בָּרַךְ
to bless
‘to bless’ is one of 2 main senses fuller range ↓
Full lexicon entry — Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
From Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
Where this word appears
See every Piel verb in the Hebrew Bible →
Grammar key — what these labels mean
Part of speech
- Verb
- An action or state-of-being word.
Stem
- Qal
- The basic, simple active stem — the plain form of the verb (“he wrote”). Here: ‘kneel down’
- Piel
- An intensive or resultative active stem. Here: ‘bless God’
- Pual
- The passive counterpart of the Piel. Here: ‘to be blessed’
- Hithpael
- The reflexive or reciprocal stem (the subject acts on itself).
- Niphal
- Usually the simple passive or reflexive of the Qal (“he was written”).
- Hiphil
- The causative active stem (“he caused / brought about”).
Form
- Participle Passive
- A verbal adjective expressing action received (“written”).
- Sequential Imperfect
- An imperfect with prefixed waw — the standard past-narrative form (waw-consecutive imperfect).
- Imperfect
- An incomplete, ongoing, or future action (“he will / would write”).
- Imperative
- A direct command (“write!”).
- Perfect
- A completed action or state — Hebrew marks aspect (completeness) more than strict tense (“he wrote”).
- Infinitive Construct
- A bound verbal noun, frequently with prepositions (“to write / in writing”).
- Infinitive Absolute
- An unbound verbal noun, often intensifying or standing in for a finite verb.
- Sequential Perfect
- A perfect with prefixed waw continuing a preceding imperfect or command (waw-consecutive perfect).
- Participle Active
- A verbal adjective expressing ongoing or characteristic action (“writing / one who writes”).
- Cohortative
- A first-person volitional form expressing wish or resolve (“let me / let us write”).
- Jussive
- A third- or second-person volitional form expressing wish or command (“let him write”).
State
- Absolute
- The independent form of a noun, not bound to a following word.
- Construct
- A noun bound to a following noun in a possessive / “of” relationship (the construct chain).
Person
- 3rd Person
- The one spoken about (“he / she / it / they”).
- 2nd Person
- The one addressed (“you”).
- 1st Person
- The speaker (“I / we”).
Gender
- Masculine
- Grammatically masculine.
- Feminine
- Grammatically feminine.
- Common
- Either gender — not distinguished for this form.
Number
- Singular
- One.
- Plural
- More than one (in Hebrew, generally three or more).
Every verse where H1288 appears in the Book of Psalms — 68 distinct verses. Click any verse to open its interlinear word-by-word view. Verse text shown in the World English Bible for context — . Each verse’s Hebrew form is shown with its reference; the English is not keyword-highlighted, since the data carries no word-level English alignment. Use “Compare translations” on any verse to read it across multiple English versions. This concordance covers the Hebrew Bible; Septuagint (Greek Old Testament) occurrences are not indexed here.
Psalms
- Psalms 5:12 תְּבָרֵ֪ךְ Piel impf 2ms For you will bless the righteous. Yahweh, you will surround him with favor as with a shield.
- Psalms 10:3 בֵּ֝רֵ֗ךְ Piel pf 3ms For the wicked boasts of his heart's cravings, He blesses the greedy, and condemns Yahweh.
- Psalms 16:7 אֲבָרֵ֗ךְ Piel impf 1cs I will bless Yahweh, who has given me counsel. Yes, my heart instructs me in the night seasons.
- Psalms 18:46 וּ/בָר֣וּךְ conj + Qal ptcp.pass ms Yahweh lives; and blessed be my rock. Exalted be the God of my salvation,
- Psalms 26:12 אֲבָרֵ֥ךְ Piel impf 1cs My foot stands in an even place. In the congregations I will bless Yahweh.
- Psalms 28:6 בָּר֥וּךְ Qal ptcp.pass ms Blessed be Yahweh, Because he has heard the voice of my petitions.
- Psalms 28:9 וּ/בָרֵ֥ךְ conj + Piel impv 2ms Save your people, And bless your inheritance. Be their shepherd also, And bear them up forever.
- Psalms 29:11 יְבָרֵ֖ךְ Piel impf 3ms Yahweh will give strength to his people. Yahweh will bless his people with peace.
- Psalms 31:21 בָּר֥וּךְ Qal ptcp.pass ms Praise be to Yahweh, For he has shown me his marvelous loving kindness in a strong city.
- Psalms 34:1 אֲבָרֲכָ֣ה Piel coh 1cs I will bless Yahweh at all times. His praise will always be in my mouth.
- Psalms 37:22 מְ֭בֹרָכָי/ו Pual ptcp.pass mp cs + sfx pers 3ms For such as are blessed by him shall inherit the land. Those who are cursed by him shall be cut off.
- Psalms 41:13 בָּ֘ר֤וּךְ Qal ptcp.pass ms Blessed be Yahweh, the God of Israel, From everlasting and to everlasting! Amen and amen.
- Psalms 45:2 בֵּֽרַכְ/ךָ֖ Piel pf 3ms + sfx pers 2ms You are the most excellent of the sons of men. Grace has anointed your lips, Therefore God has blessed you forever.
- Psalms 49:18 יְבָרֵ֑ךְ Piel impf 3ms Though while he lived he blessed his soul-- And men praise you when you do well for yourself--
- Psalms 62:4 יְבָרֵ֑כוּ Piel impf 3mp They fully intend to throw him down from his lofty place. They delight in lies. They bless with their mouth, but they curse inwardly. Selah.
- Psalms 63:4 אֲבָרֶכְ/ךָ֣ Piel impf 1cs + sfx pers 2ms So I will bless you while I live. I will lift up my hands in your name.
- Psalms 65:10 תְּבָרֵֽךְ Piel impf 2ms You drench its furrows. You level its ridges. You soften it with showers. You bless it with a crop.
- Psalms 66:8 בָּרְכ֖וּ Piel impv 2mp Praise our God, you peoples! Make the sound of his praise heard,
- Psalms 66:20 בָּר֥וּךְ Qal ptcp.pass ms Blessed be God, who has not turned away my prayer, Nor his loving kindness from me.
- Psalms 67:1 וִֽ/יבָרְכֵ֑/נוּ conj + Piel impf 3ms + sfx pers 1cp May God be merciful to us, bless us, And cause his face to shine on us. Selah.
- Psalms 67:6 יְ֝בָרְכֵ֗/נוּ Piel impf 3ms + sfx pers 1cp The earth has yielded its increase. God, even our own God, will bless us.
- Psalms 67:7 יְבָרְכֵ֥/נוּ Piel impf 3ms + sfx pers 1cp God will bless us. All the ends of the earth shall fear him.
- Psalms 68:19 בָּ֤ר֣וּךְ Qal ptcp.pass ms Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears our burdens, Even the God who is our salvation. Selah.
- Psalms 68:26 בָּרְכ֣וּ Piel impv 2mp "Bless God in the congregations, Even the Lord in the assembly of Israel!"
- Psalms 68:35 בָּר֥וּךְ Qal ptcp.pass ms You are awesome, God, in your sanctuaries. The God of Israel gives strength and power to his people. Praise be to God!
- Psalms 72:15 יְבָרֲכֶֽ/נְהֽוּ Piel juss 3ms + sfx pers 3ms They shall live, and to him shall be given of the gold of Sheba. Men shall pray for him continually. They shall bless him all day long.
- Psalms 72:17 וְ/יִתְבָּ֥רְכוּ conj + Hithpael impf 3mp His name endures forever. His name continues as long as the sun. Men shall be blessed by him. All nations will call him blessed.
- Psalms 72:18 בָּר֤וּךְ Qal ptcp.pass ms Praise be to Yahweh God, the God of Israel, Who alone does marvelous deeds.
- Psalms 72:19 וּ/בָר֤וּךְ conj + Qal ptcp.pass ms Blessed be his glorious name forever! Let the whole earth be filled with his glory! Amen and amen.
- Psalms 89:52 בָּר֖וּךְ Qal ptcp.pass ms Blessed be Yahweh forevermore. Amen, and Amen.
- Psalms 95:6 נִ֝בְרְכָ֗ה Qal coh 1cp Oh come, let's worship and bow down. Let's kneel before Yahweh, our Maker,
- Psalms 96:2 בָּרֲכ֣וּ Piel impv 2mp Sing to Yahweh! Bless his name! Proclaim his salvation from day to day!
- Psalms 100:4 בָּרֲכ֥וּ Piel impv 2mp Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, Into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him, and bless his name.
- Psalms 103:1 בָּרֲכִ֣י Piel impv 2fs Praise Yahweh, my soul! All that is within me, praise his holy name!
- Psalms 103:2 בָּרֲכִ֣י Piel impv 2fs Praise Yahweh, my soul, And don't forget all his benefits;
- Psalms 103:20 בָּרֲכ֥וּ Piel impv 2mp Praise Yahweh, you angels of his, Who are mighty in strength, who fulfill his word, Obeying the voice of his word.
- Psalms 103:21 בָּרֲכ֣וּ Piel impv 2mp Praise Yahweh, all you hosts of his, You servants of his, who do his pleasure.
- Psalms 103:22 בָּרֲכ֤וּ בָּרֲכִ֥י Piel impv 2mp Piel impv 2fs Praise Yahweh, all you works of his, In all places of his dominion. Praise Yahweh, my soul.
- Psalms 104:1 בָּרֲכִ֥י Piel impv 2fs Bless Yahweh, my soul. Yahweh, my God, you are very great. You are clothed with honor and majesty.
- Psalms 104:35 בָּרֲכִ֣י Piel impv 2fs Let sinners be consumed out of the earth. Let the wicked be no more. Bless Yahweh, my soul. Praise Yah!
- Psalms 106:48 בָּר֤וּךְ Qal ptcp.pass ms Blessed be Yahweh, the God of Israel, From everlasting even to everlasting! Let all the people say, "Amen." Praise Yah!
- Psalms 107:38 וַ/יְבָרֲכֵ֣/ם conj + Piel wimpf 3ms + sfx pers 3mp He blesses them also, so that they are multiplied greatly. He doesn't allow their cattle to decrease.
- Psalms 109:28 תְבָ֫רֵ֥ךְ Piel impf 2ms They may curse, but you bless. When they arise, they will be shamed, But your servant shall rejoice.
- Psalms 112:2 יְבֹרָֽךְ Pual impf 3ms His seed will be mighty in the land. The generation of the upright will be blessed.
- Psalms 113:2 מְבֹרָ֑ךְ Pual ptcp.pass ms Blessed be the name of Yahweh, From this time forth and forevermore.
- Psalms 115:12 יְבָ֫רֵ֥ךְ יְ֭בָרֵךְ יְ֝בָרֵ֗ךְ Piel impf 3ms Piel impf 3ms Piel impf 3ms Yahweh remembers us. He will bless us. He will bless the house of Israel. He will bless the house of Aaron.
- Psalms 115:13 יְ֭בָרֵךְ Piel impf 3ms He will bless those who fear Yahweh, Both small and great.
- Psalms 115:15 בְּרוּכִ֣ים Qal ptcp.pass mp Blessed are you by Yahweh, Who made heaven and earth.
- Psalms 115:18 נְבָ֘רֵ֤ךְ Piel impf 1cp But we will bless Yah, From this time forth and forevermore. Praise Yah!
- Psalms 118:26 בָּר֣וּךְ בֵּ֝רַֽכְנוּ/כֶ֗ם Qal ptcp.pass ms Piel pf 1cp + sfx pers 2mp Blessed is he who comes in the name of Yahweh! We have blessed you out of the house of Yahweh.
- Psalms 119:12 בָּר֖וּךְ Qal ptcp.pass ms Blessed are you, Yahweh. Teach me your statutes.
- Psalms 124:6 בָּר֥וּךְ Qal ptcp.pass ms Blessed be Yahweh, Who has not given us as a prey to their teeth.
- Psalms 128:4 יְבֹ֥רַךְ Pual impf 3ms Behold, thus is the man blessed who fears Yahweh.
- Psalms 128:5 יְבָרֶכְ/ךָ֥ Piel impf 3ms + sfx pers 2ms May Yahweh bless you out of Zion, And may you see the good of Jerusalem all the days of your life.
- Psalms 129:8 בֵּרַ֥כְנוּ Piel pf 1cp Neither do those who go by say, "The blessing of Yahweh be on you. We bless you in the name of Yahweh."
- Psalms 132:15 בָּרֵ֣ךְ אֲבָרֵ֑ךְ Piel inf.abs Piel impf 1cs I will abundantly bless her provision. I will satisfy her poor with bread.
- Psalms 134:1 בָּרֲכ֣וּ Piel impv 2mp Look! Praise Yahweh, all you servants of Yahweh, Who stand by night in Yahweh's house!
- Psalms 134:2 וּ֝/בָרֲכוּ conj + Piel impv 2mp Lift up your hands in the sanctuary. Praise Yahweh!
- Psalms 134:3 יְבָרֶכְ/ךָ֣ Piel impf 3ms + sfx pers 2ms May Yahweh bless you from Zion; Even he who made heaven and earth.
- Psalms 135:19 בָּרֲכ֣וּ בָּרֲכ֥וּ Piel impv 2mp Piel impv 2mp House of Israel, praise Yahweh! House of Aaron, praise Yahweh!
- Psalms 135:20 בָּרֲכ֣וּ בָּרֲכ֥וּ Piel impv 2mp Piel impv 2mp House of Levi, praise Yahweh! You who fear Yahweh, praise Yahweh!
- Psalms 135:21 בָּ֘ר֤וּךְ Qal ptcp.pass ms Blessed be Yahweh from Zion, Who dwells at Jerusalem. Praise Yah!
- Psalms 144:1 בָּ֘ר֤וּךְ Qal ptcp.pass ms Blessed be Yahweh, my rock, Who teaches my hands to war, And my fingers to battle:
- Psalms 145:1 וַ/אֲבָרֲכָ֥ה conj + Piel coh 1cs I will exalt you, my God, the King. I will praise your name forever and ever.
- Psalms 145:2 אֲבָרֲכֶ֑/ךָּ Piel coh 1cs + sfx pers 2ms Every day I will praise you. I will extol your name forever and ever.
- Psalms 145:10 יְבָרֲכֽוּ/כָה Piel impf 3mp + sfx pers 2ms All your works will give thanks to you, Yahweh. Your saints will extol you.
- Psalms 145:21 וִ/יבָרֵ֣ךְ conj + Piel impf 3ms My mouth will speak the praise of Yahweh. Let all flesh bless his holy name forever and ever.
- Psalms 147:13 בֵּרַ֖ךְ Piel pf 3ms For he has strengthened the bars of your gates. He has blessed your children within you.
About this entry
At a glance — auto-summarized from this page’s data, not written by a person. Every figure links to its source below. This summary describes the numbers; it doesn’t interpret them.
ברך (bârak) is a Hebrew verb most often rendered “to bless.” Read the stem: it spans 6 stems, including Qal and Niphal. It turns up in 289 verses across 24 books, a common footprint. It first appears in Genesis 1:22. From the same root come ברך, ברך and ברכה. For the data behind this summary, explore the sense tree and the renderings breakdown below.
Gloss history
Strong's 1890 vs modern scholarship
About this word
Strong's H1288 catalogs a Hebrew word from the Hebrew Old Testament.
These counts are not copied from any lexicon or concordance. They are computed here, from the morphology-tagged Hebrew Old Testament. What Lemma adds →
- 289
- distinct verses
- The word appears in 289 distinct verses.
- 24 / 39
- OT books
- The word appears in 24 of 39 Old Testament books.
- #148
- by frequency
- Top 250 most frequent Hebrew words (rank 148 of 8,640 Hebrew words by occurrence).
View all 289 occurrences in the concordance →
Most concentrated in
- Psalms 68 verses 24%
- Genesis 62 verses 21%
- Deuteronomy 35 verses 12%
By section of the Old Testament
By traditional corpus
Conventional, traditional groupings — biblical authorship is debated, so this is a traditional corpus grouping, not an authorship claim. Each share is this word’s portion of its verses in that division of the Hebrew canon. Each figure is a share of the word’s 289 distinct verses.
- Torah (Pentateuch) 116 verses · 40%
- Writings (Ketuvim) 111 verses · 38%
- Prophets (Nevi'im) 62 verses · 21%
How translations render this word
Counts come from each version’s own published word-to-Strong’s tagging or interlinear alignment — an approximate guide to how each version renders this word, not a word-level alignment the data otherwise carries. Because each total is that version’s own tagged count, the per-version totals vary from one another and need not match the appearance or distinct-verse counts above. These counts may also differ from a printed concordance because Lemma counts each distinctly tagged rendering and does not collapse phrase taggings into a single head-word total. This is a fixed set of word-tagged versions (KJV, ASV, BSB, ULT) and does not change with the reading translation you choose elsewhere. Each version’s license is shown beside its name below (and on Sources).
- King James Version: Blessed 105×, Bless 50×, Hath blessed 14×
- American Standard Version: Blessed 96×, Bless 44×, Hath blessed 11×
- Berean Standard Bible: Blessed 70×, Bless 44×, Will be blessed 13×
- unfoldingWord Literal Text: Blessed 62×, Bless 46×, And 27×
King James Version Public Domain
Renders H1288 across 331 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 75 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
American Standard Version Public Domain
Renders H1288 across 331 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 89 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
Berean Standard Bible Public Domain
Renders H1288 across 323 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 63 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings. Not rendered by a distinct English word in 6 further occurrences.
unfoldingWord Literal Text CC BY-SA 4.0
Renders H1288 across 416 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 55 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
32 senses and sub-senses in the full BDB
Hebrew verbs can shift meaning by stem (binyan): Qal is the basic action, Niphal is often passive or reflexive, Piel often intensifies or makes it factitive, and Hiphil is typically causative. The senses below are grouped under the stem BDB assigns to each. This entry also uses Pual (the passive of Piel) and Hithpael (reflexive or reciprocal).
What do BDB’s symbols mean?
BDB uses these scholarly abbreviations:
| Symbol | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 𝔊 | the Septuagint (the ancient Greek translation, LXX) |
| 𝔙 | the Vulgate (the Latin translation) |
| 𝔖 | the Syriac version (the Peshitta) |
| 𝔗 | the Targum (the Aramaic translation) |
| ψ | the Psalms |
| √ | root (the underlying root or stem) |
| ‖ | parallel passage (a synonymous or contrasted parallel) |
| † | the dagger: every passage where the word occurs is cited |
The 32 senses and sub-senses the full Brown-Driver-Briggs lexicon distinguishes for this word, in lexicon order (not ranked by frequency), with BDB’s own verbatim wording and sub-sense lettering. Shown in Hebrew script with BDB’s own scholarly abbreviations. The condensed entry is in the Lexicon Entry tab. See also the Forms in the corpus table below.
Qal
- Impf. יִבְרַךְ 2 Ch 6:13; נִבְרְכָה ψ 95:6; בָּרוֹךְ (v. Pi.); Pt. pass. בָּרוּךְ Gn 9:26 + 70 times;— e.g. 2 Chronicles 6:13
- 1. kneel down (so Arabic Syriac Ethiopic): וַיִּבְרַךְ עַל־בִּרְכָּיו and he kneeled upon his knees 2 Ch 6:13; נִבְרְכָה לפני י׳ let us kneel before Yahweh ψ 95:6. e.g. 2 Chronicles 6:13
- 2. bless (only pt. pass.).
- a. of God: בָּרוּךְ י׳ blessed be (or is) י׳ Ex 18:10 (E) Gn 9:26; 24:27 (J) Ru 4:14; 1 S 25:32, 39; 2 S 18:28; 1 K 1:48; 5:21; 8:15, 56; 10:9; 1 Ch 16:36; 29:10; 2 Ch 2:11; 6:4; 9:8 Ezr 7:27; ψ 28:6; 31:22; 41:14; 72:18; 89:53; 106:48; 119:12; 124:6; 135:21; 144:1; Zc 11:5; ב׳ אלהים ψ 66:20; 68:36; ב׳ אדני ψ 68:20 (prob. for an original יהוה); ב׳ אל עליון Gn 14:20 (E); ב׳ צוּרִי 2 S 22:47 (= ψ 18:47); ב׳ כבוד י׳ Ez 3:12; ב׳ שׁם כבודו ψ 72:19. e.g. Exodus 18:10
- b. of men: Gn 27:33 (J) Nu 22:12 (E) Dt 7:14; 28:3, 6; 33:20, 24 1 S 25:33; 26:25; Ju 17:2; 1 K 2:45; ψ 118:26; Is 19:25; Je 17:7; 20:14; מברכיך ברוך blessed be the one blessing thee Gn 27:29; Nu 24:9 (E); ב׳ ליהוה Ru 2:19, 20; 3:10; 1 S 15:13; 23:21; 2 S 2:5; ψ 115:15; ב׳ לאל עליון Gn 14:19; בְּרוּךְ י׳ Gn 24:31; 26:29 (J); בְּרוּכֵי י׳ Is 65:23. e.g. Genesis 27:33
- c. things: בָּרוּךְ פרי בטנך blessed be the fruit of thy womb Dt 28:4 cf. Dt 28:5; 1 S 25:33; Pr 5:18. e.g. Deuteronomy 28:4
Niphal
- Pf. נִבְרְכוּ Gn 12:3; 18:18; 28:14 (J) bless oneself (cf. Hithp.). e.g. Genesis 12:3
Piel
- Pf. בֵּרַךְ Gn 24:1 + 29 times; בֵּרֵךְ ψ 10:3 Nu 23:20; בֵּרְכוּ 2 Ch 20:26; וּבֵרֲכוּ Jb 1:5; sf. בֵּרֲכוֹ, בֵּרֲכַנִי, etc., Gn 27:27 + 5 times; בֵּרַכְךָ Dt 2:7 + 9 times; Impf. יְבָרֵךְ, וַיְּבָ֫רֶךְ etc., Gn 28:3 + 52 times; אֲבָֽרֲכָה Gn 12:3 + 2 times; pl. יְבָֽרֲכוּ Gn 24:60 + 11 times; sf. יְבָרֶכְךָ Gn 27:10 + 21 times; יְבָֽרֲכֶךָּ Gn 49:25 + 2 times; יְבָֽרֲכֵהוּ Gn 14:19 + 16 times; יְבָֽרֲכֵם Gn 48:20 + 6 times; אֲבָרֶכְכָה Gn 27:7; תְּכָֽרֲכַנִּי Gn 27:19, 31; יְבָֽרֲכֶנְהוּ ψ 72:15; יְרָֽרֲכוּכָה ψ 145:10; Imv. בָּרֵךְ Dt 33:11; + 29 times; Inf. cstr. בָּרֵךְ Gn 22:17 + 24 times; Inf. abs. בָּרוֹךְ Jos 24:10 (Ki, cf. Köi. 191, Ew§ 240 b, 2 Ol Sta); Pt. מְבָרֵךְ Pr 27:14 + 4 times;— e.g. Genesis 24:1
- 1. bless God, adore with bended knees: acc. ברך י׳ Gn 24:48 (J) Dt 8:10; Ju 5:2, 9; 1 Ch 29:10, 20; 2 Ch 20:26; 31:8; Ne 9:5; ψ 16:7; 26:12; 34:2; 63:5; 103:20, 21, 22; 115:18; 134:1, 2; 135:19, 20; 145:2, 10; ברכי נפשׁי את י׳ ψ 103:1, 2, 22; 104:1, 35; ברך שׁם bless the name of Yahweh Ne 9:5; ψ 96:2; 100:4; 145:1, 21; ברך אלהים Jos 22:33; ψ 66:8; 68:27 (doubtless for an original יהוה), with לְ 1 Ch 29:20; מְבָרֵךְ אָוֶן Is 66:3 (of idolatrous worship). e.g. Genesis 24:48
- 2. God blesses
- a. men: abs. Nu 23:20 (E) ψ 109:28; with acc. Gn 32:27, 30; 48:16; Ex 20:24; Nu 24:1; Jos 24:10 (E) Gn 12:2, 3; 22:17; 24:1, 35; 26:12; 30:27, 30; 39:5; 49:25; Jos 17:14 (J) Gn 1:22, 28; 5:2; 9:1; 17:16, 20; 25:11; 26:3, 24; 28:3; 35:9; 48:3 Nu 6:24, 27 (P) Dt 1:11; 2:7; 7:13; 12:7; 14:24, 29; 15:4, 6, 10, 14, 18; 16:10, 15; 23:21; 24:13, 19; 26:15; 28:8; 30:16; Ju 13:24; 2 S 6:11, 12; 7:29; 1 Ch 4:10; 13:14; 17:27; 26:5; 2 Ch 31:10; Ne 8:6; Ru 2:4; Jb 42:12 ψ 5:13; 28:9; 29:11; 45:3; 67:2, 7, 8; 107:38; 115:12, 13; 128:5; 134:3; 147:13; Pr 3:33; Is 19:25; 51:2; 61:9; Je 31:23; Hg 2:19. e.g. Numbers 23:20
- b. things: sabbath Gn 2:3 Ex 20:11 (P); field Gn 27:27 (E); bread Ex 23:25 (E); work Dt 28:12 Jb 1:10 cf. Dt 33:11 ψ 65:11; 132:15. e.g. Genesis 2:3
- 3. men bless men: priests & kings בשׁם י׳ Dt 10:8; 21:5; 2 S 6:18; 1 Ch 16:2; 23:13; ψ 129:8; Melchizedek Abraham Gn 14:19; Moses Dt 33:1; Ex 12:32; 39:43; Joshua Jos 14:13; 22:6, 7; priests Lv 9:22, 23; Nu 6:23; Dt 27:12; Jos 8:33; 2 Ch 30:27; ψ 118:26; Solomon 1 K 8:14, 55 (= 2 Ch 6:3); David 2 S 6:20 (= 1 Ch 16:43) 19:40; Eli 1 S 2:20; Balaam Nu 22:6; 23:11, 20, 25; 24:10; fathers, especially on death-bed Gn 27:4 + 12 times Gn 27 (all JE) 28:1, 6 (P) 32:1 (E) 48:9 (P) 48:15, 20; 49:28 (J) 2 S 13:25; in consecrating a sacrifice 1 S 9:13. e.g. Deuteronomy 10:8
- 4. salute, greet, with an invocation of blessing (stronger than שׁלום): בך יברך ישׂראל with thee will Israel bless Gn 48:20 (E). e.g. Genesis 48:20
- a. in meeting Gn 47:7 (P) 2 K 4:29; 10:15 1 S 13:10. e.g. Genesis 47:7
- b. in departing Gn 24:60 (J) 47:10 (P) 1 K 8:66. e.g. Genesis 24:60
- c. by messengers 1 S 25:14 2 S 8:10 1 Ch 18:10. e.g. 1 Samuel 25:14
- d. in gratitude Jb 31:20 Pr 30:11 Ne 11:2. e.g. Job 31:20
- e. morning salutation Pr 27:14. e.g. Proverbs 27:14
- f. congratulations for prosperity Gn 12:3 (J) 27:29 Nu 24:9 (E) 1 K 1:47 ψ 49:19; 62:5. e.g. Genesis 12:3
- g. in homage 2 S 14:22 ψ 72:15. e.g. 2 Samuel 14:22
- h. in friendliness 2 S 21:3. e.g. 2 Samuel 21:3
- 5. bless, with the antithetical meaning curse (Thes) from the greeting in departing, saying adieu to, taking leave of; but rather a blessing overdone and so really a curse as in vulgar English as well as in the Shemitic cognates: 1 K 21:10, 13 Jb 1:5, 11; 2:5, 9 ψ 10:3. e.g. 1 Kings 21:10
Pual
- Impf. יְבֹרַךְ 2 S 7:29 + 3 times; תְּבֹרַךְ Ju 5:24 Pr 20:21; Pt. מְבֹרָךְ Nu 22:6 + 3 times; f. מְבֹרֶכֶת Dt 33:13; מְבֹרָכָיו ψ 37:22;— e.g. 2 Samuel 7:29
- 1. pass. to be blessed, adored: שׁם י׳ Jb 1:21 ψ 113:2. e.g. Job 1:21
- 2. prospered by God:
- a. persons 2 S 7:29 1 Ch 17:27 ψ 37:22; 112:2; 128:4 Pr 20:21. e.g. 2 Samuel 7:29
- b. things Dt 33:13. e.g. Deuteronomy 33:13
- 3. have prosperity invoked, by Balaam Nu 22:6. e.g. Numbers 22:6
- 4. in gratitude Pr 22:9 Ju 5:24. e.g. Proverbs 22:9
Hiphil
- וַיַּבְרֵךְ הַגְּמַלִּים and he made his camels kneel Gn 24:11 (J). e.g. Genesis 24:11
Hithpael
- הִתְבָּרֵךְ Dt 29:18 + 3 times; Impf. יִתְבָּרֵךְ Is 65:16 ψ 72:17; Pt. מִתְבָּרֵךְ Is 65:16;—bless oneself, congratulate oneself בלבבו in his heart Dt 29:18; בזרעך with or by (cf. בְּ iii. 2. d) thy seed (invoke for oneself the blessing of the seed of Abraham) Gn 22:18; 26:4 (J); by the Messianic king ψ 72:17; באלהי אמן Is 65:16; by י׳ Je 4:2. e.g. Deuteronomy 29:18
Senses from the full Brown-Driver-Briggs lexicon (Brown, Driver, Briggs; Oxford 1906 — public domain), digitized via Sefaria, supplemented by the OpenScriptures HebrewLexicon (CC BY 4.0). Full attribution on Sources.
Word origin
vb. kneel, bless (NH id.; Arabic بَرَكَ Ethiopic በረከ Aramaic בְּרֵךְ, ܒܪܶܟ (praise), Palm. especially in בריך שמו לעלמא VogPalm. 74 ff. cf. 94, 144)—
— Brown-Driver-Briggs (Oxford 1906, public domain), digitized via Sefaria, supplemented by the OpenScriptures HebrewLexicon (CC BY 4.0). See Sources.
Origin: a primitive root
Jastrow Dictionary
A second Hebrew/Aramaic lexicon for comparison, covering Aramaic and post-biblical (Talmudic, Targumic, Midrashic) usage that the biblical-Hebrew BDB does not. Matched by lemma rather than by Strong’s number, so a lemma may carry more than one Jastrow headword (shown separately below), and the entries cover usage well beyond the Bible.
בָּרַךְ
- 1. to cave out. Denom. בְּרֵכָה, בֶּרֶךְ; cmp. בּוּרְכָּא, בּוּרְכְּתָא.
- 2. (cmp. ברר) to select, point out (cmp. esp. Gen. II, 3) whence to bless (Pi.).—Part. pass. בָּרוּךְ chosen, blessed, praised. הקדוש ב׳ הוא (abbr. הקב"ה) the Holy One, blessed be He. Pes. 118ᵃ; a. v. fr. Ib. 104ᵇ, a. fr. פותח בב׳ וכ׳ he (who prays) opens the benediction with barukh and closes with barukh (i.e. ברוך אתה ה׳). Tosef. Sot. I, 10 ב׳ בכלל, v. כְּלָל; a. fr. e.g. Genesis 2:3
- (b. h.)
- 1. to praise, bless, esp. to recite the due benediction. Ber. VI, 1. Ib. 5 בי׳ על היין having recited the blessing over wine &c. Pes. X, 9 ב׳ ברכת הפסח having recited the blessing over the Paschal lamb. Ib. 5 אנחנו חייבים … לְבָרֵךְ we are bound to … praise &c.; a. v. fr.
- 2. (cmp. נקב) to blaspheme. Snh. 56ᵃ עד שֶיְבָרֵךְ שם בשם until he blasphemes the Lord by His name. Ib. שבי׳ את השם בכינוי who blasphemed the Lord by an attribute.—Part. Pu. מְבוֹרָךְ blessed, praiseworthy. Ber. VII, 3; a. fr.
- 3. *to cut through, to clear virgin ground or forest. Tosef. Shebi. III, 20 ed. Zuck. (Var. מגדר); Y. ib. IV, 35ᵇ bot. מבדין; Y. Sabb. VII, 10ᵃ top המברה, v. בהי h. [Tosef. Shebi. I, 6 מבורכות, v. infra.]
- , Nithpa. נִתְבָּרֵךְ to be blessed (praised); to be increased (v. בְּרָכָה). Y. Ber. IX, 14ᵃ top ויִתְבָּרַךְ and be blessed. Y. M. Kat. I, beg. 80ᵃ if the waters were scanty ונִתְבָּרְכוּ and grew plentiful. Yeb. 63ᵃ; a. fr.
- (denom. of בֶּרֶךְ or בְּרִיכָה) to form a knee, to engraft; esp. to bend a vine by drawing it into the ground and making it grow forth as an independent plant, to sink. Shebi. II, 6; R. Hash. 10ᵇ; a. fr.—Tosef. Shebi. I, 6 אם היו מוּבְרָכוֹת (incorr. מבורכ׳) if they have been sunk before New Year &c.—Yeb. 63ᵃ (allud. to Gen. XII, 3) שתי ברכית טובות יש לי להַבְרִיךְ בך two good shoots (proselytes) have I to engraft on thee, Ruth and &c. (B. Kam. 38ᵇ … פרידות וכ׳). e.g. Genesis 12:3
בְּרַךְ
- Part. Peil בְּרִיךְ blessed. Targ. Gen. IX, 26; a. fr.—Sabb. 67ᵃ, a. fr. קודשא ב׳ הוא the Holiness (Holy One), blessed be He. Cant. R. to. IV, 4; Gen. R. s. 32 הדין טורא בְּרִיכָא this blessed mount (Gerizim, revered by the Samaritans; Deut. R. s. 3 קדיש).
- as preced. Pi.
- 1. to bless &c. Targ. Deut. VIII, 10; a. fr.—Esp. to say grace after meal. Ber. 46ᵃ כי מטי לְבָרוּכֵי וכ׳ when it was time to say grace, he said, Will you please, say grace for us. Y. ib. VI, 10ᵇ מהו למיבָרְכָה בסופה what benediction must be said after it? Ib. bot. לא אנא חכים מברכא I do not know how to say grace after it.—Part. pass. מְבָרַךְ. Targ. Y. II, Gen. XLIX, 2.
- 2. to blaspheme. Targ. Job II, 9.—Snh. 56ᵃ לישנא דברוכי in the sense of blaspheming.
- as preced. Hithpa. Targ. Gen. XII, 3; a. fr.
בֶּרֶךְ
- preced.)
- 1. knee. Y. Ber. I, 3ᵈ top.
- 2. a knee-shaped pole. Taan. 25ᵇ כמלא ב׳ חמחרישה (Var. כוך, v. Rabb. D. S. a. l.) (until the rain penetrates) as far as the knee of the plough enters the soil; Ohol. XVII, 1 בו׳. Kel. XXI, 2 בו׳. [Tosef. Shebi. IV, 20 ברך, v. בְּרִיכָה.]—Du. בִּרְכַּיִם. Ber. 34ᵇ; Meg. 22ᵇ; Shebu. 16ᵇ כריעה על ב׳ the word כרע means falling on one’s knees. [בִּרְכּוֹת, v. בְּרִיכָה.]
בֶּרֶךְ ²
- 1. knee. Targ. Is. XLV, 23.—Pl. בִּרְכַּיָא, בִּרְכֵּי, בִּי׳. Targ. Jud. VII, 6; a. e.—Ber. 6ᵃ הנהו ב׳ וכ׳ those fatigued knees (of scholars) must be ascribed to them (the demons). Pes. 108ᵃ, v. זְגָא.
- 2. = h. בְּרִיכָה. Pl. בִּירְכֵּי shoots, branches. Tam. 30ᵃ top (Var. in Rashi בְּרִיכֵי, Ar. בורכי).
A Dictionary of the Targumim, the Talmud Babli and Yerushalmi, and the Midrashic Literature (Marcus Jastrow; London, Luzac, 1903) — Public Domain. Digitized via Sefaria. Digitized via Sefaria. Full attribution on Sources.
Forms in the corpus
The 219 distinct written forms H1288 takes in the Hebrew Bible, most frequent first — each parse links to that stem’s occurrences in the concordance. Hebrew forms include their vowel points and cantillation, so a single lemma takes many written forms.
The 60 most common forms are shown; 159 rarer forms follow in the full concordance.
Same root — word family
Other BDB entries built from the same root as H1288, grouped by Strong’s listed origin. These share a root / origin per the lexicon — not necessarily a shared meaning. Each links to that word’s own entry.
Derived from this word
Proper names from this root
People and places named from this root — a name, not an additional meaning of the word.
Compare all same-root words → Showing 4 of 8 — not the complete family. 3 of the same-root words are proper names (people or places). They share a root, not necessarily a meaning.
Septuagint verse parallels
This word appears in 264 verses that also exist in the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint), out of the 289 Hebrew verses it occurs in. You can read those verses in Greek by switching the Old Testament edition to the Septuagint.
Read these verses in the Septuagint
- Genesis 1:22
- Exodus 12:32
- Leviticus 9:22
- Numbers 6:23
- Deuteronomy 1:11
- Joshua 14:13
- Judges 5:2
- Ruth 2:4
- 1 Samuel 2:20
- 2 Samuel 2:5
- 1 Kings 1:47
- 2 Kings 4:29
This is a verse-level parallel only — the same verses exist in both the Hebrew and Greek Old Testaments. No word-level Hebrew↔Greek correspondence is claimed: the data carries no such alignment, so no Greek word is shown as this Hebrew word’s translation. Coverage is not total — the Septuagint omits the deuterocanon and renumbers the Psalms, so some Hebrew verses have no direct Greek parallel.
