Original Word: חֹרֶב
Part of Speech: Noun Masculine
Transliteration: choreb
Pronunciation: kho-reb'
Phonetic Spelling: (kho'-reb)
KJV: desolation, drought, dry, heat, X utterly, waste
Word Origin: [a collaterally form of H2719 (חֶרֶב - sword)]

1. drought or desolation

desolation, drought, dry, heat, utterly, waste

A collaterally form of chereb; drought or desolation -- desolation, drought, dry, heat, X utterly, waste.

see HEBREW chereb

I. חֹ֫רֶב noun masculine^{Genesis 31:40} dryness, drought, heat, absolute ׳ח Genesis 31:40 11t. + Deuteronomy 28:22 (for ᵑ0 חֶרֶב; see Di, followed by ᵑ9; ᵐ5 and ᵐ5^L omitted); —

1 dryness Judges 6:37,39,40 (all of absence of dew); Jeremiah 50:38 ("" יָבֵשׁ); so read also Zechariah 11:17 (for ᵑ0 חֶרֶב, see v^{b and} Sta^{ZAW i. 1881, 29}), a drying up upon his arm (i.e. a withering) and upon his right eye.

2 drought Haggai 1:11 + Deuteronomy 28:22 see above

3 parching heat (of sun) Genesis 31:40 (opposed to קֶ֫רַח), Jeremiah 36:30 (opposed to id.); Isaiah 4:6; Isaiah 25:4,5 (twice in verse); of fever Job 30:30.

II. חֹ֫רֶב noun [masculine] desolation; — ׳עָרֵי ח Isaiah 61:4 cities of desolation ("" שֹׁמֲמוֺת, and, in v^a, חָרְבוֺת); compare Zephaniah 2:14 (but read עֹרֵב, ᵐ5 We and others); Jeremiah 49:13, and ׳מִצְרַיִם חָרְבוֺת ח Ezekiel 29:10 Egypt shall be wastes of desolation (but ᵐ5 ᵑ9 Co wastes of the sword, חֶרֶב for חֹרֶב); + Ezekiel 38:8 Co, who reads מֵחֹרֶב (or מֵחָרְבָּה).

Range and Nuance of the Term

חֹרֶב depicts the scorching heat, parching drought, and stark desolation familiar to the Ancient Near East. Scripture employs it both literally and figuratively—describing oppressive weather, debilitating thirst, economic ruin, and the moral vacuum left when God’s favor is withdrawn.

Physical Heat and Human Hardship

Genesis 31:40 records Jacob’s complaint to Laban: “By day the heat consumed me, and the frost by night.” The word evokes relentless, body-sapping labor under an unforgiving sun. Job employs the same term to describe his wasting sickness: “My skin turns black and peels; my bones burn with fever” (Job 30:30). In both cases חֹרֶב highlights human frailty and the costliness of survival apart from divine intervention.

Miraculous Dryness as Divine Confirmation

Gideon’s fleece test (Judges 6:37, 6:39-40) turns חֹרֶב into a sign of God’s personal engagement. First the ground is dry while the fleece is soaked; then the conditions reverse, proving that heaven’s sovereign hand can suspend or apply natural processes at will. The scene reassures fearful servants that the Lord’s word is certain even when circumstances appear severe.

Heat as Metaphor for Social Oppression

Isaiah likens ruthless aggression to desert heat: “For You have been a refuge for the poor… a shade from the heat. For the breath of the ruthless is like a storm against a wall” (Isaiah 25:4). Here חֹרֶב symbolizes political tyranny; relief comes only when God Himself stands between the vulnerable and the oppressor.

Divine Protection and Shade

Against that backdrop, Isaiah 4:6 promises a Messianic shelter: “It will be a shelter from the heat by day, a refuge and hiding place from the storm and rain.” The same term that describes lethal conditions becomes a backdrop for gracious protection. God not only withholds harm; He provides rest in the very realm where danger once reigned.

Drought as Judicial Act

National sin invites literal drought. The Lord declares over Babylon, “A drought is upon her waters, and they will be dried up” (Jeremiah 50:38). Haggai 1:11 echoes the principle when post-exilic Israel neglects the temple: “I have called for a drought on the land and the mountains.” חֹרֶב functions as a covenant lawsuit—visible proof that heaven’s moral order still governs the earth.

Desolation of Cities and Nations

The word broadens to urban ruin: “They will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations” (Isaiah 61:4). Edom (Jeremiah 49:13), Egypt (Ezekiel 29:10), Nineveh (Zephaniah 2:14), and Babylon all become object lessons that unrepentant culture ends in חֹרֶב—emptiness fit only for desert creatures.

Prophetic and Eschatological Hope

Even so, the prophets couple devastation with promised restoration. The God who ordains drought also pledges to rebuild “ancient ruins” and turn wastelands into fruitful gardens. Thus חֹרֶב underscores both the severity of judgment and the wonder of renewal when repentance meets mercy.

Ministry Implications

1. Spiritual Diagnosis: Persistent dryness in worship, family, or congregation may signal neglected obedience, as in Haggai’s day.
2. Assurance in Trial: Gideon’s fleece reminds believers that God can carve out pockets of grace amid surrounding barrenness.
3. Compassionate Outreach: Awareness of social “heat” should galvanize the church to provide shade—practical relief and gospel hope—for those scorched by oppression or poverty.
4. Preaching Christ: Isaiah’s shelter finds ultimate expression in Jesus Christ, who invites “all who are thirsty” to come to Him and drink, ending the deepest drought of the soul.

Christological Perspective

Jesus endures the full blast of covenant curse—“I thirst” (John 19:28)—so that His people might dwell under everlasting shade. At Pentecost the Spirit is poured out like refreshing dew, reversing the curse of חֹרֶב and inaugurating the green pastures of the new creation.

Summary

חֹרֶב ties together the literal heat of arid lands, the figurative heat of oppression, and the judicial drought of divine displeasure. Yet every bleak horizon points beyond itself to the Lord who shields, restores, and finally eliminates all desolation through the redemptive work of His Anointed.

חֹ֔רֶב חֹ֖רֶב חֹ֚רֶב חֹ֜רֶב חֹ֣רֶב חֹ֤רֶב חֹ֥רֶב חֹֽרֶב׃ חרב חרב׃ כְּחֹ֣רֶב כחרב לְחֹ֥רֶב לַחֹ֥רֶב לחרב מֵחֹ֑רֶב מֵחֹ֔רֶב מחרב Chorev ḥō·reḇ ḥōreḇ kə·ḥō·reḇ keChorev kəḥōreḇ la·ḥō·reḇ laChorev laḥōreḇ lə·ḥō·reḇ leChorev ləḥōreḇ mê·ḥō·reḇ meChorev mêḥōreḇInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts