Hebrew word · H8399
תַּבְלִית
tavlitam
destruction
Found only here. It is usually derived from balah, 'to wear out, become old and worn' (used of garments in Deuteronomy 8:4, Isaiah 50:9 and 51:6), so it means 'wearing away, consumption, destruction'.
Appears once in the Hebrew Old Testament. ·
What it means
destruction
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 10:25
- Range of meaning
Found only here. It is usually derived from balah, 'to wear out, become old and worn' (used of garments in Deuteronomy 8:4, Isaiah 50:9 and 51:6), so it means 'wearing away, consumption, destruction'.
- Against the English
Most versions have 'destruction'. YLT's 'wearing out' keeps the root picture. 'Destruction' is not wrong, but it loses the picture of something rotting or fraying until nothing is left.
- Used elsewhere in the period
It occurs nowhere else in Hebrew. The Septuagint appears to render the phrase as God's wrath being 'against their counsel (or plan)', and the Vulgate as 'against their wickedness'. Both suggest that ancient translators found the word difficult.
Where it appears
Isaiah · 1
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Isaiah 10:25 תַּבְלִיתָֽם׃ destruction their
For in just a little while My fury against you will subside, and My anger will turn to their destruction.”
Here: 'Their wasting away'. It comes from a root meaning to wear out like an old garment. 'Their' is the Assyrians. The oppressor will now be worn down to nothing.
Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.