Hebrew word · H2851

חִתִּית

chitit

terror

Terror, dread: the fear that breaks a person's nerve. It comes from the root chatat, 'to be shattered, dismayed'. The word occurs only in Ezekiel, nine times in all: 26:17 and eight times in 32:23–32.

Appears 8 times in 8 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

terror

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 Ezekiel 26:17

Range of meaning

Terror, dread: the fear that breaks a person's nerve. It comes from the root chatat, 'to be shattered, dismayed'. The word occurs only in Ezekiel, nine times in all: 26:17 and eight times in 32:23–32.

Against the English

English 'terror' is accurate. BSB's 'imposed terror on all peoples' smooths the Hebrew 'on all her inhabitants' into a general statement.

Used elsewhere in the period

Ezekiel 32:23–32 repeats a formula for the great powers lying slain in the underworld (Sheol): Assyria, Elam, Meshech-Tubal and others 'who spread their terror in the land of the living' (natnu chittitam beʾeretz chayyim). Ezekiel 26:17 uses the same wording: natnu chittitam.

From the study of Ezekiel 32:24

Range of meaning

Terror or dread, especially the terror one party causes in others. It comes from the root ḥ-t-t, 'to be shattered, broken, dismayed' (BDB, HALOT). So it is the kind of fear that breaks people's nerve and leaves them unable to resist.

Against the English

Translations say 'terror' (KJV, BSB, WEB, YLT, most modern versions), which is accurate. KJV's 'which caused their terror' is awkward and could be misread as terror they felt. The Hebrew 'their terror' means the terror they caused.

Used elsewhere in the period

The noun is found only in Ezekiel 32 (vv. 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 30, 32), so Ezekiel seems to have used or coined it specially for this dirge. In v. 32 the written text has 'my terror' (God says he set his terror in the land of the living), while the reading tradition has 'his terror'. Related words from the same root, such as ḥittah and ḥatḥattim, mean dismay or terrors. Assyrian royal inscriptions boast in the same way of the 'terrifying splendour' (puluḫtu, melammu) of the king that overwhelmed his enemies.

Where it appears

Ezekiel · 8

  1. Ezekiel 26:17 חִתִּיתָ֖ם terror their

    Then they will lament for you, saying, “How you have perished, O city of renown inhabited by seafaring men—she who was powerful on the sea, along with her people, who imposed terror on all peoples!

    Here: 'The terror they caused', a dread that shatters people's nerve. The word appears only in Ezekiel. Here it is the fear Tyre's power stirred in others.

  2. Ezekiel 32:23 חִתִּ֖ית terror

    Her graves are set in the depths of the Pit, and her company is all around her grave. All of them are slain, fallen by the sword—those who once spread terror in the land of the living.

  3. Ezekiel 32:24 חִתִּיתָם֙ terror their

    Elam is there with all her multitudes around her grave. All of them are slain, fallen by the sword—those who went down uncircumcised to the earth below, who once spread their terror in the land of the living. They bear their disgrace with those who descend to the Pit.

    Here: 'Their terror': the dread they caused in others. The noun appears only in this dirge of Ezekiel 32.

  4. Ezekiel 32:25 חִתִּיתָ֜ם terror their

    Among the slain they prepare a resting place for Elam with all her hordes, with her graves all around her. All of them are uncircumcised, slain by the sword, although their terror was once spread in the land of the living. They bear their disgrace with those who descend to the Pit. They are placed among the slain.

  5. Ezekiel 32:26 חִתִּיתָ֖ם terror their

    Meshech and Tubal are there with all their multitudes, with their graves all around them. All of them are uncircumcised, slain by the sword, because they spread their terror in the land of the living.

  6. Ezekiel 32:27 חִתִּ֥ית terror of

    They do not lie down with the fallen warriors of old, who went down to Sheol with their weapons of war, whose swords were placed under their heads, whose shields rested on their bones, although the terror of the mighty was once in the land of the living.

  7. Ezekiel 32:30 בְּחִתִּיתָ֤ם in terror their

    All the leaders of the north and all the Sidonians are there; they went down in disgrace with the slain, despite the terror of their might. They lie uncircumcised with those slain by the sword and bear their shame with those who descend to the Pit.

  8. Ezekiel 32:32 חִתִּיתִ֖י terror my

    For I will spread My terror in the land of the living, so that Pharaoh and all his multitude will be laid to rest among the uncircumcised, with those slain by the sword, declares the Lord GOD.”

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