4803. marat
Lexical Summary
marat: To make smooth, bare, or bald; to polish; to scour

Original Word: מָרַט
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: marat
Pronunciation: mah-RAHT
Phonetic Spelling: (maw-rat')
KJV: bright, furbish, (have his) hair (be) fallen off, peeled, pluck off (hair)
NASB: polished, smooth, becomes bald, loses the hair, pluck out the beard, pulled, pulled out hair
Word Origin: [a primitive root]

1. to polish
2. (by implication) to make bald (the head), to gall (the shoulder)
3. (also) to sharpen

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
bright, furbish, have his hair be fallen off, peeled, pluck off hair

A primitive root; to polish; by implication, to make bald (the head), to gall (the shoulder); also, to sharpen -- bright, furbish, (have his) hair (be) fallen off, peeled, pluck off (hair).

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
a prim. root
Definition
to make smooth, bare or bald, to scour, polish
NASB Translation
becomes bald (1), loses the hair (1), pluck out the beard (1), polished (6), pulled (1), pulled out hair (1), rubbed bare (1), smooth (2).

Brown-Driver-Briggs
מְעֻטָּה Ezekiel 21:20 textual error, see below מרט.

מַעֲטֶה see עטה. [מַעֲטָפָה] see I. עטף.

[מָרַט] verb make smooth, bare, bald; scour, polish (Late Hebrew id.; pull out, off (feathers, hair); Aramaic . מְרַט id.; Arabic have little hair, pluck out hair); —

Qal Imperfect1singular וָאֶמְרְטָה Ezra 9:3, suffix 3masculine plural וָאֶמְרְטֵם Nehemiah 13:25; Infinitive construct מָרְטָה Ezekiel 21:16; Participle plural מֹרְטִים Isaiah 50:6; passive feminine מְרוּטָה Ezekiel 21:14 2t.; —

1 make bare כָּלכָּֿתֵף מְרוּטָה Ezekiel 29:18 every shoulder is laid bare (from chafing of burden; "" כָּלרֿאֹשׁ מֻקְרָח); the cheek (by plucking out beard) גֵּוִי נָתַתִּי לְמַכִּים וּלְחָיַי לְמֹרְטִ֑ים Isaiah 50:6; with accusative of person וָאֶמְרְטֵ֑ם Nehemiah 13:25 (both acts of violence); of hair and beard וָאֶמְרְטָה מִשְּׂעַר ראֹשִׁי וּזֶקָנִי Ezra 9:3 (sign of grief).

2 scour, polish, a sword, only Ezekiel 21: Ezra 9:14 (+ הוּחַדָּת; Co reads ׳מ as Pu), Ezra 9:16 (strike out Co), Ezra 9:33, + Ezra 9:20 מְרֻטָה for ᵑ0 מְעֻטָּה (Ew Sm Co Berthol).

Niph`al Imperfect יִמָּרֵט ראֹשׁוֺ Leviticus 13:40,41 his head is made bald (by leprosy).

Pu`al Perfect3feminine singular מֹרָ֑טָה Ezekiel 21:15; Ezekiel 21:16; Participle מְמֹרָט 1 Kings 7:45, מוֺרָט Isaiah 18:27 (Ges§ 52 R.6): — scoured, polished, of bronze utensils of temple 1 Kings 7:45; of human skin Isaiah 18:27; of sword Ezekiel 21:15; Ezekiel 21:16 (both + הוּחַדָּה, see

Qal above)

מְרִי see מרה.

מְרִיבַֿ֫עַל, מְרִיבבַּֿ֫עַל see ריב.

I, II. מְרִיבָה see ריב.

[מְרַט] verb pluck (see Biblical Hebrew); —

Pe`îl Perfect3masculine plural מְרִ֫יטוּ Daniel 7:4 were plucked off (wings).

Topical Lexicon
Overview of Usage

Marat appears twelve times in the Old Testament, distributed among Torah legislation, historical narrative, prophetic poetry, and post-exilic memoirs. Two principal ideas dominate its employment: (1) the removal of hair or surface covering so that something is left bare, and (2) the smoothing or polishing of metal so that it shines. Both ideas convey exposure—whether of the human body in weakness and shame or of a weapon or vessel readied for service.

Ritual Purity and Bodily Integrity (Leviticus 13:40-41)

Within the laws of skin disease, Marat describes natural baldness: “Now if a man loses his hair and becomes bald, he is still clean” (Leviticus 13:40). The falling out of hair is treated as a neutral condition, distinct from the unclean eruptions that follow. The term therefore frames baldness as a providential change in appearance rather than a moral or cultic defect. By affirming the man’s cleanness, the text guards against superstition and upholds God’s compassionate concern for those with visible infirmities.

Craftsmanship and Temple Glory (1 Kings 7:45; Ezekiel 21:9-11, 28)

Marat’s sense of “polished” comes to the forefront in the description of Hiram’s bronze work for Solomon: “All these items Hiram made for King Solomon for the house of the LORD from polished bronze” (1 Kings 7:45). The same imagery is expanded in Ezekiel’s sword oracle: “A sword, a sword, sharpened and polished…polished to flash like lightning!” (Ezekiel 21:9-10). Here the gleaming surface magnifies impending judgment. Metal purified and smoothed becomes an instrument of either worship or wrath, reminding readers that craftsmanship dedicated to God must be meticulous and purpose-driven.

Acts of Mourning, Zeal, and Discipline (Ezra 9:3; Nehemiah 13:25)

Post-exilic leaders employ Marat for dramatic gestures of grief and correction. Ezra, stunned by Israel’s intermarriage, records: “I tore my tunic and robe, pulled hair from my head and beard, and sat down appalled” (Ezra 9:3). Nehemiah likewise “pulled out their hair” (Nehemiah 13:25) to impress covenant seriousness upon offenders. Hair, a symbol of dignity and vitality, is forcibly removed to externalize inner anguish or righteous indignation. The severity underscores the holiness of the covenant community and the costliness of compromise.

Prophetic Portraits of Humiliation (Isaiah 50:6; Ezekiel 29:18)

Isaiah’s servant declares, “I offered My back to those who struck me, and My cheeks to those who plucked out My beard” (Isaiah 50:6). Marat here foreshadows the Messiah’s voluntary submission to shame and violence, ultimately fulfilled in Jesus’ Passion. Ezekiel 29:18 applies the verb to Babylon’s siege labor: “every head was made bald and every shoulder rubbed bare.” Exhaustion and exposure mark the troops’ futile toil, contrasting human effort with God’s sovereign allocation of reward. Both passages demonstrate how bareness can signify either redemptive suffering or the emptiness of self-reliance.

Theological Insights

1. Exposure before God: Whether hairless skin or a polished blade, what is laid bare before the LORD is evaluated for purity or purpose.
2. Preparation for service: Polishing implies intentional readiness. Vessels and lives alike must be refined for holy use.
3. Cost of covenant breach: Public acts of hair-pulling dramatize the gravity of sin and the urgency of repentance.
4. Messianic anticipation: The Servant’s plucked beard assures believers that Christ fully entered human humiliation to accomplish redemption.

Ministry Application

• Pastoral care can echo Leviticus by distinguishing between unavoidable physical changes and moral impurity, offering grace to the afflicted.
• Discipleship should encourage believers toward spiritual “polishing” through confession and obedience, making them instruments fit for the Master’s work (cf. 2 Timothy 2:21).
• Church discipline, though practiced with gentleness today, must retain seriousness about covenant faithfulness, remembering the somber examples of Ezra and Nehemiah.
• Preaching on Isaiah 50 can highlight Christ’s willingness to be made bare for sinners, motivating worship and sacrificial service.

Marat therefore weaves a rich tapestry—from bald scalps to gleaming temple bronze—testifying that the God of Scripture both uncovers and refines, humbles and equips, always working toward the revelation of His glory and the holiness of His people.

Forms and Transliterations
וָֽאֶמְרְטֵ֑ם וָאֶמְרְטָ֞ה ואמרטה ואמרטם יִמָּרֵ֖ט ימרט לְמָרְטָ֖ה לְמֹֽרְטִ֑ים למרטה למרטים מְמֹרָֽט׃ מְרוּטָ֑ה מְרוּטָ֔ה מְרוּטָֽה׃ מֹרָ֑טָּה מֹרָ֔טָּה ממרט׃ מרוטה מרוטה׃ מרטה lə·mā·rə·ṭāh lə·mō·rə·ṭîm lemareTah ləmārəṭāh lemoreTim ləmōrəṭîm mə·mō·rāṭ mə·rū·ṭāh memoRat məmōrāṭ meruTah mərūṭāh mō·rāṭ·ṭāh moRattah mōrāṭṭāh vaemreTah vaemreTem wā’emrəṭāh wā’emrəṭêm wā·’em·rə·ṭāh wā·’em·rə·ṭêm yim·mā·rêṭ yimmaRet yimmārêṭ
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Interlinear GreekInterlinear HebrewStrong's NumbersEnglishman's Greek ConcordanceEnglishman's Hebrew ConcordanceParallel Texts
Englishman's Concordance
Leviticus 13:40
HEB: וְאִ֕ישׁ כִּ֥י יִמָּרֵ֖ט רֹאשׁ֑וֹ קֵרֵ֥חַ
NAS: a man loses the hair of his head,
KJV: And the man whose hair is fallen off his head,
INT: A man now if loses of his head is bald

Leviticus 13:41
HEB: מִפְּאַ֣ת פָּנָ֔יו יִמָּרֵ֖ט רֹאשׁ֑וֹ גִּבֵּ֥חַ
NAS: his head becomes bald at the front
KJV: And he that hath his hair fallen off from the part
INT: and sides the front becomes his head is bald

1 Kings 7:45
HEB: יְהוָ֑ה נְחֹ֖שֶׁת מְמֹרָֽט׃
NAS: of the LORD [were] of polished bronze.
INT: of the LORD bronze polished

Ezra 9:3
HEB: בִּגְדִ֖י וּמְעִילִ֑י וָאֶמְרְטָ֞ה מִשְּׂעַ֤ר רֹאשִׁי֙
NAS: and my robe, and pulled some
KJV: and my mantle, and plucked off the hair
INT: my garment and my robe and pulled of the hair my head

Nehemiah 13:25
HEB: מֵהֶ֛ם אֲנָשִׁ֖ים וָֽאֶמְרְטֵ֑ם וָאַשְׁבִּיעֵ֣ם בֵּֽאלֹהִ֗ים
NAS: some of them and pulled out their hair, and made them swear
KJV: certain of them, and plucked off their hair, and made them swear
INT: like some and pulled swear God

Isaiah 50:6
HEB: לְמַכִּ֔ים וּלְחָיַ֖י לְמֹֽרְטִ֑ים פָּנַי֙ לֹ֣א
NAS: [Me], And My cheeks to those who pluck out the beard; I did not cover
KJV: and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair: I hid
INT: strike and my cheeks pluck my face did not

Ezekiel 21:9
HEB: הוּחַ֖דָּה וְגַם־ מְרוּטָֽה׃
NAS: sharpened And also polished!
KJV: is sharpened, and also furbished:
INT: sharpened and also polished

Ezekiel 21:10
HEB: לָ֥הּ בָּ֖רָק מֹרָ֑טָּה א֣וֹ נָשִׂ֔ישׂ
NAS: a slaughter, Polished to flash like lightning!'
INT: become to flash Polished should rejoice

Ezekiel 21:11
HEB: וַיִּתֵּ֥ן אֹתָ֛הּ לְמָרְטָ֖ה לִתְפֹּ֣שׂ בַּכָּ֑ף
NAS: It is given to be polished, that it may be handled;
KJV: And he hath given it to be furbished, that it may be handled:
INT: is given to be polished may be handled branch

Ezekiel 21:11
HEB: חֶ֙רֶב֙ וְהִ֣יא מֹרָ֔טָּה לָתֵ֥ת אוֹתָ֖הּ
NAS: is sharpened and polished, to give
INT: the sword he and polished to give the hand

Ezekiel 21:28
HEB: פְּתוּחָה֙ לְטֶ֣בַח מְרוּטָ֔ה לְהָכִ֖יל לְמַ֥עַן
NAS: is drawn, polished for the slaughter,
KJV: for the slaughter [it is] furbished, to consume
INT: is drawn the slaughter polished to consume may be like

Ezekiel 29:18
HEB: וְכָל־ כָּתֵ֖ף מְרוּטָ֑ה וְ֠שָׂכָר לֹא־
NAS: shoulder was rubbed bare. But he and his army
KJV: and every shoulder [was] peeled: yet had he no wages,
INT: and every shoulder was rubbed wages no

12 Occurrences

Strong's Hebrew 4803
12 Occurrences


lə·mā·rə·ṭāh — 1 Occ.
lə·mō·rə·ṭîm — 1 Occ.
mə·mō·rāṭ — 1 Occ.
mə·rū·ṭāh — 3 Occ.
mō·rāṭ·ṭāh — 2 Occ.
wā·’em·rə·ṭāh — 1 Occ.
wā·’em·rə·ṭêm — 1 Occ.
yim·mā·rêṭ — 2 Occ.

4802
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