7573. ratham
Lexical Summary
ratham: To bind, to tie

Original Word: רָתַם
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: ratham
Pronunciation: rah-THAM
Phonetic Spelling: (raw-tham')
KJV: bind
NASB: harness
Word Origin: [a primitive root]

1. to yoke up (to the pole of a vehicle)

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
yoke, bind

A primitive root; to yoke up (to the pole of a vehicle) -- bind.

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
a prim. root
Definition
to bind, attach
NASB Translation
harness (1).

Brown-Driver-Briggs
[רָתַם] verb bind, attach (compare Arabic thread bound to finger as reminder); —

Qal Imperative masculine singular רְתֹם הַמֶּרְכָּבָה לָרֶכֶשׁ Micah 1:13.

Topical Lexicon
The Act of Harnessing in Ancient Israel

Harnessing (רָתַם) depicts fastening horses to a chariot or wagon, the moment when leather straps tighten and animal strength is marshalled for speed. In Israel’s militarized eighth-century landscape, that act signalled readiness for war, escape, or royal errands, compressing urgency, skill, and confidence into a single command.

Micah’s Prophetic Imagery

Micah 1:13 (Berean Standard Bible): “Harness your chariot horses, O daughter of Lachish. You were the beginning of sin to the Daughter of Zion, for the transgressions of Israel were found in you.”

The prophet’s imperative drips with irony. Lachish can race away, yet it cannot outrun the judgment already pronounced. The verb highlights frantic preparation even as divine sovereignty renders such efforts futile.

Historical Background: Lachish and Judah’s Military Reliance

Lachish, a fortified Judean city straddling trade routes, housed stables and chariot forces—features later captured on Assyrian reliefs. Its adoption of military innovations mirrored alliances with Egypt and other powers (compare Isaiah 31:1). Micah’s lone use of רָתַם turns a technical order into a spiritual indictment: Judah treated horsepower and foreign strategy as substitutes for covenant loyalty.

Theological Implications

1. Trust versus Technique: Psalm 20:7 contrasts those who “trust in chariots and in horses” with those who “trust in the name of the Lord.” Lachish illustrates the former.
2. Ripple Effect of Compromise: Called “the beginning of sin to the Daughter of Zion,” the city shows how pragmatic disobedience spreads contagiously.
3. Prophetic Irony: The very act intended to secure safety becomes the sign of unavoidable flight.

Ministry Applications

• Spiritual Readiness: Modern ministries may “harness” technology, marketing, or influence. Micah’s warning asks whether dependence lies in strategy or in the Spirit.
• Leadership Vigilance: Influential communities can seed widespread transgression. Leaders must guard doctrine and practice lest they become a new “Lachish.”
• Urgent Repentance: Harnessing implies haste; believers are called to be equally swift in turning from self-reliance to faith (Hebrews 3:13-15).

Christological and Eschatological Considerations

The Messiah enters Jerusalem “humble and mounted on a donkey” (Zechariah 9:9), a deliberate contrast to chariot power. Yet Revelation 19:11 presents Him on a white horse, victorious by righteousness and Word alone. Human harnessing fails; divine conquest prevails.

Related Scriptures and Themes

Exodus 14:6 – Pharaoh harnesses his chariot, still overthrown by the sea.

Judges 4:13 – Sisera’s nine hundred iron chariots crumble before Deborah’s God-directed army.

Psalm 33:17 – “A horse is a vain hope for salvation.”

Isaiah 22:7 – Chariots fill Jerusalem’s valleys; confidence in them evaporates.

Every appearance of human harnessing underscores Micah’s lesson: true security rests not in prepared horses but in a heart aligned with the Lord.

Forms and Transliterations
רְתֹ֧ם רתם rə·ṯōm reTom rəṯōm
Links
Interlinear GreekInterlinear HebrewStrong's NumbersEnglishman's Greek ConcordanceEnglishman's Hebrew ConcordanceParallel Texts
Englishman's Concordance
Micah 1:13
HEB: רְתֹ֧ם הַמֶּרְכָּבָ֛ה לָרֶ֖כֶשׁ
NAS: Harness the chariot
KJV: of Lachish, bind the chariot
INT: Harness the chariot of horses

1 Occurrence

Strong's Hebrew 7573
1 Occurrence


rə·ṯōm — 1 Occ.

7572
Top of Page
Top of Page