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In a still different emphasis the word connotes the “passing away” of something, such
as the turning away of a day: “And Isaac went out to meditate in the field at the eventide
…”— he went out “at the turning of the evening” (Gen. 24:63). Similarly the Bible
speaks of the dawn as the “turning of the morning” (Exod. 14:27). The “turning of the
day” is the end of the day (Jer. 6:4).
Used in a military context,
can signify giving up fighting or fleeing before
one’s enemies. Because of Achan’s sin the Lord was not with Israel at the battle of Ai:
“Therefore the children of Israel could not stand before their enemies, but turned their
backs before their enemies, because they were accursed …” (Josh. 7:12).
In the intensive stem the verb means “to remove,” to take away: “The Lord hath taken
away thy judgments, he hath cast out thine enemy …” (Zeph. 3:15). “To clear a house”
(to set things in order) is often the means by which conditions are prepared for guests:
“Come in, thou blessed of the Lord; wherefore standest thou without? for I have prepared
the house …” (Gen. 24:31). Another nuance is “to prepare” a road for a victory march;
Isaiah says: “Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for
our God” (Isa. 40:3; cf. Matt. 3:3).
B. Nouns.
(
3#
, 6438), “corner.” This noun occurs 30 times in the Old Testament. The
word refers to “corners” in Exod. 27:2: “And thou shalt make the horns of it upon the
four corners thereof …” In 2 Kings 14:13 the word refers to a corner-tower, and in Judg.
20:2
is used figuratively of a “chief” as the “corner” or defense of the people.
The noun
is also related to the verb
!
It occurs 2,100 times to refer to the
“face” of something. An early occurrence of the word is in Gen. 17:3.
C. Adjective.
;<
#
, 6442), “inner.” This adjective occurs about 33 times, and it refers to a
part of a building, usually a temple. One occurrence is in 1 Kings 6:27: “And he set the
cherubim within the inner house.…”
D. Adverb.
(
#
, 6441), “within.” This word occurs about 12 times. One appearance
is in 1 Kings 6:18: “And the cedar of the house within was carved with knobs and open
flowers.…” Here the word refers to the inside of the house.
U
TO BE UNCLEAN
A. Verb.
(
+
, 2930), “to be unclean.” This root is limited to Hebrew, Aramaic, and
Arabic. The verb occurs 160 times in biblical Hebrew and mainly in Leviticus, as in Lev.
11:26: “The carcases of every beast which divideth the hoof, and is not clovenfooted, nor