Hebrew word · H3216

יָלַע

yala'

to devour

The verb occurs only here, so its meaning has to be worked out from related evidence. The leading lexicons (BDB, HALOT) favour speaking wildly or thoughtlessly. A similar-sounding root appears in Job 6:3, where Job says his words 'have been rash'.

Appears once in the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

1) (Qal) to speak rashly, talk wildly

1a) (TWOT) to swallow, swallow down

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 Proverbs 20:25

Range of meaning

The verb occurs only here, so its meaning has to be worked out from related evidence. The leading lexicons (BDB, HALOT) favour speaking wildly or thoughtlessly. A similar-sounding root appears in Job 6:3, where Job says his words 'have been rash'. A second, separate root meaning swallow appears in Obadiah 16, and this is the source of the older rendering.

Against the English

KJV 'devoureth' and YLT 'hath swallowed' follow the swallowing root, which produces a picture of someone consuming sacred property. BSB and WEB ('rashly'), along with ESV and NASB ('say rashly'), follow the speech root. The two groups describe different sins: stealing from God versus promising God too quickly.

How it drifted

The 'devour' reading is ancient, not modern. The Latin Vulgate has 'devorare', and the KJV has 'devoureth'. Strong's dictionary itself defines the word as 'to blurt or utter inconsiderately', and lists 'devour' only because that is how the KJV translated it.

Used elsewhere in the period

Compare Job 6:3 (rash words) and Obadiah 16 (swallowing). The Septuagint's 'hastily to consecrate' supports the idea of haste, though not necessarily of speech. Proverbs 18:7 uses the same trap word for the lips of a fool, and Leviticus 5:4 covers rash speech in oaths with a different verb.

Where it appears

Proverbs · 1

  1. Proverbs 20:25 יָ֣לַע he may say rashly

    It is a trap for a man to dedicate something rashly, only later to reconsider his vows.

    Here: Most likely to let words fly without thinking. This rare verb is the hinge of the verse, because it describes the speed and carelessness of the speech that springs the trap.

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