חָסִיל (cha.sil)
cha.sil
locust
H:N-MQuick Reference
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
- Testament
- Old Testament
- Occurrences
- 6 verses
- Root
- —
- Part of speech
- H:N-M
Word Overview
The noun chasil refers specifically to a type of locust, one of the four insect plagues described in the Hebrew Bible. While other terms exist for different stages or species of these creeping creatures, chasil typically denotes the mature, winged form that moves in destructive swarms. It appears six times across Scripture, with a notable concentration in the book of Joel.
In Joel, this word carries heavy theological weight as a symbol of divine judgment. The prophet uses the image of the chasil to describe an overwhelming invasion that leaves nothing behind, stripping the land bare. This usage connects the physical devastation of agriculture with spiritual desolation, portraying the locusts as agents of God’s warning to Israel.
Translators consistently render chasil as "locust" without ambiguity. The word helps readers visualize the scale of destruction in prophetic literature, where the insect’s natural behavior becomes a metaphor for sudden, total loss. Its presence in Psalms and Isaiah further reinforces this association between agricultural disaster and divine intervention.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The word chasil describes a mature, winged locust that moves in destructive swarms. In the ancient Near East, these insects were a terrifying reality for farmers. When they arrived, they stripped fields bare overnight, leaving families without food or income. This physical devastation often mirrored spiritual desolation in the prophetic texts.
Joel uses this image to show how overwhelming judgment can feel. Yet even there, hope remains. God promises to restore what was lost. The same God who allows seasons of loss also offers restoration. You are not defined by your losses, but by His promise to renew them.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 6 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- to the/ locust1×
- the/ locust[s]1×
- locust[s]1×
- and/ the/ locust[s]1×
- and/ locust[s]1×
- <the>/ locust[s]1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- לֶ/חָסִ֣יל1×
- חָסִיל֙1×
- וְ/חָסִיל֙1×
- וְ/הֶ/חָסִ֣יל1×
- הֶֽ/חָסִ֑יל1×
- הֶ/חָסִֽיל\׃1×
Key Verses
-
Joel 1:4
What the swarming locust has left, the great locust has eaten. What the great locust has left, the grasshopper has eaten. What the grasshopper has left, the caterpillar has eaten.
This verse lists four stages of locust destruction, showing chasil as part of a complete and overwhelming invasion that leaves nothing behind.
-
Joel 2:25
I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, the great locust, the grasshopper, and the caterpillar, my great army, which I sent among you.
Here God directly addresses the damage caused by the swarming locust (chasil), promising to restore the years it consumed, turning judgment into hope.
-
Psalms 78:46
He also gave their increase to the caterpillar, and their labor to the locust.
This psalm recalls how God gave Israel’s crops to the locust as a consequence of their rebellion, linking agricultural loss to spiritual failure.