Lexical Summary charuwts: Diligent, sharp, gold, threshing instrument Original Word: חֲרוּץ Strong's Exhaustive Concordance decision, diligent, fine gold, pointed things, sharp, threshing instrument, wall Or charuts {khaw-roots'}; passive participle of charats; properly, incised or (active) incisive; hence (as noun masculine or feminine) a trench (as dug), gold (as mined), a threshing-sledge (having sharp teeth); (figuratively) determination; also eager -- decision, diligent, (fine) gold, pointed things, sharp, threshing instrument, wall. see HEBREW charats Brown-Driver-Briggs I. חָרוּץ adjective sharp, diligent (on this and following see BaNB 173) — חָרוּץ Isaiah 28:27 11t.; plural חֲרוּצִים Proverbs 10:4; Proverbs 12:24; חֲרֻצִים Proverbs 13:4; חֲרֻצוֺת Amos 1:3; — 1 sharp: of threshing instrument חָדָשׁ ׳מוֺרָג ח Isaiah 41:15; without ׳מ, as substantive, Isaiah 28:27 (where יוּדַשׁ); הַבַּרְזֶל ׳ח Amos 1:3; Job 41:22 (figurative of crocodile). 2 figurative diligent: as substantive Proverbs 21:5; opposed to רְמִיָּךְ Proverbs 10:4; Proverbs 12:24,27; opposed to עָצֵּל Proverbs 13:4. — Daniel 9:25 see IV. חרוץ. II. חָרוּץ noun [masculine] strict decision, only עֵמֶק הֶחָרוּץ Joel Daniel 4:14 (twice in verse) valley of strict decision (see Bal.c.). III. חָרוּץ noun [masculine] trench, moat (Aramaic חֲרִיצָא; Assyrian —ariƒu, —iriƒu, id., DlHWB) — only in ׳רְחוֺב וְח Daniel 9:25, si vera lectio; as above Ges Herzf Ew Zö Meinh (q. v.); Gr רְחוֺב וחיץ; < ᵑ6 Bev רְחוֺב וָחוּץ with public places and streets. see חָרוּץ noun masculineProverbs 8:10 gold, in poetry (Phoenician חרץ, see DrSm xxviii; Assyrian —urâƒu) — חָרוּץ Psalm 68:14 5t.; gold, always "" כֶּסֶף; Zechariah 9:3, of dove's wings Psalm 68:14 ׳בִּירַקְרַק ח; elsewhere in comparison with value of wisdom, etc. Proverbs 3:14; Proverbs 8:10 (נִבְחָר ׳ח) Proverbs 8:19; Proverbs 16:16. חרצב (quadriliteral √ of following; compare Arabic Topical Lexicon Semantic breadthחֲרוּץ gathers several concrete and figurative ideas into a single word family: the cutting edge of a threshing sledge, the priceless sheen of refined gold, the unwavering resolve of a royal decree, and the focused energy of diligent labor. Each Old Testament occurrence accentuates one or more of these facets without contradiction, illustrating Scripture’s capacity to employ a single term to witness to varied yet harmonious truths. Threshing sledge and other sharpened tools The oldest and most literal sense points to the heavy wooden sledges studded with flint or iron teeth that farmers dragged over grain to separate kernel from husk. Job 41:30 compares the impenetrable underbelly of Leviathan to such a sledge, while Isaiah 28:27 and Amos 1:3 recall the implement in ordinary agriculture and in brutal warfare. In Isaiah 41:15 the LORD pledges, “Behold, I will make you into a threshing sledge, new and sharp, with many teeth,” promising that a weak remnant will become His unstoppable instrument. The image is rooted in daily life yet redemptively recast to portray the decisive power of God at work through His people. Decisive decree, trench, and valley of decision Daniel 9:25 foretells that Jerusalem will be rebuilt “with streets and a trench,” a civil-engineering word that emerges from the notion of something sharply cut. Joel twice announces “Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the day of the LORD is near…” (Joel 3:14). Here חֲרוּץ describes the irreversible verdict God will render over the nations. What begins as a notch in stone becomes the very line God carves between salvation and wrath. Fine gold, priceless wisdom, and true wealth Proverbs repeatedly sets wisdom above חֲרוּץ in its monetary sense: “For her profit is better than the gain from silver, and her yield than fine gold” (Proverbs 3:14; cf. 8:10, 8:19; 16:16). Psalm 68:13 poetically pictures dove-wings overlaid “with shimmering gold,” and Zechariah 9:3 rebukes Tyre for piling up gold like street dirt. The metal’s rarity and radiance provide a fitting foil for the even greater worth of covenant fidelity and godly insight. Moral quality of diligence A further development turns the sharpness of the tool into the sharp focus of the worker. Proverbs 10:4; 12:24, 12:27; 13:4; and 21:5 contrast the חֲרוּץ person—energetic, enterprising, resolved—with the sluggard. Diligence is not merely an ethic of hard work; it mirrors the purposeful activity of the Creator who “neither slumbers nor sleeps.” The wise steward slices through excuses the way a sharpened blade slices through chaff. Historical snapshots • Agriculture: Ancient Near Eastern threshing floors were circular, packed-earth spaces where sledges freed the grain. The term evokes the smell of cut straw and the rhythmic crunch of harvest, grounding prophetic visions in the people’s everyday world. Theological themes 1. Divine sovereignty—God’s word is the ultimate חֲרוּץ, carving history toward His appointed ends. Ministry applications • Preaching: Isaiah 41 encourages believers facing opposition that God fashions them into new, sharp instruments fit for kingdom advance. Summary Across its eighteen appearances חֲרוּץ binds together sharpness, value, resolve, and judgment. Whether describing jagged iron, glittering bullion, or disciplined character, the term testifies that God’s purposes are precise, priceless, and cannot be blunted. Forms and Transliterations בֶֽחָרוּץ֙ בַּחֲרֻצ֥וֹת בחרוץ בחרצות הֶֽחָר֑וּץ הֶחָרֽוּץ׃ החרוץ החרוץ׃ וְחָר֔וּץ וְחָר֖וּץ וּ֝מֵחָר֗וּץ וחרוץ ומחרוץ חָ֭רוּץ חָר֣וּץ חָרֻצִ֣ים חָרֽוּץ׃ חָרוּצִ֣ים חָרוּצִ֥ים חרוץ חרוץ׃ חרוצים חרצים מֵחָר֑וּץ מֵחָר֣וּץ מֵחָר֥וּץ מחרוץ ba·ḥă·ru·ṣō·wṯ bacharuTzot baḥăruṣōwṯ ḇe·ḥā·rūṣ ḇeḥārūṣ chaRutz charuTzim ḥā·ru·ṣîm ḥā·rū·ṣîm ḥā·rūṣ ḥārūṣ ḥāruṣîm ḥārūṣîm he·ḥā·rūṣ hechaRutz heḥārūṣ mê·ḥā·rūṣ mechaRutz mêḥārūṣ ū·mê·ḥā·rūṣ umechaRutz ūmêḥārūṣ vechaRutz wə·ḥā·rūṣ wəḥārūṣLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel TextsEnglishman's Concordance Job 41:30 HEB: חָ֑רֶשׂ יִרְפַּ֖ד חָר֣וּץ עֲלֵי־ טִֽיט׃ NAS: He spreads out [like] a threshing sledge on the mire. KJV: [are] under him: he spreadeth sharp pointed things upon the mire. INT: potsherds spreads out a threshing on the mire Psalm 68:13 Proverbs 3:14 Proverbs 8:10 Proverbs 8:19 Proverbs 10:4 Proverbs 12:24 Proverbs 12:27 Proverbs 13:4 Proverbs 16:16 Proverbs 21:5 Isaiah 28:27 Isaiah 41:15 Daniel 9:25 Joel 3:14 Joel 3:14 Amos 1:3 Zechariah 9:3 18 Occurrences |
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bind or twist powerfully, Frey).