Lexical Summary
lachem: Bread, food
Original Word:לָחֶם
Part of Speech:Noun Masculine
Transliteration:lachem
Pronunciation:lah-khem
Phonetic Spelling:(law-khem')
NASB:war
Word Origin:[fromH3898 (לָחַם - To fight), battle]
1. war
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
war
Fromlacham, battle -- war.
see HEBREWlacham
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Originfrom
lachamDefinitionperhaps war
NASB Translationwar (1).
Brown-Driver-Briggs
only in
Judges 5:8 (so Masora; Manuscripts , ), usually translated
then was there
war of ( = at) the
gates, but improbable; text and meaning dubious; A
L read is , whence Bu
RS 103then they used to
eat barley bread; but Bu
Comm. {abbrev}
the barley bread was exhausted; Mayer Lambert
RŠJ xxx, 115then for (in) 5 citiesno shield was seen, etc.; other conjectures in Kau
AT; compare GFM
on the passageTopical Lexicon
Hebrew form and senseThe noun לָחֶם (Strong’s 3901) names the clash of armed forces—battle, war, a confrontation that tests covenant loyalty. Derived from the root “to fight,” it points to organized conflict rather than individual skirmish, highlighting both the danger and the moral stakes of warfare.
Sole Old Testament occurrence
Judges 5:8 lodges the word inside Deborah’s victory hymn: “When they chose new gods, then war was at the gates. Not a shield or spear was seen among forty thousand in Israel”. The setting is the Canaanite oppression overturned by Deborah and Barak. Israel’s apostasy leads to battle “in the gates,” the very place that should have been secure.
Historical and theological backdrop
1. Covenant cause and effect. Warfare is never merely political; it is covenantal. Faithfulness brings protection (Deuteronomy 28:7); idolatry invites לָחֶם inside the walls (Judges 2:14-15).
2. Divine Warrior motif.Exodus 15:3 calls the LORD “a warrior.” He can both stir up and still the battle. The rare noun underscores that the real contest is between faithfulness and rebellion.
3. Corporate responsibility.Judges 5 contrasts tribes that volunteered (Naphtali and Zebulun) with those that stayed home. God’s people rise and fall together.
Spiritual reflection
• Idolatry breeds conflict. Modern substitutes for God—materialism, self-reliance—still open the gates. See1 John 5:21.
• Readiness is essential. The lament “not a shield or spear was seen” anticipates Paul’s call to “put on the full armor of God” (Ephesians 6:11).
• Victory is the Lord’s. David’s confession, “The battle is the LORD’s” (1 Samuel 17:47), and the cross where Christ “disarmed the rulers and authorities” (Colossians 2:15) anchor Christian confidence.
Ministry significance
Preaching: Expose how spiritual compromise ushers in conflict.
Discipleship: Train believers as soldiers of Christ (2 Timothy 2:3-4).
Worship: Celebrate God’s past deliverances, nurturing faith amid present battles.
Community life: Guard the “gates” of doctrine and practice; unity in truth deters spiritual assault (Philippians 1:27-28).
Related terms
מִלְחָמָה (Strong’s 4421) war, warfare
לָחַם (Strong’s 3898) to fight
צָבָא (Strong’s 6635) host, army
Though לָחֶם appears only once, its placement inJudges 5:8 flashes a warning light across Scripture: when the heart turns from God, battle is inevitable; when the heart trusts Him, He fights for His people and assures final victory (Romans 8:37;Revelation 19:11-16).
Forms and Transliterations
לָחֶ֣ם לחם lā·ḥem laChem lāḥem
Links
Interlinear Greek •
Interlinear Hebrew •
Strong's Numbers •
Englishman's Greek Concordance •
Englishman's Hebrew Concordance •
Parallel Texts
