Hebrew word · H7516

רֶ֫פֶשׁ

refesh

mire

Mire, muck, sludge. The noun occurs only here. It is tied to the verb rāpas / rāpaś, 'to trample, foul water with the feet' (Ezek 32:2; 34:18–19, sheep that 'foul the rest with your feet'). So it is water fouled and churned into filth.

Appears once in the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

mire, mud

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 Isaiah 57:20

Range of meaning

Mire, muck, sludge. The noun occurs only here. It is tied to the verb rāpas / rāpaś, 'to trample, foul water with the feet' (Ezek 32:2; 34:18–19, sheep that 'foul the rest with your feet'). So it is water fouled and churned into filth. Paired with ṭîṭ, mud or clay (Ps 40:2; Jer 38:6; Mic 7:10, 'mire of the streets').

Against the English

Renderings vary: 'mire' (KJV, WEB, ESV, NIV, BSB), 'refuse' (NASB), 'filth' (YLT), 'muck' (BSB, for the second word). All capture filth. 'Refuse' (rubbish) moves slightly away from the idea of stirred-up sludge.

Used elsewhere in the period

Hapax noun; its meaning comes from the related verb in Ezekiel. The Vulgate's conculcatio ('trampling') shows Jerome read it from the same root.

Where it appears

Isaiah · 1

  1. Isaiah 57:20 רֶ֥פֶשׁ mire

    But the wicked are like the storm-tossed sea, for it cannot be still, and its waves churn up mire and muck.

    Here: A rare noun found only here, related to a verb for fouling water by trampling it (Ezek 32:2; 34:18). It means churned-up muck: dirty, stirred-up mire.

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