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Hebrew. darash ^1875^, "to seek, inquire, consult, ask, require, frequent." This word is a common Semitic word, being found in Ugaritic and Syriac as well as in Hebrew in its various periods. It is commonly used in modern Hebrew in its verbal form for "to interpret, expound" and then in its derived noun forms for "sermon, preacher." Occurring more than 160 times in the Old Testament, darash is first used in <Gen. 9:5>: "And surely your blood of your lives will I require...." It often has the idea of avenging an offense against God or the shedding of blood (see <Ezek. 33:6>).
One of the most frequent uses of this word is in the expression "to inquire of God," which sometimes indicates a private seeking of God in prayer for direction <Gen. 25:22>, and often it refers to the contacting of a prophet who would be the instrument of God's revelation <1 Sam. 9:9; 1 Kings 22:8>. At other times this expression is found in connection with the use of the Urim and Thummim by the high priest as he sought to discover the will of God by the throwing of these sacred stones <Num. 27:21>. Just what was involved is not clear, but it may be presumed that only yes-or-no questions could be answered by the manner in which these stones fell. Pagan people and sometimes even apostate Israelites "inquired of" heathen gods. Thus, Ahaziah instructed messengers: "Go, inquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron whether I shall recover of this disease" <2 Kings 1:2>. In gross violation of the Mosaic law <Deut. 18:10- 11>, Saul went to the witch of Endor "to inquire of" her, which in this instance meant that she was to call up the spirit of the dead prophet Samuel <1 Sam. 28:3ff.>. Saul went to the witch of Endor as a last resort, saying, "Seek out for me a woman who is a medium, that I may go to her and inquire of her" <1 Sam. 28:7>, RSV.
This word is often used to describe the "seeking of" the Lord in the sense of entering into covenantal relationship with Him. The prophets often used darash as they called on the people to make an about-face in living and instead "seek ye the Lord while he may be found..." <Isa. 55:6>.
(from Vine's Expository
Dictionary of Biblical Words)
(Copyright (C) 1985,
Thomas Nelson Publishers)
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