Original Word: שָׁדַף
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: shadaph
Pronunciation: shah-daf'
Phonetic Spelling: (shaw-daf')
KJV: blast
NASB: scorched
Word Origin: [a primitive root]

1. to scorch

blast

A primitive root; to scorch -- blast.

Word Origin
a prim. root
Definition
to scorch, blight
NASB Translation
scorched (3).

[שְׁדַף] verb scorch, blight (Late Hebrew id.; Niph`al, Hithpa`el be blighted; Jewish-Aramaic שְׁדַף Ithpe`el burn (up); Arabic IV. be dark); —

Qal Passive participle construct, of ears of grain, שְׁדוּפֹת קָדִים Genesis 41:6 scorched by a sirocco, so ׳שְׁדֻפוֺת ק Genesis 41:23, ׳הַקּ ׳שׁ Genesis 41:27 (all E).

Overview

Shādaph appears three times in Scripture, each within Joseph’s recounting of Pharaoh’s two dreams (Genesis 41). The verb paints a vivid picture of grain that has been “scorched” or “blighted,” conveying sudden destruction of otherwise healthy produce. Though confined to a single narrative, the word anchors a cluster of truths about divine sovereignty, agricultural fragility, and the wisdom that flows from fearing the Lord.

Agricultural and Historical Setting

Egypt’s agrarian economy depended on predictable Nile inundations and gentle winds from the Mediterranean. The “east wind” (Genesis 41:6) blew from the Arabian desert, arriving hot, dry, and abrasive—an atmospheric furnace that could desiccate standing crops in hours. Ancient farmers had no irrigation technology to reverse such calamity. Thus, shādaph spoke immediately to Pharaoh’s court: after abundance could come an equally rapid depletion, utterly beyond human control. The historical memory of periodic Nile failure (attested in Egyptian inscriptions) heightens the plausibility of Joseph’s warning and underscores the realism of the biblical account.

Canonical Context

• Genesis 41:6 — “After them, seven heads of grain sprouted, thin and scorched by the east wind.”
• Genesis 41:23 — “Then behold, seven heads of grain, withered, thin, and scorched by the east wind, sprouted after them.”
• Genesis 41:27 — “The seven thin and scorched heads of grain represent seven years of famine.”

The repetition dramatizes the certainty of the coming famine. The Hebrew storyteller piles parallel phrases so that the audience feels the relentless approach of loss. Joseph’s inspired interpretation links the literal scorching of grain to economic collapse, social upheaval, and potential national ruin.

Theological Themes

1. Sovereign Warning and Provision

Shādaph signals both judgment and mercy. God reveals the impending “scorching” so that Egypt—and indirectly Jacob’s family—might prepare. The same God who allows the scorching also provides the interpretive key and the administrative genius to survive it (Genesis 41:39–40). The word thus serves a dual function: exposing human impotence and highlighting divine faithfulness.

2. The Fleeting Nature of Human Prosperity

Pharaoh’s dreams juxtapose lush stalks with shriveled ones to illustrate how swiftly abundance can evaporate. Scripture elsewhere echoes this agricultural metaphor for human life (Psalm 103:15–16; Isaiah 40:7–8). Shādaph therefore contributes to the broader biblical motif of withering grass, calling every generation to humble dependence on the Lord.

3. Covenant Preservation

Joseph’s rise safeguards the line of promise first given to Abraham (Genesis 12:3). The verb’s placement at the story’s hinge moment emphasizes how God employs even destructive forces to advance covenant purposes. The scorching that threatens Egypt ultimately relocates Israel to Goshen, setting the stage for the Exodus.

Typological and Prophetic Significance

The blighted grain prefigures later prophetic warnings. When Amos speaks of the Lord withholding rain and blasting crops (Amos 4:9), he likely draws on the collective memory of events such as Joseph’s famine. In typology, shādaph points forward to eschatological judgments depicted in Revelation, where a third of the earth’s vegetation is “burned up” (Revelation 8:7). Yet as in Genesis, judgment is accompanied by a call to repentance and the promise of deliverance for those who heed God’s Word.

Practical Ministry Applications

• Stewardship and Planning

Joseph’s example legitimizes prudent foresight. Churches and families may store not only physical resources but also theological and relational capital, preparing to serve neighbors when hardship strikes.

• Teaching on Suffering

The scorching wind was not random; it served a redemptive agenda. Pastoral care can reframe personal loss within God’s larger story, assuring believers that affliction never escapes His governance.

• Evangelistic Bridge

Modern audiences resonate with economic instability and environmental threat. The motif of scorched grain opens conversations about security that only Christ ultimately supplies (John 6:35).

Related Concepts

Dryness and Withering — Depictions of spiritual barrenness (Jeremiah 17:6) mirror the literal scorching of crops.

East Wind — Often an instrument of judgment (Exodus 10:13; Jonah 4:8), it reinforces the association between natural phenomena and divine intent.

Famine — A recurring covenant sanction (Leviticus 26:26), famine frames shādaph within a theology of blessings and curses.

Shādaph thus transcends its brief lexical footprint, illuminating God’s providence over nature, nations, and salvation history.

וּשְׁדוּפֹ֣ת ושדופת שְׁדֻפ֖וֹת שְׁדֻפ֣וֹת שדפות šə·ḏu·p̄ō·wṯ šəḏup̄ōwṯ sheduFot ū·šə·ḏū·p̄ōṯ ūšəḏūp̄ōṯ usheduFotInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts