ra.chaq describes being at a distance, moving away, or putting a person, place, or thing far off.

The verb most often marks distance or movement away, whether a place, person, or group is far off; it also describes actively putting something away and withdrawing from a person, instruction, or commitment.

1. Being or going far away · dominant

   Qal forms mark distance in concrete settings: in Deuteronomy 12:21 the APB renders the chosen place as "too far from you," and in Genesis 21:16 it renders a woman sitting "at a distance." In Isaiah 49:19 those who swallowed Zion are "far removed," while Lamentations 1:16 describes a comforter as "far from me."

   Deuteronomy 12:21Deuteronomy 14:24Genesis 21:16Isaiah 49:19Lamentations 1:16Joshua 8:4
2. Putting away or driving off · common

   Hiphil forms describe causing separation. In Proverbs 5:8 the APB renders the instruction to keep a way away from a woman as "Remove your way from her," and in Joel 2:20 it renders the speaker's action as driving the northern one "far from you." Psalm 103:12 sets removal of transgressions in a comparison with the distance between east and west.

   Proverbs 5:8Proverbs 30:8Job 11:14Joel 2:20Ezekiel 11:16Psalm 103:12
3. Withdrawing from a person or instruction · occasional

   The verb can depict people placing themselves at a remove in the clauses themselves. In Jeremiah 2:5 the APB says the fathers "withdrew from Me," Ezekiel 44:10 speaks of Levites who "went far from me," and Psalm 119:150 describes pursuers who "went far from your instruction."

   Jeremiah 2:5Ezekiel 44:10Job 30:10Proverbs 19:7Psalm 119:150Isaiah 29:13

In the Anselm Project Bible: Across these verses the APB uses expressions such as "far," "far from," "remove," "drive... far," and "withdrew." Because the APB is a whole-verse translation, those English expressions only indicate the clauses in which the term occurs.