מָרַץ

From the study of Micah 2:10

Range of meaning

To be sick or painful. In the passive form (Niphal) it means grievous, severe, sore, or forceful. It is used of a 'grievous curse' (1 Kgs 2:8) and of 'painful/forceful words' (Job 6:25), and in the active form 'what provokes you?' (Job 16:3).

Against the English

KJV 'sore' and BSB/WEB 'grievous' match well. NIV-style 'beyond all remedy' brings out the sickness side of the word. YLT 'powerful' stresses force over pain.

Used elsewhere in the period

1 Kgs 2:8 (qᵊlālâ nimreṣet, 'a grievous curse'); Job 6:25. It is a rare word in the Hebrew Bible.

From the study of 1 Kings 2:8

Range of meaning

The root mrṣ appears only a few times. In its passive form it means 'severe, sharp, painful, forceful': Micah 2:10 speaks of a 'grievous destruction', Job 6:25 says 'how forceful (or painful) are upright words'. Its causative form in Job 16:3 means 'provoke, irritate'. The supplied gloss 'be sick' reflects the root's sense of being ill or pained. Here the meaning is 'stinging, wounding, harsh'.

Against the English

KJV, WEB and ESV have 'grievous', which in older English meant 'causing grief or pain' and fits well. BSB and NIV have 'bitter curses', NASB (1995) 'violent', NLT 'terrible'. Each picks one side of a word that combines 'painful to receive' with 'forceful in delivery'.

Used elsewhere in the period

Mic 2:10; Job 6:25; Job 16:3. The Greek Septuagint renders it with a word meaning 'painful' (odynēra), and the Latin Vulgate uses a strong superlative (on the usual reading).

From the study of Job 16:3

Range of meaning

A rare root meaning to be sore, painful, grievous or severe. The passive-reflexive form describes a "grievous" curse (1 Kgs 2:8), "severe" destruction (Mic 2:10) and "forceful" or bitter words (Job 6:25, "How painful are honest words!"). The causative form, found only here, means to make sore or sick, to irritate, to goad. The Akkadian cognate marāṣu means "to be sick, to be troublesome or difficult" (CAD).

Against the English

KJV and YLT have "emboldeneth". WEB, BSB and ESV have "provokes". NIV has "ails", NASB "plagues". "Ails" and "plagues" keep the root's sense of sickness. "Provokes" keeps the irritation. "Emboldens" comes from a different interpretive tradition.

How it drifted

"Embolden" in the KJV follows medieval Jewish explanations that took the root to mean "be strong". Later Hebrew does use מֶרֶץ for vigour or energy. Biblical usage and the Akkadian cognate both point to soreness or sickness instead. A modern reader of the KJV pictures a bold, confident friend, not a friend driven by something that rankles.

Used elsewhere in the period

1 Kgs 2:8 (qĕlālâ nimreṣet, "a grievous curse"); Mic 2:10; Job 6:25. Job 6:25 matters most: there Job asks "how nimrĕṣû are upright words?" (how painful or forceful they are). In 16:3 the same root is used for the friends' speeches. Akkadian marāṣu ("be ill, be painful, be difficult") is well attested.