רָחֹק

From the study of Proverbs 15:29

Range of meaning

"Far, distant" in space (a far country, Josh 9:6) or time (Isa 22:11). It is also used a great deal for relationships: being far from someone means you are not available to them, not present to help, cut off. Its opposite is qarov, "near" (HALOT, BDB).

Against the English

English "far" is accurate. A modern reader might hear it as a statement about where God is, which seems to clash with the idea that God is everywhere. The Hebrew is not making a claim about location. It means God is out of reach of the person who calls.

Used elsewhere in the period

The lament psalms use the word repeatedly: "Why, O Yahweh, do you stand far off?" (Ps 10:1); "Why are you so far from saving me?" (Ps 22:1); "Do not be far from me" (Ps 22:11, 19). Psalm 119:155 uses nearly the same phrase as this verse, "Far from the wicked is salvation (rachoq mereshaʿim yeshuʿah), for they do not seek your statutes." A few verses earlier it says "You are near (qarov), O Yahweh" (119:151). Psalm 145:18 states the positive side: "Yahweh is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth."

From the study of Isaiah 5:26

Range of meaning

'From far away' and 'from the end of the earth' are paired expressions for the most distant known lands, the edge of the inhabited world.

Against the English

English versions handle these well. 'Ends of the earth' can sound global or end-times to modern ears, but here it describes the far side of the known world, not the whole planet.

Used elsewhere in the period

Both appear together in the curse of Deuteronomy 28:49. Isaiah 39:3 uses 'from a far country' of Babylonian envoys. Assyrian royal inscriptions boast in a similar way of kings ruling 'from sea to sea' and to the edges of the world.

From the study of Isaiah 49:12

Range of meaning

'From far off', in space or in time. In Isaiah 40–55 it is often paired with 'the ends of the earth' (Isa 43:6; 49:1).

Against the English

All the versions agree on 'from far / afar / far away'.

Used elsewhere in the period

Isa 43:5–6: 'bring my sons from far away and my daughters from the end of the earth'. Isa 60:4, 9 likewise has sons coming 'from afar'.