Hebrew word · H7139

קָרַח

yikrechah

to make bald

The verb means to be or make bald. The noun means a bald spot or baldness, especially a patch made on purpose by shaving or tearing out hair as a sign of mourning. It is distinct from ordinary baldness (qereach, Lev 13:40) and from a formal head-shaving for a vow.

Appears 5 times in 5 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

1) to be bald, make bald

1a) (Qal) to make bald, make a baldness

1b) (Niphal) to make oneself bald

1c) (Hiphil) to make oneself bald

1d)(Hophal) to make bald

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 27:31

Range of meaning

The verb means to be or make bald. The noun means a bald spot or baldness, especially a patch made on purpose by shaving or tearing out hair as a sign of mourning. It is distinct from ordinary baldness (qereach, Lev 13:40) and from a formal head-shaving for a vow.

Against the English

BSB and NIV 'shave their heads' is clear but sounds tidier than the rite was. KJV 'make themselves utterly bald' tries to capture the doubled Hebrew ('make bald a baldness'). WEB and ESV-style 'make themselves bald' is closest to the literal wording.

Used elsewhere in the period

This is a standard mourning rite throughout the Hebrew Bible: Isa 15:2; 22:12 (where God himself calls for baldness); Jer 16:6; 47:5; 48:37; Amos 8:10; Mic 1:16 ('make yourself bald... as wide as the vulture'); Ezek 7:18. The Torah forbids Israelites to make a bald patch 'between your eyes' (on the forehead) for the dead (Deut 14:1; priests, Lev 21:5), which shows the practice was widespread among neighbouring peoples. In the Ugaritic Baal myth (KTU 1.5 VI), the god El mourns Baal with dust on his head, a loincloth and self-gashing, the same set of gestures known on the Phoenician coast.

From the study of Ezekiel 29:18

Range of meaning

To shave or make bald; in other passages often used for shaving the head as a mourning rite (Lev 21:5; Mic 1:16; Ezek 27:31). The form here is passive: 'made bald'.

Against the English

All the major versions say 'made bald' or 'rubbed bare'. None of them suggest mourning, which is correct, because here the baldness is a physical injury.

Used elsewhere in the period

Ezekiel uses the same root in 27:31 of mariners shaving themselves bald in mourning over Tyre. Here the besiegers go bald from labor instead. Assyrian palace reliefs show workers and soldiers carrying earth and materials, sometimes in baskets on the head, during siege and building works.

From the study of Jeremiah 16:6

Range of meaning

To make bald by shaving or pulling out hair. The related noun qorchah means 'bald spot.' In Deut 14:1 the baldness is 'between your eyes', meaning the front of the head.

Against the English

BSB's 'shave his head' can suggest shaving the whole scalp. The Hebrew points to making a bald patch, chiefly at the forehead. KJV/ESV-style 'make himself bald' is closer.

Used elsewhere in the period

Lev 21:5 (forbidden to priests); Deut 14:1; Isa 15:2; 22:12 (where God himself calls for baldness as a sign of repentance and mourning); Amos 8:10; Mic 1:16; Ezek 7:18; 27:31; Jer 47:5; 48:37.

Where it appears

Leviticus · 1

  1. Leviticus 21:5 יִקְרְח֤וּ they will make bald

    Priests must not make bald spots on their heads, shave off the edges of their beards, or make cuts in their bodies.

    Here: 'They shall make bald': a deliberate act of shaving or plucking a bare patch. The subject is the priests, the 'sons of Aaron' of v.1. This is not natural hair loss.

Jeremiah · 1

  1. Jeremiah 16:6 יִקָּרֵ֖חַ anyone will make himself bald

    “Both great and small will die in this land. They will not be buried or mourned, nor will anyone cut himself or shave his head for them.

    Here: 'No one will make himself bald', or possibly 'no baldness will be made.' It means shaving or tearing out hair to leave a bald patch, usually on the forehead, as a visible sign of mourning.

Ezekiel · 2

  1. Ezekiel 27:31 וְהִקְרִ֤יחוּ and they will make bald

    They will shave their heads for you and wrap themselves in sackcloth. They will weep over you with anguish of soul and bitter mourning.

    Here: Causative form: 'they will make (themselves) bald.' The 'and' plus perfect verb points to the future, continuing the scene of v.30. It means tearing out or shaving a patch of hair as a sign of grief, not a neat haircut.

  2. Ezekiel 29:18 מֻקְרָ֔ח [was] made bald

    “Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon caused his army to labor strenuously against Tyre. Every head was made bald and every shoulder made raw. But he and his army received no wages from Tyre for the labor they expended on it.

    Here: Passive participle, 'made bald'. The hair was worn off, most likely by loads carried on the head or by helmets rubbing over years of campaigning.

Micah · 1

  1. Micah 1:16 קָרְחִ֣י make bald

    Shave yourselves bald and cut off your hair in mourning for your precious children; make yourselves as bald as an eagle, for they will go from you into exile.

    Here: A command addressed to one woman: 'shave yourself bald'. It names a known mourning rite, shaving the head when someone dies or a disaster hits. The feminine singular form shows the speaker is addressing a personified woman, the mother city or 'daughter' of Judah, not a crowd.

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