Original Word: פָלַח
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: palach
Pronunciation: pah-lakh'
Phonetic Spelling: (paw-lakh')
KJV: bring forth, cleave, cut, shred, strike through
NASB: bring forth, pierces through, plows, sliced, splits my open
Word Origin: [a primitive root]

1. to slice, i.e. break open or pierce

bring forth, cleave, cut, shred, strike through

A primitive root; to slice, i.e. Break open or pierce -- bring forth, cleave, cut, shred, strike through.

Word Origin
a prim. root
Definition
to cleave
NASB Translation
bring forth (1), pierces through (1), plows (1), sliced (1), splits my open (1).

[מָּלַח] verb cleave (Arabic cleave; Aramaic מְּלַח (usually),, are till, work, serve [=עָבַד]); —

Qal Participle מֹּלֵחַ Psalm 141:7 of cleaving, ploughing, בָּאָרֶץ ("" בקע).

Pi`el Imperfect

1 cleave open, through, 3 masculine singular יְפַלַּח of piercing kidneys Job 16:13, liver Proverbs 7:23 (both figurative); וַיְּפַלַּח אֶל 2 Kings 4:39 of cutting up (fruit) into pot.

2 cause to cleave open, 3 feminine plural יַלְדֵיהֶן תְּפַלַּחְנָה Job 39:3 of animals bringing forth young; read perhaps תְּפַלַּטְנָה (Job 21:10).

Overview of Meaning and Semantic Range

פָלַח (palach) depicts the action of forcing something apart—whether by cutting, cleaving, plowing, piercing, or delivering from constraint. In its five Old Testament occurrences the verb moves fluidly between agricultural labor, violent wounding, and the relief of travail, portraying both the constructive and destructive power of an incisive stroke.

Occurrences in Scripture

• 2 Kings 4:39 – the servant “sliced” wild gourds into Elisha’s stew, illustrating careless incision that nearly produced death.
• Job 16:13 – Job laments, “He pierces my kidneys without mercy”, using palach to frame his anguish as a mortal rending.
• Job 39:3 – in birth imagery, wild goats “deliver their newborn,” the verb describing the ripping release that ends labor pains.
• Psalm 141:7 – David pictures himself as soil: “As when one plows and breaks up the earth, so our bones have been scattered at the mouth of Sheol”.
• Proverbs 7:23 – the doomed youth feels sin’s cost “till an arrow pierces his liver”, the ultimate fatal gash.

Theological Themes

1. Divine Incision and Human Suffering

Job’s complaints admit that the Lord who “pierces” also preserves; affliction is not random but permitted for refinement (Job 23:10). Palach therefore contributes to the theology of sanctified suffering, portraying pain as purposeful surgery in the hands of a sovereign God.

2. Conviction and Judgment

Proverbs 7:23 warns that unchecked lust ends in a sudden, irreversible thrust. Palach stands as a graphic emblem of judgment that falls swiftly when wisdom is spurned (compare Hebrews 4:12, where the Word “pierces” heart and marrow).

3. Preparation for Fruitfulness

Psalm 141:7 converts the violent image into agricultural hope: plowing shatters hard ground so seed can germinate. Spiritually, the Lord plows lives to open them to righteousness (Hosea 10:12).

4. Deliverance through Pain

Job 39:3 equates palach with childbirth, reminding readers that agony often precedes life. The motif echoes through Romans 8:22–23, where creation’s groaning anticipates redemption.

Historical and Cultural Context

Ancient Near-Eastern plows were nothing more than a sharpened piece of wood or metal point that split the soil. The same implements could become weapons, blurring lines between farming and warfare (cf. Judges 3:31). Palach reflects this overlap: the verb’s agricultural birthplace spills naturally into martial and medical arenas. Readers in Israel’s agrarian society would feel the visceral force of a cut that separates—the soil, the body, even the soul.

Practical Ministry Insights

• Discernment in Service: The servant of 2 Kings 4:39 acted zealously but without knowledge; modern ministry likewise must test every “gourd” before adding it to the congregation’s pot (1 Thessalonians 5:21).
• Pastoral Care in Suffering: Job 16:13 legitimizes honest lament, yet Job’s faith endures. Comforters today should allow lament while directing sufferers toward confident hope.
• Discipleship and Moral Warning: Proverbs 7:23’s piercing arrow remains a vivid tool for warning youth that sin’s pleasure conceals lethal consequences.

Christological and New Testament Connections

The piercing theme finds its climax at Calvary: “They will look on Him whom they have pierced” (John 19:37). Jesus endures the ultimate palach so believers may be delivered (palach of Job 39:3) from wrath. His side opened becomes the fountain of cleansing (Zechariah 13:1).

Reflection and Application

Scripture’s consistent witness shows that the Lord’s incisions—whether in field, flesh, or spirit—are never aimless. He plows to plant, pierces to purify, and rends in order to release. The wise heart submits to the Divine Farmer, trusting that every stroke will, in time, yield “the peaceful fruit of righteousness” (Hebrews 12:11).

וַיְפַלַּ֛ח ויפלח יְפַלַּ֣ח יְפַלַּ֪ח יפלח פֹלֵ֣חַ פלח תְּפַלַּ֑חְנָה תפלחנה foLeach p̄ō·lê·aḥ p̄ōlêaḥ tə·p̄al·laḥ·nāh tefalLachnah təp̄allaḥnāh vayfalLach way·p̄al·laḥ wayp̄allaḥ yə·p̄al·laḥ yefalLach yəp̄allaḥInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts