from an unused root meaning to smooth; a threshing-floor (as made even); by analogy, any open area; (barn, corn, threshing-) floor, (threshing-, void) place.
### Core Meaning & Semantic Range
The Hebrew word **gôren**, represented by `{{H1637}}`, primarily means **threshing-floor**. Derived from a root meaning to smooth, it refers to the even ground prepared for processing grain. By extension, it can denote any open area or barn. It appears 36 times across 36 unique verses, highlighting its role in agricultural life and as a significant landmark in the biblical narrative.
### Biblical Occurrences & Contextual Analysis
In the biblical narrative, `{{H1637}}` is used in several key contexts. It serves as a literal place of agricultural activity, where Boaz winnows barley [[Ruth 3:2]] and which could be robbed by enemies [[1 Samuel 23:1]]. More significantly, threshingfloors serve as important locations for pivotal events. The threshingfloor of Atad was the site of a great mourning for Jacob [[Genesis 50:10]]. The threshingfloor of Araunah the Jebusite is where the angel of the LORD stopped a plague and where David purchased the land to build an altar ([[2 Samuel 24:16]], [[2 Samuel 24:24]]). This same site later became the location for Solomon's temple [[2 Chronicles 3:1]]. The term is also translated as "void place" to describe an open area at the city gate where kings sat enthroned [[1 Kings 22:10]].
### Related Words & Concepts
Several related words illuminate the activities and products associated with the threshingfloor:
* `{{H1250}}` **bâr** (wheat): This is the grain processed on the floor. In a promise of restoration, the floors are prophesied to be full of **wheat** [[Joel 2:24]].
* `{{H1715}}` **dâgân** (corn, grain): This word is used for the grain on the floor, particularly in the context of idolatry on every **cornfloor** [[Hosea 9:1]].
* `{{H8184}}` **sᵉʻôrâh** (barley): A common crop separated on the floor, as when Boaz winnows **barley** [[Ruth 3:2]].
* `{{H2219}}` **zârâh** (to winnow): This describes the action of separating grain from chaff, a key activity on the **threshingfloor** [[Ruth 3:2]].
* `{{H1869}}` **dârak** (to thresh): This verb, meaning to tread, is used figuratively to describe the judgment of Babylon, which is likened to a **threshingfloor** at the time to **thresh** her [[Jeremiah 51:33]].
* `{{H3342}}` **yeqeb** (winepress): The threshingfloor and **winepress** are frequently mentioned together as the primary sources of agricultural blessing and provision [[Deuteronomy 15:14]].
* `{{H4671}}` **môts** (chaff): This is the worthless byproduct of threshing, driven from the **floor** by the wind, symbolizing the fate of the ungodly [[Hosea 13:3]].
* `{{H5995}}` **ʻâmîyr** (sheaves): Bundles of grain brought to the floor for processing. The LORD is said to gather nations as **sheaves** into the floor [[Micah 4:12]].
### Theological Significance
The theological weight of `{{H1637}}` is significant, representing a place of both judgment and divine consecration.
* **Symbol of Judgment:** The threshingfloor becomes a powerful metaphor for God's judgment. Babylon is called a **threshingfloor** ready to be threshed [[Jeremiah 51:33]], and the LORD gathers nations there like sheaves to be judged [[Micah 4:12]]. The wicked are compared to chaff driven from the floor [[Hosea 13:3]].
* **Place of Divine Encounter:** A **threshingfloor** is the setting for a divine intervention where the Angel of the LORD halts a plague over Jerusalem, marking it as a place of mercy ([[2 Samuel 24:16]], [[1 Chronicles 21:15]]).
* **Ground for Consecration:** Following the divine encounter, David purchases the **threshingfloor** of Ornan to build an altar, transforming a common agricultural space into a place of worship [[1 Chronicles 21:22]]. This act culminates in it becoming the foundation for the house of the LORD [[2 Chronicles 3:1]].
* **Source of Blessing and Provision:** Abundance on the **floors** is a sign of God's favor and blessing [[Joel 2:24]], while their emptiness is a mark of judgment [[Hosea 9:2]]. Offerings from the floor were a requirement of the law [[Numbers 15:20]].
### Summary
In summary, `{{H1637}}` transcends its simple definition as a threshing-floor. It functions as a nexus between the mundane and the sacred in scripture. From a practical, smoothed-out space for the harvest, it becomes a site of public assembly, profound mourning, divine judgment, and ultimately, the consecrated ground chosen by God for His holy temple. It illustrates how God can invest ordinary places and activities with extraordinary spiritual significance.
TRV