Lexical Summary rosh: poison, bitterness, poisoned Original Word: רֹאשׁ Strong's Exhaustive Concordance gall, hemlock, poison, venom Or rowsh (Deut. 32:32) {roshe}; apparently the same as ro'sh; a poisonous plant, probably the poppy (from its conspicuous head); generally poison (even of serpents) -- gall, hemlock, poison, venom. see HEBREW ro'sh NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Originfrom rosh Definition (bitter and poisonous herb) venom NASB Translation bitterness (2), gall (1), poison (4), poisoned (2), poisonous (2), poisonous weeds (1). Brown-Driver-Briggs II. ראשׁ and ( Deuteronomy 32:32) רוֺשׁ noun masculineDeuteronomy 32:33 a bitter and poisonous herb, them venom, always figurative; — 1 a bitter and poisonous herb, + (or "") לַעֲנָה Deuteronomy 29:17; Lamentations 3:19, so (מֵי ראֹשׁ) Jeremiah 9:14; Jeremiah 23:15; ׳מֵי ר (without ׳ל) Jeremiah 8:14; עִנְּכֵירֿוֺשׁ Deuteronomy 22:32 ("" מְרֹרֹת); ראֹשׁ וּתְלָאָה Lamentations 3:5; ׳ר alone Psalm 69:22, מִשְׁמָּטוּמָּרַח כָּראֹשׁ Hosea 10:4, מִשְׁמָּט ׳הְפַכְתֶּם לר Amos 6:12. 2 venom, of serpents, מְּתָנִים ׳ר Deuteronomy 32:33; Job 20:16. רוֺשׁ poison, Deuteronomy 32:32, see II.ראֹשׁ. Topical Lexicon רֹאשׁ – Strong’s Hebrew 7219 Hazardous plant imagery and covenant warning Within Moses’ final admonitions the term surfaces as a vivid emblem of hidden spiritual peril. “Make sure there is no root among you that produces such bitter poison” (Deuteronomy 29:18). The image warns that idolatry can germinate unseen, yet, like a toxic weed, infect the whole community. Hebrews 12:15 later borrows the picture—“root of bitterness”—to caution the church against the same peril. The vine of Sodom: national apostasy exposed In the Song of Moses, Israel’s future unfaithfulness is compared to the corrupt viticulture of Sodom: “For their vine is from the vine of Sodom … Their grapes are poisonous; their clusters are bitter. Their wine is the venom of serpents, the deadly poison of cobras” (Deuteronomy 32:32-33). Here רֹאשׁ brands the entire produce of a counterfeit vine as lethal. Centuries later, prophets will reuse the motif to expose covenant infidelity. Prophetic indictments: poisoned water and wormwood Jeremiah declares that persistent sin will be repaid in kind: “The LORD our God has… given us poisoned water to drink, because we have sinned against Him” (Jeremiah 8:14; cf. 9:15; 23:15). Rֹאשׁ appears alongside “wormwood,” intensifying the message that rebellion converts life-giving streams into bitterness. Hosea 10:4 pictures judgment that “springs up like poisonous weeds,” while Amos 6:12 laments that Israel has “turned justice into poison.” The word becomes shorthand for institutionalized corruption—when truth itself tastes like venom. Personal lament and corporate suffering Lamentations applies the term to the siege trauma of Jerusalem: “He has besieged me… with bitterness and hardship” (Lamentations 3:5; cf. 3:19). Rֹאשׁ thus bridges personal grief and national catastrophe, illustrating how sin’s consequences invade both public and private life. Individual wickedness: Job’s portrait Job’s friend Zophar predicts that the wicked will “suck the poison of cobras” (Job 20:16). The verse shows רֹאשׁ used for self-inflicted ruin—evil consumed becomes evil’s executioner. Messianic prophecy fulfilled Psalm 69:21 records, “They poisoned my food with gall and gave me vinegar to drink.” The Gospel writers recall this verse when Jesus is offered wine mixed with bitter gall (Matthew 27:34; John 19:29-30). Rֹאשׁ thereby foreshadows the rejection and suffering of the Messiah, who drinks the cup of judgment on behalf of sinners. Theological themes 1. Hidden beginnings, catastrophic ends – Rֹאשׁ starts as an unseen root but matures into lethal fruit. Pastoral and ministry implications • Vigilance against “roots” of bitterness, whether personal grievances or doctrinal compromise, is essential for congregational health. Thus רֹאשׁ stands as Scripture’s enduring symbol of the deadly nature of sin and the surpassing grace that overcomes it. Forms and Transliterations וְרֹ֥אשׁ וָרֹֽאשׁ׃ וראש וראש׃ כָּרֹאשׁ֙ כראש לְרֹאשׁ֙ לראש ר֔וֹשׁ רֹ֑אשׁ רֹ֔אשׁ רֹ֖אשׁ רֹ֥אשׁ רֹֽאשׁ׃ רֹאשׁ־ ראש ראש־ ראש׃ רוש kā·rōš kārōš karoSh lə·rōš lərōš leroSh rō·wōš Roosh rōš rōš- rosh rōwōš vaRosh veRosh wā·rōš wārōš wə·rōš wərōšLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel TextsEnglishman's Concordance Deuteronomy 29:18 HEB: שֹׁ֛רֶשׁ פֹּרֶ֥ה רֹ֖אשׁ וְלַעֲנָֽה׃ NAS: bearing poisonous fruit KJV: that beareth gall and wormwood; INT: A root bearing poisonous and wormwood Deuteronomy 32:32 Deuteronomy 32:33 Job 20:16 Psalm 69:21 Jeremiah 8:14 Jeremiah 9:15 Jeremiah 23:15 Lamentations 3:5 Lamentations 3:19 Hosea 10:4 Amos 6:12 12 Occurrences |
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