4800. merchab
Lexical Summary
merchab: Broad place, open space, spaciousness

Original Word: מֶרְחָב
Part of Speech: Noun Masculine
Transliteration: merchab
Pronunciation: mer-khawb'
Phonetic Spelling: (mer-khawb')
KJV: breadth, large place (room)
NASB: broad place, large place, large field, throughout
Word Origin: [from H7337 (רָחַב - enlarge)]

1. enlargement, either literally (an open space, usually in a good sense), or figuratively (liberty)

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
breadth, large place room

From rachab; enlargement, either literally (an open space, usually in a good sense), or figuratively (liberty) -- breadth, large place (room).

see HEBREW rachab

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
from rachab
Definition
a broad or roomy place
NASB Translation
broad place (2), large field (1), large place (2), throughout (1).

Brown-Driver-Briggs
מֶרְחָב noun [masculine] broad, roomy, place; — absolute ׳מ, of pasture Hosea 4:16 (in simile); figurative of freedom from distress and anxiety 2 Samuel 22:20 = Psalm 18:20; Psalm 31:9; Psalm 118:5 (ᵑ0 construct in מֶרְחַבְיָה spacious place of Yah, i.e. extraordinarily spacious, < מֶרְחָב יָהּ, יָהּ being subject of verb); plural construct מֶרְחֲבֵיאֶֿרֶץ Habakkuk 1:6 expanses of the earth.

רחה (√ of following; meaning unknown; Late Hebrew = Biblical Hebrew; Arabic handmill (compare WetzstSiebe, ZPV xiv (1891), 4); Aramaic רִיחְיָא, ; LagBN 157 BaNB 9, 21).

Topical Lexicon
Overview

מֶרְחָב paints the picture of a “spacious, open place.” In the Ancient Near Eastern mind, such breadth contrasted sharply with the cramped danger of siege or slavery; it conveyed safety, possibility, and the blessing of God. All six occurrences combine to present a vivid biblical theology in which the LORD alone ushers His people from distress into freedom, while the unrepentant pursue a counterfeit breadth that becomes their ruin.

Usage in Scripture

2 Samuel 22:20 and Psalm 18:19 (parallel passages) place the term at the heart of David’s song of deliverance. “He brought me out into a spacious place; He rescued me because He delighted in me.” The verb “brought me out” links מֶרְחָב to the exodus motif: liberation from confinement into a land flowing with possibility.

Psalm 31:8 celebrates the same deliverance in personal lament: “You have not given me over to the enemy; You have set my feet in an open space.” Here, breadth equals security; David’s feet stand firm, not because the ground is easy, but because the LORD has cleared it.

Psalm 118:5 moves from distress to praise: “In my distress I called to the LORD, and He answered me and set me free.” The phrase “set me free” literally echoes “put me into a broad place,” showing that true freedom is relational—granted by the covenant God who answers prayer.

Hosea 4:16 warns a rebellious nation: “For Israel is as obstinate as a stubborn heifer. Can the LORD now shepherd them like a lamb in a broad pasture?” The “broad pasture” which should be a blessing becomes an indictment; stubborn hearts disqualify themselves from experiencing the very spaciousness God intends.

Habakkuk 1:6 describes Babylon: “For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans… they sweep across the earth to seize dwellings not their own.” Their conquests span a “broad land.” Here מֶרְחָב connotes the vast scope of judgment, revealing that the same openness which shelters God’s people can, in His sovereignty, serve as the stage for discipline.

Themes of Deliverance and Salvation

1. Personal redemption: Each Davidic psalm links breadth with divine delight. God’s favor, not human merit, moves Him to rescue.
2. Corporate exodus: The passages echo Israel’s journey from Egypt to Canaan, revealing a consistent pattern—out of bondage, into spacious blessing.
3. Eschatological hope: The broader canon anticipates the ultimate “broad place” of the new creation where righteousness dwells (compare Revelation 21:1 – 4).

Contrasts: True Freedom vs. False License

• True freedom (2 Samuel 22; Psalm 18; Psalm 31; Psalm 118) is God-given, covenantal, and character-shaping.
• False license (Hosea 4; Habakkuk 1) parades as breadth but results in scattered judgment or imperial oppression. Scripture thus guards the Church against equating autonomy with liberty.

Historical Setting of Each Passage

• Davidic corpus: Emerging from years of flight and civil strife, David testifies that the “spacious place” is neither palace nor battlefield but the experience of God’s protective presence.
• Late Monarchy and Exile prophets: Hosea (northern kingdom) and Habakkuk (Judah) employ מֶרְחָב to expose national sin and to frame the geopolitical vastness of impending judgment.

Links to New Testament Fulfillment

Jesus embodies the spacious place promised in the Old Testament. He proclaims, “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:32), echoing Psalm 118:5. Paul proclaims that “it is for freedom that Christ has set us free” (Galatians 5:1), grounding the believer’s liberty in the finished work of the cross and resurrection. In Christ the believer moves from the cramped bondage of sin into the wide horizon of Spirit-empowered obedience.

Pastoral and Devotional Applications

• Assurance amid pressure: Believers facing persecution or inner turmoil may pray David’s words, trusting God to enlarge their circumstances or their hearts.
• Guidance for leaders: Shepherds must resist driving God’s flock into cramped legalism or careless license; healthy ministry leads saints into the broad pastures of grace-fueled holiness.
• Missional vision: Habakkuk’s global canvas reminds the Church that God’s purposes extend “across the breadth of the earth,” calling every generation to carry the gospel outward.

Summary

מֶרְחָב gathers the Bible’s storylines of redemption, judgment, and promise into a single image of expansive grace. Whether sung by a rescued king, invoked by a grateful worshiper, or wielded by prophets of warning, the word directs attention to the LORD who alone moves His people from narrow straits into the boundless security of His delight.

Forms and Transliterations
בַּמֶּרְחָֽב׃ בַמֶּרְחָ֣ב במרחב במרחב׃ לְמֶרְחֲבֵי־ לַמֶּרְחָ֑ב לַמֶּרְחָ֖ב למרחב למרחבי־ bam·mer·ḥāḇ ḇam·mer·ḥāḇ bammerChav bammerḥāḇ ḇammerḥāḇ lam·mer·ḥāḇ lammerChav lammerḥāḇ lə·mer·ḥă·ḇê- lemerchavei ləmerḥăḇê- vammerChav
Links
Interlinear GreekInterlinear HebrewStrong's NumbersEnglishman's Greek ConcordanceEnglishman's Hebrew ConcordanceParallel Texts
Englishman's Concordance
2 Samuel 22:20
HEB: וַיֹּצֵ֥א לַמֶּרְחָ֖ב אֹתִ֑י יְחַלְּצֵ֖נִי
NAS: He also brought me forth into a broad place; He rescued
KJV: He brought me forth also into a large place: he delivered
INT: brought A broad rescued because

Psalm 18:19
HEB: וַיּוֹצִיאֵ֥נִי לַמֶּרְחָ֑ב יְ֝חַלְּצֵ֗נִי כִּ֘י
NAS: He brought me forth also into a broad place; He rescued
KJV: He brought me forth also into a large place; he delivered
INT: brought A broad rescued because

Psalm 31:8
HEB: אוֹיֵ֑ב הֶֽעֱמַ֖דְתָּ בַמֶּרְחָ֣ב רַגְלָֽי׃
NAS: You have set my feet in a large place.
KJV: thou hast set my feet in a large room.
INT: of the enemy have set A large my feet

Psalm 118:5
HEB: יָּ֑הּ עָנָ֖נִי בַמֶּרְחָ֣ב יָֽהּ׃
NAS: answered me [and] [set me] in a large place.
KJV: answered me, [and set me] in a large place.
INT: the LORD answered A large the LORD

Hosea 4:16
HEB: יְהוָ֔ה כְּכֶ֖בֶשׂ בַּמֶּרְחָֽב׃
NAS: them Like a lamb in a large field?
KJV: them as a lamb in a large place.
INT: the LORD A lamb A large

Habakkuk 1:6
HEB: וְהַנִּמְהָ֑ר הַֽהוֹלֵךְ֙ לְמֶרְחֲבֵי־ אֶ֔רֶץ לָרֶ֖שֶׁת
NAS: Who march throughout the earth
KJV: which shall march through the breadth of the land,
INT: and impetuous march throughout the earth to seize

6 Occurrences

Strong's Hebrew 4800
6 Occurrences


bam·mer·ḥāḇ — 1 Occ.
lam·mer·ḥāḇ — 2 Occ.
lə·mer·ḥă·ḇê- — 1 Occ.
ḇam·mer·ḥāḇ — 2 Occ.

4799
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