Hebrew word · H1809

דָּלַל

dalu

to languish

To be low, small, weak, thin; to dwindle (streams in Isa 19:6); to be impoverished or brought low. It is related to dal, "poor, weak, helpless", one of the Old Testament's main words for the poor.

Appears 9 times in 9 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

1) to hang, languish, hang down, be low

1a) (Qal)

1a1) to hang low

1a2) to be low

1a3) of distress (fig.)

1a4) to languish, look weakly (of eyes)

1b) (Niphal) to be brought low, be laid low

Abridged from Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).

In depth

From the study of Psalm 79:8

Range of meaning

To be low, small, weak, thin; to dwindle (streams in Isa 19:6); to be impoverished or brought low. It is related to dal, "poor, weak, helpless", one of the Old Testament's main words for the poor.

Against the English

"Brought (very) low" (KJV, ESV, BSB) is close. WEB's "in desperate need" and YLT's "very weak" each catch part of the meaning. BSB drops meʾōd ("very"), which softens the cry.

Used elsewhere in the period

The identical phrase kî dallôtî meʾōd, "for I am brought very low", appears in Ps 142:6 (Heb 142:7). Judg 6:6: "Israel was brought very low (wayyiddal... meʾōd) because of Midian", which leads directly to God sending a rescuer. Ps 116:6: "I was brought low, and he saved me."

From the study of Psalm 142:6

Range of meaning

To be low, hang down, dwindle, become thin or weak. It is used of streams drying up (Isa 19:6), of glory wasting away (Isa 17:4), and of a people impoverished and depleted (Judg 6:6). Its relative dal is the common word for the poor, weak, or powerless person (Exod 23:3; Lev 14:21; Ps 82:3–4).

Against the English

"Brought low" (KJV, BSB) is accurate, but modern ears hear "feeling low" as a mood: sadness or depression. WEB/NIV "in desperate need" points better to the objective condition. The Hebrew covers both, but the weight falls on being reduced and drained.

How it drifted

In modern English "low" has become mostly psychological ("feeling low"). The Hebrew is about having been made small and weak, physically, socially and in resources.

Used elsewhere in the period

The exact phrase ki dallônû məʾōd, "for we are brought very low," appears in Ps 79:8 of the nation after disaster. Judg 6:6 says "Israel was brought very low (wayyiddal… məʾōd) because of Midian." Ps 116:6 reads "I was brought low (dallôtî), and he saved me." The Septuagint's etapeinōthēn ("I was humbled, made low") and the Vulgate's humiliatus sum follow the same line.

From the study of Psalm 116:6

Range of meaning

To hang low, dangle, be brought low; to grow thin, weak, depleted; of water, to run low (Isa 19:6). Related to dal, 'poor, weak, of little account', and to dallah, 'the poorest class'.

Against the English

KJV/ESV/WEB 'I was brought low' keeps the image. BSB 'I was helpless' and NLT 'I was facing death' explain it: the first is close, the second fits the context (v. 3, 8) but turns a picture into a statement.

Used elsewhere in the period

Psalm 79:8 ('we are brought very low'); Psalm 142:6 ('I am brought very low'); Judges 6:6 (Israel 'greatly impoverished' by Midian). The word covers physical exhaustion, social poverty and national weakness all at once.

Where it appears

Judges · 1

  1. Judges 6:6 וַיִּדַּ֧ל and it became low

    Israel was greatly impoverished by Midian, and the Israelites cried out to the LORD.

Job · 1

  1. Job 28:4 דַּ֖לּוּ they hang down

    Far from human habitation he cuts a shaft in places forgotten by the foot of man. Far from men he dangles and sways.

Psalms · 3

  1. Psalm 79:8 דַלּ֣וֹנוּ we have become low

    Do not hold past sins against us; let Your compassion come quickly, for we are brought low.

    Here: "We have been brought low": made weak, poor and small. It is related to the word dal, "poor, helpless". The verb form describes a state already reached: they are at the bottom now.

  2. Psalm 116:6 דַּ֝לּוֹתִ֗י I had become low

    The LORD preserves the simplehearted; I was helpless, and He saved me.

    Here: 'I had sunk low', drained, weak, at the bottom. The root is the same as dal, 'poor/weak one'. In this psalm it means near death (v. 3, 'the cords of death encompassed me'). One word in Hebrew, giving the speaker's whole situation.

  3. Psalm 142:6 דַלּ֪וֹתִ֫י I have become low

    Listen to my cry, for I am brought quite low. Rescue me from my pursuers, for they are too strong for me.

    Here: "I have been made low" / "I am worn thin." The verb behind the word dal ("poor, weak") describes being drained and reduced, with no strength or resources left, rather than simply feeling sad.

Proverbs · 1

  1. Proverbs 26:7 דַּלְי֣וּ they hang down

    Like lame legs hanging limp is a proverb in the mouth of a fool.

Isaiah · 3

  1. Isaiah 17:4 יִדַּ֖ל it will become low

    “In that day the splendor of Jacob will fade, and the fat of his body will waste away,

  2. Isaiah 19:6 דָּלֲל֥וּ they will be low

    The canals will stink; the streams of Egypt will trickle and dry up; the reeds and rushes will wither.

  3. Isaiah 38:14 דַּלּ֤וּ they are cast down

    I chirp like a swallow or crane; I moan like a dove. My eyes grow weak as I look upward. O Lord, I am oppressed; be my security.”

    Here: The root means being low, thin or drained of strength (the related adjective dal means 'poor'). His eyes have worn out and gone dim from straining.

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.