Lexical Summary machaq: To erase, wipe out, blot out Original Word: מָחַק Strong's Exhaustive Concordance smite off A primitive root; to crush -- smite off. NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Origina prim. root Definition to utterly destroy, annihilate NASB Translation smashed (1). Brown-Driver-Briggs [מָחַק] verb utterly destroy, annihilate (compare GFM) (Late Hebrew id. wipe or rub of, erase; , Aramaic מְחַק id.; Arabic  utterly destroy, annihilate); — only 3 feminine singular: מָֽחֲקָה ראֹשׁוֺ Judges 5:26 ("" הָלַם, מָחַץ, חָלַף). [מֶחְקָר] see חקר. מחר (√ of following; be in front of meet, compare Assyrian ma—âru, DlHWB 400 come to meet, receive [compare קִכֵּל], and IdProl 93; Sabean מחֿר receive, etc., noun id., token of favour, "" gift, נחלת; DHMZMG xxxvii. 1883, 408). Topical Lexicon Range of Meaning and Imagery Though occurring only once, מָחַק conveys a vigorous, repeated pounding that obliterates resistance—violent, purposeful impact that leaves nothing of the enemy unbroken. Setting in Judges 5:26 In the victory song of Deborah, Jael seizes a tent peg and mallet: “She struck Sisera; she crushed his head; she shattered and pierced his temple” (Judges 5:26). מָחַק (“crushed”) sits between “struck” and “shattered,” heightening the description of Sisera’s utter defeat. The verb marks the moment when God’s instrument—an otherwise ordinary desert homemaker—delivers a decisive, fatal blow to the oppressor of Israel. Historical and Cultural Background Driving tent pegs was routine female labor among Kenites, nomadic metalworkers allied with Israel (Judges 4:11). Jael’s familiarity with hammer and peg, tools of domestic life, becomes the very means God uses to deliver His covenant people. The term therefore stands at the intersection of the mundane and the miraculous, highlighting the Lord’s sovereignty over everyday skills and situations. Theological Significance 1. Divine Judgment: The crushed head of Sisera exemplifies the Lord’s immutable justice against those who afflict His people (Psalm 68:21). Literary and Poetic Force Hebrew poetry intensifies meaning through parallelism. The triplet “struck…crushed…shattered” forms a crescendo of violence, with מָחַק as the pivotal middle term. It amplifies the certainty and finality of God’s victory sung by Deborah. Implications for Worship and Ministry • Celebration of Deliverance: Like Israel, believers may rejoice that God “crushes” the heads of spiritual enemies and has disarmed the rulers and authorities through the cross (Colossians 2:15). Teaching and Preaching Pathways • Trace the “crushed head” theme from Genesis 3:15 through Judges 5:26 to Revelation 12:9, showing God’s consistent plan. Summary מָחַק, though appearing a single time, graphically portrays God’s decisive judgment and His habit of working through unlikely agents. The word stands as a poetic witness to the Lord’s power to crush evil and to secure deliverance for His people, a truth still celebrated and relied upon in Christian faith and ministry today. Forms and Transliterations מָחֲקָ֣ה מחקה mā·ḥă·qāh machaKah māḥăqāhLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel TextsEnglishman's Concordance Judges 5:26 HEB: וְהָלְמָ֤ה סִֽיסְרָא֙ מָחֲקָ֣ה רֹאשׁ֔וֹ וּמָחֲצָ֥ה NAS: Sisera, she smashed his head; KJV: Sisera, she smote off his head, INT: struck Sisera smashed his head shattered 1 Occurrence |
    |