אָכַל
to eat
also: devour, burn up, feed 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.
Stem
- Qal
- The basic, simple active stem — the plain form of the verb (“he wrote”). Here: ‘eat’
- Niphal
- Usually the simple passive or reflexive of the Qal (“he was written”). Here: ‘be eaten by man Ex 12’
- Qal Passive
- An archaic passive of the Qal, preserved in a few forms.
- Hiphil
- The causative active stem (“he caused / brought about”). Here: ‘cause to eat’
- Piel
- An intensive or resultative active stem.
Form
- Infinitive Construct
- A bound verbal noun, frequently with prepositions (“to write / in writing”).
- Imperfect
- An incomplete, ongoing, or future action (“he will / would write”).
- Sequential Imperfect
- An imperfect with prefixed waw — the standard past-narrative form (waw-consecutive imperfect).
- Perfect
- A completed action or state — Hebrew marks aspect (completeness) more than strict tense (“he wrote”).
- Sequential Perfect
- A perfect with prefixed waw continuing a preceding imperfect or command (waw-consecutive perfect).
- Infinitive Absolute
- An unbound verbal noun, often intensifying or standing in for a finite verb.
- Participle Active
- A verbal adjective expressing ongoing or characteristic action (“writing / one who writes”).
- Imperative
- A direct command (“write!”).
- 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”).
- 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).
Grammatical forms 74 distinct
- Verb, Qal, Infinitive Construct 74 times (9%)
- Verb, Qal, Imperfect, 3rd Person, Masculine, Singular 72 times (9%)
- Verb, Qal, Imperfect, 2nd Person, Masculine, Plural 55 times (7%)
- Verb, Qal, Imperfect, 3rd Person, Masculine, Plural 53 times (7%)
- Verb, Qal, Imperfect, 2nd Person, Masculine, Singular 41 times (5%)
- Verb, Qal, Imperfect, 3rd Person, Feminine, Singular 39 times (5%)
- Verb, Qal, Sequential Imperfect, 3rd Person, Masculine, Plural 31 times (4%)
- Verb, Qal, Perfect, 3rd Person, Masculine, Singular 28 times (3%)
+66 more forms (422 occurrences)
Parsed forms decoded from the imported morphology (morphhb / Westminster Leningrad Codex — WLC text public domain, morphhb tagging CC BY 4.0), counted across 815 parsed occurrences — not distinct verses.
Page 4 of 4 — showing verses 601–703 of 703 distinct verses where H398 appears, across 38 books. 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.
Ezekiel 53 verses
- Ezekiel 12:18 תֹּאכֵ֑ל Qal impf 2ms Son of man, eat your bread with quaking, and drink your water with trembling and with fearfulness;
- Ezekiel 12:19 יֹאכֵ֔לוּ Qal impf 3mp and tell the people of the land, Thus says the Lord Yahweh concerning the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and the land of Israel: They shall eat their bread with fearfulness, and drink their water in dismay, that her land may be desolate, [and despoiled] of all that is therein, because of the violence of all those who dwell therein.
- Ezekiel 15:4 אָכְלָ֤ה Qal pf 3fs Behold, it is cast into the fire for fuel; the fire has devoured both the ends of it, and the midst of it is burned: is it profitable for any work?
- Ezekiel 15:5 אֲכָלַ֨תְ/הוּ֙ Qal pf 3fs + sfx pers 3ms Behold, when it was whole, it was meet for no work: how much less, when the fire has devoured it, and it is burned, shall it yet be meet for any work!
- Ezekiel 15:7 תֹּֽאכְלֵ֑/ם Qal impf 3fs + sfx pers 3mp I will set my face against them; they shall go forth from the fire, but the fire shall devour them; and you shall know that I am Yahweh, when I set my face against them.
- Ezekiel 16:13 אכלתי אָכָ֑לְתְּ Qal pf 2fs Qal pf 2fs Thus was you decked with gold and silver; and your clothing was of fine linen, and silk, and embroidered work; you ate fine flour, and honey, and oil; and you were exceeding beautiful, and you did prosper to royal estate.
- Ezekiel 16:19 הֶֽאֱכַלְתִּ֔י/ךְ Hiphil pf 1cs + sfx pers 2fs My bread also which I gave you, fine flour, and oil, and honey, with which I fed you, you did even set it before them for a sweet savor; and [thus] it was, says the Lord Yahweh.
- Ezekiel 16:20 לֶ/אֱכ֑וֹל prep + Qal inf.cs Moreover you have taken your sons and your daughters, whom you have borne to me, and these have you sacrificed to them to be devoured. Were your prostitution a small matter,
- Ezekiel 18:2 יֹ֣אכְלוּ Qal impf 3mp What do you mean, that you use this proverb concerning the land of Israel, saying, The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge?
- Ezekiel 18:6 אָכָ֔ל Qal pf 3ms and has not eaten on the mountains, neither has lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, neither has defiled his neighbor's wife, neither has come near to a woman in her impurity,
- Ezekiel 18:11 אָכַ֔ל Qal pf 3ms and who does not any of those [duties], but even has eaten on the mountains, and defiled his neighbor's wife,
- Ezekiel 18:15 אָכָ֔ל Qal pf 3ms who has not eaten on the mountains, neither has lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, has not defiled his neighbor's wife,
- Ezekiel 19:3 אָכָֽל Qal pf 3ms She brought up one of her cubs: he became a young lion, and he learned to catch the prey; he devoured men.
- Ezekiel 19:6 אָכָֽל Qal pf 3ms He went up and down among the lions; he became a young lion, and he learned to catch the prey; he devoured men.
- Ezekiel 19:12 אֲכָלָֽתְ/הוּ Qal pf 3fs + sfx pers 3ms But it was plucked up in fury, it was cast down to the ground, and the east wind dried up its fruit: its strong rods were broken off and withered; the fire consumed them.
- Ezekiel 19:14 אָכָ֔לָה Qal pf 3fs Fire is gone out of the rods of its branches, it has devoured its fruit, so that there is in it no strong rod to be a scepter to rule. This is a lamentation, and shall be for a lamentation.
- Ezekiel 20:47 וְ/אָכְלָ֣ה conj + Qal wpf 3fs and tell the forest of the South, Hear the word of Yahweh: Thus says the Lord Yahweh, Behold, I will kindle a fire in you, and it shall devour every green tree in you, and every dry tree: the flaming flame shall not be quenched, and all faces from the south to the north shall be burnt thereby.
- Ezekiel 21:28 לְ/הָכִ֖יל prep + Hiphil inf.cs You, son of man, prophesy, and say, Thus says the Lord Yahweh concerning the children of Ammon, and concerning their reproach; and say you, A sword, a sword is drawn, for the slaughter it is furbished, to cause it to devour, that it may be as lightning;
- Ezekiel 22:9 אָ֣כְלוּ Qal pf 3cp Slanderous men have been in you to shed blood; and in you they have eaten on the mountains: in the midst of you they have committed lewdness.
- Ezekiel 22:25 אָכָ֗לוּ Qal pf 3cp There is a conspiracy of her prophets in the midst of it, like a roaring lion ravening the prey: they have devoured souls; they take treasure and precious things; they have made her widows many in the midst of it.
- Ezekiel 23:25 תֵּאָכֵ֥ל Niphal impf 3fs I will set my jealousy against you, and they shall deal with you in fury; they shall take away your nose and your ears; and your residue shall fall by the sword: they shall take your sons and your daughters; and your residue shall be devoured by the fire.
- Ezekiel 24:17 תֹאכֵֽל Qal impf 2ms Sigh, but not aloud, make no mourning for the dead; bind your headdress on you, and put your shoes on your feet, and don't cover your lips, and don't eat men's bread.
- Ezekiel 24:22 תֹאכֵֽלוּ Qal impf 2mp You shall do as I have done: you shall not cover your lips, nor eat the bread of men.
- Ezekiel 25:4 יֹאכְל֣וּ Qal impf 3mp therefore, behold, I will deliver you to the children of the east for a possession, and they shall set their encampments in you, and make their dwellings in you; they shall eat your fruit, and they shall drink your milk.
- Ezekiel 28:18 אֲכָלַ֔תְ/ךָ Qal pf 3fs + sfx pers 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 33:25 תֹּאכֵ֛לוּ Qal impf 2mp Therefore tell them, Thus says the Lord Yahweh: You eat with the blood, and lift up your eyes to your idols, and shed blood: and shall you possess the land?
- Ezekiel 33:27 לְ/אָכְל֑/וֹ prep + Qal inf.cs + sfx pers 3ms Thus shall you tell them, Thus says the Lord Yahweh: As I live, surely those who are in the waste places shall fall by the sword; and him who is in the open field will I give to the animals to be devoured; and those who are in the strongholds and in the caves shall die of the pestilence.
- Ezekiel 34:3 תֹּאכֵ֨לוּ֙ Qal impf 2mp You eat the fat, and you clothe you with the wool, you kill the fatlings; but you don't feed the sheep.
- Ezekiel 34:28 תֹאכְלֵ֑/ם Qal impf 3fs + sfx pers 3mp They shall no more be a prey to the nations, neither shall the animals of the earth devour them; but they shall dwell securely, and none shall make them afraid.
- Ezekiel 36:13 אֹכֶ֥לֶת Qal ptcp.act fs cs Thus says the Lord Yahweh: Because they say to you, You [land] are a devourer of men, and have been a bereaver of your nation;
- Ezekiel 36:14 תֹ֣אכְלִי Qal impf 2fs therefore you shall devour men no more, neither bereave your nation any more, says the Lord Yahweh;
- Ezekiel 39:17 וַ/אֲכַלְתֶּ֥ם conj + Qal wpf 2mp You, son of man, thus says the Lord Yahweh: Speak to the birds of every sort, and to every animal of the field, Assemble yourselves, and come; gather yourselves on every side to my sacrifice that I do sacrifice for you, even a great sacrifice on the mountains of Israel, that you may eat flesh and drink blood.
- Ezekiel 39:18 תֹּאכֵ֔לוּ Qal impf 2mp You shall eat the flesh of the mighty, and drink the blood of the princes of the earth, of rams, of lambs, and of goats, of bulls, all of them fatlings of Bashan.
- Ezekiel 39:19 וַ/אֲכַלְתֶּם conj + Qal wpf 2mp You shall eat fat until you be full, and drink blood until you be drunken, of my sacrifice which I have sacrificed for you.
- Ezekiel 42:5 יוֹכְל֨וּ Qal impf 3mp Now the upper chambers were shorter; for the galleries took away from these, more than from the lower and the middle, in the building.
- Ezekiel 42:13 יֹאכְלוּ Qal impf 3mp Then said he to me, The north chambers and the south chambers, which are before the separate place, they are the holy chambers, where the priests who are near to Yahweh shall eat the most holy things: there shall they lay the most holy things, and the meal-offering, and the sin-offering, and the trespass-offering; for the place is holy.
- Ezekiel 43:8 וָ/אֲכַ֥ל conj + Piel wimpf 1cs in their setting of their threshold by my threshold, and their door-post beside my door-post, and there was [but] the wall between me and them; and they have defiled my holy name by their abominations which they have committed: therefore I have consumed them in my anger.
- Ezekiel 44:3 לֶ/אֱכָול prep + Qal inf.cs As for the prince, he shall sit therein as prince to eat bread before Yahweh; he shall enter by the way of the porch of the gate, and shall go out by the way of the same.
- Ezekiel 44:29 יֹֽאכְל֑וּ/ם Qal impf 3mp + sfx pers 3mp They shall eat the meal-offering, and the sin-offering, and the trespass-offering; and every devoted thing in Israel shall be theirs.
- Ezekiel 44:31 יֹאכְל֖וּ Qal impf 3mp The priests shall not eat of anything that dies of itself, or is torn, whether it be bird or animal.
- Ezekiel 45:21 יֵאָכֵֽל Niphal impf 3ms In the first [month], in the fourteenth day of the month, you shall have the Passover, a feast of seven days; unleavened bread shall be eaten.
Daniel 5 verses
- Daniel 1:12 וְ/נֹאכְלָ֖ה conj + Qal coh 1cp Prove your servants, I beg you, ten days; and let them give us pulse to eat, and water to drink.
- Daniel 1:13 הָ/אֹ֣כְלִ֔ים ptcl def.art + Qal ptcp.act mp Then let our faces be looked on before you, and the face of the youths who eat of the king's dainties; and as you see, deal with your servants.
- Daniel 1:15 הָ/אֹ֣כְלִ֔ים ptcl def.art + Qal ptcp.act mp At the end of ten days their faces appeared fairer, and they were fatter in flesh, than all the youths who ate of the king's dainties.
- Daniel 10:3 אָכַ֗לְתִּי Qal pf 1cs I ate no pleasant bread, neither came flesh nor wine into my mouth, neither did I anoint myself at all, until three whole weeks were fulfilled.
- Daniel 11:26 וְ/אֹכְלֵ֧י conj + Qal ptcp.act mp cs Yes, they who eat of his dainties shall destroy him, and his army shall overflow; and many shall fall down slain.
Hosea 14 verses
- Hosea 2:12 וַ/אֲכָלָ֖תַ/ם conj + Qal wpf 3fs + sfx pers 3mp I will lay waste her vines and her fig trees, About which she has said, 'These are my wages that my lovers have given me; And I will make them a forest,' And the animals of the field shall eat them.
- Hosea 4:8 יֹאכֵ֑לוּ Qal impf 3mp They feed on the sin of my people, And set their heart on their iniquity.
- Hosea 4:10 וְ/אָֽכְלוּ֙ conj + Qal wpf 3cp They will eat, and not have enough. They will play the prostitute, and will not increase; Because they have abandoned giving to Yahweh.
- Hosea 5:7 יֹאכְלֵ֥/ם Qal impf 3ms + sfx pers 3mp They are unfaithful to Yahweh; For they have borne illegitimate children. Now the new moon will devour them with their fields.
- Hosea 7:7 וְ/אָכְל֖וּ conj + Qal pf 3cp They are all hot as an oven, And devour their judges. All their kings have fallen. There is no one among them who calls to me.
- Hosea 7:9 אָכְל֤וּ Qal pf 3cp Strangers have devoured his strength, And he doesn't realize it. Indeed, gray hairs are here and there on him, And he doesn't realize it.
- Hosea 8:13 וַ/יֹּאכֵ֔לוּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp As for the sacrifices of my offerings, they sacrifice flesh and eat it; But Yahweh doesn't accept them. Now he will remember their iniquity, And punish their sins. They will return to Egypt.
- Hosea 8:14 וְ/אָכְלָ֖ה conj + Qal wpf 3fs For Israel has forgotten his Maker and built palaces; And Judah has multiplied fortified cities; But I will send a fire on his cities, And it will devour its fortresses."
- Hosea 9:3 יֹאכֵֽלוּ Qal impf 3mp They won't dwell in Yahweh's land; But Ephraim will return to Egypt, And they will eat unclean food in Assyria.
- Hosea 9:4 אֹכְלָ֖י/ו Qal ptcp.act mp cs + sfx pers 3ms They won't pour out wine offerings to Yahweh, Neither will they be pleasing to him. Their sacrifices will be to them like the bread of mourners; All who eat of it will be polluted; For their bread will be for their appetite. It will not come into the house of Yahweh.
- Hosea 10:13 אֲכַלְתֶּ֣ם Qal pf 2mp You have plowed wickedness. You have reaped iniquity. You have eaten the fruit of lies, For you trusted in your way, in the multitude of your mighty men.
- Hosea 11:4 אוֹכִֽיל Hiphil impf 1cs I drew them with cords of a man, with ties of love; And I was to them like those who lift up the yoke on their necks; And I bent down to him and I fed him.
- Hosea 11:6 וְ/אָכָ֑לָה conj + Qal wpf 3fs The sword will fall on their cities, And will consume their gate bars, And will put an end to their plans.
- Hosea 13:8 וְ/אֹכְלֵ֥/ם conj + Qal impf 1cs + sfx pers 3mp I will meet them like a bear that is bereaved of her cubs, And will tear the covering of their heart. And there I will devour them like a lioness. The wild animal will tear them.
Joel 7 verses
- Joel 1:4 אָכַ֣ל אָכַ֣ל אָכַ֖ל Qal pf 3ms Qal pf 3ms Qal pf 3ms What the swarming locust has left, the great locust has eaten. What the great locust has left, the grasshopper has eaten. What the grasshopper has left, the caterpillar has eaten.
- Joel 1:19 אָֽכְלָה֙ Qal pf 3fs Yahweh, I cry to you, For the fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness, And the flame has burned all the trees of the field.
- Joel 1:20 אָכְלָ֖ה Qal pf 3fs Yes, the animals of the field pant to you, For the water brooks have dried up, And the fire has devoured the pastures of the wilderness.
- Joel 2:3 אָ֣כְלָה Qal pf 3fs A fire devours before them, And behind them, a flame burns. The land is as the garden of Eden before them, And behind them, a desolate wilderness. Yes, and no one has escaped them.
- Joel 2:5 אֹכְלָ֖ה Qal ptcp.act fs Like the noise of chariots on the tops of the mountains do they leap, Like the noise of a flame of fire that devours the stubble, As a strong people set in battle array.
- Joel 2:25 אָכַ֣ל Qal pf 3ms I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, The great locust, the grasshopper, and the caterpillar, My great army, which I sent among you.
- Joel 2:26 וַ/אֲכַלְתֶּ֤ם אָכוֹל֙ conj + Qal wpf 2mp Qal inf.abs You will have plenty to eat, and be satisfied, And will praise the name of Yahweh, your God, Who has dealt wondrously with you; And my people will never again be disappointed.
Amos 14 verses
- Amos 1:4 וְ/אָכְלָ֖ה conj + Qal wpf 3fs But I will send a fire into the house of Hazael, And it will devour the palaces of Ben Hadad.
- Amos 1:7 וְ/אָכְלָ֖ה conj + Qal wpf 3fs But I will send a fire on the wall of Gaza, And it will devour its palaces.
- Amos 1:10 וְ/אָכְלָ֖ה conj + Qal wpf 3fs But I will send a fire on the wall of Tyre, And it will devour its palaces."
- Amos 1:12 וְ/אָכְלָ֖ה conj + Qal wpf 3fs But I will send a fire on Teman, And it will devour the palaces of Bozrah."
- Amos 1:14 וְ/אָכְלָ֖ה conj + Qal wpf 3fs But I will kindle a fire in the wall of Rabbah, And it will devour its palaces, With shouting in the day of battle, With a tempest in the day of the whirlwind;
- Amos 2:2 וְ/אָכְלָ֖ה conj + Qal wpf 3fs But I will send a fire on Moab, And it will devour the palaces of Kerioth; And Moab will die with tumult, with shouting, and with the sound of the trumpet;
- Amos 2:5 וְ/אָכְלָ֖ה conj + Qal wpf 3fs But I will send a fire on Judah, And it will devour the palaces of Jerusalem."
- Amos 4:9 יֹאכַ֣ל Qal impf 3ms I struck you with blight and mildew many times in your gardens and your vineyards; And your fig trees and your olive trees have the swarming locust devoured: Yet you haven't returned to me," says Yahweh.
- Amos 5:6 וְ/אָכְלָ֥ה conj + Qal wpf 3fs Seek Yahweh, and you will live; Lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, And it devour, and there be no one to quench it in Bethel.
- Amos 6:4 וְ/אֹכְלִ֤ים conj + Qal ptcp.act mp Who lie on beds of ivory, And stretch themselves on their couches, And eat the lambs out of the flock, And the calves out of the midst of the stall;
- Amos 7:2 לֶֽ/אֱכוֹל֙ prep + Qal inf.cs It happened that, when they made an end of eating the grass of the land, then I said, "Lord Yahweh, forgive, I beg you! How could Jacob stand? For he is small."
- Amos 7:4 וַ/תֹּ֨אכַל֙ וְ/אָכְלָ֖ה conj + Qal wimpf 3fs conj + Qal wpf 3fs Thus the Lord Yahweh showed me and, behold, the Lord Yahweh called for judgment by fire; and it dried up the great deep, and would have devoured the land.
- Amos 7:12 וֶ/אֱכָל conj + Qal impv 2ms Amaziah also said to Amos, "You seer, go, flee away into the land of Judah, and there eat bread, and prophesy there:
- Amos 9:14 וְ/אָכְל֖וּ conj + Qal wpf 3cp I will bring back the captivity of my people Israel, And they will rebuild the ruined cities, and inhabit them; and they will plant vineyards, and drink wine from them. They shall also make gardens, And eat the fruit of them.
Obadiah 1 verse
Micah 3 verses
- Micah 3:3 אָכְלוּ֮ Qal pf 3cp Who also eat the flesh of my people, And flay their skin from off them, And break their bones, And chop them in pieces, as for the pot, And as flesh within the caldron.
- Micah 6:14 תֹאכַל֙ Qal impf 2ms You shall eat, but not be satisfied. Your humiliation will be in your midst. You will store up, but not save; And that which you save I will give up to the sword.
- Micah 7:1 לֶ/אֱכ֔וֹל prep + Qal inf.cs Misery is mine! Indeed, I am like one who gathers the summer fruits, as gleanings of the vinyard: There is no cluster of grapes to eat. My soul desires to eat the early fig.
Nahum 5 verses
- Nahum 1:10 אֻ֨כְּל֔וּ Qal Passive pf 3cp For entangled like thorns, and drunken as with their drink, they are consumed utterly like dry stubble.
- Nahum 2:13 תֹּ֣אכַל Qal impf 3fs "Behold, I am against you," says Yahweh of Hosts, "and I will burn her chariots in the smoke, and the sword will devour your young lions; and I will cut off your prey from the earth, and the voice of your messengers will no longer be heard."
- Nahum 3:12 אוֹכֵֽל Qal ptcp.act ms All your fortresses will be like fig trees with the first-ripe figs: if they are shaken, they fall into the mouth of the eater.
- Nahum 3:13 אָכְלָ֥ה Qal pf 3fs Behold, your troops in your midst are women. The gates of your land are set wide open to your enemies. The fire has devoured your bars.
- Nahum 3:15 תֹּאכְלֵ֣/ךְ תֹּאכְלֵ֖/ךְ Qal impf 3fs + sfx pers 2fs Qal impf 3fs + sfx pers 2fs There the fire will devour you. The sword will cut you off. It will devour you like the grasshopper. Multiply like grasshoppers. Multiply like the locust.
Habakkuk 2 verses
- Habakkuk 1:8 לֶ/אֱכֽוֹל prep + Qal inf.cs Their horses also are swifter than leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves. Their horsemen press proudly on. Yes, their horsemen come from afar. They fly as an eagle that hurries to devour.
- Habakkuk 3:14 לֶ/אֱכֹ֥ל prep + Qal inf.cs You pierced the heads of his warriors with their own spears. They came as a whirlwind to scatter me, Gloating as if to devour the wretched in secret.
Zephaniah 2 verses
- Zephaniah 1:18 תֵּאָכֵ֖ל Niphal impf 3fs Neither their silver nor their gold will be able to deliver them in the day of Yahweh's wrath, but the whole land will be devoured by the fire of his jealousy; for he will make an end, yes, a terrible end, of all those who dwell in the land.
- Zephaniah 3:8 תֵּאָכֵ֖ל Niphal impf 3fs "Therefore wait for me," says Yahweh, "until the day that I rise up to the prey, for my determination is to gather the nations, that I may assemble the kingdoms, to pour on them my indignation, even all my fierce anger, for all the earth will be devoured with the fire of my jealousy.
Haggai 1 verse
Zechariah 7 verses
- Zechariah 7:6 תֹאכְל֖וּ הָ/אֹ֣כְלִ֔ים Qal impf 2mp ptcl def.art + Qal ptcp.act mp When you eat, and when you drink, don't you eat for yourselves, and drink for yourselves?
- Zechariah 9:4 תֵּאָכֵֽל Niphal impf 3fs Behold, the Lord will dispossess her, And he will strike her power in the sea; And she will be devoured with fire.
- Zechariah 9:15 וְ/אָכְל֗וּ conj + Qal pf 3cp Yahweh of Hosts will defend them; And they will destroy and overcome with sling-stones; And they will drink, and roar as through wine; And they will be filled like bowls, Like the corners of the altar.
- Zechariah 11:1 וְ/תֹאכַ֥ל conj + Qal impf 3fs Open your doors, Lebanon, That the fire may devour your cedars.
- Zechariah 11:9 תֹּאכַ֕לְנָה Qal impf 3fp Then I said, "I will not feed you. That which dies, let it die; and that which is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let those who are left eat each other's flesh."
- Zechariah 11:16 יֹאכַ֔ל Qal impf 3ms For, behold, I will raise up a shepherd in the land, who will not visit those who are cut off, neither will seek those who are scattered, nor heal that which is broken, nor feed that which is sound; but he will eat the flesh of the fat sheep, and will tear their hoofs in pieces.
- Zechariah 12:6 וְ/אָ֨כְל֜וּ conj + Qal wpf 3cp In that day I will make the chieftains of Judah like a pan of fire among wood, and like a flaming torch among sheaves; and they will devour all the surrounding peoples, on the right hand and on the left; and Jerusalem will yet again dwell in their own place, even in Jerusalem.
Malachi 1 verse
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.
“to eat” is the headline sense of the Hebrew verb אכל (ʼâkal). Different stems carry different senses — BDB groups them under 4 stems, among them Qal and Niphal. With 703 verses in 38 books, it is one of the most common word in the Hebrew Bible. Scripture first uses it in Genesis 2:16. From the same root come אכילה, אכל and אכל. The sections below give every sense, occurrence, and version rendering.
Gloss history
Strong's 1890 vs modern scholarship
About this word
Strong's H398 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 →
- 703
- distinct verses
- The word appears in 703 distinct verses.
- 38 / 39
- OT books
- The word appears in 38 of 39 Old Testament books.
- #57
- by frequency
- Top 100 most frequent Hebrew words (rank 57 of 8,640 Hebrew words by occurrence).
View all 703 occurrences in the concordance →
Most concentrated in
- Leviticus 81 verses 12%
- Deuteronomy 71 verses 10%
- Genesis 54 verses 8%
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 703 distinct verses.
- Prophets (Nevi'im) 317 verses · 45%
- Torah (Pentateuch) 274 verses · 39%
- Writings (Ketuvim) 112 verses · 16%
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: Eat 128×, Shall eat 38×, Ye shall eat 30×
- American Standard Version: Eat 105×, Ye shall eat 28×, Shall eat 26×
- Berean Standard Bible: Eat 166×, Ate 21×, Consumed 20×
- unfoldingWord Literal Text: Eat 175×, Will eat 39×, You shall eat 36×
King James Version Public Domain
Renders H398 across 809 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 164 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 H398 across 808 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 204 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 H398 across 784 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 155 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 25 further occurrences.
unfoldingWord Literal Text CC BY-SA 4.0
Renders H398 across 946 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 134 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
15 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).
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 15 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. אָכַל Ex 34:28 +; אָֽכְלָה Nu 21:28 +, etc. Impf. יֹאכַל Gn 49:27 +; וַיֹּא֫כַל Gn 25:34 +; וַיֹּאכַ֑ל Gn 3:6 +; יֹאכֵ֑ל Lv 21:22 +; אֹכַל Gn 24:33 +; וָֽאֹכַ֫ל 27:33; וְאֹכֵ֑ל Is 44:19; וָֽאֹכֵל Gn 3:12, 13; 3 pl. יֹאכְלוּ Gn 32:33 +; יֹאכֵ֑לוּ Dt 18:8 +; etc. (for יוֹכְלוּ Ez 42:5 rd. יוצלו, יאצלו 𝔊 Ew Co); sf. יֹאכְלֶנּוּ Lv 7:6 +; תֹּאכַלְכֶם Is 33:11, etc., prob. also תְּאָכְלֵהוּ Jb 20:26, either as secondary form fr. תֹּא׳ (Ew§ 253 Di) or text. error (Ges§ 68. 1) > Pi., Thes KöI, 389; or Poʿel, Ki De MV; Imv. אֱכוֹל 1 K 18:41 +, etc.; Inf. abs. אָכוֹל Gn 2:16 +; cstr. אֲכֹל Nu 26:10 + 2 textual; לֶאֱכֹל Gn 24:33 +; לְאָכְלָה Je 12:9; Pt. אֹכֵל (אוֹכֵל) Gn 39:6 +, אֹכֶלֶת Ex 24:17 +, etc.— e.g. Exodus 34:28
- 1. eat, human subject Gn 3:11, 18 + oft.; mostly c. acc. Ex 16:35 +; also sq. מִן־ (eat of,—some of,—or from) Ex 34:15 Ru 2:14 +; sq. בְּ (eat of or at) Ex 12:43 f; abs. Dt 2:6 +; as act of worship Gn 31:54 (cf. 46:1) Ex 18:12; 24:11; 34:15 Dt 12:7, 18; 14:23, 26 Ju 9:27 +; of priests Ex 29:32 Lv 10:13 +; cf. אָכַל אֶל־הֶהָרִים Ez 18:6, 11, 15; 22:9 + 33:25 עַל־הַדָּם Co עַל־הֶהָרִים; (but RSRel. Sem.. i. 324 N would emend first 4 by last); eat up, finish eating Gn 43:2 (c. כלה) 1 K 13:28 +; אָכַל לֶחֶם = take a meal Gn 43:25 Ex 2:20 1 S 20:24 Je 41:1 +; so א׳ alone Gn 43:16 1 S 20:5 +; א׳ לֶחֶם = eat, get food Gn 3:19 2 K 4:8 +; Am 7:12 (i.e. spend one’s life) cf. Ec 5:16; לֹא א׳ ל׳ i.e. fast 1 S 28:20; 30:12 Ezr 10:6 cf. Dn 10:3; fig. א׳ אֶת־בְּשָׂרוֹ Ec 4:5 (i.e. waste away); eat words Je 15:16 (i.e. eagerly receive); of adultery, Pr 30:20 אָֽכְלָה וּמָֽחֲתָה פִּ֑יהָ וְאָֽמְרָה לֹא־פָעַלְתִּי אָֽוֶן׃; eat (taste) good fortune, א׳ בַּטּוֹבָה Jb 21:25; לְפִי אָכְלוֹ according to his eating, i.e. acc. to his needs in eating Ex 12:4; 16:16, 18 also v 21; cf. Jb 20:21 & sub אָכְלָה; אָכַל הַפְּרִי 2 K 19:29 Am 9:14, of peaceful enjoyment of results of labour; fig. of receiving consequences of action, good or bad Pr 1:31; 18:21 Ho 10:13 cf. וַיֹּאכַל גַּם־אָכוֹל אֶת־כַּסְפֵּנוּ Gn 31:15 i.e. he has reaped all the benefit, cf. Ho 7:9; fig. of mourner, אֵפֶר כַּלֶּחֶם אָכָ֑לְתִּי ψ 102:10 (cf. 80:6 Hiph., & As. akâl al âkul, bikîtum kurmatî = food I ate not, weeping (was) my refreshment HptASKT 166 f. Obv. l, 21, 22 ZimBP 34, 42); of gods, partaking of sacrifices Dt 32:38; fig. = destroy Dt 7:16 (cf. Nu 14:9); cf. Je 10:25; 30:16; 50:7 Ho 7:7. e.g. Genesis 3:11
- 2. of beasts, birds, etc., eat, devour; Gn 37:20, 33; 40:17, 19 1 K 13:28; 14:11; 16:4; 21:23, 24 Ho 2:14 +; specif. of locusts Jo 1:4; 2:25 2 Ch 7:13 cf. Am 4:9; moth Jb 13:28; flies ψ 78:45; worms Dt 28:39; also Ez 19:3, 6 (of Isr. under fig. of lion), cf. Je 50:7, 17; 51:34; also Ho 13:8 (of י׳ under fig. of lion), Ez 22:25 (נֶפֶשׁ אָכָ֑לוּ, of false proph. under fig. of lion). e.g. Genesis 37:20
- 3. fig. of fire, devour, consume Lv 6:3 (sq. 2 acc. consume offering to ashes) Na 3:13 Is 5:24 (in sim.), partic. of fire fr. י׳ Lv 10:2; 16:25 Ju 9:15 f 1 K 18:38 2 K 1:10, 12, 14 2 Ch 7:1; cf. Am. 1:4, 7, 10, 12, 14; 2:2, 5; 5:6 +; Dt 5:22 of fire at Sinai; of י׳ as fire (in judgment) Dt 4:24 כִּי י׳ אֱלֹהֶיךָ אֵשׁ אֹכְלָה הוּא cf. Dt 9:3 Is 10:17 (‖ בּער) 30:27, 30; 33:14 (‖ מוֹקְדֵי עוֹלָם). e.g. Leviticus 6:3
- 4. of sword, devour, slay Dt 32:42 2 S 2:26; 11:25; 18:8 Ho 11:6 Je 2:30 12:12; cf. of devastation of land Is 1:7 Je 8:16. e.g. Deuteronomy 32:42
- 5. in genl. devour, consume, destroy (inanim. subj.) of drought Gn 31:40; of pestilence Ez 7:15; of forest 2 S 18:8; cf. Lv 26:38 וְאָֽכְלָה אֶתְכֶם אֶרֶץ אֹיְבֵיכֶם; of הַבֹּשֶׁת Je 3:24 (v. בֹּשֶׁת). e.g. Genesis 31:40
- 6. fig. of oppression, devour the poor, etc. Pr 30:14 Hb 3:14 cf. ψ 14:4; of bitter enmity לֶאֱכֹל אֶת־בְּשָׂרִי ψ 27:2. (cf. Jb 19:22). e.g. Proverbs 30:14
Niphal
- Pf. וְנֶאֱכַל cons. Ex 22:5 Impf. יֵאָכֵל Gn 6:21 +; וַיֵּאָכֵ֫ל Nu 12:12 etc.; Inf. abs. הֵאָכֹל Lv 7:18; 19:7; Pt. f. נֶאֱכֶ֫לֶת Lv 11:47;— e.g. Exodus 22:5
- 1. be eaten by man Ex 12:46; 13:3, 7; 21:28; 29:34 Lv 6:9, 16, 19, 23; 7:6, 15, 16(×2), 18; 11:41; 19:6, 7, 23; 22:30 Nu 28:17 Ez 45:21; of custom, usage Gn 6:21 Ex 12:16 Dt 12:22 Jb 6:6; of permission to eat Lv 7:19; 11:13, 34, 47(×2); 17:13; c. neg. be uneatable Je 24:2, 3, 8; 29:17. e.g. Exodus 12:46
- 2. be devoured by fire, consumed Zp 1:18; 3:8 Zc 9:4 Ez 23:25. e.g. Zephaniah 1:18
- 3. be wasted, destroyed, of flesh Nu 12:12 Je 30:16. e.g. Numbers 12:12
Pual
- Pf. אֻכְּלוּ be consumed with fire Ne 2:3, 13 cf. Na 1:10 (fig.); so Pt. אֻכָּל (= מְאֻכָּל Ew§ 169 d) Ex 3:2; by sword Is 1:20 תְּאֻכְּלוּ. e.g. Nehemiah 2:3
Hiphil
- Pf. 2 ms. sf. הֶאֱכַלְתָּם ψ 80:6, וְהַאֲכַלְתִּ֫י Is 49:26; sf. וְהַאֲכַלְתִּיךָ cons. Is 58:14; הֶאֱכַלְתִּיךְ Ez 16:19; וְהַאֲכַלְתִּים cons. Je 19:9; Impf. sf. יַאֲכִלֵנוּ Nu 11:4, 18, etc.; 2 ms. js. תַּאֲכֵל Eze 3:3; 1 s. אוֹכִיל Ho 11:4(?); Imv. הַאֲכִילֵהוּ Pr 25:21. etc.; Inf. לִהָכִיל Ez 21:33 (but Co לההל); Pt. מַאֲכִיל Je 23:15, etc.;— e.g. Psalms 80:6
- 1. cause to eat, feed with, sq. 2 acc. subj. mostly י׳; Ex 16:32 Dt 8:3, 16 Ez 3:2 Je 19:9; abs. Ho 11:4; cf. Nu 11:4, 18; fig. Je 9:14; 23:15 Is 49:26; 58:14 Ez 16:19; also ψ 80:6 הֶאֱכַלְתָּם לֶחֶם דִּמְעָ֑ה (cf. 102:10 Qal supr.); sq. acc. pers. + מן ψ 81:17, but also subj. man Pr 25:21; 1 K 22:27 2 Ch 18:26 וְהַאֲכִלֻהוּ לֶהֶם לַ֫חַץ of prison fare; sq. acc. pers. only 2 Ch 28:15, cf. Ez 3:3. e.g. Exodus 16:32
- 2. cause to devour, obj. sword Ez 21:23 (but on text vid. Co). e.g. Ezekiel 21:23
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. eat (Aramaic أَكَلَ, As. akâlu DlW, Aramaic אֲכַל, ܐܶܟܰܠ )—
— 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.
אָכַל
- √אך to rub,
- 1. to gnaw, eat, consume. Inf. in Y. freq. לוֹכַל = לֶאֱכוֹל. Ber. I, 1; a. v. fr.
- 2. trnsf. to absorb, occupy, take away. Y. Shebu. VII, 38ᵃ בשרבית אוֹכֶלֶת בו when interests gnaw on (absorb) the property. Y. Erub. IV, 21ᵈ bot. ד׳ אמות אוֹכְלוֹת וכ׳ four cubits entering into the area of Tiberias. Num. R. s. 4 כמה לוחות אוֹכְלוֹת how much space did the tablets occupy &c.? B. Bath. 14ᵃ (interchanging with איגרות, Var. אוגדות, v. Rabb. D. S. a. l. note 5, 6).
- 3. (euphem.) to sleep with. Keth. V, 9, differ. of opin. ib. 65ᵇ; Y. ib. 30ᵇ top a. bot.
- to be eaten &c. Zeb. I, 3; Ber. I, 1; a. fr.
- to consume, burn. Tam. I, 4 המְאוּכָּלוֹת הפנימיות (Talm. ed. המעו׳) the thoroughly lighted coals in the centre; Y. Yoma II, 39ᶜ
- to give to eat, cause to eat. Keth. V, 3 היבם אינו מַאֵכִיל וכ׳ the Yabam does not transfer the privilege of eating T’rumah to his sister-in-law. Kidd. 31ᵃ יש מאכיל וכ׳ one may feed his father on pheasants &c.; a. fr.
- 1. to be consumed, burnt up, digested. Ber. VIII, 7 עד כדי שיִתְאַכֵּל וכ׳ Ar. (ed. שיתע׳) until the food is digested (or absorbed) in his bowels. Tam. II, 1; a. e.
- 2. to be worn off, spent. Snh. VI, 12 Y. ed. נתא׳ הבשר (Mish. ib. VI, 6 נתע׳) when the flesh of the corpse was gone. Cant. R. to IV, 4 שלא נתא׳ אחת מהן none of them was worn off. Kidd. 59ᵃ נתא׳ המעות the money was spent; a. e.
אֲכַל
- 1. same.—Inf. מֵיכַל, מֵיכוּל. Targ. Gen. II, 16; a. fr.—Y. Ter. VIII, 46ᵃ כד אתון יֵיכלון when they came and were about eating; ib. (more corr.) אתון מיכל; a. fr.
- 2. with קרצי prop. to eat (the bread of) destruction, eat the informer’s bread, hence to inform against. Dan. III, 8; VI, 25.—Targ. Ps. XV, 3; a. fr.—Gitt. 56ᵃ איכול בהו קו׳; Lam. R. to IV, 2 איכול קרצהון I will inform against them. e.g. Daniel 3:8
- to give to eat, to support. Y. Ter. X, 47ᵇ bot. אוכלה ליה he gave it to him to eat. Gen. R. s. 48, end (read:) אוכלית אשקית לוי hast thou given (thy guest) to eat? to drink? do escort him, i.e. perform thy duties fully. Y. Kidd. I, 61ᵇ הוה מייכל לאבוי וכ׳ fed his father on &c.; a. fr.
- , אִתְאָכִיל to be eaten, consumed. Targ. Ps. LXVIII, 23; a. fr. Tanḥ. Emor, 6 ומה דהבא מִתְאֲכִיל וכ׳; Lev. R. s. 27 ומה זה וכ׳ what is this? do they eat gold &c.? Kidd. 59ᵃ קא מתאכלי were eaten up (spent). [אכלי Af. of כלי to cry, v. כלי.]
אֲכַל II
- (sec. r. of כול) to measure. Ned. 51ᵃ ליכיל לי מר please measure for me. Ruth R. introd. 2. הא … סאה תקום אכול (read סאתה קום) here is the bag and here the measure, get up and fill it; v. כּוּל.
אֹכֶל
- , v. אוֹכֶל
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 494 distinct written forms H398 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; 434 rarer forms follow in the full concordance.
Same root — word family
Other BDB entries built from the same root as H398, 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
- אכילה ʼăkîylâh H396 food
- אכל ʼăkal H399 to eat
- אכל ʼôkel H400 food
- מאכל maʼăkâl H3978 food
- מאכלת maʼăkeleth H3979 knife
- מאכלת maʼăkôleth H3980 fuel
- מכלת makkôleth H4361 food
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 9 — 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 670 verses that also exist in the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint), out of the 703 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 2:16
- Exodus 2:20
- Leviticus 3:17
- Numbers 6:3
- Deuteronomy 2:6
- Joshua 5:11
- Judges 6:21
- Ruth 2:14
- 1 Samuel 1:7
- 2 Samuel 2:26
- 1 Kings 1:25
- 2 Kings 1:10
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.
