הֲדֹם

From the study of Isaiah 66:1

Range of meaning

"Footstool," always in the fixed phrase "stool of the feet." It occurs only six times in the Hebrew Bible. Five of them refer to God's footstool: the ark (1 Chr 28:2), the temple or Zion (Ps 99:5; 132:7; Lam 2:1), and here the earth. Psalm 110:1 uses it for the king's enemies, made into his footstool.

Against the English

To a modern reader "footstool" is a piece of comfort furniture, a place to put your feet up. In the ancient world a footstool belonged with the throne. It completed the royal seat and symbolised rule and conquest.

How it drifted

The furniture became ordinary household furniture, so the royal symbolism dropped out of the English word.

Used elsewhere in the period

Royal thrones from Egypt and Mesopotamia regularly came with matching footstools. Tutankhamun's footstools show bound foreign enemies, so the king literally rested his feet on his subdued foes (compare Ps 110:1). In Israel the ark of the covenant was imagined as the footstool beneath YHWH's invisible throne (1 Chr 28:2: "a house of rest for the ark of the covenant of the LORD and for the footstool of our God").

From the study of Psalm 99:5

Range of meaning

Hădōm means 'footstool'. It appears only six times in the Hebrew Bible, and always in the phrase 'footstool of (someone's) feet': Ps 99:5; 110:1; 132:7; Isa 66:1; Lam 2:1; 1 Chr 28:2. Every use is about God, except Ps 110:1, where enemies become the king's footstool. What the footstool stands for varies. It is the ark (1 Chr 28:2, David's 'house of rest for the ark … the footstool of our God'). It is the sanctuary or Zion (Ps 132:7; Lam 2:1, 'he did not remember his footstool in the day of his anger'). It is the whole earth (Isa 66:1, 'heaven is my throne and the earth my footstool'). The word may have been borrowed from Egyptian (HALOT notes a possible link to an Egyptian word for footstool), which would fit the royal furniture it names.

Against the English

'Footstool' is accurate, but to a modern reader it is a minor piece of furniture. In the ancient Near East the footstool belonged to the throne and was part of royal display. Egyptian royal footstools sometimes showed bound enemies, so the king literally put his feet on them (compare Ps 110:1).

Used elsewhere in the period

1 Chr 28:2 and Ps 132:7–8 ('let us bow down at his footstool… you and the ark of your strength') link the footstool to the ark. Ancient Near Eastern throne pictures, such as the Ahiram sarcophagus from Byblos with its winged-sphinx throne and footstool, show the kind of cherub throne Ps 99:1 has in mind. In the Jerusalem temple's inner room the cherubim made an empty throne and the ark sat beneath as its footstool. (See Keel's work on biblical imagery.)

From the study of Psalm 110:1

Range of meaning

'Footstool (for the feet)'. It occurs only six times in the Hebrew Bible, always with 'feet'. Apart from this verse it always refers to God's footstool: the ark (1 Chr 28:2), the temple or Zion (Ps 99:5; 132:7; Lam 2:1), or the earth (Isa 66:1).

Against the English

'Footstool' is accurate as furniture. A modern reader may picture a comfortable ottoman, but the image here is conquest: the enemies are trodden down under the enthroned king.

How it drifted

The furniture has changed. A royal footstool in the ancient Near East was a status object often decorated with images of conquered peoples.

Used elsewhere in the period

Tutankhamun's footstools are carved with bound foreign captives, the traditional enemies of Egypt, so the king literally rested his feet on his enemies. Joshua has his commanders put their feet on the necks of the Canaanite kings (Josh 10:24). Solomon says David fought wars 'until the LORD put them under the soles of his feet' (1 Kgs 5:3, Hebrew 5:17). In the Amarna letters, vassal kings call themselves the dust or the footstool under Pharaoh's feet.