2851. chittith
Lexical Summary
chittith: Terror, Dread

Original Word: חִתִּית
Part of Speech: Noun Feminine
Transliteration: chittiyth
Pronunciation: khit-teeth'
Phonetic Spelling: (khit-teeth')
KJV: terror
NASB: terror
Word Origin: [from H2865 (חָתַת - dismayed)]

1. fear

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
terror

From chathath; fear -- terror.

see HEBREW chathath

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
from chathath
Definition
terror
NASB Translation
terror (8).

Brown-Driver-Briggs
חִתִּית noun feminine terror, only Ezekiel; absolute ׳ח Ezekiel 32:23, but Co reads חִתִּיתָם (with ᵐ5 and Ezekiel 32:24; Ezekiel 32:26); construct id. Ezekiel 32:27; suffix חתיתו Ezekiel 32:32 Kt (> חִתִּיתִי Qr); חִתִּיתָם Ezekiel 32:24 2t.+ Ezekiel 26:17 (read חִתִּיתָהּ, with ᵐ5 Ew Co, see VB), Ezekiel 32:30 (read חַתִּים, see II. חת); — terror, caused by powerful cities, nations, kings, etc.: usually with suffix object Genitive Ezekiel 26:17 (of Tyre); elsewhere only Ezekiel 32: Ezekiel 26:27 (גִּבּוֺרִים ׳ח, ᵑ6 Co גבור תם ׳ח), Ezekiel 26:30 (חִתִּיתָם, but read חַתִּים, see above); especially in phrase בארץ ׳נָתַן ח חַיִּים cause one's terror (terror of oneself) in the land of the living Ezekiel 26:23; Ezekiel 26:24; Ezekiel 26:25 (strike out ᵐ5 Co), Ezekiel 26:26; Ezekiel 26:32. — חִתִּית Ezekiel 16:3,45 see חִתִּי below חֵת above.

Topical Lexicon
Definition and General Sense

חִתִּית denotes an overpowering dread that paralyzes a population, whether caused by ruthless conquerors or, ultimately, by the righteous judgment of God. While secular powers wield it to dominate, Scripture asserts that such fear is finally redirected back upon them by the LORD of hosts.

Occurrences and Context in Ezekiel

1. Ezekiel 26:17 portrays Tyre’s maritime empire: “She and her inhabitants imposed terror on all the dwellers on the earth.” The word highlights the psychological sway Tyre held before its fall.
2. Ezekiel 32:23–32 repeats the term seven times in the burial dirge for Egypt’s allies. Nations once notorious for “terror in the land of the living” (32:23, 24, 26) now lie powerless in Sheol. The prophet stacks one defeated coalition upon another—Elam, Meshech-Tubal, Sidon—demonstrating that every form of human-generated dread succumbs to the grave.

Historical Background

Tyre (sixth century BC) boasted invulnerability through trade networks and defensive island fortifications. Egypt, at the same time, marshaled foreign mercenaries from Elam, Meshech, Tubal, and others. These coalitions used intimidation to project influence across the Near East. Ezekiel, prophesying in Babylonian exile, catalogs their downfall as Babylon’s armies close in, reminding Israel that geopolitical terror is neither ultimate nor autonomous.

Theological Significance

1. Divine Retribution: The repetition of חִתִּית in Ezekiel 32 shifts “terror” from subject (what they inflicted) to object (what is inflicted upon them). God controls even the emotions of nations (compare Proverbs 21:1).
2. Mortality of Idolatrous Power: By placing the dreaded warriors in “the deepest pit” (32:23), Scripture strips their terror of permanence, contrasting it with the everlasting fear of the LORD which is “the beginning of wisdom” (Psalm 111:10).
3. Eschatological Foreshadowing: The imagery of defeated tyrants confined to Sheol anticipates the ultimate confinement of Satan and all evil powers (Revelation 20:10). Temporal terrors prefigure the final, decisive judgment.

Inter-textual Connections

Leviticus 26:36 foretells that covenant disobedience would subject Israel to “terror,” the same dread later wielded by Gentile empires.
Isaiah 2:19 depicts men hiding “from the terror of the LORD,” aligning divine holiness with the undoing of human coercion.
Luke 12:4–5 transfers the lesson into New Covenant terms: “Do not fear those who kill the body… fear Him who, after killing, has authority to cast into hell.”

Practical Ministry Applications

• Pastoral Consolation: Believers living under oppressive regimes can anchor hope in the pattern revealed by חִתִּית—earthly terror is finite, God’s justice inevitable (Psalm 37:1-2).
• Evangelistic Warning: Ezekiel’s graveyard litany furnishes sobering evidence that unchecked violence and intimidation lead to shame and eternal loss (Ezekiel 32:30).
• Spiritual Warfare: The transfer of terror from aggressor to grave encourages intercessors to pray that present-day persecutors encounter the fear of the Lord leading to repentance (Acts 9:3-6).

Summary

חִתִּית exposes the fleeting nature of man-made intimidation. Tyre’s commercial might and Egypt’s military coalitions once radiated dread; now they illustrate the certainty that “the LORD brings the counsel of the nations to nothing” (Psalm 33:10). For the people of God, the term serves both as a historical reminder of divine sovereignty and a call to revere the only fear that endures—the holy fear of the living God.

Forms and Transliterations
בְּחִתִּיתָ֤ם בחתיתם חִתִּ֖ית חִתִּ֥ית חִתִּיתָ֖ם חִתִּיתָ֜ם חִתִּיתָם֙ חִתִּיתִ֖י חתית חתיתי חתיתם bə·ḥit·tî·ṯām bechittiTam bəḥittîṯām chitTit chittiTam chittiTi ḥit·tî·ṯām ḥit·tî·ṯî ḥit·tîṯ ḥittîṯ ḥittîṯām ḥittîṯî
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Englishman's Concordance
Ezekiel 26:17
HEB: אֲשֶׁר־ נָתְנ֥וּ חִתִּיתָ֖ם לְכָל־ יוֹשְׁבֶֽיהָ׃
NAS: imposed her terror On all
KJV: which cause their terror [to be] on all that haunt
INT: Who imposed her terror all her inhabitants

Ezekiel 32:23
HEB: אֲשֶׁר־ נָתְנ֥וּ חִתִּ֖ית בְּאֶ֥רֶץ חַיִּֽים׃
NAS: spread terror in the land
KJV: which caused terror in the land
INT: who spread terror the land of the living

Ezekiel 32:24
HEB: אֲשֶׁ֨ר נָתְנ֤וּ חִתִּיתָם֙ בְּאֶ֣רֶץ חַיִּ֔ים
NAS: instilled their terror in the land
KJV: which caused their terror in the land
INT: who instilled their terror the land of the living

Ezekiel 32:25
HEB: כִּֽי־ נִתַּ֨ן חִתִּיתָ֜ם בְּאֶ֣רֶץ חַיִּ֗ים
NAS: (although their terror was instilled
KJV: by the sword: though their terror was caused
INT: (although was instilled their terror the land of the living

Ezekiel 32:26
HEB: כִּֽי־ נָתְנ֥וּ חִתִּיתָ֖ם בְּאֶ֥רֶץ חַיִּֽים׃
NAS: they instilled their terror in the land
KJV: though they caused their terror in the land
INT: though instilled their terror the land of the living

Ezekiel 32:27
HEB: עַצְמוֹתָ֔ם כִּֽי־ חִתִּ֥ית גִּבּוֹרִ֖ים בְּאֶ֥רֶץ
NAS: though the terror of [these] heroes
KJV: shall be upon their bones, though [they were] the terror of the mighty
INT: their bones though the terror of heroes the land

Ezekiel 32:30
HEB: אֶת־ חֲלָלִ֗ים בְּחִתִּיתָ֤ם מִגְבֽוּרָתָם֙ בּוֹשִׁ֔ים
NAS: who in spite of the terror resulting from their might,
KJV: with the slain; with their terror they are ashamed
INT: with the slain of the terror their might shame

Ezekiel 32:32
HEB: [חִתִּיתֹו כ] (חִתִּיתִ֖י ק) בְּאֶ֣רֶץ
NAS: I instilled a terror of him in the land
KJV: For I have caused my terror in the land
INT: Though instilled terror the land of the living

8 Occurrences

Strong's Hebrew 2851
8 Occurrences


bə·ḥit·tî·ṯām — 1 Occ.
ḥit·tîṯ — 2 Occ.
ḥit·tî·ṯām — 4 Occ.
ḥit·tî·ṯî — 1 Occ.

2850
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