כָּסַח (ka.sach)
ka.sach
to cut
H:VQuick Reference
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
- Testament
- Old Testament
- Occurrences
- 1 verses
- Root
- —
- Part of speech
- H:V
Word Overview
The Hebrew verb kāsach means to cut down or cut off, specifically referring to plants. It appears only once in the Old Testament, in Isaiah 27:10, where it describes the removal of vines and branches.
In this context, the word paints a picture of agricultural pruning or clearing land. The imagery suggests a decisive action taken against vegetation, stripping away growth that no longer serves its purpose or has become overgrown.
This single usage carries significant weight as a metaphor for divine judgment. The cutting away of the vine symbolizes the removal of protection and fruitfulness from a people who have failed to maintain their covenant relationship with God.
Translators typically render kāsach as "cut down" or "destroyed," capturing the finality of the act. The word emphasizes not just damage, but the complete severing of life that was once cultivated and tended.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The verb kāsach describes a decisive act of cutting away vegetation. In its single biblical appearance, it portrays the removal of overgrown vines, symbolizing the loss of protection and fruitfulness due to broken covenant faithfulness. This imagery reminds us that God values spiritual vitality over mere outward growth.
When life feels stripped bare, this word invites reflection on what truly sustains us. It is not a call to fear, but an invitation to examine our roots. God’s discipline aims at restoration, clearing away what hinders our connection to Him so that new, genuine fruit may emerge in due season.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 1 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- cut down1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- כְּסוּחִ֖ים1×
Key Verses
-
Isaiah 33:12
The peoples will be like the burning of lime, like thorns that are cut down and burned in the fire.
This verse uses the word to depict how nations will be like thorns cut down and burned, illustrating the finality of divine judgment against pride.