Original Word: דָּלַל
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: dalal
Pronunciation: dah-LAHL
Phonetic Spelling: (daw-lal')
KJV: bring low, dry up, be emptied, be not equal, fail, be impoverished, be made thin
NASB: brought low, brought low, fade, hang, look wistfully, thin
Word Origin: [a primitive root]

1. to slacken or be feeble
2. (figuratively) to be oppressed

bring low, dry up, be emptied, be not equal, fail, be impoverished, be made thin

A primitive root (compare dalah); to slacken or be feeble; figuratively, to be oppressed -- bring low, dry up, be emptied, be not equal, fail, be impoverished, be made thin.

see HEBREW dalah

Word Origin
a prim. root
Definition
to hang, be low, languish
NASB Translation
brought low (1), brought...low (3), fade (1), hang (1), look wistfully (1), thin (1).

דָּלַל verb hang, be low, languish (Late Hebrew Hiph`il thin, thin out vines, etc.; Assyrian dalâlu, be weak, humble Zim^{Bp 74. 97}; Arabic direct, guide, , be directed, guided; put in motion, commotion; be in motion, hang, dangle; also amorous, coquettish, gesture or behaviour of women) —

Qal Perfect דֵּלֹּתִי Psalm 116:6, דַּלּוֺתִי Psalm 142:7; 1plural דַּלּוֺנוּ Psalm 79:8, דָּֽלֲלוּ Isaiah 19:6, דַּלּוּ Isaiah 38:14; Job 28:4 (on דַּלְיוּ Proverbs 26:7 compare דָּלָה); — hang, 'depend', Job 28:4 (of one descending a miner's shaft "" נָעוּ); be low, of streams Isaiah 19:6 ("" חָֽרְבוּ); be low, brought low, metaphor of distress Psalm 79:8; Psalm 116:6; Psalm 142:7; languish, of eyes, look languishingly (Che) Isaiah 38:14. —

Niph`al Imperfect יִדַּל Isaiah 17:4, וַיִּדַּל Judges 6:6, — be brought low, laid low, Judges 6:6 figurative of Israel; Isaiah 17:4 of glory of Jacob.

Range of Meaning and Imagery

דָּלַל paints pictures of something once full that has been emptied, once strong that has now sagged, once flourishing that now hangs limp. The word is applied to a clan ground down by foreign raiders (Judges 6:6), to a Nile delta whose channels waste away (Isaiah 19:6), to legs that dangle uselessly beneath a lame man (Proverbs 26:7), and even to eyes that grow dim in sickness (Isaiah 38:14). Whether the focus is on a nation, a body, or a proverb, the common note is depletion and loss of vigor.

National Humiliation and Collective Poverty

1. Midianite oppression: “So Israel was greatly impoverished by Midian, and the Israelites cried out to the LORD” (Judges 6:6). What began as agricultural plunder quickly became spiritual crisis; Israel’s emptiness drove her back to covenant dependence.
2. Prophetic judgment on Jacob: “The splendor of Jacob will fade, and the fatness of his body will waste away” (Isaiah 17:4). The fading glory is a divine response to pride and misplaced alliances.
3. Ecological collapse of Egypt: “The canals will stink; the streams of Egypt will dwindle and dry up” (Isaiah 19:6). Political upheaval is mirrored in environmental decay, reminding readers that creation itself is affected by human rebellion.

Personal Affliction and Helplessness

1. Penitential lament: “Do not hold past sins against us…for we are brought very low” (Psalm 79:8). Moral guilt is felt as spiritual impoverishment that only divine compassion can reverse.
2. Individual testimony: “The LORD preserves the simplehearted; I was helpless, and He saved me” (Psalm 116:6). When weakness is confessed, rescue is experienced.
3. Cave of Adullam prayer: “Listen to my cry, for I am brought very low. Deliver me from my pursuers” (Psalm 142:6). The king-in-waiting realizes that an emptied man is exactly the kind of man God can fill.
4. Sickroom plea: “My eyes grow weary looking upward. O Lord, I am oppressed; be my security” (Isaiah 38:14). Hezekiah’s fading sight becomes the context for renewed vision of God’s faithfulness.

Practical Illustration of Futility

“Like lame legs hanging limp is a proverb in the mouth of a fool” (Proverbs 26:7). Wisdom statements, though intrinsically strong, lose traction when carried by an untransformed speaker. The image warns teachers and preachers that moral authority must match verbal content.

Poetic Description of Risk and Vulnerability

“Far from human habitation…they sway and dangle” (Job 28:4). Miners suspended over an abyss embody utter dependence—an apt metaphor for human quest apart from divine wisdom.

Theological and Ministry Significance

1. God responds to lowliness. Each usage that records prayer also records divine intervention; depletion becomes a stage for deliverance.
2. Decline is often covenantal. National uses of דָּלַל occur in passages that link weakness to idolatry or arrogance.
3. Lowliness foreshadows the Messiah. The Servant’s voluntary humiliation (Philippians 2:6-8) resonates with Israel’s involuntary one, stressing that redemption comes through the path of descent before exaltation.
4. Pastoral application:
• Encourage confession—spiritual poverty acknowledged is grace received.
• Confront pride—unchecked self-reliance invites divine thinning.
• Offer hope—the word never appears without a potential reversal, pointing to God’s steadfast love.

Summary

דָּלַל traces a consistent biblical pattern: when people, nations, or circumstances are reduced, the LORD stands ready to restore. Recognizing and embracing that low point is the first step toward renewal.

דַּ֖לּוּ דַּ֝לּוֹתִ֗י דַּלְי֣וּ דַּלּ֤וּ דַלּ֣וֹנוּ דַלּ֪וֹתִ֫י דָּלֲל֥וּ דלו דלונו דלותי דליו דללו וַיִּדַּ֧ל וידל יִדַּ֖ל ידל dā·lă·lū ḏal·lō·w·nū dal·lō·w·ṯî ḏal·lō·w·ṯî dal·lū dal·yū dalaLu dālălū dalLonu dalloTi ḏallōwnū dallōwṯî ḏallōwṯî Dallu dallū dalYu dalyū vaiyidDal way·yid·dal wayyiddal yid·dal yiddalInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts