### Core Meaning & Semantic Range
The Hebrew word **qâshach**, represented by `{{H7188}}`, is a primitive root meaning **to be (causatively, make) unfeeling; harden**. It is a rare term, appearing only **2 times** across **2 unique verses** in the Bible, but it carries significant weight in describing both natural and spiritual conditions.
### Biblical Occurrences & Contextual Analysis
In its biblical usage, `{{H7188}}` illustrates a state of being unfeeling or unresponsive. In the natural world, it describes an animal that "is **hardened** against her young ones, as though they were not hers" [[Job 39:16]], indicating a lack of natural affection and care. The second instance applies this concept to the human spiritual condition, appearing in a lament to God: "O LORD, why hast thou made us to err from thy ways, and **hardened** our heart from thy fear?" [[Isaiah 63:17]]. Here, it signifies a heart made spiritually unfeeling and distant from God.
### Related Words & Concepts
Several related words provide context for the state of being hardened:
* `{{H3820}}` **lêb** (the heart): This is the object that is hardened in [[Isaiah 63:17]]. It is used widely for feelings and the will, and scripture commands to "Keep thy **heart** with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life" [[Proverbs 4:23]].
* `{{H3374}}` **yirʼâh** (fear; morally, reverence): This is what the hardened heart is separated from in [[Isaiah 63:17]]. This fear is not simple terror but a form of reverence that is described as "the beginning of wisdom" [[Proverbs 9:10]].
* `{{H8582}}` **tâʻâh** (to... stray... err): This word is used in parallel with `{{H7188}}` in [[Isaiah 63:17]], linking the act of going astray with the hardening of the heart. It is famously used to describe humanity's fallen state: "All we like sheep have gone **astray**" [[Isaiah 53:6]].
* `{{H6343}}` **pachad** (a... alarm... dread... fear): In contrast to reverential fear, this word appears in the Job passage, where the hardened animal's "labour is in vain without **fear**" [[Job 39:16]]. It often refers to a sudden alarm or terror, as in [[Psalms 91:5]].
### Theological Significance
The theological weight of `{{H7188}}` is concentrated on the concept of spiritual unresponsiveness.
* **Hardness of Heart:** The primary theological use of `{{H7188}}` is to describe a heart that has become unfeeling toward God. In [[Isaiah 63:17]], a hardened **heart** `{{H3820}}` is one that is closed off from the reverential **fear** `{{H3374}}` of the Lord.
* **A Consequence of Erring:** The pairing of being "made to **err**" `{{H8582}}` and having a **hardened** heart in [[Isaiah 63:17]] suggests that straying from God's ways leads directly to this condition of spiritual insensitivity.
* **An Unnatural State:** The example in [[Job 39:16]] frames hardness as an unnatural condition. A creature that is **hardened** against its own offspring acts contrary to its created purpose, providing a powerful physical metaphor for the spiritual unnaturalness of a heart that is hardened against its Creator.
### Summary
In summary, `{{H7188}}` is a concise and powerful term for being unfeeling and hardened. Though it appears only twice, its uses in Job and Isaiah paint a clear picture. It illustrates both the unnatural behavior of a creature detached from its young and, more significantly, the grave spiritual condition of a human heart that has been made unresponsive to the fear and reverence of God.
TRV