Lexical Summary
shataph: To overflow, to wash away, to inundate, to flood
Original Word:שָׁטַף
Part of Speech:Verb
Transliteration:shataph
Pronunciation:shah-TAHF
Phonetic Spelling:(shaw-taf')
KJV: drown, (over-)flow(-whelm, rinse, run, rush, (throughly) wash (away)
NASB:overflow, overflowing, rinsed, flooding, overwhelming, charging, engulfed
Word Origin:[a primitive root]
1. to gush
2. (by implication) to flood, cleanse
3. (by analogy) to gallop, conquer
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
drown, overflow whelm, rinse, run, rush, thoroughly wash away
A primitive root; to gush; by implication, to inundate, cleanse; by analogy, to gallop, conquer -- drown, (over-)flow(- whelm, rinse, run, rush, (throughly) wash (away).
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origina prim. root
Definitionto overflow, rinse or wash off
NASB Translationcharging (1), engulfed (1), flooded away (1), flooding (2), flowed (1), overflow (9), overflowing (6), overflows (1), overwhelming (2), rinsed (3), torrential (1), wash away (1), washed (1), washed off (1).
Brown-Driver-Briggs
(Late Hebrew
id., so Jewish-Aramaic ; Assyrian
š atâpu,
overflow, Arabic
id., Cuche); —
Perfect3masculine singularIsaiah 8:8 +, etc.;Imperfect3masculine singular1 Kings 22:38, etc.;ParticipleIsaiah 10:22 +, pluralIsaiah 28:2; —
overflow, of riverIsaiah 8:8;Jeremiah 47:2a (see ),Daniel 11:10,40, all figurative of invading army, compareIsaiah 28:15 (qy. by StaThLz, Apr. 1894, 235, Du Marti read ),Isaiah 28:18 (see ), also (simile of in judgment)Isaiah 28:2 (),Isaiah 30:28, of judicial destruction,Isaiah 10:22; with accusative of landJeremiah 47:2b, person (figurative)Isaiah 43:2 (),Psalm 69:3 (),Psalm 69:16 ( ),Psalm 124:4 (), compareIsaiah 28:17;Songs 8:7;flooding rain (of s judgement)Ezekiel 11:11,13;Ezekiel 38:22;Isaiah 66:12, simile, in good sense. — Abs.Daniel 11:26 see
— Figurative ofdashing, rushing horse,Jeremiah 8:6.
flow, run, literal ofPsalm 78:20; 2Chronicles 32:4.
literally,rinse orwash off, with accusative of thing washed1 Kings 22:38,Leviticus 15:11 (P); of stainEzekiel 16:9 (; "" );Job 14:19.
Imperfect3masculine singularLeviticus 15:12be rinsed out, off (P; of wooden vessel); 3masculine pluralDaniel 11:22be swept away (defeated), read probably (for ), alsoDaniel 11:26 (compare Dr).
Perfect3masculine singularLeviticus 6:21 (P)it shall be scoured and rinsed.
Topical Lexicon
Entry Title: שָׁטַף (shataph)Scope of Meaning
The verb denotes violent outpouring or sweeping motion, whether of water, armies, passions, or judgment. The common thread is an irresistible force that overruns every obstacle.
Literal Hydrological Uses
1. Rivers and torrents: “The torrent Kishon swept them away” (Judges 5:21).
2. Erosion: “Water wears away stones, and torrents wash away the soil of the earth” (Job 14:19).
3. Gushing streams: “Water gushed out and streams overflowed” (Psalm 78:20).
These verses present shataph as a graphic reminder of the power of created waters and, by implication, their Creator.
Cultic and Domestic Washing
Several priestly instructions employ shataph for “rinsing” sacrificial utensils or garments (for example2 Chronicles 4:6;2 Chronicles 4:14). While other roots cover bathing and laundering, shataph emphasizes the quick, forceful flush that removes impurity. The term therefore reinforces the seriousness of holiness: sin must be driven away, not merely dabbed at.
Flood as Divine Judgment
Psalm 124:4–5 portrays Israel’s potential annihilation in exile imagery:
“Then the floods would have engulfed us, the torrent would have overwhelmed us, the raging waters would have swept us away.”
The figure recalls the Noahic Deluge, linking every later rescue to the archetypal salvation of the remnant (Genesis 9). Prophets use the same word to predict judgment on the nations:
• “With an overwhelming flood He will make an end of Nineveh” (Nahum 1:8).
• “Behold, the Lord has a strong and mighty agent… like an overflowing torrent” (Isaiah 28:2).
The universality of judgment and the certainty of divine triumph are underscored.
Military and Political Metaphors
Assyrian, Babylonian, and later empires are pictured as flood-waters:
• “It will overflow and pass through; it will reach to the neck” (Isaiah 8:8).
• “His sons shall wage war and assemble a multitude of great forces, and one will sweep on like a flood” (Daniel 11:10).
• “Its end will come with a flood” (Daniel 9:26).
The imagery conveys speed, terror, and the futility of human resistance, reminding readers that geopolitical events unfold under divine sovereignty.
Moral and Emotional Torrents
Proverbs 27:4 extends the verb from water to wrath: “Wrath is fierce and anger is a flood, but who can withstand jealousy?” Thus shataph becomes a mirror for the human heart—undisciplined emotion can devastate as surely as a river in spate.
Redemptive Counter-Floods
Isaiah offers a striking reversal:
“When the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit of the LORD will lift up a standard against him” (Isaiah 59:19 footnote reading).
Here divine intervention rises higher than the flood itself, hinting at the ultimate victory secured in Christ, whose atoning work stills every deluge of accusation (Revelation 12:15–16).
Eschatological Echoes
Nahum’s oracle against Nineveh and Daniel’s prophecies push the motif toward the last days, when final judgment will again “sweep away” rebellion. The typology reaches its climax in the New Heaven and New Earth where there is “no longer any sea” (Revelation 21:1), symbolizing the complete removal of chaotic powers.
Theological Reflection
1. God’s judgments may appear sudden, yet they are never arbitrary; the floodwaters always follow persistent sin.
2. Salvation is equally forceful: the same Lord who unleashes torrents also provides an Ark, splits the sea, or raises a standard.
3. Believers are called to decisive, thorough repentance—partial measures cannot withstand shataph.
Pastoral and Homiletical Application
• Warn: unchecked sin accumulates like headwaters behind a dam; judgment can break forth without further notice.
• Comfort: when adversities rush in, the Lord remains “a refuge from the flood” (Psalm 32:6).
• Exhort: Gospel ministry should aim for cleansing that rinses away defilement, not cosmetic improvement (Titus 3:5).
Key References (Representative)
Judges 5:21;Job 14:19;Psalm 78:20;Psalm 124:4–5;Proverbs 27:4;Isaiah 8:8;Isaiah 28:2;Isaiah 59:19;Nahum 1:8;Daniel 9:26;Daniel 11:10;2 Chronicles 4:6.
Forms and Transliterations
הַשּׁוֹטֵ֥ף השוטף וְיִשְׁטְפוּ֙ וְשָׁטַ֣ף וְשָׁטַ֥ף וְשֻׁטַּ֖ף וַיִּשְׁטֹ֨ף וָאֶשְׁטֹ֥ף ואשטף וישטף וישטפו ושטף יִ֫שְׁטֹ֥פוּ יִשְׁט֑וֹף יִשְׁטְפ֑וּהָ יִשְׁטְפ֑וּךָ יִשְׁטֹֽפוּ׃ יִשָּׁטְפ֥וּ יִשָּׁטֵ֖ף ישטוף ישטף ישטפו ישטפו׃ ישטפוה ישטפוך שְׁטָפ֑וּנוּ שְׁטָפָֽתְנִי׃ שָׁטַ֣ף שֹׁטְפִ֛ים שֹׁטֵף֙ שׁוֹטֵ֔ף שׁוֹטֵ֖ף שׁוֹטֵ֗ף שׁוֹטֵ֛ף שׁוֹטֵ֥ף שׁוֹטֵף֙ שׁוֹטֵף֩ שוטף שטף שטפונו שטפים שטפתני׃ תִּשְׁטְפֵ֤נִי ׀ תִּשְׁטֹֽף־ תשטף־ תשטפני haš·šō·w·ṭêp̄ hashshoTef haššōwṭêp̄ šā·ṭap̄ šāṭap̄ šə·ṭā·p̄ā·ṯə·nî šə·ṭā·p̄ū·nū šəṭāp̄āṯənî šəṭāp̄ūnū shaTaf shetaFateni shetaFunu shoTef shoteFim šō·ṭə·p̄îm šō·ṭêp̄ šō·w·ṭêp̄ šōṭêp̄ šōṭəp̄îm šōwṭêp̄ tiš·ṭə·p̄ê·nî tiš·ṭōp̄- tishteFeni tishtof tišṭəp̄ênî tišṭōp̄- vaeshTof vaiyishTof veshaTaf veshutTaf veyishteFu wā’ešṭōp̄ wā·’eš·ṭōp̄ way·yiš·ṭōp̄ wayyišṭōp̄ wə·šā·ṭap̄ wə·šuṭ·ṭap̄ wə·yiš·ṭə·p̄ū wəšāṭap̄ wəšuṭṭap̄ wəyišṭəp̄ū yiš·šā·ṭə·p̄ū yiš·šā·ṭêp̄ yiš·ṭə·p̄ū·hā yiš·ṭə·p̄ū·ḵā yiš·ṭō·p̄ū yiš·ṭō·wp̄ yishshaTef yishshateFu yishteFucha yishteFuha yishTof yishTofu yiššāṭêp̄ yiššāṭəp̄ū yišṭəp̄ūhā yišṭəp̄ūḵā yišṭōp̄ū yišṭōwp̄
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