What does קָשֶׁה (qāšeh) mean in the Bible?
Hard or severe describes a quality whose object the passage must identify. Egypt imposes harsh labor on the Israelites, while Hannah describes herself as troubled in spirit as she explains her prayer.
Hebrew · H7186
קָשֶׁה
Hard or severe describes a quality whose object the passage must identify. Egypt imposes harsh labor on the Israelites, while Hannah describes herself as troubled in spirit as she explains her prayer.
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קָשֶׁהH7186
Pronunciationqāšeh
What does קָשֶׁה (qāšeh) mean in the Bible?
Reader summary
Full entry for קָשֶׁה (H7186) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render H7186?
The BSB source-word alignment has 36 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include harshly (4), are a stiff-necked (3), a stiff-necked (2), the burden (2), . . . (1).
Where does קָשֶׁה (qāšeh) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Genesis 42:7. Its strongest book concentrations include Exodus (7), Isaiah (6), Deuteronomy (4), 1 Kings (3).
What This Word Actually Means
Hard or severe describes a quality whose object the passage must identify. Egypt imposes harsh labor on the Israelites, while Hannah describes herself as troubled in spirit as she explains her prayer. Rehoboam answers the people's request for relief harshly after rejecting the elders' advice. Deuteronomy uses a stiff-necked description for a named rebellious people.
Burdens imposed by oppressors, a grieving person's distress, a ruler's severe response and obstinacy therefore require different assessments. The adjective does not make hardship proof of stubbornness or severity proof of faithful leadership. Read what is hard, who causes or experiences it and what the account says about the response. A suffering person's inability to hear a message under cruel bondage must not be recast as an uncomplicated refusal of truth when Exodus itself supplies broken spirit and oppression as the stated reason.
How the Bible Uses It
Harsh labor, Hannah's troubled spirit, Rehoboam's harsh answer and Israel's stiff-necked description show different applications of severity. The object and narrative assessment keep inflicted burden and moral resistance from becoming interchangeable.
- Exod.1.14
And made their lives bitter with hard labor in brick and mortar, and with all kinds of work in the fields. Every service they imposed was harsh.
Egypt makes Israel's life bitter through hard labor and harsh imposed service; the narrative names the oppressive workers' treatment rather than condemning the victims for finding it severe.
- 1Sam.1.15
“No, my lord,” Hannah replied. “I am a woman troubled in spirit. I have not had any wine or strong drink, but I have poured out my soul before the Lord.
Hannah identifies her troubled spirit while denying Eli's accusation of drunkenness and explaining that she has poured out her soul before the Lord from anguish and grief.
- 1Kgs.12.13
And the king answered the people harshly. He rejected the advice of the elders
Rehoboam answers harshly after rejecting the elders' advice and announces a heavier yoke, while the surrounding account records his failure to listen to the people.
Source Word Evidence
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders Itharshly4×Genesis 42:7, Genesis 42:30, 1 Kings 12:13, 2 Chronicles 10:13
are a stiff-necked3×Exodus 33:3, Exodus 33:5, Deuteronomy 9:6
a stiff-necked2×Exodus 32:9, Deuteronomy 9:13
the burden2×1 Kings 12:4, 2 Chronicles 10:4
. . .1×Deuteronomy 31:27
[will take] His sharp1×Isaiah 27:1
[with] bad [news]1×1 Kings 14:6
A dire1×Isaiah 21:2
and cruel1×Exodus 6:9
and from the hard1×Isaiah 14:3
and hard-hearted1×Ezekiel 3:7
and stronger1×Judges 4:24
and stubborn1×Judges 2:19
are stubborn1×Isaiah 48:4
are too fierce1×2 Samuel 3:39
as unrelenting1×Song Of Solomon 8:6
for those in trouble1×Job 30:25
hardship1×Psalms 60:3
intense1×2 Samuel 2:17
is a stiff-necked1×Exodus 34:9
of a harsh1×Isaiah 19:4
the difficult1×Exodus 18:26
They are obstinate1×Ezekiel 2:4
to hard1×Deuteronomy 26:6
troubled1×1 Samuel 1:15
was harsh1×1 Samuel 25:3
with a fierce1×Isaiah 27:8
with hard1×Exodus 1:14
you harshly1×1 Samuel 20:10
Show sample aligned rows
Genesis 42:7קָשׁ֗וֹתtoharshlyAdjective - feminine pluralGenesis 42:30קָשׁ֑וֹתtoharshlyAdjective - feminine pluralExodus 1:14קָשָׁ֗הtowith hardAdjective - feminine singularExodus 6:9קָשָֽׁה׃פtoand cruelAdjective - feminine singularExodus 18:26הַקָּשֶׁה֙tothe difficultArticle | Adjective - masculine singularExodus 32:9קְשֵׁה־toa stiff-neckedAdjective - masculine singular constructExodus 33:3קְשֵׁה־toare a stiff-neckedAdjective - masculine singular constructExodus 33:5קְשֵׁה־toare a stiff-neckedAdjective - masculine singular constructExodus 34:9קְשֵׁה־tois a stiff-neckedAdjective - masculine singular constructDeuteronomy 9:6קְשֵׁה־toare a stiff-neckedAdjective - masculine singular construct
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned rowGenesis 42:7
Aligned rows36
Books represented13
Genesis2Exodus7Deuteronomy4Judges21 Samuel32 Samuel21 Kings32 Chronicles2Job1Psalms1Song Of Solomon1Isaiah6Ezekiel2
Source forms
קְשֵׁה־6xqə·šêh-Exodus 32:9, Exodus 33:3, Exodus 33:5, Exodus 34:9
קָשָׁ֑ה3xqā·šāh1 Kings 12:13, 2 Chronicles 10:13, Psalms 60:3
הַקָּשָׁ֗ה2xhaq·qā·šāh1 Kings 12:4, 2 Chronicles 10:4
הַקָּשָׁ֖ה2xhaq·qā·šāhIsaiah 14:3, Isaiah 27:8
קָשָׁ֥ה2xqā·šāh2 Samuel 2:17, Song Of Solomon 8:6
קָשָֽׁה׃2xqā·šāhDeuteronomy 26:6, 1 Kings 14:6
הַקָּשֶׁה֙1xhaq·qā·šehExodus 18:26
הַקָּשֶׁ֑ה1xhaq·qā·šehDeuteronomy 31:27
Parsing patterns
Adjective - feminine singular11xExodus 1:14, Exodus 6:9, Deuteronomy 26:6, 1 Samuel 20:10
Adjective - masculine singular construct6xExodus 32:9, Exodus 33:3, Exodus 33:5, Exodus 34:9
Article | Adjective - feminine singular6xJudges 2:19, 1 Kings 12:4, 2 Chronicles 10:4, Isaiah 14:3
Adjective - masculine singular3x1 Samuel 25:3, Isaiah 19:4, Isaiah 48:4
Adjective - feminine plural2xGenesis 42:7, Genesis 42:30
Article | Adjective - masculine singular2xExodus 18:26, Deuteronomy 31:27
Adjective - feminine singular construct1x1 Samuel 1:15
Adjective - masculine plural1x2 Samuel 3:39
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- Listen to stated grief and oppressive conditions without turning the adjective into an individualized clinical or spiritual diagnosis.
- Avoid using severe leadership speech to demand unquestioned obedience or to excuse continuing harm by those with authority.
Avoid claiming...
- Hardship does not prove that its sufferer is rebellious, because selected passages distinguish imposed labor and troubled prayer from obstinacy.
- A harsh response is not automatically faithful firmness, and narrated providential fulfillment does not authorize imitation of oppressive conduct.
Evidence Summary
Hebrew word. Resistance or rigidity—physical hardness, emotional obstinacy, or relational harshness—unified by inflexibility.
Source Gloss
severe (in various applications)
Extended definitionSource: Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon + Brown-Driver-Briggs
Resistance or rigidity—physical hardness, emotional obstinacy, or relational harshness—unified by inflexibility.
severe (in various applications) BDB: hard Usage: churlish, cruel, grievous, hard((-hearted), thing), heavy, impudent, obstinate, prevailed, rough(-ly), sore, sorrowful, stiff(necked), stubborn, in trouble.
Grammatical Forms
How this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.
Selected Scripture Witness
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Old Testament Witnesses
Hard or obstinate.
Showing 1 selected witness from 36 lexical occurrence verses.
Word Origins
קָשֶׁה is built from this root:
Why This Word Matters
Describes resistant rebellion against God.Isaiah 48:1-8
Part of These Phrases
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
For the Preacher and Teacher
Exodus reports that Israel does not listen to Moses because of broken spirit and cruel bondage. That stated explanation must remain present when teaching about hearing the promise; it cannot be reduced to a verdict that oppressed people simply lack willingness. Hannah's explanation provides another safeguard: her troubled spirit accompanies prayer, correcting Eli's initial accusation.
Rehoboam's harsh response is different, because he rejects counsel and makes the people's burden heavier. Deuteronomy's stiff-necked description likewise concerns an explicitly named history of rebellion. These applications show why the broad adjective needs its actual object and surrounding assessment. Severity may be inflicted, experienced or expressed, and a moral judgment must follow the passage's evidence.
Teaching should neither sanctify oppressive burdens nor confuse a grieving person's difficulty with the obstinacy that another passage actually condemns.
Anchor passage
1Sam.1.15
Doctrinal connections
- Exodus 1:12-14 identifies ruthless oppression and harsh service as treatment imposed upon the Israelites.
- Exodus 6:7-11 names broken spirit and cruel bondage as the reason Israel did not listen to Moses' relayed promise.
- First Samuel 1:13-17 preserves Hannah's explanation of prayer from anguish rather than accepting Eli's mistaken accusation.
- First Kings 12:3-6 records the people's request for relief and the opportunity to seek experienced counsel.
- First Kings 12:11-15 names Rehoboam's harsh answer, rejected counsel and refusal to listen within the stated fulfillment account.
- Deuteronomy 9:4-8 rejects self-righteous explanation of the land gift and names the people's stiff-necked rebellion.
The licensed Hebrew adjective covers hardness or severity in several applications. Labor, spirit, an answer and a stiff-necked description are different objects or expressions supplied by their contexts. The broad range does not permit one fixed moral diagnosis, and related hardening verbs remain separate lexical identities.
From Old to New Testament
Matthew 11:28-30 invites the weary and burdened to Jesus, who describes Himself as gentle and humble and His burden as light. That Greek teaching can illuminate care for burdened people without merging the Hebrew severity adjective into a new sense or assuming that every hard task is wrong and every light task is faithful.