The Hebrew word maʻdêr, represented by H4576, refers to an agricultural tool like a (weeding) hoe or mattock. It is derived from the root word ʻădar. This term is exceptionally rare, appearing only 1 time in 1 unique verse in the entire Bible, making its single context highly significant for its meaning.
The sole appearance of H4576 is in Isaiah 7:25. The verse describes a future state of desolation where hills that were once cultivated and "digged with the mattock" will no longer be tended. Instead of producing crops, they will be overrun with "briers and thorns" and become a place for grazing oxen and lesser cattle. The mattock here is a clear symbol of active, ordered agriculture, and its mention serves to highlight the contrast between a time of productive labor and a future of neglect and wildness.
Several related words provide a broader context for agriculture and the landscape:
- H5737 ʻădar: This is the primitive root from which maʻdêr is derived. It has a range of meanings including to "dig" or "hoe" a vineyard, but also to "keep (rank)," "fail," or "lack." It appears as "digged" in the verse about the mattock Isaiah 7:25 and similarly in Isaiah 5:6, where a vineyard is judged by no longer being "digged."
- H2022 har: This word for mountain or hill is the object of the mattock's work in Isaiah 7:25. These "hills" are often used figuratively in scripture as symbols of permanence and strength Psalms 125:1 or as places of divine encounter and proclamation, such as "the mountain of the house of the LORD" Micah 4:1.
The significance of H4576 is tied directly to its specific agricultural context.
- Symbol of Order and Cultivation: The mattock represents the diligent human effort required to maintain order and productivity in the land. Its use on the hills signifies a well-tended, fruitful environment, in line with the verb it is derived from, ʻădar H5737, which can mean to arrange or keep rank.
- Indicator of Judgment: In Isaiah 7:25, the memory of the mattock is used to emphasize the severity of coming judgment. The cessation of its use signals a curse upon the land, causing it to revert from a cultivated state to a wilderness of "briers and thorns," fit only for grazing.
In summary, maʻdêr H4576 provides a concise and powerful image. Though it appears only once, this word for a mattock effectively captures the biblical theme of the land's response to human action and divine judgment. Its singular use in Isaiah 7:25 serves as a potent illustration of how the absence of diligent cultivation leads to desolation, contrasting a state of order and productivity with one of neglect and ruin.
TRV