HAMMER

ham'-er: The Hebrew maqqebheth, occurs in Judges 4:21, where it refers to the mallet (probably wooden) used to drive tent-pins into the ground. The same word occurs in 1 Kings 6:7 Isaiah 44:12 Jeremiah 10:4 as applied to a workman's hammer. paTTish (compare Arabic, fatis), occurs in Isaiah 41:7 Jeremiah 23:29; Jeremiah 50:23. It was probably a blacksmith's hammer or heavy hammer used for breaking rock. There is doubt about the rendering of Judges 5:26, where the word, halmuth, occurs. From the context, the instrument mentioned was probably not a hammer. In Psalm 74:6, kelaph, is better translated "axes," not "hammers."

See TOOLS.

James A. Patch