to abase
sha.phel describes bringing proud people, lofty places, or oneself down from an elevated position.
The verb most often marks the lowering of human pride, status, or persons, whether by divine action, personal pride itself, or a command to humble oneself. It also describes bringing down high places and elevated features, including a fortified refuge, an exalted town, mountains, and hills.
Senses in use
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Lowering people, pride, or status · dominant
Hiphil forms occur where the proud, haughty, or socially elevated are brought down: in Isaiah 13:11 the APB renders the clause, “I will cause the pride of the arrogant to cease,” and Isaiah 25:11 places the action on pride. In Proverbs 29:23, the Hiphil imperfect stands in the clause the APB renders, “The pride of a man abases him,” while Jeremiah 13:18 uses a Hiphil imperative addressed to the king and queen: “Humble yourselves and sit down.”
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Bringing elevated places or features down · common
The verb is also applied to what is high in location or structure. In Isaiah 25:12 the Hiphil perfect concerns a fortified high refuge brought “down to the ground, down to the dust,” and Isaiah 26:5 repeats Hiphil imperfect forms for bringing an exalted town down to the land. Qal forms in Isaiah 40:4 place mountains and hills among features that “shall be abased.”
In the Anselm Project Bible: Across the clearer clauses, the APB uses renderings such as “brings low,” “brought low,” “bring them down,” “humbled,” and “abases.” Because the APB is a whole-verse translation, some occurrences do not isolate the verb’s English contribution precisely.