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Bible Dictionaries
Set in Order
Vine's Expository Dictionary of OT Words
‛Ărak (עָרַךְ, Strong's #6186), “to arrange, set in order, compare.” While it occurs some 75 times in the Hebrew Old Testament, this root is also found in modern Hebrew, being connected with “editing” and “dictionary.” The word is first found in the Old Testament in Gen. 14:8: “… They joined battle [literally, “they arranged,” referring to opposing battle lines].…” It is used in this way many times in the record of the battles of Israel.
A common word in everyday life, ‛ârak often refers to “arranging” a table (Isa. 21:5; Ezek. 23:41). The word is used several times in the Book of Job with reference to “arranging” or “setting” words “in order,” as in an argument or rebuttal (Job 32:14; 33:5; 37:19). In Job 13:18, Job declares: “Behold now, I have ordered my cause [literally, “I have set my judgment in order”].…” “To arrange in order” makes it possible “to compare” one thing with another. So, to show the superiority of God over the idols, the prophet asks: “To whom then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him?” (Isa. 40:18).
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Vines, W. E., M. A. Entry for 'Set in Order'. Vine's Expository Dictionary of OT Words. https://www.studylight.org/​dictionaries/​eng/​vot/​s/set-in-order.html. 1940.