חָלַל
to profane
also: defile, pollute, desecrate, begin 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
- Hiphil
- The causative active stem (“he caused / brought about”). Here: ‘begin’
- Piel
- An intensive or resultative active stem. Here: ‘pl.’
- Niphal
- Usually the simple passive or reflexive of the Qal (“he was written”). Here: ‘reflex. pollute’
- Qal
- The basic, simple active stem — the plain form of the verb (“he wrote”). Here: ‘pl.’
- Pual
- The passive counterpart of the Piel.
- Hophal
- The passive counterpart of the Hiphil (“he was caused to…”).
- Polal
- The passive counterpart of the Polel.
Form
- Perfect
- A completed action or state — Hebrew marks aspect (completeness) more than strict tense (“he wrote”).
- Sequential Imperfect
- An imperfect with prefixed waw — the standard past-narrative form (waw-consecutive imperfect).
- Sequential Perfect
- A perfect with prefixed waw continuing a preceding imperfect or command (waw-consecutive perfect).
- Infinitive Construct
- A bound verbal noun, frequently with prepositions (“to write / in writing”).
- Imperfect
- An incomplete, ongoing, or future action (“he will / would write”).
- Imperative
- A direct command (“write!”).
- Participle Active
- A verbal adjective expressing ongoing or characteristic action (“writing / one who writes”).
- Participle Passive
- A verbal adjective expressing action received (“written”).
- Infinitive Absolute
- An unbound verbal noun, often intensifying or standing in for a finite verb.
- 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”).
- 1st Person
- The speaker (“I / we”).
- 2nd Person
- The one addressed (“you”).
Gender
- Masculine
- Grammatically masculine.
- Common
- Either gender — not distinguished for this form.
- Feminine
- Grammatically feminine.
Number
- Singular
- One.
- Plural
- More than one (in Hebrew, generally three or more).
66 distinct verses where H2490 appears in the Piel stem, across 17 books. Filtered view — show all forms. 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.
Genesis 1 verse
Exodus 2 verses
- Exodus 20:25 וַ/תְּחַֽלְלֶֽ/הָ conj + Piel wimpf 2ms + sfx pers 3fs If you make me an altar of stone, you shall not build it of hewn stones; for if you lift up your tool on it, you have polluted it.
- Exodus 31:14 מְחַֽלְלֶ֨י/הָ֙ Piel ptcp.act mp cs + sfx pers 3fs You shall keep the Sabbath therefore; for it is holy to you. Everyone who profanes it shall surely be put to death; for whoever does any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his people.
Leviticus 14 verses
- Leviticus 18:21 תְחַלֵּ֛ל Piel impf 2ms "'You shall not give any of your children to sacrifice to Molech; neither shall you profane the name of your God: I am Yahweh.
- Leviticus 19:8 חִלֵּ֑ל Piel pf 3ms but everyone who eats it shall bear his iniquity, because he has profaned the holy thing of Yahweh, and that soul shall be cut off from his people.
- Leviticus 19:12 וְ/חִלַּלְתָּ֛ conj + Piel wpf 2ms "'You shall not swear by my name falsely, and profane the name of your God. I am Yahweh.
- Leviticus 19:29 תְּחַלֵּ֥ל Piel juss 2ms Don't profane your daughter, to make her a prostitute; lest the land fall to prostitution, and the land become full of wickedness.
- Leviticus 20:3 וּ/לְ/חַלֵּ֖ל conj + prep + Piel inf.cs I also will set my face against that person, and will cut him off from among his people because he has given of his seed to Molech, to defile my sanctuary, and to profane my holy name.
- Leviticus 21:6 יְחַלְּל֔וּ Piel impf 3mp They shall be holy to their God, and not profane the name of their God; for they offer the offerings of Yahweh made by fire, the bread of their God; therefore they shall be holy.
- Leviticus 21:9 תֵחֵ֖ל מְחַלֶּ֔לֶת Niphal impf 3fs Piel ptcp.act fs "'The daughter of any priest, if she profanes herself by playing the prostitute, she profanes her father: she shall be burned with fire.
- Leviticus 21:12 יְחַלֵּ֔ל Piel impf 3ms neither shall he go out of the sanctuary, nor profane the sanctuary of his God; for the crown of the anointing oil of his God is upon him. I am Yahweh.
- Leviticus 21:15 יְחַלֵּ֥ל Piel impf 3ms He shall not profane his seed among his people: for I am Yahweh who sanctifies him.'"
- Leviticus 21:23 יְחַלֵּל֙ Piel impf 3ms He shall not come near to the veil, nor come near to the altar, because he has a blemish; that he may not profane my sanctuaries, for I am Yahweh who sanctifies them.'"
- Leviticus 22:2 יְחַלְּל֖וּ Piel impf 3mp "Tell Aaron and his sons to separate themselves from the holy things of the children of Israel, which they make holy to me, and that they not profane my holy name. I am Yahweh.
- Leviticus 22:9 יְחַלְּלֻ֑/הוּ Piel impf 3mp + sfx pers 3ms "'They shall therefore keep my charge, lest they bear sin for it, and die therein, if they profane it. I am Yahweh who sanctifies them.
- Leviticus 22:15 יְחַלְּל֔וּ Piel impf 3mp The priests shall not profane the holy things of the children of Israel, which they offer to Yahweh,
- Leviticus 22:32 תְחַלְּלוּ֙ Piel impf 2mp You shall not profane my holy name, but I will be made holy among the children of Israel. I am Yahweh who makes you holy,
Numbers 1 verse
Deuteronomy 2 verses
- Deuteronomy 20:6 חִלְּל֔/וֹ יְחַלְּלֶֽ/נּוּ Piel pf 3ms + sfx pers 3ms Piel impf 3ms + sfx pers 3ms What man is there who has planted a vineyard, and has not used the fruit of it? let him go and return to his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man use the fruit of it.
- Deuteronomy 28:30 תְחַלְּלֶּֽ/נּוּ Piel impf 2ms + sfx pers 3ms You shall betroth a wife, and another man shall lie with her: you shall build a house, and you shall not dwell therein: you shall plant a vineyard, and shall not use the fruit of it.
1 Kings 1 verse
1 Chronicles 1 verse
Nehemiah 2 verses
- Nehemiah 13:17 וּֽ/מְחַלְּלִ֖ים conj + Piel ptcp.act mp Then I contended with the nobles of Judah, and said to them, What evil thing is this that you do, and profane the Sabbath day?
- Nehemiah 13:18 לְ/חַלֵּ֖ל prep + Piel inf.cs Didn't your fathers do thus, and did not our God bring all this evil on us, and on this city? yet you bring more wrath on Israel by profaning the Sabbath.
Psalms 5 verses
- Psalms 55:20 חִלֵּ֥ל Piel pf 3ms He raises his hands against his friends. He has violated his covenant.
- Psalms 74:7 חִלְּל֥וּ Piel pf 3cp They have burned your sanctuary to the ground. They have profaned the dwelling-place of your Name.
- Psalms 89:31 יְחַלֵּ֑לוּ Piel impf 3mp If they break my statutes, And don't keep my commandments;
- Psalms 89:34 אֲחַלֵּ֥ל Piel impf 1cs I will not break my covenant, Nor alter what my lips have uttered.
- Psalms 89:39 חִלַּ֖לְתָּ Piel pf 2ms You have renounced the covenant of your servant. You have defiled his crown in the dust.
Isaiah 5 verses
- Isaiah 23:9 לְ/חַלֵּל֙ prep + Piel inf.cs Yahweh of hosts has purposed it, to stain the pride of all glory, to bring into contempt all the honorable of the earth.
- Isaiah 43:28 וַ/אֲחַלֵּ֖ל conj + Piel impf 1cs Therefore I will profane the princes of the sanctuary; and I will make Jacob a curse, and Israel a reviling.
- Isaiah 47:6 חִלַּ֨לְתִּי֙ Piel pf 1cs I was angry with my people, I profaned my inheritance, and gave them into your hand: you did show them no mercy; on the aged have you very heavily laid your yoke.
- Isaiah 56:2 מֵֽ/חַלְּל֔/וֹ prep + Piel inf.cs + sfx pers 3ms Blessed is the man who does this, and the son of man who holds it fast; who keeps the Sabbath from profaning it, and keeps his hand from doing any evil.
- Isaiah 56:6 מֵֽ/חַלְּל֔/וֹ prep + Piel inf.cs + sfx pers 3ms Also the foreigners who join themselves to Yahweh, to minister to him, and to love the name of Yahweh, to be his servants, everyone who keeps the Sabbath from profaning it, and holds fast my covenant;
Jeremiah 3 verses
- Jeremiah 16:18 חַלְּלָ֣/ם Piel inf.cs + sfx pers 3mp First I will recompense their iniquity and their sin double, because they have polluted my land with the carcasses of their detestable things, and have filled my inheritance with their abominations.
- Jeremiah 31:5 וְ/חִלֵּֽלוּ conj + Piel wpf 3cp Again shall you plant vineyards on the mountains of Samaria; the planters shall plant, and shall enjoy [the fruit of it].
- Jeremiah 34:16 וַ/תְּחַלְּל֣וּ conj + Piel wimpf 2mp but you turned and profaned my name, and caused every man his servant, and every man his handmaid, whom you had let go free at their pleasure, to return; and you brought them into subjection, to be to you for servants and for handmaids.
Lamentations 1 verse
Ezekiel 22 verses
- Ezekiel 7:21 ו/חלל/ה וְ/חִלְּלֽוּ/הוּ conj + Piel wpf 3ms + sfx pers 3fs conj + Piel wpf 3cp + sfx pers 3ms I will give it into the hands of the strangers for a prey, and to the wicked of the earth for a spoil; and they shall profane it.
- Ezekiel 7:22 וְ/חִלְּל֖וּ וְ/חִלְּלֽוּ/הָ conj + Piel wpf 3cp conj + Piel wpf 3cp + sfx pers 3fs My face will I turn also from them, and they shall profane my secret [place]; and robbers shall enter into it, and profane it.
- Ezekiel 13:19 וַ/תְּחַלֶּלְ֨נָה conj + Piel wimpf 2fp You have profaned me among my people for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread, to kill the souls who should not die, and to save the souls alive who should not live, by your lying to my people who listen to lies.
- Ezekiel 20:13 חִלְּל֣וּ Piel pf 3cp But the house of Israel rebelled against me in the wilderness: they didn't walk in my statutes, and they rejected my ordinances, which if a man keep, he shall live in them; and my Sabbaths they greatly profaned. Then I said I would pour out my wrath on them in the wilderness, to consume them.
- Ezekiel 20:16 חִלֵּ֑לוּ Piel pf 3cp because they rejected my ordinances, and didn't walk in my statutes, and profaned my Sabbaths: for their heart went after their idols.
- Ezekiel 20:21 חִלֵּ֑לוּ Piel pf 3cp But the children rebelled against me; they didn't walk in my statutes, neither kept my ordinances to do them, which if a man do, he shall live in them; they profaned my Sabbaths. Then I said I would pour out my wrath on them, to accomplish my anger against them in the wilderness.
- Ezekiel 20:24 חִלֵּ֑לוּ Piel pf 3cp because they had not executed my ordinances, but had rejected my statutes, and had profaned my Sabbaths, and their eyes were after their fathers' idols.
- Ezekiel 20:39 תְחַלְּלוּ Piel impf 2mp As for you, house of Israel, thus says the Lord Yahweh: Go you, serve everyone his idols, and hereafter also, if you will not listen to me; but my holy name shall you no more profane with your gifts, and with your idols.
- Ezekiel 22:8 חִלָּֽלְתְּ Piel pf 2fs You have despised my holy things, and have profaned my Sabbaths.
- Ezekiel 22:26 וַ/יְחַלְּל֣וּ וָ/אֵחַ֖ל conj + Piel wimpf 3mp conj + Niphal wimpf 1cs Her priests have done violence to my law, and have profaned my holy things: they have made no distinction between the holy and the common, neither have they caused men to discern between the unclean and the clean, and have hid their eyes from my Sabbaths, and I am profaned among them.
- Ezekiel 23:38 חִלֵּֽלוּ Piel pf 3cp Moreover this they have done to me: they have defiled my sanctuary in the same day, and have profaned my Sabbaths.
- Ezekiel 23:39 לְ/חַלְּל֑/וֹ prep + Piel inf.cs + sfx pers 3ms For when they had slain their children to their idols, then they came the same day into my sanctuary to profane it; and, behold, thus have they done in the midst of my house.
- Ezekiel 24:21 מְחַלֵּ֤ל Piel ptcp.act ms Speak to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord Yahweh: Behold, I will profane my sanctuary, the pride of your power, the desire of your eyes, and that which your soul pities; and your sons and your daughters whom you have left behind shall fall by the sword.
- Ezekiel 28:7 וְ/חִלְּל֖וּ conj + Piel wpf 3cp therefore, behold, I will bring strangers on you, the terrible of the nations; and they shall draw their swords against the beauty of your wisdom, and they shall defile your brightness.
- Ezekiel 28:9 מְחַלְלֶֽי/ךָ Piel ptcp.act mp cs + sfx pers 2ms Will you yet say before him who kills you, I am God? but you are man, and not God, in the hand of him who wounds you.
- Ezekiel 28:16 וָ/אֶחַלֶּלְ/ךָ֩ conj + Piel wimpf 1cs + sfx pers 2ms By the abundance of your traffic they filled the midst of you with violence, and you have sinned: therefore I have cast you as profane out of the mountain of God; and I have destroyed you, covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire.
- Ezekiel 28:18 חִלַּ֖לְתָּ Piel pf 2ms By the multitude of your iniquities, in the unrighteousness of your traffic, you have profaned your sanctuaries; therefore have I brought forth a fire from the midst of you; it has devoured you, and I have turned you to ashes on the earth in the sight of all those who see you.
- Ezekiel 36:20 וַֽ/יְחַלְּל֖וּ conj + Piel wimpf 3mp When they came to the nations, where they went, they profaned my holy name; in that men said of them, These are the people of Yahweh, and are gone forth out of his land.
- Ezekiel 36:21 חִלְּל֨וּ/הוּ֙ Piel pf 3cp + sfx pers 3ms But I had regard for my holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the nations, where they went.
- Ezekiel 36:22 חִלַּלְתֶּ֔ם Piel pf 2mp Therefore tell the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord Yahweh: I don't do [this] for your sake, house of Israel, but for my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations, where you went.
- Ezekiel 36:23 הַֽ/מְחֻלָּל֙ חִלַּלְתֶּ֖ם ptcl def.art + Pual ptcp.pass ms Piel pf 2mp I will sanctify my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned in the midst of them; and the nations shall know that I am Yahweh, says the Lord Yahweh, when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes.
- Ezekiel 44:7 לְ/חַלְּל֣/וֹ prep + Piel inf.cs + sfx pers 3ms in that you have brought in foreigners, uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, to be in my sanctuary, to profane it, even my house, when you offer my bread, the fat and the blood, and they have broken my covenant, [to add] to all your abominations.
Daniel 1 verse
Amos 1 verse
Zephaniah 1 verse
Malachi 3 verses
- Malachi 1:12 מְחַלְּלִ֣ים Piel ptcp.act mp "But you profane it, in that you say, 'Yahweh's table is polluted, and its fruit, even its food, is contemptible.'
- Malachi 2:10 לְ/חַלֵּ֖ל prep + Piel inf.cs Don't we all have one father? Hasn't one God created us? Why do we deal treacherously every man against his brother, profaning the covenant of our fathers?
- Malachi 2:11 חִלֵּ֣ל Piel pf 3ms Judah has dealt treacherously, and an abomination is committed in Israel and in Jerusalem; for Judah has profaned the holiness of Yahweh which he loves, and has married the daughter of a foreign god.
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.
חלל — transliterated châlal — is a Hebrew verb carrying the sense “to profane.” The verb spans 6 stems, from Qal to Piel. With 132 verses in 27 books, it is a common word in the Hebrew Bible. Debuting at Genesis 4:26, it then recurs through the corpus. Sharing its root, it stands alongside חלה, חלא and חלי. Each statement above links to its evidence; the full detail follows below.
Gloss history
Strong's 1890 vs modern scholarship
About this word
Strong's H2490 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 →
- 132
- distinct verses
- The word appears in 132 distinct verses.
- 27 / 39
- OT books
- The word appears in 27 of 39 Old Testament books.
- #314
- by frequency
- Top 500 most frequent Hebrew words (rank 314 of 8,640 Hebrew words by occurrence).
View all 132 occurrences in the concordance →
Most concentrated in
- Ezekiel 31 verses 23%
- Leviticus 15 verses 11%
- 2 Chronicles 9 verses 7%
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 132 distinct verses.
- Prophets (Nevi'im) 66 verses · 50%
- Torah (Pentateuch) 37 verses · 28%
- Writings (Ketuvim) 29 verses · 22%
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).
BDB lists this Strong’s number as 3 distinct words (homographs). Each count above pools all of them and is not split by sense — see the Senses section below. A low-frequency rendering may belong to a different one of those words, not the primary meaning.
- King James Version†: Began 20×, Profane 7×, He began 6×
- American Standard Version†: Began 18×, Profane 9×, He began 6×
- Berean Standard Bible†: Began 17×, Profane 11×, Profaned 6×
- unfoldingWord Literal Text†: Profane 20×, Began 17×, He began 6×
King James Version Public Domain
Renders H2490 across 141† tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 71 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 H2490 across 142† tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 72 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 H2490 across 138† tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 62 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 3 further occurrences.
unfoldingWord Literal Text CC BY-SA 4.0
Renders H2490 across 162† tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 61 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
25 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 Hophal (the passive of Hiphil).
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 25 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.
חלל I bore, pierce (Arabic خَلَّ perforate, pierce through, transfix, Ethiopic ኅለት (hollow) reed
Qal
- Pf. לִבִּי חָלַל בְּקִרְבִּי my heart is pierced (wounded) within me ψ 109:22 (? lit. one has pierced my heart; or read Pu. חֻלַּל?); Inf. cstr. חַלּוֹתִי הִיא ψ 77:11 it is my piercing, my wound my woe; Hu. Pe Bi Che read חֲלוֹתִי my sickness). e.g. Psalms 109:22
Piel
- Pt. pl. (Baer) בְּיַד מְחַללֶי֑ךָ Ez 28:9 in the hand of the ones wounding thee (Sm Co read מְחוֹלְלֶ֑ךָ). e.g. Ezekiel 28:9
Pual
- Pt. מְחֻלֲלֵי הֶרֶב pierced by the sword Ez 32:26. Poʿel. Pf. 3 fs. חֹלֲלָה יָדוֹ נָחָשׁ בָּרִחַ Jb 26:13 his hand pierced the fleeing serpent; רַב־מְחוֹלֵל כֹּל Pr 26:10 an archer piercing all (v. חול) Pt. f. מְחוֹלֶלֶת תַּנִּין Is 51:9 who pierced the dragon. Poʿal. Pt. מְחֹלָל מִפְּשָׁעֵינוּ Is 53:5 pierced, wounded because of our transgressions (of the servant of י׳, ‖ מְדֻכָּא מֵעֲוֹנֹתֵינוּ). e.g. Ezekiel 32:26
חלל II denom. play the pipe, pipe
Qal
- Pt. pl. וְשָׁרִים כְּחֹלֲלִים ψ 87:7 as well the singers as the pipe-players, cf. AV; Pôʿlel Pt. from i. חוּל dancers. e.g. Psalms 87:7
Piel
- Pt. וְהָעָם מְחַלְּלִים בַּחֲלִלִים 1 K 1:40 and the people piped with pipes (cf. Assyrian ḫâlalu, according to Dl in ZimBP 117). e.g. 1 Kings 1:40
חלל III pollute, defile, profane
Niphal
- Pf. נִחָ֑ל Ez 25:3, נִחַלְתְּ (-תִּי Co) Ez 22:16, נִחֲלוּ Ez 7:24; Impf. יֵחָ֑ל Is 48:11, תֵּחֵל Lv 21:9, וָאֵחַל Ez 22:26; Inf. הֵחֵל Ez 20:9, 14, 22, sf. לְהֵחַלּוֹ Lv 21:4.— e.g. Ezekiel 25:3
- 1. reflex. pollute, defile oneself
- a. ritually, by contact with dead ‖ טמא, Lv 21:4 (H) e.g. Leviticus 21:4
- b. sexually ‖ זנה Lv 21:9 (H). e.g. Leviticus 21:9
- 2. Pass., be polluted, defiled, of holy places Ez 7:24; 25:3, name of God Ez 20:9, 14, 22 Is 48:11 and even God himself Ez 22:16, 26. e.g. Ezekiel 7:24
Piel
- Pf. חִלֵּל Lv 19:8 + 3 times; sf. חִלְּלוֹ Dt 20:6; 2 ms. חִלַּלְתָּ Gn 49:4 + 3 times; 2 fs. חִלָּ֑לְתְּ Ez 22:8; 3 pl. sf. חִלְּלוּהֻ֯ Ez 7:21 etc., + 16 times Pf.; Impf. יְחַלֵּל Lv 21:12, 15, 23; sf. יְחַלְּלֶנּוּ Dt 20:6; pl. יְחַלְּלוּ Lv 21:6 + 4 times, יְחַלֵּ֑לוּ ψ 89:32 etc., + 13 times Impf.; Inf. חַלֵּל Am 2:7 + 4 times; חַלְּלוֹ Ez 23:39 + 4 times; חַלְּלָם Je 16:18; Pt. מְחַלֵּל Ez 24:21 pl. מְחַלְּלִים Mal 1:12 Ne 13:17; sf. מְחַלֲלֶיהָ Ex 31:14; f. מְחַלֶּלֶת Lv 21:9;— e.g. Leviticus 19:8
- 1. defile, pollute:
- a. sexually, Gn 49:4 (poem) = 1 Ch 5:1 (the father’s bed); a woman = זנה Lv 19:29; 21:9 (H); זַרְעוֹ Lv 21:15 (H). e.g. Genesis 49:4
- b. ceremonially, profane, the altar by a tool Ex 20:25 (JE); sacred places Lv 21:12, 23 (H), Ez 7:21, 22(×2), 23:39; 24:21; 44:7 Zp 3:4 Mal 2:11 ψ 74:7 Dn 11:31; the holy land Je 16:18; sacred things Lv 19:8; 22:9, 15 (H) Nu 18:32 (P) Ez 22:26; the sabbath Ex 31:14 (P), Is 56:2, 6 Ez 20:13, 16, 21, 24; 22:8; 23:38 Ne 13:17, 18; and so the sanctity of the prince of Tyre who made himself God, and his holy places, Ez 28:7, 16, 18. e.g. Exodus 20:22
- c. the name of God Lv 18:21; 19:12; 20:3; 21:6; 22:2, 32 (all H), Am 2:7 Je 34:16 Ez 20:39; 36:20, 21, 22, 23 Mal 1:12, God himself Ez 13:19. e.g. Leviticus 18:21
- d. י׳ defiles or profanes his inheritance by giving it over to Babylon Is 47:6; the princes of the sanctuary by giving them to Chaldeans Is 43:28. e.g. Isaiah 47:6
- 2. violate the honour of, dishonour, י׳ subj., crown of Davidic kingdom ψ 89:40 (sq. לארץ pregn.), kingdom of Judah La 2:2; the גאון כל צבי Is 23:9. e.g. Psalms 89:40
- 3. violate a covenant ψ 55:21; 89:35 Mal 2:10, the חקות of God ψ 89:32. e.g. Psalms 55:21
- 4. treat a vineyard as common (v. חֹל) by beginning to use its fruit Dt 20:6(×2); 28:30 Je 31:5 (v. the law Lv 19:23–25, H). e.g. Deuteronomy 20:6
Pual
- Pt. שְׁמִי הַגָּדוֹל הַמְֿחֻלָּל בַּגּוֹיִם Ez 36:23 my great name which is profaned among the nations. e.g. Ezekiel 36:23
Hiphil
- 1.
- a. Impf. לֹא אַחֵל אֶת־שֶׁם־קָדְשִׁי עוֹד Ez 39:7 I will not let my holy name be profaned any more; cp. 20:9. e.g. Ezekiel 39:7
- b. לֹא יַחֵל דְּבָרוֹ he shall not violate his word Nu 30:3 (P). e.g. Numbers 30:3
- 2. begin, Pf. הֵחֵל Gn 6:1 + 15 times, הֵחֵ֫לָּה Ju 20:40, הַחִלּוֹתָ Dt 3:24 Est 6:13, הַחִלֹּתִי Dt 2:31 1 S 22:15, הֵחֵ֫לּוּ Ezr 3:6 + 6 times; Impf. יָחֵל Ju 10:18; 13:5, וַיָּ֫חֶל Gn 9:20 + 5 times, 3 fs. וַ֫תָּחֶל Ju 13:25; 16:19, 2 ms. תָּחֵל Dt 16:9, אָחֵל Dt 2:25 Jos 3:7, וַיָּחֵ֫לּוּ Ju 20:31 + 3 times, וַתְּחִלֶּינָה Gn 41:54, תָּחֵ֫לּוּ Ez 9:6; Imv. הָחֵל Dt 2:24, 31; Inf. cstr. הָחֵל 1 S 3:12 + 2 times; sf. הַחִלָּם Gn 11:6; Pt. מֵחֵל Je 25:29;—begin, Nu 17:11, 12 (P) Dt 16:9 2 Ch 29:27(×2); so 2 S 24:15 𝔊 We Dr. (𝔊 inserts וְהַמַּגֵּפָה הֵחֵ֫לָּה בָּעָם bef. וַיָּ֫מָת); c. Inf. (ל) begin to Gn 41:54 (E), Gn 6:1; 10:8 = 1 Ch 1:10, Gn 11:6 Nu 25:1 (all J), Dt 2:25, 31; 3:24; 16:9 Jos 3:7 (D), Ju 10:18; 13:5, 25; 16:19, 22; 20:31, 39, 40 1 S 3:2; 14:35; 22:15 2 K 10:32; 15:37 1 Ch 27:24 2 Ch 3:1, 2; 29:17; 31:7, 10, 21; 34:3(×2) Ezr 3:6 Ne 4:1 Est 6:13; 9:23; Je 25:29 Jon 3:4; c. ו consec. Gn 9:20 (J) Ezr 3:8; c. בְּ begin with Gn 44:12 (J), Ez 9:6, 2 Ch 20:22; so 2 S 24:5, read וַיָּחֵ֫לּוּ for וַיַּחֲנוּ 𝔊L We Dr; c. מן begin from Ez 9:6; הָחֵל רָשׁ begin! possess! Dt 2:24, 31; הָחֵל וְכַלֵּה beginning and ending 1 S 3:12 (i.e. accomplishing my full purpose, v. Dr). e.g. Genesis 6:1
Hophal
- Pf. אָו הוּחַל לִקְרֹא בְּשֵׁם י׳ then it was begun (= men began) to call on the name of י׳ Gn 4:26 (J). e.g. Genesis 4:26
- —וַיָּחֵלּוּ מְעַט מִמַּשָּׂא Ho 8:10 begin to be minished by reason of the burden RV Hi al.; Wü Now read וְיָחִלוּ (I. חול, חיל)—for om. of dagh. v. also וְיָחֵלוּ of Cod. Bab.—shall be in anguish a little for the burden, so Ra AV; Ew וְיָחִלוּ that they may wait (?) a little; 𝔊 וחדלו מעט ממשׁח cease a little from anointing, so Che We, this probably best. e.g. Hosea 8:10
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
I. vb. bore, pierce (Arabic خَلَّ perforate, pierce through, transfix, Ethiopic ኅለት (hollow) reed; Aramaic חֲלַל hollow out, חֲלִילָא pipe; ܚܠܻܝܠܴܐ adj. hollow, ܚܠܳܠܴܐ cave, ܚܶܠܬܳܐ sheath, etc.; NH in deriv. חָלָל n. hollow, adj. slain, חָלִיל pipe);—
II. vb.denom. play the pipe, pipe—
III. vb. pollute, defile, profane; Hiph. also begin (lit. untie, loosen, open, v. Arabic) (Arabic خَلَّ untie, undo, become free, lawful, free from obligation or tie; iv. make lawful; x. esteem lawful or free, profane, desecrate, violate; NH חלל be profane, desecrated (also Pi. Hiph. transit.), cf. Aramaic חֲלַל; ܚܰܠܶܠ Pa. is purify, ܐܰܚܶܠ Aph. is profane)—
— Brown-Driver-Briggs (Oxford 1906, public domain), digitized via Sefaria, supplemented by the OpenScriptures HebrewLexicon (CC BY 4.0). See Sources.
Derived from חלה (châlâh) (H2470) — to be sick.
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.
חָלַל
- H. Dict.10 s. vv. חלל I, II)
- 1. (v. חוּל) to roll, turn. Ber. 32ᵃ (ref. to ייחל, Ex. XXXII, 11) שחַל עליהם מדת הדין למדת הרחמים Ms. M. (v. חָלָה) he (Moses) turned justice into mercy in their behalf; Yalk. Ex. 392 הֵחֵל (Hif.).—[Tanḥ. Yithro 1 מת חולל, read וחָלָל.] e.g. Exodus 32:11
- 2. to bore, hollow, pierce, v. חָלִיל, חָלָל I. I.
- 3. to surround; to place outside a circle, v. חוֹל III, חִילּוֹנִי.
- (v. חָלָל I) to be cut all around, be severed. Naz. 54ᵃ (ref. to Num. XIX, 18) בחלל זה אבר הנ׳ מן החי וכ׳ ‘on something severed’, that means a limb which has been cut off a living body, and on which there was not flesh enough to have made healing possible; במת זה אבר הנ׳ וכ׳ ‘on something dead’, that means a limb severed from a corpse; ib. 53ᵇ e.g. Numbers 19:18
- to become חוּלִּין, to cease to be sacred. Shebi. I, 8 עד שיֵחוֹלּוּ until the fruits become available for private use; Y. ib. 33ᶜ top מהו עד שיח׳ עד שיפדו או עד שיעשו חולין וכ׳ what does ad sheyeḥôllu mean? Until they are redeemed (in the fourth year), or until they become ḥullin of themselves (in the fifth year)?
- 1. [ [to set in motion,] to begin. Sifré Num. 134 (ref. to Deut. III, 24) אתה הֲחִילּוֹתָ וכ׳ thou hast begun to open the door &c. Dem. VII, 4 ומֵיחֵל ושותה Y. ed. (v. Rabb. D. S. a. l. note) and he may at once commence drinking (Maim.; v. infra). e.g. Deuteronomy 3:24
- 2. to make חוּלִּין; to break a vow; to profane. Ber. l. c. (ref. to Num. XXX, 3) הוא אינו מֵיחֵל אבל אחרים מְחַלִּין לו he himself cannot break a vow, but others may break it for him (absolve him; Ḥag. 10ᵃ … מיחל … מוֹחֲלִין; Ex. R. s. 43 מוחל אבל … חכם מוֹחֵל, corr. acc.). Dem. l. c. ומיחל ושותה and thus he redeems, and he may drink (R. S.); Tosef. ib. VIII, 7 ומ׳ ושותה מיד.—Kidd. 77ᵃ (ref. to Lev. XXI, 15) מֵיחֵל he produces profanation (begets degraded priests), v. חָלָל II.—3) to turn, change. Yalk. Ex. 392, v. supra. e.g. Numbers 30:3
- 1. to break a vow, to profane, to desecrate; to degrade. Deut. R. s. 2 (play on החלת, Deut. III, 24) חִלַּלְתָּ וכ׳ hast thou not broken the oath? (Sifré Num. 134 הֲחִלּוֹתָ, v. supra). Ab. III, 11 המְחַלֵּל את הקדשים who treats profanely sacred things (causes them to be carried out and burnt). Ab. Zar. 28ᵃ מְחַלְּלִין עליה וכ׳ you may desecrate the Sabbath for the sake of curing it; a. fr.—Esp. to cause the loss of the priestly status. Macc. 2ᵃ המְחַלֵּל אינו מִתְחַלֵּל he (the priest marrying a divorced woman) who causes the loss of priestly status (to his issue) does not lose the priestly status himself; הבא לחַלֵּל ולא חִילֵּל he who intended to cause the loss of priestly status (by false testimony) and did not succeed. e.g. Deuteronomy 3:24
- 2. (v. Deut. XIV, 24, sq.) to redeem, to make available for private use. Maas. Sh. I, 2; a. fr. e.g. Deuteronomy 14:24
- 1. to be removed from the priestly status, become a חָלָל. Kidd. 77ᵃ (ref. to Lev. XXI, 15 ‘he shall not degrade’) לא יְחוּלָּל זה וכ׳ no degradation shall be caused—which can only refer to a person who had a status and now becomes degraded (i.e. his wife). e.g. Leviticus 21:15
- 2. to be redeemed, to become secular again. Part. מְחוּלָּל, f. מְחוּלֶּלֶת. Dem. V, 1, a. fr. ומח׳ על המעות and it is redeemed by setting aside its value. Maas. Sh. II, 10 מה … סלע זו ח׳ עליו (not על זו, v. Rabb. D. S. a. l.) this Sela (which has been set apart as an equivalent for second tithes) shall be redeemed against the wine which the clean (sons of mine) may drink in Jerusalem, i.e. I buy with this Sela only that portion of the wine which the clean may drink. Ib. הרי מעות האלו מְחוּלָּלִים וכ׳ that money (dedicated for purchasing equivalents in Jerusalem) shall be redeemed against thy fruits; a. v. fr.
- 3. to be loosely joined, to be a movable link. Sabb. 52ᵇ במְחוּלָּלִין referring to movable links, (v. חוּלְיָא I). Y. Pes. I, 27ᶜ top במְחוּלָּלוֹת when the vessels can be rolled about, opp. אפוצות close together (v. חִלְחֵל).
- 1. [ [to be perforated,] (of bowels) to be loose. Esth. R. to I, 8 שיִתְחַלְּלוּ מעיו.
- 2. to be profaned, desecrated, degraded. Ab. I, 11. Macc. 2ᵃ, v. supra. Yeb. 79ᵃ ואל יתְחַלֵּל וכ׳ rather than that the name of the Lord be profaned in public; a. fr.
חֲלַל I
- 1. to perforate, v. חָלֵיל.
- 2. to degrade, profane. Part. pass. חָלִיל, f. חֲלִילָא. Targ. O. Lev. XXI, 14.
- 3. (denom. of חוּלָּא) to be profaned. Targ. Ez. XXII, 26 וְחַלַת.
- 1. to desecrate, profane, degrade. Targ. Prov. XXX, 9; a. e.—Part. pass. מְחַלַּל, f. מְחַלְלָא, מְחַלָּא. Targ. O. Lev. XXI, 7 (ed. Berl. מַחְלָא, Regia מְחָלָא).—Y. Kil. IX, 32ᵇ top, a. e. דילמא דחַלְּלִינָן וכ׳ did we perhaps desecrate the Sabbath?—Ber. 6ᵃ מְחַלְּלֵי Ms. (ed. מחליין); a. e.
- 2. to redeem. B. Mets. 44ᵇ טבעא אפירא לא מְחַלְּלִינָן we dare not redeem coins with goods.
- same, to desecrate. Targ. O. Lev. XIX, 8. Targ. Am. II, 7 לאָחָלָא (ed. Lag. לאפסא); a. fr.—Part. pass. f. מַחְלָא, v. supra.
- , אִתְּחַל to be profaned. Targ. Ez. XXXVI, 23 (not אַתְּחַל). Ib. VII, 24; a. fr.—Snh. 51ᵃ היכא דמִיתַּחֲלָא השתא if she degraded herself now; מית׳ וקיימא she was degraded before this.
חֲלַל II
- (cmp. חלחל), (mostly) Pa. חַלֵּיל (v. preced.) [to turn in a hollow space,] to wash, rinse. Targ. II Chr. IV, 6. Targ. Lev. I, 9; a. fr.—Ḥull. 113ᵃ דחַלְּלֵי בי טבחא when they washed the meat in the slaughter house.
- same. Targ. Ruth III, 3.—Ḥull. 95ᵇ top מַחְלִיל רישא וכ׳ (or מְחַלֵּיל) Ar. (ed. מחוור) he was washing an animal’s head in the river, v. חֲוַר
חָלָל I
- cut all around, beheaded, in gen. slain. Sot. 45ᵇ (ref. to Deut. XXI, 1) ח׳ ולא חנוק slain but not strangled, ח׳ ולא מפרפר וכ׳ slain but not rolling in dying agony. Ib. IX, 4 ממקום שנעשה ח׳ מצוארו from the place where he has been cut, that means, (the measurement starts) from his throat, v. חָלָל III. Y. Naz. VII, 56ᶜ (ref. to Num. XIX, 18) בח׳ כל שהוא ח׳ beḥalal means whoever is slain, בח׳ זה אבר וכ׳ beḥalal means a severed limb … without sufficient flesh, v. חָלַל, Nif.—Ḥull. 3ᵃ, a. e. (ref. to Num. XIX, 16) חרב הרי הוא כח׳ a sword (with which a person has been killed) has the same levitical status as a slain body. Koh. R. to VIII, 10; Yalk. Ps. 808, a. e. (play on מתחולל Job XV, 20) מת וח׳ (the wicked man even in his life-time) is dead and beheaded; Tanḥ. Yithro 1 מת חולל (corr. acc.); ib. ed. Bub.; a. fr.—Pl. חֲלָלִים. Sot. 45ᵃ; a. e. e.g. Deuteronomy 21:1
חָלָל II
- [put outside,] ḥalal, one unfit for priesthood on account of his father’s illegitimate connection (Lev. XXI, 7; 14, sq.). Kidd. IV, 6. Snh. 51ᵃ; a. fr.—Pl. חֲלָלִים, חֲלָלִין. Kidd. 77ᵃ, v. מִקְוֵה; a. e.—Fem. חֲלָלָה the female issue of a priest’s illegitimate connection, or a priest’s wife illegitimately married to him. Ib. ח׳ מוזכרת, v. זָכַר; a. fr.—Pl. חֲלָלוֹת. Ib., v. מִקְוֵה; a. e. e.g. Leviticus 21:7
חָלָל III
- (חָלַל)
- 1. cavity, empty space, hollow; throat; inside. Ukts. II, 8 ממעך את חֲלָלָהּ you squeeze its cavity (compress it); Y. Yoma VIII, 44ᵈ bot. (v. Löw, Pfl. p. 123). Ab. Zar. 28ᵃ מכה של ח׳ an internal sore (as in the mouth, throat &c.). Y. ib. II, 40ᵈ top; Y. Sabb. XIV, 14ᵈ top כל שהוא מן הח׳ ולפנים וכ׳ whatever is in the throat and farther inside may be cured on the Sabbath, opp. to מן השפה; cmp. Sot. 45ᵇ quot. s. v. חָלָל I. Ḥull. III, 1 if the heart is perforated לבית חֲלָלוֹ up to its chamber. Ber. 19ᵇ ח׳ טפח a hollow space of one hand-breadth. Ḥull. 44ᵇ. Pes. 54ᵃ חֲלָלָהּ the formation of its interior; a. fr.—Pl. חֲלָלִים. Ber. 60ᵇ, v. חָלוּל.
- 2. (cmp. חַלְחוֹלִית) intricacy, devices. Sabb. 11ᵃ חֲלָלָהּ של רשות the devices of political government.
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 117 distinct written forms H2490 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; 57 rarer forms follow in the full concordance.
Same root — word family
Other BDB entries built from the same root as H2490, 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.
Derives from
Shares the same root
- חלא châlâʼ H2456 to be sick
- חלי chălîy H2481 ornament
- חלי chŏlîy H2483 sickness
- מחלה machăleh H4245 disease
- מחלי machluy H4251 sickness
Derived from this word
- חל chôl H2455 profane
- חלה challâh H2471 cake
- חליל châlîyl H2485 flute
- חלל châlâl H2491 slain
- מחלה mᵉchillâh H4247 hole
- תחלה tᵉchillâh H8462 beginning
Proper names from this root
People and places named from this root — a name, not an additional meaning of the word.
- מחלה Machlâh H4244 Mahlah
- מחלון Machlôwn H4248 Mahlon
- מחלי Machlîy H4249 Mahli
- מחלת machălath H4257 Mahalath
- חלילה châlîylâh H2486 God forbid
Compare all same-root words → Showing 4 of 18 — not the complete family. 5 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 121 verses that also exist in the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint), out of the 132 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 4:26
- Exodus 20:25
- Leviticus 18:21
- Numbers 18:32
- Deuteronomy 2:24
- Joshua 3:7
- Judges 10:18
- 1 Samuel 3:2
- 1 Kings 1:40
- 2 Kings 10:32
- 1 Chronicles 1:10
- 2 Chronicles 3:1
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.
