Original Word: לָטַשׁ
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: latash
Pronunciation: lah-tash
Phonetic Spelling: (law-tash')
KJV: instructer, sharp(-en), whet
NASB: sharpen, forger, sharp
Word Origin: [a primitive root]

1. (properly) to hammer out (an edge), i.e. to sharpen

instructor, sharpen, whet

A primitive root; properly, to hammer out (an edge), i.e. To sharpen -- instructer, sharp(-en), whet.

Word Origin
a prim. root
Definition
to hammer, sharpen, whet
NASB Translation
forger (1), glares* (1), sharp (1), sharpen (2).

[לָטַשׁ] verb hammer, sharpen, whet (Late Hebrew id., hammer, tap; Aramaic לְטַשׁ, sharpen; Arabic strike, tap); —

Qal Imperfect יִלְטוֺשׁ Job 16:9; Psalm 7:13; Infinitive construct לֵלְטוֺשׁ 1 Samuel 13:20; Participle לֹטֵשׁ; —

1 hammer, only Participle = hammerer followed by כָּלתֹֿרֵשׁ Genesis 4:22 (J).

2 sharpen sword חֶרֶב (accusative) Psalm 7:13; compare 1 Samuel 13:20, object מַחֲרֶשֶׁת, אֵת, קַרְדֹּם, מַחֲרֵשָׁה; figurative עֵינַיִם לִי ׳ל Job 16:9 my foe whets his eye for me

Pu`al Participle תַּעַר מְלֻטָּשׁ Psalm 52:4 a sharpened razor (in simile of evil tongue).

Essential Concept

Latash portrays the deliberate act of putting an edge on metal or intent on hostility. Whether applied to bronze implements, plowshares, swords, eyes, or a deceitful tongue, the term always carries the idea of purposeful preparation—an object or person is being fitted for effective impact, either constructive or destructive.

Occurrences and Contexts

1. Genesis 4:22 – Tubal-cain “was the forger of every tool of bronze and iron.” The verb introduces humanity’s first metalworker, linking Latash with cultural development and the stewardship of creation.
2. 1 Samuel 13:20 – Israelite farmers “went down to the Philistines… to have his plowshare, mattock, axe, or sickle sharpened.” Latash exposes political subjugation; agricultural life literally depended on foreign smiths.
3. Job 16:9 – Job laments, “My adversary sharpens his eyes upon me.” The edge is now metaphorical, describing relentless scrutiny that wounds the soul.
4. Psalm 7:12 – “God will sharpen His sword; He has bent and strung His bow.” Divine judgment is pictured as a honed blade, emphasizing certainty and precision.
5. Psalm 52:2 – “Your tongue devises destruction like a sharpened razor, O worker of deceit.” Latash warns that speech, like steel, can be honed for injury.

Historical Insights

• Genesis 4:22 locates Latash at the dawn of metallurgy, underscoring the Creator’s endowment of ingenuity.
• In the early Iron Age, Philistine control of blacksmithing (1 Samuel 13) limited Israel’s capacity for both agriculture and war, dramatizing the cost of spiritual compromise and foreign domination (compare Judges 2:2-3).
• The psalmic uses assume familiarity with Near-Eastern warfare, where swords were repeatedly whetted before battle. The image would evoke the audible scrape of stone on iron, a visceral reminder of impending conflict.

Theological Themes

Sharpening for Righteousness versus Sharpening for Evil
• Latash may equip tools that bless the earth (Genesis 4) or weapons that execute justice (Psalm 7). Conversely, it may hone hostility (Job 16) and deceit (Psalm 52). Scripture thereby affirms moral polarity: the same skill can be sanctified for God’s purposes or perverted by sin.

Divine Readiness to Judge
• Psalm 7:12 reveals a God who does not react impulsively but prepares His sword. Judgment is neither haphazard nor avoidable; it is the measured outcome of unrepentant wickedness (Psalm 7:11-13).

The Power of the Tongue
• Psalm 52:2 connects Latash to speech, anticipating New-Testament warnings about the tongue’s destructive potential (James 3:5-8). Sharpened words can pierce deeper than blades, demanding redeemed communication (Ephesians 4:29).

Christological Reflections

• The motif of a honed weapon finds ultimate fulfillment in the Messiah whose “mouth is like a sharp sword” (Isaiah 49:2), echoed in Revelation 19:15. The sharpened judgment once threatened against sinners falls upon Christ at the cross, while His word now cuts to heal and convert (Hebrews 4:12).

Ministry Implications

Sharpen Your Tools – Believers are exhorted to hone spiritual disciplines so that service is neither dull nor ineffective (2 Timothy 2:15).

Sharpen One Another – Proverbs 27:17 reminds the church that mutual exhortation is God’s whetstone for holiness.

Hone the Tongue for Grace – Having seen the razor-like danger of speech, Christians are to surrender their words to the Spirit for edification, truth, and gospel witness.

Prepare for Battle – Just as God sharpens His sword, the church must daily take up “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Ephesians 6:17), confident that a well-honed gospel cuts through deception and unbelief.

Summary

Latash is more than an ancient metalworking term; it is a window into the purposeful edge that God, humanity, and even sin can wield. Its five appearances form a coherent testimony: everything that is sharpened will serve a master—either for creation’s good, judgment’s certainty, or evil’s deceit. The call is to submit every tool, skill, and word to the Lord who alone sharpens for righteousness.

יִלְט֑וֹשׁ יִלְט֖וֹשׁ ילטוש לִ֠לְטוֹשׁ לֹטֵ֕שׁ לטש ללטוש מְ֝לֻטָּ֗שׁ מלטש lil·ṭō·wōš Liltoosh lilṭōwōš lō·ṭêš lōṭêš loTesh mə·luṭ·ṭāš məluṭṭāš melutTash yil·ṭō·wōš yilToosh yilṭōwōšInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts