Original Word: שׁוֹא
Part of Speech: noun masculine; noun feminine
Transliteration: show'
Pronunciation: sho
Phonetic Spelling: (sho)
KJV: desolate(-ion), destroy, destruction, storm, wasteness
NASB: ravages
Word Origin: [from an unused root meaning to rush over]

1. a tempest
2. (by implication) devastation

desolation, destroy, destruction, storm, wasteness

Or (feminine) showtah {sho-aw'}; or shoah {sho-aw'}; from an unused root meaning to rush over; a tempest; by implication, devastation -- desolate(-ion), destroy, destruction, storm, wasteness.

Word Origin
from an unused word
Definition
perhaps a ravage
NASB Translation
ravages (1).

[שׁוֺא] noun [masculine] ravage (?); — plural suffix שֹׁאֵיהֶם Psalm 35:17 rescue me from their ravages (si vera lectio); ᵐ5 κακουργία; Ol Dy Gr Che^{Comm. plausibly} שַׁאֲגָם their roaring, compare Psalm 35:16; Psalm 35:17 c; We Du שֹׁאֲגִים.

שׁוֺאָה, שֹׁאָה noun feminine devastation, ruin, waste; — absolute ׳שׁו Isaiah 10:3 +, שֹׁאָה Isaiah 47:11; Zephaniah 1:15; Job 30:14 (+ Job 38:27 van d. H. Gi, but see Baer's note); construct שֹׁאַת Proverbs 3:25; —

1 devastation, ruin, as coming on person, Isaiah 10:3; Isaiah 47:11 (Babylon personified), Psalm 35:8; a Psalm 63:10; שֹׁאַת רְשָׁעִים Proverbs 3:25 (object Genitive; "" מַּחַד); וּמְשׁוֺאָה ׳(יוֺם)שׁ Zephaniah 1:15; probably = devastating storm, in simile Ezekiel 38:9 ("" עָנָן), Proverbs 1:27 (Qr; Kt שׁאוה; "" סוּפָה). — Psalm 35:8b read probably שַׁחְתֹּה his pit, ᵑ6 We (compare Psalm 35:7).

2 concretely, ruin, waste, of the desert, Job 30:3 (reading אֶרֶץ for אֶמֶשׁ Ol; otherwise below

1), וּמְשׁוֺאָה ׳שׁ Job 38:27 ("" מִדְבָּר Job 38:26); = ruins Job 30:14.

Scope and Essence

The Hebrew noun שׁוֹא (Strong’s 7722) paints a picture of overwhelming devastation—whether expressed as barren wastes, military onslaughts, crushing calamity, or the cosmic turmoil of the Day of the LORD. Across its twelve appearances, the word uniformly signals the collapse of human security before the irresistible purposes of God.

Desert Barreness and Physical Ruin (Job 30:3; Job 38:27)

In the speeches of Job, שׁוֹא is tied to literal desolation. The outcasts who haunt “the parched wasteland in desolation and ruin” (Job 30:3) embody a physical landscape abandoned of life. Yet the Creator declares His sovereignty even here, watering “the wasteland and desolate land to make it sprout with tender grass” (Job 38:27). The term therefore underscores both the reality of utter barrenness and the Lord’s power to reverse it.

Breach and Collapse in Human Conflict (Job 30:14)

Job likens his adversaries to an army that breaks through a wall: “They advance as through a wide breach; amid the ruins they roll on.” שׁוֹא evokes the rubble left behind after defenses crumble, capturing the helplessness of one overwhelmed by hostile forces. It anticipates later prophetic scenes where divine judgment breaches the fortifications of nations.

Sudden Personal Calamity (Psalm 35:8, 17; Psalm 63:9; Proverbs 3:25)

David prays, “May ruin overtake them by surprise” (Psalm 35:8), revealing שׁוֹא as a stealthy foe that arrives without warning. The righteous, however, are told: “Do not fear sudden danger or the ruin that overtakes the wicked” (Proverbs 3:25). The word thus functions pastorally—warning evildoers of the certainty of retribution, while consoling believers that no catastrophe escapes God’s providence.

National Judgment and Moral Accountability (Isaiah 10:3; Isaiah 47:11)

Isaiah projects שׁוֹא onto geopolitical stage lights. “What will you do on the day of visitation, in the desolation that will come from afar?” (Isaiah 10:3). Centuries of Assyrian and Babylonian aggressions validate the prophecy: empires that weaponize oppression meet the same ruin they inflict. Isaiah 47:11 intensifies the theme—“disaster will befall you… devastation will happen suddenly and unexpectedly.” Here שׁוֹא is not random misfortune but God-orchestrated recompense.

Apocalyptic Tempest (Ezekiel 38:9; Zephaniah 1:15)

Ezekiel pictures Gog’s hordes sweeping over Israel “like a storm” (Ezekiel 38:9), an eschatological שׁוֹא that provokes divine intervention. Zephaniah amplifies: “a day of destruction and desolation” (Zephaniah 1:15). The term links the localized ruins of Job and David to the climactic upheaval preceding the Messianic kingdom, asserting the consistency of God’s dealings from individual lives to world history.

Theological Threads

1. Divine Sovereignty. Every occurrence assigns the timing and extent of שׁוֹא to the LORD. Even when human agents initiate violence, their success and their downfall remain under His hand.
2. Moral Certainty. The ruin never strikes the righteous as punishment; it targets pride, violence, and idolatry. Thus שׁוֹא is an instrument of retributive justice.
3. Redemption Beyond Devastation. Job 38:27 shows God turning wasteland into pasture; Isaiah follows judgment with promises of restoration. שׁוֹא is never God’s final word.

Ministry Significance

• Proclamation: Preaching that ignores the reality of divine retribution dulls the edge of biblical warning. Shô’ reminds congregations that sin carries catastrophic consequences.
• Pastoral Care: Believers overwhelmed by loss may feel surrounded by “ruin.” The term’s usage assures them that God both permits and limits calamity, and that He can transform desolation into fruitfulness.
• Missions and Social Action: Nations repeat Assyria’s and Babylon’s arrogance when they trust military might or economic prowess. The prophetic shô’ calls the Church to speak truth to power and plead for repentance.

Christological and Eschatological Hope

At Calvary the righteous Son of God entered shô’—utter ruin—bearing the desolation our sins deserved. His resurrection is the pledge that all creation’s shô’ will be reversed. Until the final Day when “the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD,” believers face storms with confidence that every ruin is measured against an empty tomb and a returning King.

אה בְּ֝שׁוֹאָ֗ה בשואה וּלְשׁוֹאָ֖ה וּמִשֹּׁאַ֥ת ולשואה ומשאת כַּשֹּׁאָ֣ה כשאה לְ֭שׁוֹאָה לשואה מִשֹּׁאֵיהֶ֑ם משאיהם שֹׁ֝אָ֗ה שֹׁ֭אָה שֹׁאָה֙ שׁוֹאָ֖ה שׁוֹאָ֥ה שׁוֹאָה֮ שאה שואה ’āh Ah bə·šō·w·’āh beshoAh bəšōw’āh kaš·šō·’āh kashshoAh kaššō’āh lə·šō·w·’āh Leshoah ləšōw’āh miš·šō·’ê·hem mishshoeiHem miššō’êhem shoAh šō’āh šō·’āh šō·w·’āh šōw’āh ū·lə·šō·w·’āh ū·miš·šō·’aṯ uleshoAh ūləšōw’āh umishshoAt ūmiššō’aṯInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts