שׁוּחָה (shu.chah)
shu.chah
pit
H:N-FQuick Reference
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
- Testament
- Old Testament
- Occurrences
- 5 verses
- Root
- —
- Part of speech
- H:N-F
Word Overview
The noun shuḥah refers simply to a pit, a deep hole dug into the ground. It appears five times in the Hebrew Bible, primarily within the books of Jeremiah and Proverbs. In these contexts, it describes a physical depression in the earth, often serving as a place of confinement or danger.
While the term is concrete, its usage highlights the vulnerability of those trapped within it. The sources indicate that this word does not carry complex theological metaphors on its own but grounds abstract ideas of distress in tangible reality. When Jeremiah speaks of being cast into a pit, the image is one of helplessness and darkness.
Translators consistently render shuḥah as "pit" to preserve this sense of sudden descent into a low place. The word’s brevity and frequency in wisdom literature underscore how ancient readers understood peril not just as an abstract concept, but as a physical state of being stuck below the level of safety.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The image of a pit in Scripture is often one of sudden, disorienting descent. When Jeremiah describes the wilderness as full of pits, or when Proverbs warns that the mouth of an adulteress is a deep pit, the word shuḥah grounds spiritual danger in physical reality. It reminds us that sin and trouble are not abstract ideas but places where we can become stuck, unable to see the way out.
Yet this word also highlights our need for help. In Jeremiah 18:20, the prophet cries out because enemies have dug a pit for his soul. He does not rely on his own strength to escape but remembers standing before God to speak good for those who sought his harm. The pit exposes our vulnerability, pointing us toward the One who delivers us from the depths.
When you feel trapped by circumstances or the consequences of poor choices, remember that God sees you in the low places. He is not distant from your struggle but invites you to call on Him. His presence offers a way up when the ground beneath you feels unsafe.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 5 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- a pit2×
- [is] a pit2×
- and/ pit1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- שׁוּחָ֣ה2×
- שׁוּחָה֙1×
- שׁוּחָ֖ה1×
- וְ/שׁוּחָה֙1×
Key Verses
-
Jeremiah 18:20
Should evil be recompensed for good? For they have dug a pit for my soul. Remember how I stood before you to speak good for them, to turn away your wrath from them.
The prophet uses this word to describe enemies digging a pit for his soul, showing how the term captures intentional schemes to cause harm.
-
Proverbs 22:14
The mouth of an adulteress is a deep pit. He who is under Yahweh’s wrath will fall into it.
This verse compares the mouth of an adulteress to a deep pit, illustrating how destructive relationships can lead to sudden spiritual downfall.
-
Jeremiah 2:6
They didn’t say, ‘Where is Yahweh who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, who led us through the wilderness, through a land of deserts and of pits, through a land of drought and of the shadow of death, through a land that no one passed through, and where no man lived?’
Here the word describes physical pits in the wilderness, grounding the Israelites' journey through harsh, dangerous terrain in tangible reality.