H7504 H7504
slack, weak, feeble
This adjective describes physical or moral weakness, slackness, or feebleness—whether of people, hands (symbolizing strength), or resolve. The term often appears in military or courage contexts, where 'slack hands' represent discouragement or inability to fight. It captures both bodily weakness and psychological collapse.
Senses
1. sense 1 — Denotes slackness or weakness. Numbers 13:18 asks whether the land's inhabitants are 'strong or weak' (הֶחָזָק הוּא אִם-רָפֶה). 2 Samuel 17:2 describes David as 'weary and weak-handed' (רְפֵה יָדַיִם, i.e., demoralized). Job 4:3 accuses Job of having 'strengthened weak hands' (יָדַיִם רָפוֹת) through his teaching—hands that symbolize courage. Isaiah 35:3 commands 'strengthen weak hands' in restoration prophecy. The idiom 'slack/weak hands' consistently indicates discouragement or fear. Multilingual glosses show this: Spanish 'débil/débiles,' French 'faible,' German 'schwach'—all capturing the weakness, with some preserving the hands imagery ('weak-of hands'). 4×
AR["أَمْ-ضَعِيفٌ", "ضَعيفَةً", "مُرْتَخِيَةً", "وَ-مُرْتَخي"]·ben["এবং-দুর্বল", "দুর্বল", "দুর্বলের"]·DE["[רפות]", "oder-schwach", "und-weak-von"]·EN["and-weak-of", "or-weak", "weak"]·FR["[רפות]", "et-weak-de", "ou-faible", "רפות"]·heb["ה-רפה", "ו-רפה", "רפות"]·HI["और-कमज़ोर", "कमज़ोर", "कमज़ोरों-को", "या-दुर्बल"]·ID["atau-lemah", "dan-lemah", "lemah", "yang-lemah"]·IT["[רפות]", "e-weak-di", "o-debole", "weak"]·jav["ingkang-lemes", "kang-lemes", "lan-lemes", "punapa-ringkih"]·KO["그리고-힘이-없는", "늘어진", "약한", "약한지"]·PT["e-frouxo-de", "fracas", "ou-fraco"]·RU["и-ослабевший", "ослабевшие", "слабый-ли"]·ES["débiles", "o-débil?", "y-débil-de"]·SW["au-dhaifu", "dhaifu", "na-dhaifu"]·TR["güçsüz", "mı-zayıf", "ve-zayıf", "zayflamis"]·urd["اور-کمزور", "کمزور", "یا-کمزور"]
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
† רָפֶה adj. slack;—abs. ר׳, of people, Nu 13:18 (J); cstr. רְפֵה יָדַיִם 2 S 17:2, i.e. weak (‖ יָגֵעַ); fpl. יָדַיִם רָפוֹת fig. of discouragement and fear Is 35:3; Jb 4:3. cf. √ Qal. 2.