4388. maktesh
Lexical Summary
maktesh: hollow, mortar

Original Word: מַכְתֵּשׁ
Part of Speech: Noun Masculine
Transliteration: maktesh
Pronunciation: mak-taysh'
Phonetic Spelling: (mak-taysh')
KJV: hollow place, mortar
NASB: hollow, mortar
Word Origin: [from H3806 (כָּתַשׁ - pound)]

1. a mortar
2. by analogy, a socket (of a tooth)

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
hollow place, mortar

From kathash; a mortar; by analogy, a socket (of a tooth) -- hollow place, mortar.

see HEBREW kathash

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
from kathash
Definition
mortar
NASB Translation
hollow (1), mortar (1).

Brown-Driver-Briggs
מַכְתֵּשׁ noun masculine mortar (place of pounding, braying; compare Palmyrene proper name, masculine מכתש = contundens VogNo. 97) — absolute ׳מ Proverbs 27:22 (see foregoing); hollow resembling a mortar Judges 15:19 (whence came forth a water-spring; compare GFM), Zephaniah 1:11 #NAME? Jerusalem, compare SchwZAW x. (1890), 173 f.

Topical Lexicon
Physical Setting and Everyday Use

The מַכְתֵּשׁ was a heavy, bowl-shaped vessel, hewn from stone, bronze, or occasionally hard wood, in which grain, spices, herbs, or medicinal ingredients were crushed with a pestle. It belonged to the normal equipment of every Israelite household, just as the hand-mill did. Its durability and the violent action required for pounding made it a vivid image for any process demanding forceful, repetitive impact.

Occurrences in Scripture

Judges 15:19 depicts a natural cavity at Lehi likened to a מַכְתֵּשׁ: “So God split the hollow place in Lehi, and water came out of it; and Samson drank, his strength returned, and he revived.”
Proverbs 27:22 employs the same vessel metaphorically: “Though you grind a fool like grain with mortar and pestle, yet his folly will not depart from him.”

Historical Background

From Egypt to Mesopotamia mortars were indispensable. Archaeology uncovers basalt and granite examples dating to the Late Bronze Age—some portable, others cut into bedrock near threshing floors. Their association with food preparation explains why Samson’s “hollow place” could be readily compared to a mortar: the readers knew the shape and purpose instinctively.

Illustrative and Didactic Significance

1. Irresistible Force and Inward Change

Proverbs 27:22 warns that external pressure, even as relentless as pounding grain, cannot expel folly from a heart unwilling to yield. The image distinguishes between behavioral reform and true inner transformation—anticipating later prophetic calls for a new heart (Ezekiel 36:26).
2. Life-Giving Provision from Brokenness

In Judges 15:19 the same vessel-image is inverted. What normally crushes now becomes a fountain. God splits the “mortar” and supplies water, mirroring His provision of water from the rock in Exodus 17:6 and foreshadowing the living water offered by Jesus Christ (John 4:10; 7:37-38). The once-instrument-of-crushing turns into an instrument of revival, a pattern of divine grace triumphing over human extremity.

Theological Reflections

• Human devices can break kernels but cannot break obstinate hearts; only the Spirit accomplishes that work (2 Corinthians 3:18).
• God’s sovereignty turns sites of apparent defeat (Lehi, “Jawbone”) into sources of strength, underscoring Romans 8:28 long before it was penned.

Ministry Applications

Preaching: Contrast Samson’s experience with the fool in Proverbs. The same word pictures both the sufficiency of divine provision and the insufficiency of mere human effort.

Counseling: External pressures—discipline, consequences—are necessary but inadequate without repentance. Encourage heart-level change through the gospel rather than relying solely on corrective measures.

Discipleship: Teach believers to recognize that God may use “mortar moments” to expose folly, yet He also stands ready to pour out refreshing grace when they call upon Him (Isaiah 55:1).

Christological Foreshadowing

The split mortar finds its ultimate fulfillment at Calvary, where the stricken Savior becomes the fountain of living water (John 19:34). The crushing that should have fallen on sinners fell upon Him, turning judgment into life.

Summary

The biblical מַכְתֵּשׁ, though a simple household tool, conveys profound lessons: force without heart change is futile; brokenness under God’s hand can release life; and every scene of crushing ultimately looks forward to the gospel, where God satisfies the thirsty and transforms the foolish by His sovereign grace.

Forms and Transliterations
בַּֽמַּכְתֵּ֡שׁ במכתש הַמַּכְתֵּ֣שׁ המכתש bam·maḵ·têš bammachTesh bammaḵtêš ham·maḵ·têš hammachTesh hammaḵtêš
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Interlinear GreekInterlinear HebrewStrong's NumbersEnglishman's Greek ConcordanceEnglishman's Hebrew ConcordanceParallel Texts
Englishman's Concordance
Judges 15:19
HEB: אֱלֹהִ֜ים אֶת־ הַמַּכְתֵּ֣שׁ אֲשֶׁר־ בַּלֶּ֗חִי
NAS: split the hollow place that is in Lehi
KJV: clave an hollow place that [was] in the jaw,
INT: split God the hollow which the jaw

Proverbs 27:22
HEB: אֶת־ הָאֱוִ֨יל ׀ בַּֽמַּכְתֵּ֡שׁ בְּת֣וֹךְ הָ֭רִיפוֹת
NAS: a fool in a mortar with a pestle
KJV: a fool in a mortar among
INT: pound A fool A mortar along crushed

2 Occurrences

Strong's Hebrew 4388
2 Occurrences


bam·maḵ·têš — 1 Occ.
ham·maḵ·têš — 1 Occ.

4387
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