Lexical Summary tsachiach: Parched, dry, scorched Original Word: צְחִיחַ Strong's Exhaustive Concordance higher place, top From tsachach; glaring, i.e. Exposed to the bright sun -- higher place, top. see HEBREW tsachach NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Originfrom tsachach Definition a shining or glaring surface NASB Translation bare (4), exposed places (1). Brown-Driver-Briggs [צָחִיחַ] noun [masculine] shining, glaring, surface construct צְחִיחַ סֶלַע i.e. a smooth, bare, rock Ezekiel 24:7,8; Ezekiel 26:4,14; plural בַּצְּחִיחִים Nehemiah 4:7 Qr (Kt בַּצְּחִחִיִּים), in glaring, bare places (?). Topical Lexicon Biblical Occurrences and ContextThe noun צְחִיחַ appears only four times, all in Ezekiel (Ezekiel 24:7; 24:8; 26:4; 26:14). Each passage connects the image of an exposed, dry, polished rock to divine judgment. 1. Ezekiel 24:7–8 sets Jerusalem’s unatoned blood “on the bare rock,” illustrating how the city’s violence would be laid open for all to see. “For the blood she has shed is in her midst. She poured it out on the bare rock; she did not pour it out on the ground to cover it with dust.” (Ezekiel 24:7) 2. Ezekiel 26:4–14 uses the same imagery for Tyre. The city’s defenses would be scraped away until it stood “as bare as a rock,” becoming a place where fishermen spread their nets, never to be rebuilt. Imagery of Exposure and Accountability Hebrew law required blood to be covered with earth (Leviticus 17:13). By placing blood on an undusted, glistening slab, Ezekiel dramatizes intentional exposure. Sin is not hidden, minimized, or ritual-covered. Likewise, Tyre’s glory is not merely diminished but completely stripped. The rock’s glare rejects subterfuge: guilt and judgment must be faced openly. Historical Fulfillment Jerusalem’s siege (588-586 B.C.) and Tyre’s successive devastations (Nebuchadnezzar II, then Alexander the Great in 332 B.C.) literally fulfilled these prophecies. Tyre’s island rubble was scraped into the sea to build Alexander’s causeway, leaving a surface on which nets still dry—an enduring witness that God’s word stands. Theological Themes 1. Divine Holiness. The uncovered blood and the scraped rock signify that nothing impure can remain in God’s presence. Practical Ministry Applications • Call to Repentance. Hidden sin will eventually gleam like blood on stone. Pastors and believers must cultivate confession and transparency (1 John 1:9). Christological Perspective The rock motif parallels Jesus Christ, “a stone that causes men to stumble” (1 Peter 2:8). Whereas צְחִיחַ underscores judgment, Christ the Rock offers salvation. Those who refuse Him face the same exposure; those who trust Him find refuge and cleansing. Related Biblical Motifs • Dust-covering of blood (Leviticus 17:13) versus uncovered blood (Ezekiel 24:7). Summary צְחִיחַ functions as a vivid emblem of public, irrevocable judgment. In Ezekiel it brands both covenant Jerusalem and pagan Tyre with unveiled guilt. Historically fulfilled and theologically rich, the term warns against hidden sin, affirms God’s justice, and propels readers toward the only sufficient covering—the redeeming blood of Christ. Forms and Transliterations לִצְחִ֣יחַ לִצְחִ֥יחַ לצחיח צְחִ֣יחַ צְחִ֥יחַ צחיח liṣ·ḥî·aḥ liṣḥîaḥ litzChiach ṣə·ḥî·aḥ ṣəḥîaḥ tzeChiachLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel TextsEnglishman's Concordance Ezekiel 24:7 HEB: הָיָ֔ה עַל־ צְחִ֥יחַ סֶ֖לַע שָׂמָ֑תְהוּ NAS: She placed it on the bare rock; KJV: of her; she set it upon the top of a rock; INT: become on the bare rock placed Ezekiel 24:8 Ezekiel 26:4 Ezekiel 26:14 4 Occurrences |
    |