Lexical Summary reyach: Scent, aroma, fragrance, odor Original Word: רֵיחַ Strong's Exhaustive Concordance savour, scent, smell From ruwach; odor (as if blown) -- savour, scent, smell. see HEBREW ruwach Brown-Driver-Briggs רֵיחַ58 noun masculineJeremiah 48:11 scent, odour (properly breath); — absolute Songs 2:13 +, usually construct Genesis 8:21 +; suffix רֵיחוֺ Jeremiah 48:11; Songs 1:12, רֵיחֵנוּ Exodus 5:21; — 1 scent, odour, of plants and fields Genesis 27:27 (JE) Cant 1:12; 2:3; 4:11; Song 7:14; Hosea 14:7, of ointments Cant 1:3; Hosea 4:10, of person and garments Genesis 27:27 (twice in verse) (JE) Cant 4:11; Songs 7:9; of water Job 14:9; figurative of influence, reputation Exodus 5:21 (J) Jeremiah 48:11. 2 technical term, רֵיחַ נִיחֹחַ odour of soothing (to God), tranquillizing odour (of ascending sacrifices, see נִיחֹחַ) Genesis 8:21 (J), elsewhere Ezekiel 6:13; Ezekiel 16:19; Ezekiel 20:28,41 and P: Exodus 29:18,25,41; Leviticus 1:9 16t. Leviticus; Numbers 15:3 17t. Numbers. Topical Lexicon Summary of Thematic Usage רֵיחַ (reach) speaks of every kind of smell—pleasant or foul—but most often it denotes the fragrance that rises from covenant sacrifices and signifies divine pleasure. Roughly two-thirds of its occurrences are in Torah legislation; the remainder appear in narrative, poetry and prophecy where scent becomes a metaphor for blessing, intimacy, discernment or judgment. Aroma of Acceptable Worship 1. First use: “The LORD smelled the pleasing aroma and said in His heart, ‘Never again will I curse the ground because of man’” (Genesis 8:21). The post-flood burnt offering establishes a baseline: fragrance is the evidence of atonement received. Fragrance and Covenant Relationship • Blessing: Isaac declares over Jacob, “The smell of my son is like the smell of a field that the LORD has blessed” (Genesis 27:27). Fragrance marks the heir of promise. Sacrificial Theology The repeated formula “pleasing aroma” (reach nihoach) blends two notions: tangible smoke and intangible favor. The odor itself does nothing, yet it reveals the substitutionary logic of sacrifice—wrath diverted, communion restored. Paul later captures this in “Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God” (Ephesians 5:2), directly echoing Levitical terminology. Non-Cultic Occurrences in Narrative and Wisdom Literature • Courtship: Song of Solomon pictures love as an extravagant bouquet. “Your name is perfume poured out” (1:3); “The vines in blossom give forth fragrance” (2:13). Here רֵיחַ communicates delight and mutual desire, mirroring the delight between Yahweh and His people. Prophetic Reversals: From Perfume to Stench Whenever Israel turns to idolatry the prophets use olfactory reversal: - Idols “neither see nor hear nor eat nor smell” (Deuteronomy 4:28); lifeless gods cannot respond to offering. - Moab has “been at ease from his youth… his aroma has remained unchanged” (Jeremiah 48:11), a sarcastic wordplay on wine left undisturbed—stagnation, not sanctification. - The day of the LORD changes Jerusalem’s cosmetics to decay: “Instead of fragrance there will be stench” (Isaiah 3:24). The sweet smoke of true worship is replaced by the rot of apostasy. Echoes into the New Testament Though רֵיחַ is Hebrew, its theology saturates the New Testament: Pastoral and Ministry Application 1. Worship that pleases God still ascends through substitutionary sacrifice—now realized in Christ. Ministry is fragrant insofar as it exalts Him. Thus רֵיחַ threads through Scripture as a sensory witness to covenant fidelity, pointing ultimately to the crucified and risen Christ whose once-for-all sacrifice guarantees that the fragrance of redeemed worship will never fade. Forms and Transliterations בְּרֵ֖יחַ בְּרֵ֣יחַ בריח וְרֵ֥יחַ וְרֵ֥יחַֽ וְרֵיח֖וֹ וריח וריחו כְּרֵ֣יחַ כְּרֵ֥יחַ כריח לְרֵ֙יחַ֙ לְרֵ֣יחַ לְרֵ֤יחַ לְרֵ֥יחַ לְרֵֽיחַ־ לריח לריח־ מֵרֵ֣יחַ מריח רֵ֑יחַ רֵ֗יחַ רֵ֚יחַ רֵ֣יחַ רֵ֤יחַ רֵ֥יחַ רֵ֧יחַ רֵֽיחַ־ רֵיחֵ֗נוּ רֵיחֽוֹ׃ ריח ריח־ ריחו׃ ריחנו bə·rê·aḥ bərêaḥ beReiach kə·rê·aḥ kərêaḥ keReiach lə·rê·aḥ lə·rê·aḥ- lərêaḥ lərêaḥ- leReiach mê·rê·aḥ mêrêaḥ meReiach rê·aḥ rê·aḥ- rê·ḥê·nū rê·ḥōw rêaḥ rêaḥ- rêḥênū rêḥōw Reiach reiChenu reiCho veReiach vereiCho wə·rê·aḥ wə·rê·ḥōw wərêaḥ wərêḥōwLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel TextsEnglishman's Concordance Genesis 8:21 HEB: יְהוָה֮ אֶת־ רֵ֣יחַ הַנִּיחֹחַ֒ וַיֹּ֨אמֶר NAS: The LORD smelled the soothing aroma; KJV: a sweet savour; and the LORD INT: smelled the LORD smelled the soothing said Genesis 27:27 Genesis 27:27 Genesis 27:27 Exodus 5:21 Exodus 29:18 Exodus 29:25 Exodus 29:41 Leviticus 1:9 Leviticus 1:13 Leviticus 1:17 Leviticus 2:2 Leviticus 2:9 Leviticus 2:12 Leviticus 3:5 Leviticus 3:16 Leviticus 4:31 Leviticus 6:15 Leviticus 6:21 Leviticus 8:21 Leviticus 8:28 Leviticus 17:6 Leviticus 23:13 Leviticus 23:18 Leviticus 26:31 58 Occurrences |
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