פַּרְשְׁדֹ֑נָה (par.she.do.nah)
par.she.do.nah
refuse
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 parshednah appears only once in the entire Bible, in Judges 3:22. It refers to excrement or feces, though its exact etymology and precise nuance remain uncertain among scholars. The term is used in a gruesome narrative detail describing the death of Eglon, the Moabite king.
When Ehud thrust his sword into the king’s belly, the fat closed over the blade, and the text states that the excrement came out. This stark, visceral image serves to emphasize the finality and humiliation of Eglon’s demise. Translators typically render this word as "excrement" or "feces," preserving the raw physical reality of the scene without softening it.
Its solitary occurrence highlights how specific vocabulary can anchor a historical account in bodily reality. The word does not appear elsewhere in Scripture, making Judges 3:22 its unique context. This rarity underscores the particularity of the biblical narrative, where even unpleasant details are recorded with unvarnished honesty.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The Bible does not shy away from the messy realities of human life. In Judges 3:22, the text records a gruesome detail about King Eglon’s death using a word that translates to refuse or excrement. This stark imagery emphasizes the finality of his defeat and the humiliation he faced. It shows that Scripture is honest about the consequences of evil and the brokenness of the world.
For your faith, this reminds us that God works within real history, not in a sanitized version of it. Even uncomfortable details are preserved because they matter. We can trust that God sees all things—both the noble and the base—and uses them to bring about justice. This honesty invites us to approach God with transparency, knowing He is not disturbed by the raw truth of our lives.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 1 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- the/ hole/ towards1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- הַֽ/פַּרְשְׁדֹֽנָ/ה\׃1×
Key Verses
-
Judges 3:22
The handle also went in after the blade; and the fat closed on the blade, for he didn’t draw the sword out of his body; and it came out behind.
This verse uses the word to describe the physical aftermath of Ehud’s sword thrust, highlighting the total and humiliating nature of Eglon’s death.