Lexical Summary tchown: Deep, Abyss Original Word: טְחוֹן Strong's Exhaustive Concordance to grind From tachan; a hand mill; hence, a millstone -- to grind. see HEBREW tachan Brown-Driver-Briggs טְחוֺן noun [masculine] grinding-mill, hand-mill; only נָשָׂ֑אוּ ׳בַּחוּרִים ט Lamentations 5:13 the young men have borne the mill (i.e. been compelled to bear it). Topical Lexicon Occurrence and Literary Context טְחוֹן appears once, in Lamentations 5:13, within Jeremiah’s mournful description of the desolation following Jerusalem’s fall. “Young men were led away to mill, and boys staggered under loads of wood” (Lamentations 5:13). The term designates the mill-work—grinding grain with heavy stones—forced upon the covenant people by foreign oppressors. Cultural and Historical Background In Ancient Near Eastern societies milling was exhausting, repetitive labor normally reserved for servants, women, or draft animals (compare Exodus 11:5; Isaiah 47:2). To conscript Judah’s young men for such demeaning toil signaled total subjugation. After Babylon’s siege (586 B.C.), survivors were not merely exiled; those left behind were pressed into menial service that erased dignity and hope. טְחוֹן thus encapsulates the bitter reality that the “joy of our hearts has ceased” (Lamentations 5:15). Symbolism of Forced Milling 1. Loss of strength: Youth—normally a symbol of vigor (Proverbs 20:29)—is expended on circular, unending drudgery. Intertextual Resonance • Judges 16:21: Samson “ground grain in the prison” after losing his sight, a personal precursor to the national humiliation Lamentations records. Theological Implications God’s covenant faithfulness remains intact even in judgment. The presence of טְחוֹן in sacred Scripture validates the people’s cries and invites lament as a faithful response to suffering. While discipline is severe, it aims at restoration (Lamentations 3:31–33). The crushing of grain hints at redemptive patterns culminating in the Messiah, whose body, like bread, is broken for the life of the world (John 6:51). Ministry Applications • Pastoral Care: Lamentations 5:13 legitimizes the anguish of those oppressed by systemic injustice. Congregants who feel trapped in “grinding” circumstances find their experience voiced in Scripture. Summary טְחוֹן is more than a technical term for milling; it is a lens through which the Book of Lamentations portrays shattered youth, stolen dignity, and covenant discipline. Yet within the grinding sound of the millstone Scripture whispers the assurance that the God who allows sorrow also promises deliverance, ultimately realized in Jesus Christ, who turns mourning into joy (John 16:20). Forms and Transliterations טְח֣וֹן טחון ṭə·ḥō·wn teChon ṭəḥōwnLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel TextsEnglishman's Concordance Lamentations 5:13 HEB: בַּחוּרִים֙ טְח֣וֹן נָשָׂ֔אוּ וּנְעָרִ֖ים NAS: worked at the grinding mill, And youths KJV: the young men to grind, and the children INT: Young the grinding worked and youths 1 Occurrence |
    |