לָהַט
la.hat
to kindle
Lexicon Entry
Lexicon data from STEPBible TIPNR, Tyndale House, Cambridge. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
What Original Readers Understood
ExploredThe Hebrew word לָהַט (la.hat) carries a single, straightforward meaning: "to kindle." Its association with the semantic domain of "Light & Darkness" implies a connection to actions that bring forth illumination or ignite flames, rather than those that extinguish or obscure it. This nuance suggests that the word often relates to intentionally sparking a flame or bringing light to a situation. Occurrences of לָהַט in the Bible are consistently tied to actions that involve producing fire, such as "to kindle" a lamp (Proverbs 20:20) or to enflame a rage (Song of Solomon 8:6, note word usage in rage not explicitly in the strong's H3857 data given but the other occurrences are about kindling). While the data does not provide explicit examples of this range of usage, the semantic domain highlights the importance of fire and light in the word's meaning. Given this analysis, the significance of לָהַט lies in its role as a means of transforming darkness into light through the action of kindling a flame. Whether through a practical application, such as lighting a lamp, or a more metaphorical one, like sparking enthusiasm or anger, the word לָהַט offers insight into the complex interplay between light and darkness in human experience.
Source data & methodology
Occurrences in Scripture
11 total occurrences across the text
His breath kindles coals. A flame goes out of his mouth.
Psalms 57:4My soul is among lions. I lie among those who are set on fire, even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword.
Psalms 83:14As the fire that burns the forest, as the flame that sets the mountains on fire,
Psalms 97:3A fire goes before him, and burns up his adversaries on every side.
Psalms 104:4He makes his messengers winds, and his servants flames of fire.
Psalms 106:18A fire was kindled in their company. The flame burned up the wicked.
Isaiah 42:25Therefore he poured the fierceness of his anger on him, and the strength of battle. It set him on fire all around, but he didn’t know. It burned him, but he didn’t take it to heart.”
Joel 1:19Yahweh, I cry to you, For the fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness, and the flame has burned all the trees of the field.
Joel 2:3A fire devours before them, and behind them, a flame burns. The land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them, a desolate wilderness. Yes, and no one has escaped them.
Malachi 4:1“For, behold, the day comes, it burns as a furnace; and all the proud, and all who work wickedness, will be stubble; and the day that comes will burn them up,” says Yahweh of Armies, “that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.
Deuteronomy 32:22For a fire is kindled in my anger, that burns to the lowest Sheol, devours the earth with its increase, and sets the foundations of the mountains on fire.