### Core Meaning & Semantic Range
The Hebrew word **ʻârar**, represented by `{{H6209}}`, is a primitive root primarily meaning **to bare** or, figuratively, **to demolish**. It appears **4 times** across **3 unique verses**, carrying the sense of making something bare, breaking it down, or signifying something done utterly.
### Biblical Occurrences & Contextual Analysis
In scripture, `{{H6209}}` is used to convey acts of destruction and humbling. In the prophecy against Babylon, the word is repeated for emphasis, stating its walls "shall be **utterly** `{{H6209}}` **broken** `{{H6209}}`" [[Jeremiah 51:58]], illustrating total demolition. It is also used as a command for personal humbling, where careless women are told to "strip you, and **make you bare** `{{H6209}}`" as a sign of trouble [[Isaiah 32:11]]. A more complex usage appears in [[Isaiah 23:13]], where the Chaldeans are described as having "**raised up**" palaces which were then brought to ruin, a use that the base definition suggests may be a clerical error for "raze".
### Related Words & Concepts
Several related words clarify the context of destruction and exposure associated with `{{H6209}}`:
* `{{H6584}}` **pâshaṭ** (to strip): Used alongside `{{H6209}}` in [[Isaiah 32:11]], this root reinforces the theme of being unclothed or exposed, whether literally or as a state of vulnerability.
* `{{H3341}}` **yâtsath** (to burn or set on fire): This term appears in the same prophecy as `{{H6209}}`, describing how Babylon's gates will be **burned** with fire after its walls are broken, compounding the imagery of complete destruction [[Jeremiah 51:58]].
* `{{H4654}}` **mappâlâh** (a ruin): This word describes the outcome of the action in [[Isaiah 23:13]], where structures that were raised up are ultimately brought to **ruin**, linking the act of construction or demolition directly to its final, desolate state.
### Theological Significance
The theological themes connected to `{{H6209}}` focus on divine judgment and the consequences of pride.
* **Total Demolition:** The word's use, especially its doubling in [[Jeremiah 51:58]], signifies an irreversible and absolute judgment. It describes not just damage, but the complete dismantling of a city's defenses and pride.
* **Forced Humility:** The command to "make you bare" in [[Isaiah 32:11]] is a direct call to abandon a state of careless ease and confront a dire reality. It links physical baring with spiritual humbling.
* **The Inevitability of Ruin:** In the context of the Chaldeans' work in [[Isaiah 23:13]], the use of `{{H6209}}` is part of a sequence that leads directly to ruin `{{H4654}}`, suggesting the futility of human endeavors built in opposition to or outside of divine order.
### Summary
In summary, `{{H6209}}` is a potent, though infrequent, word that conveys concepts of baring, demolishing, and utter destruction. From the "utterly broken" walls of Babylon to the command for the complacent to "make you bare," it consistently points to a stripping away of security, pride, and physical structures. It serves as a stark reminder of the power of divine judgment and the vulnerability of human strength.
TRV