7693. shagel

Lexical Summary

shagel: To ravish, violate

Original Word: שָׁגַל
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: shagal
Pronunciation: shah-gale'
Phonetic Spelling: (shaw-gal')
KJV: lie with, ravish
NASB: ravished, violate, violated
Word Origin: [a primitive root]

1. to copulate with

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance

lie with, ravish

A primitive root; to copulate with -- lie with, ravish.

NAS Exhaustive Concordance

Word Origin
a prim. root
Definition
to violate, ravish
NASB Translation
ravished (2), violate (1), violated (1).

Brown-Driver-Briggs

[שָׁגֵל] verb violate, ravish (Masoretes think verb obscene, and substitute שָׁכַב); —

Qal Imperfect3masculine singular suffix יִשְׁגָּלֶנָּה Deuteronomy 28:30 Kt (Qr יִשְׁכָּבֶנָּה).

Niph`al Imperfect3feminine plural תִּשָּׁגַלְנָה Isaiah 13:16; Zechariah 14:2 women shall be ravished (both Kt; Qr תִּשְּׁכַבְנָה). Punic < Qal passive (Ges^{§ 52e}) Perfect2feminine singular אֵיפֹה לֹא שֻׁגַּלְתְּ Jeremiah 3:2 where hast thou not been ravished ? (Qr שֻׁכַּבְתְּ).

Topical Lexicon

Overview

Shāgal (Strong’s Hebrew 7693) appears four times in the Old Testament, each time describing the violent sexual violation of women during periods of warfare or national judgment. The term is never used of consensual relations; its contexts are uniformly scenes of conquest, plunder, and divine retribution.

Occurrences in Scripture

• Deuteronomy 28:30 – within the covenant curses that would befall Israel for covenant unfaithfulness: “You will be pledged to marry a woman, but another man will ravish her”.
• Isaiah 13:16 – a prophecy against Babylon: “Their infants will be dashed to pieces before their eyes, their houses will be looted, and their wives ravished.”
• Jeremiah 3:2 – a metaphor exposing Judah’s spiritual adultery, likening the nation to one who “sat like a nomad beside the road, beckoning to passers-by, and you have defiled the land with your prostitution and wickedness.”
• Zechariah 14:2 – an eschatological siege of Jerusalem: “Half the city will go into exile, but the rest of the people will not be cut off from the city. The women will be ravished…”

Historical Setting and Cultural Background

Ancient warfare often included the forced seizure of women as the spoils of conquest. In every appearance, shāgal depicts that grim reality. The Torah passage (Deuteronomy 28) warns Israel that covenant infidelity would subject them to the same horrors they had seen among pagan nations. Isaiah’s oracle shows that even mighty Babylon would suffer similar atrocities when God’s judgment arrived. Jeremiah uses the term figuratively to portray the spiritual devastation Judah brought upon itself, and Zechariah projects the term into a future siege, underscoring the severity of end-time conflict.

Theological Themes

1. Covenant Consequences: Shāgal highlights the concrete, bodily cost of breaking covenant with the LORD. National sin invites calamity that reaches into the most intimate spheres of life.
2. Divine Justice: God does not overlook oppression. The same atrocity can become the instrument of His judgment on unrepentant powers (Isaiah 13), demonstrating His righteous governance over all nations.
3. Human Depravity: The word exposes the depth of human cruelty apart from God’s restraining grace. It reveals that societal decay culminates in the exploitation of the vulnerable.
4. Spiritual Adultery: Jeremiah’s metaphor teaches that idolatry and moral laxity are as heinous before God as sexual violence is among humans.

Prophetic and Eschatological Dimensions

Zechariah 14:2 shows that the horrors signified by shāgal are not confined to ancient history. Scripture foresees a final convergence of nations against Jerusalem, permitted yet bounded by God for the unveiling of His ultimate deliverance (Zechariah 14:3-4). Thus the term functions as a sober reminder of the birth pains preceding the full establishment of God’s kingdom.

Ethical and Pastoral Reflections

• Compassion for Victims: The Bible’s unsparing portrayal of sexual violence calls the Church to defend and care for the abused (Psalm 82:3-4; James 1:27).
• Call to Repentance: The threat of shāgal in Deuteronomy 28 urges personal and corporate fidelity to the covenant now fulfilled in Jesus Christ (Hebrews 8:6-13).
• Hope of Restoration: Even after the ravages envisioned, Scripture moves toward renewal—Babylon falls, Judah receives a new covenant, Jerusalem ultimately stands secure (Zechariah 14:11). This trajectory anchors ministry to trauma survivors in the promise that Christ “makes all things new” (Revelation 21:5).

Connection to New Testament Revelation

While the New Testament does not employ an exact lexical parallel, it confronts sexual exploitation through clear apostolic injunctions (1 Thessalonians 4:3-6; 1 Timothy 1:10) and by elevating the dignity of the body as a temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). The redemptive work of the cross answers both the guilt of perpetrators and the shame borne by victims, offering cleansing, justice, and resurrection hope.

Key Takeaways for Ministry

1. Teach the gravity of covenant obedience and the social consequences of sin.
2. Advocate for the vulnerable, condemning all forms of sexual violence.
3. Preach divine justice and mercy, holding together the sobering warnings of judgment with the assurance of restoration in Christ.
4. Provide pastoral care that acknowledges trauma yet orients sufferers toward the healing power and ultimate victory of God.

Forms and Transliterations

יִשְׁכָּבֶ֔נָּה ישכבנה שֻׁכַּ֔בְּתְּ שכבת תִּשָּׁכַ֑בְנָה תִּשָּׁכַֽבְנָה׃ תשכבנה תשכבנה׃ shukKabbet šuk·kab·bət šukkabbət tiš·šā·ḵaḇ·nāh tishshaChavnah tiššāḵaḇnāh yiš·kā·ḇen·nāh yishkaVennah yiškāḇennāh

Englishman's Concordance

Deuteronomy 28:30
HEB: [יִשְׁגָּלֶנָּה כ] (יִשְׁכָּבֶ֔נָּה ק) בַּ֥יִת
NAS: man will violate her; you shall build
INT: man another lie with A house shall build

Isaiah 13:16
HEB: [תִּשָּׁגַלְנָה כ] (תִּשָּׁכַֽבְנָה׃ ק)
NAS: And their wives ravished.
INT: their houses and their wives lie with

Jeremiah 3:2
HEB: [שֻׁגַּלְתְּ כ] (שֻׁכַּ֔בְּתְּ ק) עַל־
NAS: Where have you not been violated? By the roads
KJV: where thou hast not been lien with. In the ways
INT: Where not lie with with the ways

Zechariah 14:2
HEB: [תִּשָּׁגַלְנָה כ] (תִּשָּׁכַ֑בְנָה ק) וְיָצָ֞א
NAS: the women ravished and half
INT: the houses the women lie with forth and half

4 Occurrences

Strong's Hebrew 7693
4 Occurrences

šuk·kab·bət — 1 Occ.
tiš·šā·ḵaḇ·nāh — 2 Occ.
yiš·kā·ḇen·nāh — 1 Occ.