יְשִׁימַה
𐤉𐤔𐤉𐤌𐤄
yᵉshîymah
H3451 noun
SILEX Entry
Definition
A proper noun referring to a specific location in the wilderness, likely meaning 'waste,' 'desolation,' or 'deserted place.' Used geographically to denote an arid region lacking population or cultivation. It does not primarily mean 'destruction' but rather denotes a geographic characteristic of barrenness or desolation. The word functions as a place name in biblical texts, highlighting the inhospitable nature of the territory.
Semantic Range
wilderness, desert, deserted place, waste, desolate tract, arid region, (as a proper noun) a specific wasteland area
Root / Etymology
Derived from the root יָשַׁם (y-sh-m), meaning 'to be desolate,' 'to be deserted,' or 'to be laid waste.' The form is a feminine noun construction, with the -ah ending, commonly used for place names.
Historical & Contextual Notes
יְשִׁימַה (Yeshimah) appears as a geographical place name (e.g., Deuteronomy 32:10; Psalm 68:8 [7]) referencing an uninhabited desert or a deserted tract rather than a place struck by catastrophe or destruction. The name identifies a literal location characterized by its emptiness or lack of settlement, rather than any specifically negative event. While later English translations sometimes render related words as 'desolation,' the biblical context points more to physical geography than to judgment or ruin. Distinct from related root nouns like שְׁמָמָה (shemamah, 'wasteland'), יְשִׁימַה stresses place identity over adjectival quality. In later Hebrew and translation traditions, such terms were sometimes generalized for any wasteland, but in the Hebrew Bible, they function as specific toponyms. There is no evidence for the translation or interpretation 'let death seize' directly from this term (that phrase stems from a different Hebrew idiom and is only a marginal KJV note, not a core lexical meaning).
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
from יָשַׁם; desolation; let death seize (from the margin).
Bantu Hebrew
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ישם (y-sh-m) — to be desolate, to become deserted, to be waste
Word Forms
1 distinct form
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H3451-01 |
ישימות | yshymvt | HNcfpa |
death-dealings | desolate wastelands | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
1 total occurrence
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H3451-01 |
Psalms 55:16 | ישימות | yshymvt | HNcfpa |
death-dealings | desolate wastelands |