personified (Hosea). The Spanish 'destrucción' and translations of 'pestilence' or 'destruction' show semantic overlap between disease and ruin. Hosea's personification treats destruction as Sheol's weapon, while Psalm 91 pictures it prowling at noon. The term belongs to judgment vocabulary—divine instruments of catastrophic harm, whether natural disaster or plague. 3×
AR["دَمَارٍ", "مِنْ-هَلَاكٍ", "وَالْوَبَاءُ"]·ben["এবং-বিনাশের", "ধ্বংস-এর", "সেই-ধ্বংস-থেকে"]·DE["[קטב]", "noch-der-destruction", "und-destruction"]·EN["and-destruction", "nor-the-destruction", "of-destruction"]·FR["[קטב]", "de-peste", "et-destruction"]·heb["ו-קטב", "מ-קטב", "קטב"]·HI["और-विनाश", "विनाश-का", "से-विनाश"]·ID["akan-wabah", "dan-kebinasaan", "penghancur"]·IT["[מקטב]", "[קטב]", "e-destruction"]·jav["karisakan", "lan-karsakan", "saking-bilahi"]·KO["그리고-역병(접)", "재앙-에서", "파괴의"]·PT["destruição", "e-peste", "nem-a-destruição"]·RU["и-моровой-язвой", "от-гибели", "разрушающий"]·ES["de-destrucción", "destrucción", "y-destrucción"]·SW["na-maangamizi", "wala-maangamizo", "ya-uharibifu"]·TR["salgandan", "ve-yıkım", "yikici"]·urd["اور-تباہی-سے", "تباہی-سے", "تباہی-کا"]
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
† קֶ֫טֶב [קֹ֫טֶב] n.m. Dt 32:24 destruction;—of pestilence, abs. ק׳ Dt 32:24 (‖ רֶשֶׁף), ψ 91:6 (‖ דֶּבֶר), so sf. (of She’ôl) קָֽטָבְךָ (Ges§ 93 q) Ho 13:14 (‖ of מָוֶת, דְּבָרֶיךָ); more gen., שַׂעַר קָ֑טֶב Is 28:2.