An Aramaic verb appearing in Daniel meaning to scatter or disperse. It conveys the concept of spreading out, dispersing, or distributing something across a wide area. The Aramaic form relates to the Hebrew concept of scattering, which is frequently used in prophetic literature for both judgment (God scattering his people) and promise (God gathering the scattered).
The scattering and re-gathering of Israel is one of the great narrative arcs of Scripture. From the Babel dispersion to the Babylonian exile to the eschatological ingathering, God proves sovereign over both the scattering and the gathering. This Aramaic term reflects the bilingual nature of Daniel, written partly in Aramaic for an international audience during the exile — a reminder that God's word speaks to all nations.