Original Word: לָאַט
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: la'at
Pronunciation: lah-at
Phonetic Spelling: (law-at')
KJV: cover
NASB: covered
Word Origin: [a primitive root]

1. to muffle

cover

A primitive root; to muffle -- cover.

Word Origin
a prim. root
Definition
to cover
NASB Translation
covered (1).

לָאַט verb cover, only

Qal Perfect3masculine singular אֶתמָּֿנָיו ׳וְהַמֶּלֶךְ ל 2 Samuel 19:5, read perhaps לָאט, from לוּט We Dr Bu.

Semantic Scope and Nuance

לָאַט depicts an intentional act of concealing or muffling. In its one canonical appearance the idea is not casual; it conveys a deliberate, emotionally charged covering that hides the face from view and places the mourner momentarily outside ordinary social interaction.

Canonical Occurrence: 2 Samuel 19:4

“But the king covered his face and cried aloud, ‘O my son Absalom! O Absalom, my son, my son!’” (Berean Standard Bible).

Here the verb describes David’s drawing of his robe or cloak over his face as he ascends to the city gate. The gesture dramatizes grief, signals withdrawal from royal visibility, and visually portrays the weight of paternal anguish.

Historical and Cultural Setting

1. Mourning Etiquette. Ancient Near Eastern mourners often veiled themselves, sat in dust, or tore garments. Covering the face shielded tears from public gaze and marked a transition from normal life to lamentation.
2. Royal Conduct. A reigning monarch was expected to project stability; David’s action subverts royal decorum, highlighting the depth of his sorrow and the narrative tension between private pain and public duty.

Literary Function in the Davidic Narrative

• Contrast with Joab. Immediately following David’s covering, Joab confronts the king (2 Samuel 19:5-7), exposing the conflict between personal emotion and covenantal responsibility to the nation.
• Foreshadowing Restoration. David’s hidden face precedes reconciliation with the tribes, paralleling the conceal-then-reveal motif that culminates in his restored kingship.

Theological Significance

1. Sin, Shame, and Covering. David’s mourning echoes the first act of covering in Genesis 3:7, linking sin’s consequences with the instinct to hide. Though different Hebrew roots are used, the conceptual overlap clarifies humanity’s need for divine atonement, the ultimate “covering” provided in Christ (Psalm 32:1; Romans 4:7).
2. Kingship under God’s Discipline. David grieves not only a son but the ramifications of his earlier sin (2 Samuel 12:10-12). The concealed face demonstrates that even an anointed king must bow beneath God’s corrective hand.
3. Messianic Resonance. David’s covered face anticipates the suffering of the greater Son of David, who “was despised and rejected by men, a Man of sorrows” (Isaiah 53:3). The motif of hiding underscores the mystery that the Messiah’s glory is first veiled in humiliation before being revealed in resurrection.

Pastoral and Ministry Insights

• Validity of Visible Grief. David’s example legitimizes overt lament within faith communities. The church need not suppress sorrow; rather, it processes grief in the hope of eventual consolation (Matthew 5:4).
• Balancing Emotion and Responsibility. Leaders cannot indefinitely mask themselves from duty. David’s eventual emergence models the movement from private pain to public service through God’s enabling grace.
• Intercession for the Wayward. David’s wail over a rebellious child mirrors parental anguish today. His account invites persistent prayer that prodigals might return before it is too late (Luke 15:20).

Related Biblical Themes

Concealment and Revelation – Judges 6:12-14; Luke 24:16, 31

Veiled Glory – Exodus 34:33-35; 2 Corinthians 3:13-16

Mourning Turned to Joy – Psalm 30:11; Revelation 21:4

Summary

לָאַט appears only once, yet it powerfully illumines the dynamics of sorrow, shame, and hope in the life of Israel’s king. David’s covered face points backward to humanity’s first concealment and forward to the unveiled glory of redemption, assuring believers that every season of hidden grief finds its resolution in the God who both sees and restores.

לָאַ֣ט לאט lā’aṭ lā·’aṭ laAtInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts