H7338 H7338
breadth, broad expanse; spatial term for width or open spaces
A noun signifying breadth or wide open spaces. Job 36:16 contrasts God's deliverance to 'a broad place' with the confinement of distress. In Job 38:18, it describes the vast expanses of the earth, emphasizing creation's immensity. The term consistently evokes freedom from constraint and the majesty of unconfined space, whether literal or metaphorical.
Senses
1. sense 1 — Refers to breadth or expansiveness, particularly in the sense of deliverance from confinement (Job 36:16: 'a broad place' opposite 'narrow distress') or cosmic scale (Job 38:18: 'the broad expanse of the earth'). The multilingual evidence—Spanish 'anchura/anchuras', English 'breadth/breadths'—consistently emphasizes spatial dimensions. The intensive plural form in 38:18 heightens the sense of earth's immeasurable vastness. 2×
AR["رُحبٌ", "عَرْضِ-"]·ben["প্রশস্ত", "প্রস্থগুলি-"]·DE["[רחב]", "[רחבי]"]·EN["a-broad-place", "the-breadths-of-"]·FR["רחב", "רחבי"]·heb["רחב", "רחבי"]·HI["चौड़ाई", "चौड़ी"]·ID["luas", "luasnya-"]·IT["il-breadths-di", "un-broad-luogo"]·jav["jembar", "jembar-ipun"]·KO["넓은", "넓음들-을"]·PT["a-largura", "as-larguras-da-"]·RU["просторное", "широт-"]·ES["anchura", "anchuras-de-"]·SW["upana", "upana-wa"]·TR["genişliklerini-", "genişliğe"]·urd["چوڑائیوں", "کشادگی کی طرف"]
Related Senses
H8033 1. There (locative adverb) (835×)H7760a 1. put, place, set physically (444×)H8064 1. heavens / sky (329×)H5439 1. around, all around (spatial) (319×)H4057b 1. wilderness, desert region (270×)H3220 1. sea, body of water (269×)H0520a 1. cubit (unit of length) (246×)H0127 1. ground, land (territory) (210×)H3383 1. Jordan River (proper noun) (183×)G1093 1. earth, the world (176×)H5800a 1. forsake, abandon (Qal active) (166×)H8121 1. sun (celestial body) (133×)H7126 1. offer, present sacrificially (122×)H6828 1. north, cardinal direction (120×)H2351 1. outside, exterior space (119×)H5104 1. river, stream (119×)H7341 1. width, breadth (101×)G1563 1. there (95×)H7126 2. draw near, approach (95×)G2281 1. sea, large body of water (91×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† רַ֫חַב n.[m. not f. Jb 36:16 AlbrZAW xvl (1896), 94 Di Bu] breadth, broad expanse;—abs. ר׳ Jb 36:16 (opp. צָ֑ר); pl. cstr. intens. רַחֲבֵי־אָ֑רֶץ 38:18 the broad expanse of earth.