Topical Encyclopedia
In biblical terminology, the concept of "crush" often conveys the idea of breaking, shattering, or oppressing, both in a physical and metaphorical sense. The term is used in various contexts throughout Scripture, illustrating God's power, human frailty, and the consequences of sin.
Old Testament Usage1.
Physical Crushing: The Hebrew word "daka" is often translated as "crush" and is used to describe physical destruction or oppression. For example, in
Exodus 15:6, the power of God is depicted as crushing His enemies: "Your right hand, O LORD, is majestic in power; Your right hand, O LORD, shatters the enemy."
2.
Emotional and Spiritual Crushing: The Psalms frequently use the imagery of crushing to describe emotional or spiritual distress.
Psalm 34:18 states, "The LORD is near to the brokenhearted; He saves the crushed in spirit." Here, "crushed" conveys a sense of deep sorrow or contrition, highlighting God's compassion for those who are downtrodden.
3.
Judgment and Oppression: The prophets often speak of crushing in the context of judgment or social injustice.
Isaiah 3:15 challenges the leaders of Israel: "Why do you crush My people and grind the faces of the poor?" This usage underscores the moral responsibility of leaders to avoid oppressing the vulnerable.
New Testament Usage1.
Christ's Suffering: The New Testament reflects on the crushing of Jesus as part of His sacrificial role.
Isaiah 53:5, a prophecy about the Messiah, is echoed in the New Testament: "But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed." This passage highlights the redemptive purpose of Christ's suffering.
2.
Victory Over Evil: The concept of crushing is also used to describe Christ's ultimate victory over Satan.
Romans 16:20 promises, "The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet." This assurance reflects the eschatological hope of believers in the final defeat of evil.
3.
Moral and Spiritual Exhortation: Believers are encouraged to live in a manner that avoids causing others to stumble or be crushed in their faith. In
2 Corinthians 4:8-9 , Paul writes, "We are hard pressed on all sides, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed." This passage emphasizes resilience and faith amidst trials.
Theological ImplicationsThe theme of crushing in the Bible serves as a powerful metaphor for God's justice, mercy, and redemptive plan. It illustrates the consequences of sin, the suffering of Christ, and the hope of ultimate victory over evil. The imagery of crushing also calls believers to a life of compassion, justice, and perseverance, reflecting the character of God in a broken world.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
1. (
v. t.) To press or bruise between two hard bodies; to squeeze, so as to destroy the natural shape or integrity of the parts, or to force together into a mass; as, to crush grapes.
2. (v. t.) To reduce to fine particles by pounding or grinding; to comminute; as, to crush quartz.
3. (v. t.) To overwhelm by pressure or weight; to beat or force down, as by an incumbent weight.
4. (v. t.) To oppress or burden grievously.
5. (v. t.) To overcome completely; to subdue totally.
6. (v. i.) To be or become broken down or in, or pressed into a smaller compass, by external weight or force; as, an eggshell crushes easily.
7. (n.) A violent collision or compression; a crash; destruction; ruin.
8. (n.) Violent pressure, as of a crowd; a crowd which produced uncomfortable pressure; as, a crush at a reception.
Greek
4937. suntribo -- to break in pieces,crush... to break in pieces,
crush. Part of Speech: Verb Transliteration: suntribo Phonetic
Spelling: (soon-tree'-bo) Short Definition: I break by crushing Definition: I
...4917. sunthlao -- tocrush together
... tocrush together. Part of Speech: Verb Transliteration: sunthlao Phonetic Spelling:
(soon-thlah'-o) Short Definition: I break, break in pieces Definition: I...
4919. sunthrupto -- to break in pieces,crush
... to break in pieces,crush. Part of Speech: Verb Transliteration: sunthrupto Phonetic
Spelling: (soon-throop'-to) Short Definition: I break in pieces,crush...
2352. thrauo -- to break in pieces
... to break in pieces. Part of Speech: Verb Transliteration: thrauo Phonetic Spelling:
(throw'-o) Short Definition: Icrush, break, shatter Definition: Icrush...
3039. likmao -- to winnow, to scatter
... to winnow, to scatter. Part of Speech: Verb Transliteration: likmao Phonetic Spelling:
(lik-mah'-o) Short Definition: Icrush to powder Definition: Icrush to...
2608. katagnumi -- to break in pieces
... Verb Transliteration: katagnumi Phonetic Spelling: (kat-ag'-noo-mee) Short Definition:
I break in pieces Definition: I break down (in pieces),crush, break into...
2852. kolaphizo -- to strike with the fist
... from the fist") -- properly, to strike with the (literally "knuckles"); to hit hard
"with the knuckles, to make the blow sting andcrush . . in 2 Cor...
496. antipipto -- to fall against, strive against
... 473 , "opposite, against" and 4098 , "fall") -- properly, fall against (contrary);
actively (aggressively) resisting, like someone trying tocrush an adversary...
Strong's Hebrew
1792. daka -- tocrush... 1791, 1792. daka. 1793 . to
crush. Transliteration: daka Phonetic Spelling:
(daw-kaw') Short Definition:
crush. Word Origin a prim.
...7533. ratsats -- tocrush
... tocrush. Transliteration: ratsats Phonetic Spelling: (raw-tsats') Short Definition:
crushed.... break, bruise,crush, discourage, oppress, struggle together....
1854. daqaq -- tocrush, pulverize, thresh
... 1853, 1854. daqaq. 1855 . tocrush, pulverize, thresh. Transliteration: daqaq
Phonetic Spelling: (daw-kak') Short Definition: crushed. Word Origin a prim....
3807. kathath -- to beat,crush by beating
... 3806, 3807. kathath. 3808 . to beat,crush by beating. Transliteration: kathath
Phonetic Spelling: (kaw-thath') Short Definition: crushed. Word Origin a prim...
7490. rea -- tocrush, shatter
... 7489b, 7490. rea. 7491 . tocrush, shatter. Transliteration: rea Phonetic
Spelling: (reh-ah') Short Definition: pieces. Word Origin...
7602b. shaaph -- tocrush, trample upon
... 7602a, 7602b. shaaph. 7603 . tocrush, trample upon. Transliteration:
shaaph Short Definition: trampled. Word Origin a prim. root...
1794. dakah -- tocrush
... 1793b, 1794. dakah. 1795 . tocrush. Transliteration: dakah Phonetic Spelling:
(daw-kaw') Short Definition: crushed. Word Origin a prim....
6072. asas -- to press,crush, tread down
... 6071, 6072. asas. 6073 . to press,crush, tread down. Transliteration: asas
Phonetic Spelling: (aw-sas') Short Definition: down. Word Origin a prim....
7665. shabar -- to break, break in pieces
... in pieces (6), broke the in pieces (1), broke down (1), broken (55), broken down
(1), broken off (1), brokenhearted* (3), collapse (1),crush (2), crushed (2...
2115. zur -- to press down and out
... 2114b, 2115. zur. 2116 . to press down and out. Transliteration: zur Phonetic
Spelling: (zoor) Short Definition:crush. Word Origin a prim....
Library
The Eighteenth Theban Dynasty --(Continued)
... "I give to thee, declared the god, the rebels that they may fall beneath thy sandals,
that thou mayestcrush the rebellious, for I grant to thee by decree the...
It is Related that when Pilate Would Fain have Released Him all...
... You find Jeremiah speaking of it thus, "Come and let us cast wood into His bread,
andcrush Him out of the land of the living." And again, Moses, mourning over...
The Philosophers
... 347. Man is but a reed, the most feeble thing in nature; but he is a thinking
reed. The entire universe need not arm itself tocrush him....
God's Exhaustive Knowledge of Man.
... The whole material universe does not need to arm itself, in order tocrush
him. A vapor, a drop of water is enough to destroy him....
Commandment Tenth. Of Grief, and not Grieving the Spirit of God...
... understand these parables. For how she cancrush out, and on the other hand
save, I do not perceive." "Listen," says he. "Those who...
A Secret Life of Prayer.
... The danger lies in the terrific force of a blow from this hidden pile that would
crush the strongest steel steamer, as I mightcrush an egg-shell in my fingers...
Of the Predicted Rejection of Idols.
... enter ye into the rocks, and hide yourselves in the earth from before the fear of
the Lord, and from the majesty of His power, when He arises tocrush the earth...
How the Amalekites and the Neighbouring Nations, Made War with the...
... the Egyptians, lay in wait to ruin them; which army they were not, in common prudence
and regard to their own safety, to overlook, but tocrush them before...
Thoughts on the Last Battle
... pointing to the dragon, he seems to say, "Thou canst not slay it, man; there is
no hope that thou shouldst ever put thy foot upon its neck andcrush its head...
The Weight of Sand
... As the grains fall one by one, how easily they can be blown away! Let them gather,
and they bury temples, andcrush the solid masonry of pyramids....
Thesaurus
Crush (50 Occurrences)... bruise between two hard bodies; to squeeze, so as to destroy the natural shape or
integrity of the parts, or to force together into a mass; as, to
crush grapes
...Grind (12 Occurrences)
... Easton's Bible Dictionary (Exodus 32:20; Deuteronomy 9:21; Judges 16:21), tocrush
small (Hebrews tahan); to oppress the poor (Isaiah 3:5). The hand-mill was...
Stamp (25 Occurrences)
... 3. (vi) Tocrush; to pulverize; specifically (Metal.), tocrush by the blow of a
heavy stamp, as ore in a mill.... 8. (vi) To strike; to beat; tocrush....
Shatter (26 Occurrences)
... Psalms 68:23 That you maycrush them, dipping your foot in blood, that the tongues
of your dogs may have their portion from your enemies." (See NAS)....
Whomever (22 Occurrences)
... Matthew 21:44 and he who is falling on this stone shall be broken, and on
whomsoever it may fall it willcrush him to pieces.' (See NAS)....
Crushes (7 Occurrences)
... kingdom shall be strong as iron, because iron breaks in pieces and subdues all things;
and as iron that crushes all these, shall it break in pieces andcrush....
Subdue (26 Occurrences)
... 2. (vt) To overpower so as to disable from further resistance; tocrush. 3. (vt)
To destroy the force of; to overcome; as, medicines subdue a fever....
Tread (60 Occurrences)
... 6. (vt) To go through or accomplish by walking, dancing, or the like. 7. (vt) To
crush under the foot; to trample in contempt or hatred; to subdue....
Dip (17 Occurrences)
... In Psalm 68:23 "dipping" is not translated from the Hebrew, but merely employed
for a better understanding of the passage: "Thou mayestcrush them, dipping thy...
Asmoneans
... in the king's heart against the Jews, and when their wrangling about the
high-priesthood afforded him an opportunity, he resolved forever tocrush the power...
Resources
Is it wrong to have a crush on someone? | GotQuestions.orgWhat does Genesis 3:15 mean that “he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel”? | GotQuestions.orgWhat is the protoevangelium? | GotQuestions.orgCrush: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.comBible Concordance •
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