רֶ֫כֶב120 H7393
Chariot or chariotry (collective war-vehicle force); rarely, the upper millstone of a hand-mill.
The primary military term for wheeled war vehicles in the Hebrew Bible, covering everything from Pharaoh's chariot corps at the Red Sea (Exod 14:7) to the iron chariots of the Canaanites (Josh 17:16) and Solomon's chariot cities (1 Kgs 9:19). Arabic markaba and Korean byeongeo confirm the war-vehicle reading across language families. A fascinating secondary sense appears just three times: the upper millstone, the stone that 'rides' atop the lower -- the woman at Thebez dropped one on Abimelech's head (Judg 9:53). The metaphor from r-k-b ('to mount, ride') links both senses.
1. chariot, chariotry — A wheeled war vehicle or the collective chariot force of an army -- Pharaoh's chariots (Exod 14:7), Sisera's nine hundred iron chariots (Judg 4:3), Solomon's chariot corps (1 Kgs 10:26). Often paired with cavalry (parashim) and horses (susim). Arabic markabat/markabat, Spanish carro/carros, and Korean byeongeo converge on the military-vehicle reading. The collective sense ('chariotry') is more common than reference to a single vehicle. 117×
AR["مَركَبَةٍ","مَرْكَباتٍ","مَرْكَبَاتٌ","مَرْكَبَاتٍ","مَرْكَبَةً","مَرْكَبَةٍ","مَرْكَبَةَ"]·ben["দায়ূদ","রথ","রথের"]·DE["Rekab","Wagen"]·EN["chariot","chariots"]·FR["Récab","char"]·heb["רֶכֶב","רכב"]·HI["रथ","रेखेव"]·ID["dan-dua-ratus","kereta"]·IT["carro","chariot"]·jav["kareta","kereta","kreta","kréta"]·KO["병거","병거와","병거의","수레","수레도","전차를"]·PT["carro","carros","carros-de"]·RU["колесниц","колесницу","колесницы"]·ES["carro","carro-de","carros"]·SW["gari","gari-la-vita","magari","magari-ya-farasi","magari-ya-vita","na-wapanda-farasi","ya-farasi"]·TR["araba","arabalar","arabayı","savaş-arabaları","savaş-arabası"]·urd["رتھ","رث","رث۔"]
Gen 50:9, Exod 14:7, Deut 20:1, Josh 11:4, Judg 4:15, Judg 4:16, 1 Sam 13:5, 2 Sam 1:6, 2 Sam 8:4, 2 Sam 10:18, 1 Kgs 1:5, 1 Kgs 10:26 (+38 more)
▼ 1 more sense below
Senses
2. upper millstone — The upper grinding stone of a hand-mill that 'rides' atop the lower stone -- a vivid metaphorical extension of the root r-k-b ('to ride, mount'). Deuteronomy 24:6 forbids taking a millstone as pledge; Judges 9:53 narrates the woman who dropped an upper millstone on Abimelech; 2 Samuel 11:21 recalls the same event. Spanish piedra de molino and Korean maestol/wistol ('millstone/upper-stone') confirm this distinct concrete-object sense. 3×
AR["رَحى","رَحًى","وَحَجَرًا-عُلْوِيًّا"]·ben["এবং-নিচের-পাট","চাকার","জাঁতার"]·DE["ein-millstone","millstone","und-upper-millstone"]·EN["a-millstone","and-upper-millstone","millstone"]·FR["et-upper-millstone","meule","un-millstone"]·heb["ו-רכב","רכב"]·HI["और-पाट","चक्की-का"]·ID["atas","dan-pemutarnya"]·IT["e-upper-millstone","millstone","un-millstone"]·jav["utawi-watu-giling","watu-gilingan"]·KO["그리고-윗돌을","맷돌-의","맷돌의"]·PT["e-pedra","mó","pedra-de-moinho"]·RU["жернова","жёрнова","и-верхний-камень"]·ES["molino","piedra-de-molino","y-piedra-de-molino"]·SW["jiwe-la-kusagia","kusagia","na-jiwe-la-juu"]·TR["değirmen-taşının","ve-üst-taşını"]·urd["اور-پتھر","چکّی-کا","چکی-کا"]
BDB / Lexicon Reference
רֶ֫כֶב120 n.m. 2 K 13, 7 [even Na 2:5, where read מַרְאֵיהֶם (for -הֶן) We Now AlbrZAW xvi (1896), 90] chariotry, chariot, mill-stone; appar. also riders (cf. LagBN151);—abs. ר׳ Gn 50:9 +, רָ֑כֶב 2 S 8:4 +; cstr. רֶכֶב Ex 14:9 +; sf. רִכְבִּי Ju 4:7 +, רִכְבּוֹ 2 K 5:9 +, רִכְבָּהּ Na 2:14; pl. cstr. רִכְבֵי Ct 1:9;—Ho 10:13 v. infr.;— 1. 109 coll. chariotry, chariots [sometimes of specific no. 2…