יָרַע

From the study of 1 Samuel 1:8

Range of meaning

The root r-ʿ-ʿ means “to be bad, evil, harmful, displeasing.” With “heart” or “eyes” it describes someone’s inner state. A “bad heart” can mean sadness (Neh 2:1–2, where Nehemiah’s “bad face” and “badness of heart” show his grief to the king), or resentment and reluctance (Deut 15:10, “your heart shall not be bad when you give” to the poor, meaning do not give grudgingly). Something “bad in the eyes of” someone is something they dislike (1 Sam 8:6).

Against the English

KJV, WEB and BSB have “grieved,” YLT “afflicted,” and several modern versions “sad” or “downhearted.” All of these catch the sorrow. What they lose is the Hebrew picture: her heart has become bad, gone wrong inside. Here that means misery, perhaps with bitterness mixed in (she is “bitter of soul” in v. 10).

Used elsewhere in the period

Deut 15:10 and Neh 2:2 use the same idiom. Lexicons (BDB, HALOT) file this verb form under the geminate root רעע. Strong’s numbering puts it under H3415. The Septuagint turns the phrase into “why does your heart strike you?”, an attempt to give a physical picture of inner pain.