שַׁלֶּ֫כֶת (shal.le.khet)
shal.le.khet
felling
H:N-FQuick Reference
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
- Testament
- Old Testament
- Occurrences
- 1 verses
- Root
- —
- Part of speech
- H:N-F
Word Overview
The noun shallekhet refers specifically to the act or result of felling a tree. It appears only once in the Hebrew Bible, in Isaiah 6:13, where it describes the cutting down of timber. The word is concrete and physical, evoking the image of wood being brought down from its standing position.
In its single occurrence, shallekhet is part of a metaphor about national devastation. The prophet speaks of a holy seed remaining like a stump after the tree is felled. This usage highlights the contrast between total destruction and the small remnant that survives. The word itself does not carry abstract spiritual meaning; it grounds the prophecy in a recognizable agricultural reality.
Translators typically render shallekhet as "felling" or "cutting down." Because the term is so rare, its meaning is defined entirely by this context. It serves to illustrate the severity of judgment while leaving room for hope through the surviving stump. The word reminds readers that even in loss, something remains.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The word shallekhet describes the specific act of felling a tree, capturing the finality of timber being brought down. In Isaiah 6:13, this concrete image illustrates national devastation, where the standing forest is reduced to stumps. It grounds the prophecy in agricultural reality, showing that judgment can be total and visible.
Yet the text does not end with destruction. Even after the felling, a stump remains. This surviving remnant represents the holy seed that persists through loss. The image offers a quiet hope: when things seem completely cut down, something essential often stays behind. It reminds us that survival is possible even in severe trials.
This rare Hebrew term invites reflection on resilience. We may face seasons where our stability feels stripped away. But like the stump after the felling, there can be a core that endures. The presence of this remnant suggests that restoration is not impossible, even when the visible structure is gone.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 1 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- in/ [the] felling1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- בְּ/שַׁלֶּ֙כֶת֙1×
Key Verses
-
Isaiah 6:13
If there is a tenth left in it, that also will in turn be consumed, as a terebinth, and as an oak whose stump remains when they are cut down, so the holy seed is its stump.”
This verse uses shallekhet to depict the total cutting down of terebinth and oak trees, highlighting the severity of judgment while contrasting it with the surviving holy seed.