Hebrew word · H7297
רָהָה
tirhu
to fear
It appears only here in the Hebrew Bible, so its meaning has to be judged from context. Lexicons give 'be afraid' or something similar. Some connect it with rare cognates meaning 'be weak' or 'lose heart', but such links are tentative.
Appears once in the Hebrew Old Testament. ·
What it means
1) (Qal) to fear
1a) meaning uncertain
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
- Range of meaning
It appears only here in the Hebrew Bible, so its meaning has to be judged from context. Lexicons give 'be afraid' or something similar. Some connect it with rare cognates meaning 'be weak' or 'lose heart', but such links are tentative.
- Against the English
Translations simply render it 'fear' or 'be afraid' (KJV 'be afraid', BSB 'fear'), which fits the parallel with 'dread'. The Greek Septuagint read or understood it differently: 'do not hide yourselves'.
- Used elsewhere in the period
HALOT and BDB treat it as a hapax, a word found only once. The Great Isaiah Scroll (1QIsaᵃ) is commonly reported to have the ordinary verb tîrʾû ('fear'), and many commentators read that. Others keep the rare form and suggest it was chosen for its sound, or that it reflects a dialect form.
Where it appears
Isaiah · 1
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Isaiah 44:8 תִּרְה֔וּ you fear
Do not tremble or fear. Have I not told you and declared it long ago? You are My witnesses! Is there any God but Me? There is no other Rock; I know not one.”
Here: A word found only here; context requires a synonym of 'dread', so 'be afraid' is the usual rendering. Many scholars think it is a variant spelling of, or copying slip for, the common verb 'fear' (yārēʾ).
Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.