קַשׁ (qash)
qash
stubble
H:N-MQuick Reference
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
- Testament
- Old Testament
- Occurrences
- 11 verses
- Root
- —
- Part of speech
- H:N-M
Definition
Definition
Brown-Driver-Briggs
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The word qash describes the dry, brittle remains of grain after harvest. It is light, useless for food, and easily swept away by wind or consumed by fire. In the ancient world, it represented something with no lasting value, contrasting sharply with the nourishing kernel of wheat.
When Scripture uses this image, it often highlights human fragility or divine judgment. Isaiah 40:24 reminds us that even powerful kingdoms are as temporary as dry stalks when God breathes upon them. This is not meant to frighten, but to ground our trust in what endures rather than what fades.
For your faith, this word offers a gentle perspective on worldly success and personal pride. It invites you to release the need for permanent earthly security and rest in the stability of God’s promises. What feels solid today may vanish tomorrow, but His word remains forever.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 11 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- stubble4×
- like/ chaff3×
- like <the>/ stubble1×
- like <the>/ chaff1×
- chaff1×
- [will become] <into>/ stubble1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- קַ֖שׁ2×
- קָ֑שׁ1×
- קַ֜שׁ1×
- קַ֑שׁ1×
- לְ/קַ֔שׁ1×
- כַּ/קַּֽשׁ\׃1×
- כַּ/קַּ֥שׁ1×
- כְּ/קַשׁ\־1×
- כְּ/קַ֥שׁ1×
- כְ/קַשׁ֙1×
Key Verses
-
Isaiah 40:24
They are planted scarcely. They are sown scarcely. Their stock has scarcely taken root in the ground. He merely blows on them, and they wither, and the whirlwind takes them away as stubble.
This verse uses stubble to illustrate how quickly human power withers under God’s breath, emphasizing the fleeting nature of earthly authority.
-
Exodus 15:7
In the greatness of your excellency, you overthrow those who rise up against you. You send out your wrath. It consumes them as stubble.
Here, the imagery shows God’s wrath consuming enemies completely, just as fire turns dry stalks to ash without leaving anything behind.
-
Obadiah 1:18
The house of Jacob will be a fire, the house of Joseph a flame, and the house of Esau for stubble. They will burn among them and devour them. There will not be any remaining to the house of Esau.” Indeed, Yahweh has spoken.
This passage contrasts the enduring nature of God’s people with the total destruction awaiting Esau’s descendants, who are likened to combustible stubble.