2724. charabah
Lexical Summary
charabah: Dryness, desolation, waste

Original Word: חָרָבָה
Part of Speech: Noun Feminine
Transliteration: charabah
Pronunciation: khaw-raw-baw'
Phonetic Spelling: (khaw-raw-baw')
KJV: dry (ground, land)
NASB: dry ground, dry land, dry
Word Origin: [feminine of H2720 (חָרֵב - Dry)]

1. a desert

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
dry ground, land

Feminine of chareb; a desert -- dry (ground, land).

see HEBREW chareb

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
from chareb
Definition
dry ground
NASB Translation
dry (1), dry ground (4), dry land (3).

Brown-Driver-Briggs
חָֽרָבָה noun feminine dry ground; — absolute ׳ח Genesis 7:22 7t.; opposed to הַיָּם Exodus 14:21 (J), Haggai 2:6; compare Genesis 7:22 (J); opposed to water of Jordan Joshua 3:17 (twice in verse) (J), Joshua 4:18 (E), 2 Kings 2:8; of Nile-arms ׳וְנָתַתִּ֫י יְאֹרִים ח Ezekiel 30:12.

Topical Lexicon
Conceptual Overview

חָרָבָה depicts an area left utterly free of water—ground rendered walkable or territory turned arid. Scripture employs the term both to highlight divine preservation (providing a firm path) and divine judgment (removing life-sustaining water).

Occurrences and Narrative Framework

Genesis 7:22 – After the Flood begins, the phrase marks the realm that had once supported life: “Everything with the breath of the spirit of life in its nostrils—everything on dry land—died.” The loss of the חָרָבָה underscores the totality of judgment.

Exodus 14:21 – The Red Sea “turned…into dry land,” allowing Israel safe passage while the pursuing Egyptian army is destroyed. The solid ground becomes a tangible pledge of covenant faithfulness.

Joshua 3:17; 4:18 – Twice the Jordan is said to stand in “dry ground” as Israel enters Canaan. The repetition binds the conquest to the exodus and affirms that the God who delivers also establishes His people in promise.

2 Kings 2:8 – Elijah’s cloak strikes the Jordan and the prophet walks “on dry ground,” validating his prophetic authority and foreshadowing Elisha’s succession.

Ezekiel 30:12 – “I will make the rivers dry,” prophesies judgment on Egypt. What once symbolized salvation now becomes an agent of desolation, proving that Yahweh rules the elements for rescue or ruin.

Haggai 2:6 – In an eschatological pledge the Lord will shake “the sea and the dry land.” חָרָבָה here stretches beyond Israel’s history to the consummation of all things.

Theological Themes

1. Divine Sovereignty over Chaos

Whether through the Flood, the Sea, or the Jordan, God commands water and land alike. The sudden appearance of חָרָבָה where water once reigned proclaims His supremacy over chaotic forces and His power to create order.

2. Salvation Pathway

The motif of walking across dry ground forms a corridor of redemption. Israel’s exodus and entrance into Canaan mirror one another, bracketing the wilderness era with dramatic proofs that salvation is by grace, not human ingenuity.

3. Judgment Imagery

In Genesis and Ezekiel, the same term signals lethal deprivation. What sustains life can be withdrawn at the Lord’s word, warning nations that covenant privilege entails accountability.

4. Eschatological Certainty

Haggai pushes the concept past Israel’s borders into cosmic upheaval. The promise that God will again disturb both water and dry land assures believers that the final shaking will usher in an unshakeable kingdom (compare Hebrews 12:26-28).

Patterns of Redemptive History

The progressive revelation of חָרָבָה traces a movement from creation (Genesis), through redemption (Exodus, Joshua), prophetic authentication (2 Kings), national discipline (Ezekiel), to ultimate consummation (Haggai). Each episode magnifies an aspect of the gospel: cleansing judgment, substitutionary deliverance, covenant ratification, prophetic witness, disciplinary love, and future hope.

Practical Ministry Implications

• Preaching: Use the Red Sea and Jordan accounts to illustrate God’s capacity to open a path where none exists, applying it to personal or congregational crises.
• Counseling: The imagery of dry ground amid overwhelming waters can reassure believers facing turmoil that God provides solid footing.
• Discipleship: Warn against presumption; as Egypt learned, the God who grants safe passage to His people can also turn fertility into barrenness for the unrepentant.
• Worship: Haggai’s vision invites songs that link past deliverances with the coming renewal of creation.

Summary

חָרָבָה unites the biblical storyline by portraying the Lord’s mastery over elements, His gracious creation of a safe corridor for His people, and His righteous removal of that security from the unfaithful. From the Flood to the final shaking, dry ground stands as both promise and warning—an enduring testimony that the God who rescues through the waters will also judge, and at last will renew heaven, earth, sea, and חָרָבָה itself.

Forms and Transliterations
בֶּחָ֣רָבָ֔ה בֶּחָֽרָבָ֖ה בֶּחָֽרָבָ֛ה בֶּחָרָבָֽה׃ בחרבה בחרבה׃ הֶחָרָבָ֑ה הֶחָרָבָֽה׃ החרבה החרבה׃ חָֽרָבָ֔ה חרבה לֶחָרָבָ֑ה לחרבה be·ḥā·rā·ḇāh becharaVah beḥārāḇāh charaVah ḥā·rā·ḇāh ḥārāḇāh he·ḥā·rā·ḇāh hecharaVah heḥārāḇāh le·ḥā·rā·ḇāh lecharaVah leḥārāḇāh
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Interlinear GreekInterlinear HebrewStrong's NumbersEnglishman's Greek ConcordanceEnglishman's Hebrew ConcordanceParallel Texts
Englishman's Concordance
Genesis 7:22
HEB: מִכֹּ֛ל אֲשֶׁ֥ר בֶּחָֽרָבָ֖ה מֵֽתוּ׃
NAS: of all that was on the dry land, all
KJV: of life, of all that [was] in the dry [land], died.
INT: all whose the dry died

Exodus 14:21
HEB: אֶת־ הַיָּ֖ם לֶחָרָבָ֑ה וַיִּבָּקְע֖וּ הַמָּֽיִם׃
NAS: the sea into dry land, so the waters
KJV: the sea dry [land], and the waters
INT: and turned the sea dry were divided the waters

Joshua 3:17
HEB: בְּרִית־ יְהוָ֜ה בֶּחָֽרָבָ֛ה בְּת֥וֹךְ הַיַּרְדֵּ֖ן
NAS: stood firm on dry ground
KJV: firm on dry ground in the midst
INT: of the covenant of the LORD dry the middle of the Jordan

Joshua 3:17
HEB: יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל עֹֽבְרִים֙ בֶּחָ֣רָבָ֔ה עַ֤ד אֲשֶׁר־
NAS: on dry ground in the middle
KJV: passed over on dry ground, until all the people
INT: Israel crossed ground against after

Joshua 4:18
HEB: הַכֹּהֲנִ֔ים אֶ֖ל הֶחָרָבָ֑ה וַיָּשֻׁ֤בוּ מֵֽי־
NAS: were lifted up to the dry ground, that the waters
KJV: were lifted up unto the dry land, that the waters
INT: of the priests' to the dry returned the waters

2 Kings 2:8
HEB: וַיַּעַבְר֥וּ שְׁנֵיהֶ֖ם בֶּחָרָבָֽה׃
NAS: of them crossed over on dry ground.
KJV: went over on dry ground.
INT: crossed the two dry

Ezekiel 30:12
HEB: וְנָתַתִּ֤י יְאֹרִים֙ חָֽרָבָ֔ה וּמָכַרְתִּ֥י אֶת־
NAS: the Nile canals dry And sell
KJV: the rivers dry, and sell
INT: will make the Nile dry and sell the land

Haggai 2:6
HEB: הַיָּ֖ם וְאֶת־ הֶחָרָבָֽה׃
NAS: the sea also and the dry land.
KJV: and the sea, and the dry [land];
INT: and the earth the sea and the dry

8 Occurrences

Strong's Hebrew 2724
8 Occurrences


be·ḥā·rā·ḇāh — 4 Occ.
ḥā·rā·ḇāh — 1 Occ.
he·ḥā·rā·ḇāh — 2 Occ.
le·ḥā·rā·ḇāh — 1 Occ.

2723
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