סְחִי (se.chi)
se.chi
offscouring
H:N-MQuick Reference
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
- Testament
- Old Testament
- Occurrences
- 1 verses
- Root
- —
- Part of speech
- H:N-M
Word Overview
The Hebrew noun sechi refers to the dregs or refuse left over after a process, specifically described as "offscourings." It appears only once in the Hebrew Bible, in Lamentations 3:45, where it describes the state of the people. The term conveys a sense of being cast off, worthless, or rejected.
In its single occurrence, Jeremiah uses this word to depict the shame and humiliation suffered by Jerusalem’s inhabitants. They are portrayed as scum on the surface of the water, something undesirable and discarded. This vivid imagery emphasizes their total degradation and the depth of their suffering during the city's fall.
The rarity of the word highlights its specific descriptive power. By choosing sechi, the text avoids generic terms for shame and instead points to a concrete image of waste material. It underscores the complete loss of dignity and status experienced by the community.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The word sechi describes the dregs left at the bottom of a vessel, or the scum skimmed off the surface of water. It is a term for what is considered waste, refuse, or utterly worthless material. In its single appearance in the Hebrew Bible, it paints a picture of total degradation and social rejection.
When Jeremiah writes that God has made His people an sechi, he is using a stark image of shame. The community feels cast aside, treated as something to be discarded by their neighbors. It captures the depth of humiliation they experienced when Jerusalem fell, where dignity was stripped away and they were viewed with contempt.
This word reminds us that even in our lowest moments of feeling rejected or worthless, we are seen by God. The biblical narrative does not shy away from this pain. Instead, it places our suffering in the light of divine presence, offering hope to those who feel like refuse in a broken world.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 1 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- scouring1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- סְחִ֧י1×
Key Verses
-
Lamentations 3:45
You have made us an off-scouring and refuse in the middle of the peoples.
This verse uses sechi to describe how God has allowed the people to become social waste and objects of scorn among the surrounding nations.