גָּדַר (ga.dar)
ga.dar
to wall up/off
H:VQuick Reference
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
- Testament
- Old Testament
- Occurrences
- 6 verses
- Root
- —
- Part of speech
- H:V
Word Overview
The Hebrew verb gadar means to enclose or shut off by building a wall. It describes the physical act of constructing a barrier, whether for protection or separation. The word appears in six verses, primarily in Lamentations, Job, and Isaiah, where it often carries significant symbolic weight beyond mere construction.
In its most striking usage, gadar depicts God as the builder of boundaries. In Lamentations 3:4-5, the prophet describes how God has "walled me in" so that he cannot escape, using the imagery of a prison to convey profound distress and divine judgment. Conversely, Isaiah 62:10 calls for the people to "prepare the way" by tearing down walls, while verse 8 speaks of God walling up Jerusalem with a wall of protection for His chosen city.
The participle form refers to masons or builders, highlighting the human labor involved in such tasks. This concrete imagery allows translators to render gadar variously as "wall up," "shut off," or "enclose," depending on whether the context emphasizes restriction, defense, or divine action. The word consistently points to the power of boundaries—whether they serve to imprison, protect, or define sacred space.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The Hebrew word gadar describes the act of building a wall, whether to protect or to restrict. In our lives, boundaries often feel like limitations when we are in pain. The psalmist and prophets sometimes felt God had walled them in, leaving no way out. This imagery captures the heavy weight of isolation and distress, reminding us that even in deep suffering, our feelings are valid before God.
Yet this same word also carries hope. In Isaiah, God promises to wall Jerusalem with protection, acting as a shield for His people. We see a tension here: walls can imprison, but they can also defend. For the believer, this reminds us that God is both present in our confinement and the one who ultimately provides safety. We do not have to face our barriers alone.
When we encounter obstacles that feel like unbreakable walls, we can look to the Creator who builds them for a purpose. Whether He is testing us or shielding us, His work is intentional. This perspective helps us trust that no boundary is permanent without His will, and that even broken walls can be rebuilt by His hand.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 6 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- he has walled up3×
- and/ to the/ masons1×
- and/ I will wall up1×
- [one who] walls up1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- וְ/לַ/גֹּֽדְרִ֑ים1×
- וְ/גָדַרְתִּ֣י1×
- גֹּדֵ֣ר1×
- גָּדַ֧ר1×
- גָּדַ֤ר1×
- גָ֭דַר1×
Key Verses
-
Job 19:8
He has walled up my way so that I can’t pass, and has set darkness in my paths.
This verse uses gadar to express Job's intense feeling of being trapped by God, highlighting the word's capacity to describe divine restriction in times of suffering.
-
Lamentations 3:7
He has walled me about, so that I can’t go out. He has made my chain heavy.
Here the prophet describes being walled in and chained, using the term to convey a sense of hopelessness and physical confinement imposed by God.
-
Amos 9:11
In that day I will raise up the tent of David who is fallen and close up its breaches, and I will raise up its ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old,
This verse speaks of God closing up breaches in David's tent, using the concept of walling to describe restoration and repair rather than restriction.
-
Lamentations 3:9
He has walled up my ways with cut stone. He has made my paths crooked.
The image of walled-up paths with cut stone emphasizes the permanence and difficulty of the prophet's situation, showing how gadar can denote an impassable obstacle.