לָקַח
to take
also: get, fetch, lay hold of, seize fuller range ↓
Full lexicon entry — Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
From Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
Where this word appears
See every Qal verb in the Hebrew Bible →
Grammar key — what these labels mean
Part of speech
- Verb
- An action or state-of-being word.
- Noun
- A naming word — a person, place, thing, or idea.
Noun type
- Common
- A common noun — a general class of person, place, or thing (“king,” “city,” “water”), not a specific name.
Stem
- Qal
- The basic, simple active stem — the plain form of the verb (“he wrote”). Here: ‘take’
- Pual
- The passive counterpart of the Piel. Here: ‘be taken from’
- Niphal
- Usually the simple passive or reflexive of the Qal (“he was written”). Here: ‘be captured’
- Hithpael
- The reflexive or reciprocal stem (the subject acts on itself).
- Qal Passive
- An archaic passive of the Qal, preserved in a few forms.
Form
- Sequential Imperfect
- An imperfect with prefixed waw — the standard past-narrative form (waw-consecutive imperfect).
- Imperative
- A direct command (“write!”).
- Perfect
- A completed action or state — Hebrew marks aspect (completeness) more than strict tense (“he wrote”).
- Imperfect
- An incomplete, ongoing, or future action (“he will / would write”).
- 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”).
- 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”).
- 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”).
- Participle Passive
- A verbal adjective expressing action received (“written”).
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 H3947 appears in the Book of Exodus — 76 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.
Exodus
- Exodus 2:1 וַ/יִּקַּ֖ח conj + Qal wimpf 3ms A man of the house of Levi went and took a daughter of Levi as his wife.
- Exodus 2:3 וַ/תִּֽקַּֽח conj + Qal wimpf 3fs When she could no longer hide him, she took a papyrus basket for him, and coated it with tar and with pitch. She put the child in it, and laid it in the reeds by the river's bank.
- Exodus 2:5 וַ/תִּקָּחֶֽ/הָ conj + Qal wimpf 3fs + sfx pers 3fs Pharaoh's daughter came down to bathe at the river. Her maidens walked along by the riverside. She saw the basket among the reeds, and sent her handmaid to get it.
- Exodus 2:9 וַ/תִּקַּ֧ח conj + Qal wimpf 3fs Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Take this child away, and nurse him for me, and I will give you your wages." The woman took the child, and nursed it.
- Exodus 4:9 וְ/לָקַחְתָּ֙ תִּקַּ֣ח conj + Qal wpf 2ms Qal impf 2ms It will happen, if they will not believe even these two signs, neither listen to your voice, that you shall take of the water of the river, and pour it on the dry land. The water which you take out of the river will become blood on the dry land."
- Exodus 4:17 תִּקַּ֣ח Qal impf 2ms You shall take this rod in your hand, with which you shall do the signs."
- Exodus 4:20 וַ/יִּקַּ֨ח וַ/יִּקַּ֥ח conj + Qal wimpf 3ms conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Moses took his wife and his sons, and set them on a donkey, and he returned to the land of Egypt. Moses took God's rod in his hand.
- Exodus 4:25 וַ/תִּקַּ֨ח conj + Qal wimpf 3fs Then Zipporah took a flint, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet; and she said, "Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me."
- Exodus 5:11 קְח֤וּ Qal impv 2mp Go yourselves, get straw where you can find it, for nothing of your work shall be diminished."
- Exodus 6:7 וְ/לָקַחְתִּ֨י conj + Qal wpf 1cs and I will take you to me for a people, and I will be to you a God; and you shall know that I am Yahweh your God, who brings you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.
- Exodus 6:20 וַ/יִּקַּ֨ח conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Amram took Jochebed his father's sister to himself as wife; and she bore him Aaron and Moses: and the years of the life of Amram were a hundred and thirty-seven years.
- Exodus 6:23 וַ/יִּקַּ֨ח conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Aaron took Elisheba, the daughter of Amminadab, the sister of Nahshon, as his wife; and she bore him Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar.
- Exodus 6:25 לָקַֽח Qal pf 3ms Eleazar Aaron's son took one of the daughters of Putiel as his wife; and she bore him Phinehas. These are the heads of the fathers' houses of the Levites according to their families.
- Exodus 7:9 קַ֧ח Qal impv 2ms "When Pharaoh speaks to you, saying, 'Perform a miracle!' then you shall tell Aaron, 'Take your rod, and cast it down before Pharaoh, that it become a serpent.'"
- Exodus 7:15 תִּקַּ֥ח Qal impf 2ms Go to Pharaoh in the morning. Behold, he goes out to the water; and you shall stand by the river's bank to meet him; and the rod which was turned to a serpent you shall take in your hand.
- Exodus 7:19 קַ֣ח Qal impv 2ms Yahweh said to Moses, "Tell Aaron, 'Take your rod, and stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt, over their rivers, over their streams, and over their pools, and over all their ponds of water, that they may become blood; and there shall be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, both in vessels of wood and in vessels of stone.'"
- Exodus 9:8 קְח֤וּ Qal impv 2mp Yahweh said to Moses and to Aaron, "Take to you handfuls of ashes of the furnace, and let Moses sprinkle it toward the sky in the sight of Pharaoh.
- Exodus 9:10 וַ/יִּקְח֞וּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp They took ashes of the furnace, and stood before Pharaoh; and Moses sprinkled it up toward the sky; and it became a boil breaking forth with boils on man and on animal.
- Exodus 9:24 מִתְלַקַּ֖חַת Hithpael ptcp.act fs So there was very severe hail, and lightning mixed with the hail, such as had not been in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation.
- Exodus 10:26 נִקַּ֔ח Qal impf 1cp Our cattle also shall go with us. There shall not a hoof be left behind, for of it we must take to serve Yahweh our God; and we don't know with what we must serve Yahweh, until we come there."
- Exodus 12:3 וְ/יִקְח֣וּ conj + Qal impf 3mp Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying, 'On the tenth day of this month, they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to their fathers' houses, a lamb for a household;
- Exodus 12:4 וְ/לָקַ֣ח conj + Qal wpf 3ms and if the household be too little for a lamb, then he and his neighbor next to his house shall take one according to the number of the souls; according to what everyone can eat you shall make your count for the lamb.
- Exodus 12:5 תִּקָּֽחוּ Qal impf 2mp Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old. You shall take it from the sheep, or from the goats:
- Exodus 12:7 וְ/לָֽקְחוּ֙ conj + Qal wpf 3cp They shall take some of the blood, and put it on the two side-posts and on the lintel, on the houses in which they shall eat it.
- Exodus 12:21 וּ/קְח֨וּ conj + Qal impv 2mp Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel, and said to them, "Draw out, and take lambs according to your families, and kill the Passover.
- Exodus 12:22 וּ/לְקַחְתֶּ֞ם conj + Qal wpf 2mp You shall take a bunch of hyssop, and dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and strike the lintel and the two side-posts with the blood that is in the basin; and none of you shall go out of the door of his house until the morning.
- Exodus 12:32 קְח֛וּ Qal impv 2mp Take both your flocks and your herds, as you have said, and be gone; and bless me also!"
- Exodus 13:19 וַ/יִּקַּ֥ח conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for he had made the children of Israel swear, saying, "God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones away from here with you."
- Exodus 14:6 לָקַ֥ח Qal pf 3ms He made ready his chariot, and took his army with him;
- Exodus 14:7 וַ/יִּקַּ֗ח conj + Qal wimpf 3ms and he took six hundred chosen chariots, and all the chariots of Egypt, and captains over all of them.
- Exodus 14:11 לְקַחְתָּ֖/נוּ Qal pf 2ms + sfx pers 1cp They said to Moses, "Because there were no graves in Egypt, have you taken us away to die in the wilderness? Why have you treated us this way, to bring us forth out of Egypt?
- Exodus 15:20 וַ/תִּקַּח֩ conj + Qal wimpf 3fs Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a tambourine in her hand; and all the women went out after her with tambourines and with dances.
- Exodus 16:16 תִּקָּֽחוּ Qal impf 2mp This is the thing which Yahweh has commanded: "Gather of it everyone according to his eating; an omer a head, according to the number of your persons, shall you take it, every man for those who are in his tent."
- Exodus 16:33 קַ֚ח Qal impv 2ms Moses said to Aaron, "Take a pot, and put an omer-full of manna in it, and lay it up before Yahweh, to be kept throughout your generations."
- Exodus 17:5 וְ/קַ֥ח קַ֥ח conj + Qal impv 2ms Qal impv 2ms Yahweh said to Moses, "Walk on before the people, and take the elders of Israel with you, and take the rod in your hand with which you struck the Nile, and go.
- Exodus 17:12 וַ/יִּקְחוּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp But Moses' hands were heavy; and they took a stone, and put it under him, and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held up his hands, the one on the one side, and the other on the other side. His hands were steady until sunset.
- Exodus 18:2 וַ/יִּקַּ֗ח conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, received Zipporah, Moses' wife, after he had sent her away,
- Exodus 18:12 וַ/יִּקַּ֞ח conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, took a burnt offering and sacrifices for God. Aaron came with all of the elders of Israel, to eat bread with Moses' father-in-law before God.
- Exodus 21:10 יִֽקַּֽח Qal impf 3ms If he takes another wife to himself, he shall not diminish her food, her clothing, and her marital rights.
- Exodus 21:14 תִּקָּחֶ֖/נּוּ Qal impf 2ms + sfx pers 3ms If a man schemes and comes presumptuously on his neighbor to kill him, you shall take him from my altar, that he may die.
- Exodus 22:11 וְ/לָקַ֥ח conj + Qal wpf 3ms the oath of Yahweh shall be between them both, whether he hasn't put his hand to his neighbor's goods; and the owner of it shall accept it, and he shall not make restitution.
- Exodus 23:8 תִקָּ֑ח Qal impf 2ms You shall take no bribe, for a bribe blinds those who have sight and perverts the words of the righteous.
- Exodus 24:6 וַ/יִּקַּ֤ח conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Moses took half of the blood and put it in basins, and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar.
- Exodus 24:7 וַ/יִּקַּח֙ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms He took the book of the covenant and read it in the hearing of the people, and they said, "All that Yahweh has spoken will we do, and be obedient."
- Exodus 24:8 וַ/יִּקַּ֤ח conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, "Look, this is the blood of the covenant, which Yahweh has made with you concerning all these words."
- Exodus 25:2 וְ/יִקְחוּ תִּקְח֖וּ conj + Qal juss 3mp Qal impf 2mp "Speak to the children of Israel, that they take an offering for me. From everyone whose heart makes him willing you shall take my offering.
- Exodus 25:3 תִּקְח֖וּ Qal impf 2mp This is the offering which you shall take from them: gold, silver, brass,
- Exodus 27:20 וְ/יִקְח֨וּ conj + Qal impf 3mp "You shall command the children of Israel, that they bring to you pure olive oil beaten for the light, to cause a lamp to burn continually.
- Exodus 28:5 יִקְח֣וּ Qal impf 3mp They shall take the gold, and the blue, and the purple, and the scarlet, and the fine linen.
- Exodus 28:9 וְ/לָ֣קַחְתָּ֔ conj + Qal wpf 2ms You shall take two onyx stones, and engrave on them the names of the children of Israel:
- Exodus 29:1 לְ֠קַח Qal impv 2ms "This is the thing that you shall do to them to make them holy, to minister to me in the priest's office: take one young bull and two rams without blemish,
- Exodus 29:5 וְ/לָקַחְתָּ֣ conj + Qal wpf 2ms You shall take the garments, and put on Aaron the coat, the robe of the ephod, the ephod, and the breastplate, and dress him with the skillfully woven band of the ephod;
- Exodus 29:7 וְ/לָֽקַחְתָּ֙ conj + Qal wpf 2ms Then you shall take the anointing oil, and pour it on his head, and anoint him.
- Exodus 29:12 וְ/לָֽקַחְתָּ֙ conj + Qal wpf 2ms You shall take of the blood of the bull, and put it on the horns of the altar with your finger; and you shall pour out all the blood at the base of the altar.
- Exodus 29:13 וְ/לָֽקַחְתָּ֗ conj + Qal wpf 2ms You shall take all the fat that covers the innards, the cover of the liver, the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, and burn them on the altar.
- Exodus 29:15 תִּקָּ֑ח Qal impf 2ms "You shall also take the one ram; and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on the head of the ram.
- Exodus 29:16 וְ/לָֽקַחְתָּ֙ conj + Qal wpf 2ms You shall kill the ram, and you shall take its blood, and sprinkle it around on the altar.
- Exodus 29:19 וְ/לָ֣קַחְתָּ֔ conj + Qal wpf 2ms "You shall take the other ram; and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on the head of the ram.
- Exodus 29:20 וְ/לָקַחְתָּ֤ conj + Qal wpf 2ms Then you shall kill the ram, and take some of its blood, and put it on the tip of the right ear of Aaron, and on the tip of the right ear of his sons, and on the thumb of their right hand, and on the big toe of their right foot, and sprinkle the blood on the altar round about.
- Exodus 29:21 וְ/לָקַחְתָּ֞ conj + Qal wpf 2ms You shall take of the blood that is on the altar, and of the anointing oil, and sprinkle it on Aaron, and on his garments, and on his sons, and on the garments of his sons with him: and he shall be made holy, and his garments, and his sons, and his sons' garments with him.
- Exodus 29:22 וְ/לָקַחְתָּ֣ conj + Qal wpf 2ms Also you shall take some of the ram's fat, the fat tail, the fat that covers the innards, the cover of the liver, the two kidneys, the fat that is on them, and the right thigh (for it is a ram of consecration),
- Exodus 29:25 וְ/לָקַחְתָּ֤ conj + Qal wpf 2ms You shall take them from their hands, and burn them on the altar on the burnt offering, for a sweet savor before Yahweh: it is an offering made by fire to Yahweh.
- Exodus 29:26 וְ/לָקַחְתָּ֣ conj + Qal wpf 2ms "You shall take the breast of Aaron's ram of consecration, and wave it for a wave-offering before Yahweh: and it shall be your portion.
- Exodus 29:31 תִּקָּ֑ח Qal impf 2ms "You shall take the ram of consecration, and boil its flesh in a holy place.
- Exodus 30:16 וְ/לָקַחְתָּ֞ conj + Qal wpf 2ms You shall take the atonement money from the children of Israel, and shall appoint it for the service of the tent of meeting; that it may be a memorial for the children of Israel before Yahweh, to make atonement for your souls."
- Exodus 30:23 קַח Qal impv 2ms "Also take fine spices: of liquid myrrh, five hundred shekels; and of fragrant cinnamon half as much, even two hundred and fifty; and of fragrant cane, two hundred and fifty;
- Exodus 30:34 קַח Qal impv 2ms Yahweh said to Moses, "Take to yourself sweet spices, gum resin, and onycha, and galbanum; sweet spices with pure frankincense: of each shall there be an equal weight;
- Exodus 32:4 וַ/יִּקַּ֣ח conj + Qal wimpf 3ms He received what they handed him, and fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made it a molten calf; and they said, "These are your gods, Israel, which brought you up out of the land of Egypt."
- Exodus 32:20 וַ/יִּקַּ֞ח conj + Qal wimpf 3ms He took the calf which they had made, and burnt it with fire, ground it to powder, and scattered it on the water, and made the children of Israel drink of it.
- Exodus 33:7 יִקַּ֨ח Qal impf 3ms Now Moses used to take the tent and to pitch it outside the camp, far away from the camp, and he called it "The tent of meeting." It happened that everyone who sought Yahweh went out to the tent of meeting, which was outside the camp.
- Exodus 34:4 וַ/יִּקַּ֣ח conj + Qal wimpf 3ms He chiseled two tablets of stone like the first; and Moses rose up early in the morning, and went up to Mount Sinai, as Yahweh had commanded him, and took in his hand two stone tablets.
- Exodus 34:16 וְ/לָקַחְתָּ֥ conj + Qal pf 2ms and you take of their daughters to your sons, and their daughters play the prostitute after their gods, and make your sons play the prostitute after their gods.
- Exodus 35:5 קְח֨וּ Qal impv 2mp 'Take from among you an offering to Yahweh. Whoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it, Yahweh's offering: gold, silver, brass,
- Exodus 36:3 וַ/יִּקְח֞וּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp and they received from Moses all the offering which the children of Israel had brought for the work of the service of the sanctuary, with which to make it. They brought yet to him freewill-offerings every morning.
- Exodus 40:9 וְ/לָקַחְתָּ֙ conj + Qal wpf 2ms You shall take the anointing oil, and anoint the tent, and all that is in it, and shall make it holy, and all its furniture: and it will be holy.
- Exodus 40:20 וַ/יִּקַּ֞ח conj + Qal wimpf 3ms He took and put the testimony into the ark, and set the poles on the ark, and put the mercy seat above on the ark.
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.
לקח (lâqach) is a Hebrew verb most often rendered “to take.” Different stems carry different senses — BDB groups them under 5 stems, among them Qal and Niphal. Spanning 909 verses in 32 books, it ranks among the most common words of the Hebrew Bible. Scripture first uses it in Genesis 2:15. Sharing its root, it stands alongside לקח, מלקוח and מלקח. 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 H3947 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 →
- 909
- distinct verses
- The word appears in 909 distinct verses.
- 32 / 39
- OT books
- The word appears in 32 of 39 Old Testament books.
- #44
- by frequency
- Top 50 most frequent Hebrew words (rank 44 of 8,640 Hebrew words by occurrence).
View all 909 occurrences in the concordance →
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 909 distinct verses.
- Prophets (Nevi'im) 443 verses · 49%
- Torah (Pentateuch) 371 verses · 41%
- Writings (Ketuvim) 95 verses · 10%
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 2 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†: Took 222×, Take 163×, He took 53×
- American Standard Version†: Took 202×, Take 130×, He took 53×
- Berean Standard Bible†: Take 150×, Took 147×, He took 36×
- unfoldingWord Literal Text†: Take 191×, Took 176×, And 111×
King James Version Public Domain
Renders H3947 across 968† tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 173 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 1 further occurrence.
American Standard Version Public Domain
Renders H3947 across 967† tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 193 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 H3947 across 937† tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 245 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 27 further occurrences.
unfoldingWord Literal Text CC BY-SA 4.0
Renders H3947 across 1,162† tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 123 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
37 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), Hophal (the passive of Hiphil), 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 37 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
- Pf. ל׳ Gn 2:22 +, לָקָ֑ח 27:36 + (קָח Ez 17:5 is textual error; om. 𝔊 𝔖 Co, cf. Ges§ 19, 3.a); sf. לְקָחַנִי Gn 24:7, לְקָחָם Je 27:20 (for קָחָם Ho 11:3 read prob. אֶקָּחֵם 𝔊 𝔗 Ew St Sta§ 384, 4 Now Che Or We); 2 ms. לָקַחְתָּ Gn 20:3 +, etc.; Impf. יִקַּח Ex 21:10 +, וַיִּקַּח Gn 2:15 + (Nu 16:1 read וַיָּקָם Bö We Di Dr 2 S 18:18; 1 S 30:20 read וַיִּקְחוּ We Dr Kit Bu); sf. יִקָּחֵנִי 2 S 22:17 +; יִקָּחֲךָ Jb 15:12; 3 fs. תִּקַּח Gn 38:23 +; 1 s. אֶקַּח 14:23 +, וָאֶקְחָה Zc 11:13; 1 pl. נִקַּח Gn 34:6 +, נִקְחָה 1 S 4:3 +; וַנִּקַּח Dt 3:8; 29:7; Imv. לְקַח Ex 29:1 Pr 20:16 + Ez 37:16 (Co וְלָקַחְתָּ֫, after 𝔊); fs. לִקְחִי 1 K 17:11; usually קַח Gn 6:21 +, קְחָה 15:9, sf. 3 ms. קָחֶנּוּ 1 S 16:11 + 2 times; sf. 3 fs. קָחֶנָּה Je 36:14; sf. 3 mpl. קָחֶם־נָא Gn 48:9 (cf. Köi. 330 Ges§ 61, 2); fs. קְחִי Is 23:16 + 3 times; mpl. קְחוּ Gn 42:33 +, sf. 3 ms. קָחֻהוּ 1 K 20:33; Inf. abs. לָקוֹחַ Je 32:14 + 2 times, לָקֹחַ Dt 31:26; cstr. קַחַת Je 5:3 +; קְחַת־ 2 K 12:9 (Köi. 318); usually c. prep. לָקַ֫חַת Gn 4:11 +, מִקַּ֫חַת 1 K 22:3 +, etc.; sf. קַחְתִּי Ez 24:25, קַחְתֵּךְ Gn 30:15 +, etc.; Pt. act. לֹקֵחַ 27:46 +, etc.; pass. pl. לְקֻחִים Pr 24:11;— e.g. Genesis 2:22
- 1. take, take in the hand, sq. acc. rei, Ex 7:15 (J), 17:5 (E), Nu 25:7 (P), 2 K 4:29 (all c. בְּיַד) 2 S 18:14 (c. בְּכַף), cf. Gn 8:9 (J), Ex 4:17; 12:22 (JE), Dt 15:17 + often; Gn 40:11 (E; of plucking grapes. 2 S 4:6 read סֹקְלָה for לֹקְחֵי v. חִטָּה, p. 334 supra, and סקל). This easily passes into e.g. Exodus 7:15
- 2. take and carry along with oneself, כֶּסֶף קְחוּ בְיֶדְכֶם Gn 43:12 (J), Jos 9:11 (JE), 1 K 14:3; 2 K 5:5; 8:8, 9; 9:1 Pr 7:20 (all c. בְּיַד); cf. Gn 43:15 Jos 9:4 (both JE), +. e.g. Genesis 43:12
- 3.
- a. take from, or out of, sq. acc. rei vel pers., + מִן loc.: Gn 2:22 (rib from man), 3:22 (man from ground; both J); Dt 19:12; 1 S 17:49; 1 K 17:19 +; וַיִּקַּה אֶת־הַחֶרֶב מֵעַל יֶרֶךְ יְמִינוֹ Ju 3:21 (i.e. drew it); c. ב instr. בְּמֶלְקָחַיִם ל׳ מֵעַל הַמִּזְבֵּחַ Is 6:6; sq. מִן partit. 2 S 12:4. e.g. Genesis 2:22
- b. take, carry away: Ez 3:14 spirit lifted me up and carried me away; fig. of passion carrying one away Jb 15:12. e.g. Ezekiel 3:14
- c. take away from, so as to deprive of, sq. acc. Gn 42:36 (E); sq. acc. + מִן, Gn 44:29 (מֵעִם; J), 1 K 11:34 ψ 51:13; י׳ לֹקֵחַ אֶת־אֲדֹנֶיךָ מֵעַל רֹאשֶׁ֑ךָ 2 K 2:3 י׳ is about to take away thy lord from over thy head, so v 5; cf. abs. אֵינֶנּוּ כִּי־ל׳ אֹתוֹ אלהים Gn 5:24 (P); more often without מִן, Gn 27:36(×2); 30:15(×2); 31:1 (all J), Ju 11:13, 15; 15:6; 18:24 1 S 12:3(×2) 2 S 12:4; 1 K 11:34 Jb 12:20; abs. Jb 1:21; אֶתֶּן־לְךָ מֶלֶךְ בְּאַפִּי וְאֶקַּח בְּעֶבְרָתִי Ho 13:11; of the sword, taking away its victims Ez 33:4, 6; fig. of taking away understanding Ho 4:11. e.g. Genesis 42:36
- d. especially take away life 1 K 19:10, 14 ψ 31:14; Pr 1:19 Jon 4:3. e.g. 1 Kings 19:10
- 4. take to or for a person:
- a. for oneself, sq. acc. + לְ, = appropriate to oneself Dt 7:25 Nu 8:16 (P), Dt 22:7; 2 K 12:6; c. לְ as dat. comm., Zc 11:7; ל׳ אֶת־שְׁנֵי יְלָדַי לוֹ לַעֲבָדִים 2 K 4:1 to take my two sons for himself for slaves; so (without לְ reflex.), תִּקָּחֶנּוּ לְעֶבֶד עוֹלָם Jb 40:28 wilt thou take him as slave for ever? e.g. Deuteronomy 7:25
- b. = procure, get, sq. acc. + לְ, קְחוּ לָכֶם תֶּבֶן Ex 5:11 (J) get you straw; לֹקֵחַ לוֹ קָלוֹן Pr 9:7 getteth to himself shame; so often, especially קַח לְךָ, etc., Gn 6:21; 12:19; 16:21; 45:19 +; without לְ, Ne 5:2 let us procure corn, and eat and live; of acquiring a field Pr 31:16. e.g. Exodus 5:11
- c. take possession of, sq. acc., of land Dt 29:7 Jos 11:16, 23 (all D), 2 Ch 16:5; cf. פְּקֻדָּתוֹ יִקַּח אַחֵר ψ 109:8 his office let another take; fig. הַלַּיְלָה הַהוּא יִקָּחֵהוּ אֹפֶל Jb 3:6 that night—let darkness take possession of it! e.g. Deuteronomy 29:7
- d. = select, choose, וְאֶתְכֶם ל׳ י׳ Dt 4:20, cf. v 34 (+ לוֹ), 1 K 11:37; of men Dt 1:15 Jos 3:12 (JE; + לָכֶם); + מִן Dt 1:23 Jos 4:2 (JE). e.g. Deuteronomy 4:20
- e. especially take in marriage: (1) for another, especially a son, c. לְ, וְלָקַחְתָּ֫ אִשָּׁה לִבְנִי Gn 24:4 and thou shalt take a wife for my son, so v 7, 38, 40, 48 (all J), 21:21 (E), Je 29:6b; (2) more often for oneself, usually c. לְ reflex. (sometimes + לְאִשָּׁה), Gn 4:19; 6:2; 11:29; 12:19 (all J), + often; without לְ Gn 20:2, 3 (E), etc. e.g. Genesis 24:4
- f. = receive, accept, especially a bribe, gift, ransom, etc., 1 S 8:3; 12:3c, 4 (both sq. מִן), Am 5:12; 2 K 5:15, 16, 20, 23, 26(×2) ψ 15:5; interest-money Ez 18:13, 17; 22:12; inheritance Jos 13:8; 18:7 (both D), Nu 34:14(×2), 15 (P); of earth, receiving Abel’s blood Gn 4:11 (J); chastisement Is 40:2; of perceiving a sound, Jb 4:11 mine ear received a whisper of it; receive mentally: וְלָקַח בְּעָלָיו Ex 22:10 (E) i.e. shall accept the oath as satisfactory; בָּרֵךְ לָקַחְתִּי Nu 23:20 (JE), i.e. I have received (commandment by revelation) to bless; receive instruction Pr 24:32 Je 2:30 +; entanglements of temptation Pr 22:25. e.g. 1 Samuel 8:3
- g. take, as preliminary to further action: Gn 31:34 (E), she took them and put them; Ju 3:25 take key and open; Jos 2:4 she took the two men and hid them; 1 K 18:4 Obadiah took 100 prophets and hid them; 19:21 Elisha took the yoke of oxen and slew them, cf. 2 S 17:19; 18:18; sometimes wholly redundant, קְחוּ וַעֲשׂוּ עֲגָלָה חֲדָשָׁה 1 S 6:7 take and prepare a new cart, etc.; sq. ל pers. Je 40:2; differently הַלֹּקְחִים לְשׁוֹנָם וַיִּנְאֲמוּ נְאֻם Je 23:31, they take (= use) their own tongues, and talk oracles. e.g. Genesis 31:34
- 5. take up, upon = put upon, sq. עַל: וַתִּקַּח תָּמָר אֵפֶר עַל־רֹאשָׁהּ 2 S 13:19 and Tamar put ashes upon her head; וַיִּקָּחֶהָ עַל־הַחֲמוֹר Ju 19:28 cf. יִפְרשֹׁ כְּנָפָיו יִקָּחֵהוּ Dt 32:11 he spreadeth his wings, he taketh him up. e.g. 2 Samuel 13:19
- 6. = fetch: קְחִי־נָא לִי מְעַט־מַיִם 1 K 17:10 fetch me, pray, a little water, cf. v 11(×2), 2 K 2:20; 4:41; וְקַח־לִי מִשָּׁם שְׁנֵי גְּדָיֵי עִזִּים Gn 27:9 and fetch me thence two kids, cf. v 13 (J); + בְּיָדִי 1 S 21:9; an offering Lv 12:8 (P; ‖ הֵבִיא v 6); c. human obj. often nearly = summon, לָקֹב אֹיְבַי לְקַחְתִּיךָ Nu 33:11 (JE) to curse mine enemies did I summon thee, Ju 11:5; 1 S 16:11; שְׁלַח וְקַח אֹתוֹ אֵלַי 1 S 20:31 send and bring him unto me; 2 K 3:15; 6:13 +; of י׳, summoning his people from exile, מִשָּׁם יְקָּהֶ֑ךָ Dt 30:4. e.g. 1 Kings 17:10
- 7. take = lead, conduct (with or without contact): וַיִּקַּח אֶת־שְׁנֵי בָנָיו עִמּוֹ Gn 48:1; גַּם בְּקַרְכֶם קְחוּ Ex 12:32 (both E); וְאֶת־עַמּוֹ לָקַח עִמּוֹ Ex 14:6 (J) and his people he took with him; cf. v 7 (J), Jos 8:1 (JE), Ju 4:6; אֶקָּֽחֲךָ אֶל־מָקוֹם אַחֵר Nu 23:27 I will take the unto another place, cf. v 14, 28 (all JE); י׳ subj., וָאֶקַּח אֶת־אֲבִיכֶם Jos 24:3 (E) and I took your father Abraham from beyond the river; הַצֵּל לְקֻחִים לַמָּוֶת Pr 24:11 rescue those led to death. e.g. Genesis 48:1
- 8. take = capture, seize: לָקַחְתִּי בְחָזְקָה 1 S 2:16 I will take by force, sc. flesh; of spoils, בֶּצַע כֶּסֶף לֹא ל׳ Ju 5:19 gain of silver they took not; of capture of ark 1 S 5:1; bronze 2 S 8:8, etc.; territory Gn 48:22 (E), Dt 3:14; cities Nu 21:25 (JE), Dt 3:14 Jos 11:19 (D), 1 S 7:14 2 S 8:1; of capture of hippopotamus Jb 40:24; of seductions of woman, וְאַל־תִּקָּֽחֲךָ בְּעַפְעַפֶּיהָ Pr 6:25 and let her not capture thee with her eyelids. e.g. 1 Samuel 2:16
- 9. take = carry off:
- a. as booty Gn 14:11; 1 S 27:9; 30:16, 18, 19, 20; 1 K 14:26(×2). e.g. Genesis 14:11
- b. as prisoners Gn 14:12; 2 K 18:32 = Is 36:17, 2 K 23:34 = 2 Ch 36:4. e.g. Genesis 14:12
- 10. in phr. take vengeance: וְנִקְחָה נִקְמָתֵנוּ מִמֶּנּוּ Je 20:10 and we will take our vengeance upon him; abs. נָקָם אֶקַּה Is 47:3 vengeance will I take. e.g. Jeremiah 20:10
Niphal
- Pf. נִלְקַח 1 S 4:22; נִלֳקָ֑ח 4:11 Ez 33:6; 3 fs. נִלֳק֑חָה 1 S 4:17; Impf. 3 fs. וַתִּלָּקַח Est 2:8, 16; 1 s. אֶלָּקַח 2 K 2:9; Inf. cstr. הִלָּקַח 1 S 4:19, 21, sf. הִלָּֽקְחוֹ 1 S 21:7;— e.g. 1 Samuel 4:22
- 1. be captured, of ark 1 S 4:11, 17, 19, 21, 22. e.g. 1 Samuel 4:11
- 2. be taken away, removed, of shewbread 1 S 21:7; of removal by death Ez 33:6; of translation of Elijah 2 K 2:9 (c. מֵעִם pers.) e.g. 1 Samuel 21:7
- 3. be taken, brought unto (אֶל־), only Est 2:8, 16. e.g. Esther 2:8
Pual
- Pf. לֻקַּח Gn 3:23 +, 3 fs. לֻקָֿחָה־ 2:23, 2 ms. לֻקָּ֑חְתָּ 3:19 (Ges§ 53 e, s);— e.g. Genesis 3:23
- 1. be taken from, out of (מִן of source) Gn 2:23; 3:19, 23 (all J); cf. וְלֻקַּח מֵהֶם קְלָלָה Je 29:22 and there shall be taken from them (derived from their case) a curse-formula. e.g. Genesis 2:23
- 2. = be stolen from, Ju 17:2 (ל pers.) e.g. Judges 17:2
- 3. be taken captive, Je 48:46, cf. Is 52:5. e.g. Jeremiah 48:46
- 4. be taken away, removed (= Niph. 2), of Elijah’s translation 2 K 2:10 (c. מֵאֵת pers.), of death Is 53:8 (c. מִן, prob. instr.) e.g. 2 Kings 2:10
Hophal
- Impf. יֻקַּח Gn 18:4 + (Ges§ 53 u);— e.g. Genesis 18:4
- 1. be taken, brought unto Gn 12:15 (J; sq. בֵּית to the house of), 18:4 (abs.). e.g. Genesis 12:15
- 2. be taken out of Jb 28:2 (מִן of source), from, of Ez 15:3 (מִן partit.) e.g. Job 28:2
- 3. be taken away from Is 49:24 (מִן pers.); abs. v 25. e.g. Isaiah 49:24
Hithpael
- Pt. fs. אֵשׁ מִתְלַקַּ֫חַת lit. fire taking hold of itself, of lightning Ex 9:24 (JE), Ez 1:4, exact signif. dub.; in close succession, incessant Di Sm, infolding itself, i.e. a mass of fire, Thes RobGes AV VB SS, > of quivering flashes Buhl, of forked or zigzag lightning Da. e.g. Exodus 9:24
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
לָקַח965 vb. take (NH id., especially buy, and (Niph.) be taken in marriage; MI17, 20 Impf. ואקח; Ph. לקח; Assyrian liḳû, laḳû DlHWB 384; Arabic لَقِحَ conceive (of female), iv. impregnate; Ethiopic ለቅሐ receive; Zinj. לקח DHMSendsch. 59; Aramaic also Inscr. of Carpentr.3 (Imv. קחי); cf. CookGloss. Aramaic Inscr.);—
— 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.
לָקַח
- (b. h.)
- 1. to take, receive. B. Kam. 119ᵃ גבאי צדקה לוֹקְחִין וכ׳ collectors of charity may receive from them small contributions. Ex. R. s. 3 ל׳ את שלו he received his due (punishment). Tanḥ. Korah 3 ל׳ טליתו he took up his cloak; a. fr.
- 2. to carry away; to persuade. Ib. 1 (ref. to Num. XVI, 1) אין ויקח אלא משיכת וכ׳ vayikkaḥ means attraction by soft words; ib. 2 אין ויקח אלא לשון פליגה שלבו לְקָחוֹ vayikkaḥ has the meaning of separation, for his heart (pride) carried him away; Num. R. s. 18. e.g. Numbers 16:1
- 3. to buy, acquire. Dem. IV, 5 קַח לי וכ׳ buy (provision) for me of one who is reliable &c. Ib. הלך לִיקַּח … ולָקַחְתִּי לך וכ׳ if he went to buy of him (of the designated person), and … not finding him I bought of &c. Ib. V, 1 הלוֹקֵחַ מן וכ׳ he who buys of a baker. B. Mets. 16ᵇ לכשאֶקָּחֶנָּה when I shall have bought it; a. v. fr.—לוֹקֵחַ buyer. Ib. 15ᵇ bot. דמית ל׳ when the buyer is dead. Ber. 5ᵃ ול׳ שמח and the purchaser is glad; a. v. fr.—Part. pass. לָקוּחַ, f. לְקוּחָה; pl. לְקוּחִים, לְקוּחִון; לְקוּחוֹת. Y. Pes. II, 29ᵇ הל׳ בכסף מעשר that which has been bought with tithe-money. B. Mets. 110ᵃ ל׳ היא בידי I have it as a purchased property. Y. Snh. IX, beg. 26ᵈ [read:] עד שתהא הראשונה ל׳ לו until the first wife has been legally acquired (betrothed) by him; (Y. Yeb. XI, 11ᵈ top זקוקה), v. לְקִיחָה; a. fr.—V. לְקוּחוֹת.
- , נִקַּח to be taken, bought, acquired. Maas. Sh. I, 3 אינו נל׳ בכסף מעשר must not be bought with tithe-money; Ḥull. I, 7 אינו ניקח. Men. 42ᵇ נִקְּחֵית; נִקְּחִין; a. fr.—Kidd. 2ᵇ (ref. to Deut. XXII, 13) it is not written כי תִלָּקֵחַ אשה לאיש if a woman is married (marries herself) to a man (Var. תִקַּח). e.g. Deuteronomy 22:13
- to be enclosed, squeezed in. Num. R. s. 12; Cant. R. to III, 11; Pesik. Vayhi, p. 4ᵃ (expl. מִתְלַקַּחַת, Ex. IX, 24), v. עֲשָׁשִׁיתָא. e.g. Exodus 9:24
*לְקַח
- Ithpe. אִלְּקַח to be taken, married. Keth. IV, 11 (52ᵇ) עד דתִלַּקְחוּן לגוברין Bab. ed. (Mish. a. Y. ed. דתינסבן) until they shall be married; ib. 53ᵇ דתִילַּקְחָן.
לֶקַח
- preced.) purchase; (acceptable) gift; lesson. Taan. 7a (ref. to לקחי, Deut. XXXII, 2) אין ל׳ אלא תורה lekaḥ means the Law (with ref. to Prov. IV, 2); Tanḥ. Haăz. 3; a. fr.—אבן הל׳ auction-stone. Yalk. Lev. 667, v. מֶקַח. e.g. Deuteronomy 32:2
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 415 distinct written forms H3947 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; 355 rarer forms follow in the full concordance.
Same root — word family
Other BDB entries built from the same root as H3947, 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
- לקח leqach H3948 instruction
- מלקוח malqôwach H4455 prey
- מלקח melqâch H4457 snuffers
- מקח miqqâch H4727 receiving
- מקחה maqqâchâh H4728 ware
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 7 — not the complete family. 1 of the same-root words is a proper name (a person or place). They share a root, not necessarily a meaning.
Septuagint verse parallels
This word appears in 873 verses that also exist in the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint), out of the 909 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 2:15
- Exodus 2:1
- Leviticus 4:5
- Numbers 1:17
- Deuteronomy 1:15
- Joshua 2:4
- Judges 3:6
- Ruth 4:2
- 1 Samuel 2:14
- 2 Samuel 1:10
- 1 Kings 1:33
- 2 Kings 2:3
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.
