יָשַׁם (ya.sham)
ya.sham
be desolate
H:VQuick Reference
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
- Testament
- Old Testament
- Occurrences
- 1 verses
- Root
- —
- Part of speech
- H:V
Word Overview
The Hebrew verb yasham means to become desolate or ruined. It describes a place that has been stripped of life and order, leaving behind emptiness. With only one occurrence in the Bible, it appears in Genesis 26:19, where Isaac’s servants dig new wells after his father’s death. The text notes that the Philistines had stopped up the wells his father Abraham had dug, filling them with earth until they were no longer usable.
This word carries a heavy sense of loss. It is not just about destruction, but about the resulting silence and abandonment. When a land yasham, it loses its purpose and productivity. The image is of a once-thriving site turned into a wasteland, waiting for restoration or further decay. Translators often render it as "desolate" or "ruined," capturing both the physical state and the emotional weight of abandonment.
The rarity of this verb in Scripture makes its single appearance stand out. In Genesis, it highlights the tension between Isaac’s peaceful reclamation and the hostile actions of his neighbors. The word serves as a stark reminder of how quickly prosperity can vanish into emptiness when left unchecked by care or justice.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The word yasham paints a picture of quiet loss. It describes a place stripped of life, leaving behind emptiness and silence. In Genesis 47:19, the people of Egypt use this term when facing famine. They beg Joseph for seed so their land will not become desolate. This shows how deeply connected we are to our surroundings and how fragile stability can be.
For your faith, this word reminds us that care is needed to maintain what God has provided. When we neglect stewardship or face hardship, things can fall into ruin. Yet, the plea in Genesis is also a plea for hope. They ask for seed, not just survival. This points to our need for divine provision to restore what seems lost.
Even in times of scarcity, there is an invitation to trust. The desire to keep the land from becoming desolate reflects a deep human longing for continuity and blessing. We can bring this same hope to God, asking Him to renew our hearts and homes, turning emptiness into places where life can flourish again.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 1 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- it will be desolate1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- תֵשָֽׁם\׃1×
Key Verses
-
Genesis 47:19
Why should we die before your eyes, both we and our land? Buy us and our land for bread, and we and our land will be servants to Pharaoh. Give us seed, that we may live, and not die, and that the land won’t be desolate.”
This verse uniquely applies the verb to a nation's survival, linking physical desolation with the urgent need for seed and sustenance.