בָּלַק
𐤁𐤋𐤒
bâlaq
H1110 verb
SILEX Entry
Definition
To lay waste, devastate, or destroy—especially by making a place or people desolate or uninhabited. The verb denotes actions resulting in the sweeping away, obliteration, or total ruination of something, often without specific focus on violence itself but rather on resultant absence or emptiness. Its semantic range includes making a land barren, causing destruction to cities or peoples, or rendering something void of vitality or population.
Semantic Range
to annihilate, to devastate, to make a place desolate or empty, to render uninhabitable, to cause ruin or waste
Root / Etymology
From the root בלק, which in its verbal form means 'to lay waste' or 'to destroy.' The root's core semantic field relates to the concept of removal, obliteration, or causing emptiness. While concrete examples in Biblical Hebrew are rare, related Northwest Semitic languages attest similar formations with this meaning. The noun form is best known as the personal name Balak, king of Moab, but the verbal root is distinct and rarely attested.
Historical & Contextual Notes
Though lexically valid and classified as a primitive root in older lexica (including Strong's), the verb בלק ('to lay waste') is extremely rare or potentially only inferred in the Hebrew Bible; its use is largely supported by comparative Semitic linguistics and later Rabbinic or medieval interpretation. Most English translations do not register a verb form but only recognize the personal name. When discussed in lexicons, it is categorized as a root capable of expressing annihilation, devastation, or utter destruction, but no clear narrative, prophetic, or poetic biblical passage uses it unambiguously outside the name Balak. Its semantic domain overlaps with roots like חרב (to be dry, to lay waste) or שׁמד (to destroy), but it is more abstracted and less concretely attested. In translation tradition, its meaning is sometimes conflated with wider concepts of devastation or annihilation, but it is important to note the extremely limited or inferential attestation in the Hebrew Bible.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
a primitive root; to annihilate; (make) waste.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.
+ Add Bantu Hebrew WordRoot Family
בלק (b-l-q) — to devastate, to annihilate, to make empty, to lay waste
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H1111 | בָּלָק | Balak |
Word Forms
2 distinct forms
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H1110-02 |
וּ/בֽוֹלְקָ֑/הּ | uvoleqah | HC/Vqrmsc/Sp3fs |
and making it desolate | laying her waste | 1 |
H1110-01 |
וּ/מְבֻלָּקָ֑ה | umevulaqah | HC/VPsfsa |
and the torn apart | laid-waste one | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
2 total occurrences
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H1110-02 |
Isaiah 24:1 | וּ/בֽוֹלְקָ֑/הּ | uvoleqah | HC/Vqrmsc/Sp3fs |
and making it desolate | laying her waste |
H1110-01 |
Nahum 2:11 | וּ/מְבֻלָּקָ֑ה | umevulaqah | HC/VPsfsa |
and the torn apart | laid-waste one |