StrongerBible

yarad

יָרַד

HebrewH3381go down, come down, ...

Appears 381 times · tap a cell to see the verses

Gen 11:5Gen 12:10Gen 15:11Gen 28:12Gen 38:1Gen 42:3Gen 42:38Gen 43:15Gen 44:23Gen 44:26Gen 45:9Gen 46:3Exo 9:19Exo 15:5Exo 19:11Exo 19:14Exo 19:18Exo 19:20Exo 19:21Exo 19:24Exo 19:25Exo 32:1Exo 32:7Exo 32:15Exo 33:9Exo 34:5Exo 34:29 (2×)Lev 9:22Num 11:9 (2×)Num 11:25Num 12:5Num 16:33Num 20:15Num 34:11 (2×)Num 34:12Deu 9:12Deu 9:21Deu 10:22Deu 20:20Deu 28:24Deu 28:52Jos 2:23Jos 3:13Jos 3:16 (2×)Jos 15:10Jos 16:3Jos 16:7Jos 17:9Jos 18:13Jos 18:16 (3×)
Root family
Word studyyah-RAHDverb

What yarad means

to go down: to move from a higher place to a lower one, and (with an object) to bring something down

TranslatabilityDirectCertaintySettled

At its core this is the plainest verb of downward motion in the Hebrew Bible. A person goes down a road, water runs down a slope, fire falls from the sky, a body sinks into the grave. The same single idea covers them all: leaving a higher place for a lower one.

The word fans out into a few recognizable settings without ever changing its core. People go down to places that sit lower on the map or lower in importance, and Hebrew fixed certain of these as set expressions: one always goes down to Egypt and down to the sea, and an army goes down to give battle. Natural things descend too, so rain, dew, and fire come down from heaven, and tears run down a grieving face. Most solemnly, the dead go down to the grave, the world below.

When the word takes an object it simply adds a mover: instead of going down oneself, one brings or takes someone or something down. The brothers bring Benjamin down to Egypt, God brings an enemy down, a corpse is taken down from a gallows. This is the same descent, now caused by an agent, which is why it belongs with the rest rather than standing apart as a separate idea.

The pull of the word is almost always downward in a way the reader can feel: away from the high ground, away from the holy mountain, away from life, toward Egypt, toward the sea, toward death. Its natural opposite is the verb for going up, and the Bible often pairs the two.

Nuances

1ato go down from one place to a lower one (the plain physical sense)
Gen 11:5Gen 24:16Exo 19:14Exo 19:20Exo 34:29 (2×)Jdg 14:1Jdg 14:5Rut 3:61Sa 23:252Sa 11:91Ki 18:442Ki 5:14
1bto go down to a set destination: down to Egypt, down to the sea, or down to battle
Gen 12:10Gen 42:2Gen 42:3Gen 43:15Gen 44:23Gen 44:26Gen 46:3Num 20:15Deu 10:22Deu 26:5Isa 30:2Isa 52:4
1cof rain, dew, fire, or tears: to fall or run down
Num 11:9 (2×)Deu 28:242Ki 1:102Ki 1:122Ki 1:14Psa 72:6Psa 119:136Psa 133:2 (2×)Psa 133:3Isa 55:10Jer 9:18Lam 3:48
1dof the dead: to go down to the grave, the world below
Gen 37:35Num 16:30Num 16:33Psa 22:29(30)Psa 28:1Psa 88:4(5)Psa 115:17Psa 143:7Pro 1:12Isa 14:15Isa 14:19Isa 38:18
1eto bring or take someone or something down (with an object)
Gen 42:38Gen 43:22Gen 44:11Gen 44:29Gen 45:13Deu 1:25Deu 9:21Jos 2:15Jos 2:18Jos 8:29Jos 10:27Jdg 7:4

Uncategorized

Awaiting AI sense categorization.

12 verses
Gen 18:21Gen 26:2Gen 43:5Gen 43:20Num 10:17Jdg 15:12Rut 3:31Sa 2:61Sa 17:82Sa 22:481Ki 2:61Ki 2:9

What scholars say about yarad

Standard lexica treat this as a single verb of downward motion whose range is set by what moves and where it goes, with the causative use simply adding an agent. The lexica group the data into literal descent, the fixed expressions for going down to Egypt, the sea, and battle, the descent of rain, dew, and fire, and the descent of the dead to Sheol, alongside the transitive bring down.

Sources

  • HALOT, s.v. ירדlexicon
  • BDB, s.v. ירדlexicon
  • G. Mayer, "ירד yarad", in Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament (TDOT), vol. 6theological-dictionary
  • Dictionary of Classical Hebrew (DCH), s.v. ירדlexicon

All attested forms of יָרַד

qal consecutive-imperfect 3ms

וַיֵּרֶד, וַיֵּרַד

Gen 11:5, Gen 12:10, Gen 15:11, Gen 38:1, Exo 19:14, Exo 19:20, Exo 19:25, Exo 32:15

qal infinitive-construct construct

רֶדֶת, רִדְתּ, יָּרְדִ, רַד, רְדָה, רִדְתִּ, רִדְתָּ

Gen 44:26, Exo 32:1, Exo 34:29, Num 11:9, Deu 28:52, Jdg 1:34, Jdg 7:10, 1Sa 23:8

qal perfect 3ms

יָרַד, יְרַד, יָרָד

Exo 19:18, 1Sa 23:6, 2Sa 11:9, 2Sa 11:10, 2Sa 19:24, 2Sa 19:31, 2Sa 23:20, 1Ki 1:25

qal consecutive-imperfect 3mp

וַיֵּרְדוּ

Gen 42:3, Gen 43:15, Num 16:33, Num 20:15, Jos 2:23, Jdg 3:27, Jdg 3:28, Jdg 15:11

qal participle m p construct

יוֹרְדֵי, יֹרְדֵי, כְּיוֹרְדֵי

Psa 22:29, Psa 28:1, Psa 88:4, Psa 107:23, Isa 14:19, Isa 38:18, Isa 42:10, Ezk 26:20

qal consecutive-perfect 3ms

וְיָרַד

Exo 9:19, Num 34:11, Num 34:11, Num 34:12, Jos 15:10, Jos 16:3, Jos 16:7, Jos 17:9

qal imperative 2ms

רֵד, רְדָ, רֵדָ

Exo 19:21, Exo 19:24, Exo 32:7, Deu 9:12, Jdg 7:9, Jdg 7:10, 1Sa 23:4, 1Sa 23:20

qal imperfect 3ms

יֵרֵד

Gen 42:38, Gen 44:23, Exo 19:11, Exo 33:9, Num 11:9, Deu 28:24, 1Sa 23:11, 1Sa 23:11

qal perfect 3cp

יָרְדוּ

Exo 15:5, Deu 10:22, Jos 24:4, Jdg 1:9, Jdg 5:11, Jdg 5:14, 1Ch 7:21, Psa 119:136

qal participle m p absolute

יֹרְדִים, יֹּרְדִים, יוֹרְדִים

Gen 28:12, 1Sa 10:5, 1Sa 25:20, 2Sa 13:34, Ezk 47:1, Jos 3:13, Jos 3:16, Jos 3:16

qal participle m s absolute

יֹרֵד, יֹּרֵד, יוֹרֵד, הַיּוֹרֵד

1Sa 10:8, 2Ki 6:33, Psa 133:2, Isa 15:3, Deu 9:21, 1Sa 30:24, Psa 133:2, Psa 133:3

hiphil consecutive-imperfect 3ms

וַיּוֹרֶד, וַיֹּרִדֵ, וַיּוֹרִדֵ, וַיֹּרֶד

Jdg 7:5, 1Sa 21:13, 2Ch 23:20, Psa 78:16, Jol 2:23, 1Sa 30:16, 1Ki 17:23, 1Ki 18:40

qal consecutive-imperfect 3fs

וַתֵּרֶד

Gen 24:16, Gen 24:45, Exo 2:5, Rut 3:6, 1Sa 25:23, 2Ki 1:10, 2Ki 1:12, Lam 1:9

hiphil consecutive-imperfect 3mp

וַיֹּרִידוּ, וַיּוֹרִדוּ, וַיּוֹרִידוּ, וַיֹּרִדֻ

Jos 8:29, Jos 10:27, 2Ki 11:19, Gen 44:11, Deu 1:25, Jdg 16:21, 1Ki 1:53

qal consecutive-perfect 3cp

וְיָרְדוּ

Exo 11:8, Num 16:30, Isa 34:7, Ezk 26:16, Ezk 27:29, Ezk 47:8, Hag 2:22

qal imperative 2mp

רְדוּ

Gen 42:2, Jdg 7:24, 1Sa 6:21, 1Sa 15:6, 2Ch 20:16, Amo 6:2

qal imperfect 3fs

תֵּרֵד, תֵּרֶד, תֵּרַד

Isa 34:5, Isa 63:14, Ezk 26:11, 2Ki 1:10, 2Ki 1:12, Lam 3:48

qal perfect 2ms

יָרַדְתָּ, יָרָדְתָּ

1Sa 17:28, 2Sa 11:10, Neh 9:13, Isa 64:1, Isa 64:3, 1Sa 17:28

hiphil imperative 2ms

הוֹרֵד, וְהוֹרִדֵ, וְהוֹרִידֵ

Exo 33:5, Jdg 7:4, Psa 56:7, Ezk 32:18, Psa 59:11

hiphil imperfect 1cs

אוֹרִידֵ, אוֹרִידְ

Jer 51:40, Hos 7:12, Amo 9:2, Jer 49:16, Oba 1:4

qal imperfect 2ms

תֵּרֵד

Deu 28:43, 1Sa 20:19, 2Ki 1:4, 2Ki 1:6, 2Ki 1:16

qal imperfect 3mp

יֵרְדוּ

1Sa 13:12, Psa 55:15, Psa 104:8, Psa 107:26, Jer 50:27

qal perfect 3fs

יָרְדָה, יָרָדָה

2Ki 1:14, 2Ki 20:11, 2Ch 7:1, Isa 38:8, Isa 38:8

hiphil consecutive-imperfect 3fs

וַתֹּרֶד, וַתּוֹרִדֵ, וַתּוֹרֶד

Gen 24:18, 1Sa 19:12, Jos 2:15, Gen 24:46

hiphil consecutive-perfect 1cs

וְהוֹרַדְתִּי

Isa 43:14, Ezk 26:20, Ezk 34:26, Jol 3:2

hiphil consecutive-perfect 2mp

וְהוֹרַדְתֶּם

Gen 42:38, Gen 44:29, Gen 45:13, 1Ki 1:33

qal consecutive-imperfect 1cs

וָאֵרֵד

Exo 3:8, Deu 9:15, Deu 10:5, Jer 18:3

qal imperfect 1cs

אֵרֵד

Gen 37:35, Gen 46:4, 1Sa 14:37, 1Sa 26:6

hiphil conjunctive-imperfect 1cs

וְאוֹרִיד, וְאוֹרִדְ

Isa 10:13, Isa 63:6, 1Sa 30:15

hiphil consecutive-perfect 3cp

וְהוֹרִדוּ, וְהוֹרִידוּ

Num 4:5, Deu 21:4, Gen 44:31

hiphil imperative 2mp

הוֹרִדֻ, הוֹרִידוּ, וְהוֹרִידוּ

Gen 44:21, Gen 43:7, Gen 43:11

hiphil imperfect 3mp

יוֹרִדוּ, יוֹרִידוּ, יֹרִדוּ

Ezk 28:8, Num 1:51, 1Ki 5:9

hiphil perfect 3cp

הוֹרִידוּ, הוֹרִדֻ

1Sa 6:15, Lam 2:10, Gen 39:1

qal cohortative 1cp

נֵרְדָה

Gen 11:7, Gen 43:4, 1Sa 14:36

qal consecutive-perfect 1cs

וְיָרַדְתִּי

Num 11:17, Jdg 11:37, Neh 6:3

qal consecutive-perfect 2ms

וְיָרַדְתָּ

Jdg 7:11, 1Sa 10:8, Jer 18:2

qal participle f p absolute

יֹרְדוֹת, הַיּוֹרְדוֹת

Pro 5:5, Pro 7:27, Neh 3:15

qal participle f s absolute

יֹרְדָה, יֹרֶדֶת, יֹּרֶדֶת

Lam 1:16, 1Sa 25:20, Ecc 3:21

hiphil imperfect 2ms

הֲתוֹרִדֵ, תּוֹרִדֵ

1Sa 30:15, Psa 55:23

hiphil infinitive-construct construct

בְּהוֹרִדִ, לְהוֹרִיד

Ezk 31:16, Gen 37:25

28 further parsings are listed under Syntax.