עָבַד
to serve
‘to serve’ is one of 3 main senses fuller range ↓
H5647
Strong's Hebrew
ʻâbad
Transliteration
/aw-bad'/
Pronunciation
Usage in the Hebrew Bible
289
appearances
Full lexicon entry — Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
From Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
BDB Definition
to work, serve
- (Qal)
- to labour, work, do work
- to work for another, serve another by labour
- to serve as subjects
- to serve (God)
- to serve (with Levitical service)
- (Niphal)
- to be worked, be tilled (of land)
- to make oneself a servant
- (Pual) to be worked
- (Hiphil)
- to compel to labour or work, cause to labour, cause to serve
- to cause to serve as subjects
- (Hophal) to be led or enticed to serve
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: ‘labour’
- Hophal
- The passive counterpart of the Hiphil (“he was caused to…”).
- Pual
- The passive counterpart of the Piel.
- Niphal
- Usually the simple passive or reflexive of the Qal (“he was written”). Here: ‘be tilled’
- Hiphil
- The causative active stem (“he caused / brought about”). Here: ‘compel to labour as slaves Ex 1’
Form
- Infinitive Construct
- A bound verbal noun, frequently with prepositions (“to write / in writing”).
- 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).
- Imperfect
- An incomplete, ongoing, or future action (“he will / would write”).
- Imperative
- A direct command (“write!”).
- Perfect
- A completed action or state — Hebrew marks aspect (completeness) more than strict tense (“he wrote”).
- Participle Active
- A verbal adjective expressing ongoing or characteristic action (“writing / one who writes”).
- Cohortative
- A first-person volitional form expressing wish or resolve (“let me / let us write”).
- Jussive
- A third- or second-person volitional form expressing wish or command (“let him write”).
State
- Construct
- A noun bound to a following noun in a possessive / “of” relationship (the construct chain).
- Absolute
- The independent form of a noun, not bound to a following word.
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.
- Common
- Either gender — not distinguished for this form.
- Feminine
- Grammatically feminine.
Number
- Plural
- More than one (in Hebrew, generally three or more).
- Singular
- One.
Grammatical forms 43 distinct
- Verb, Qal, Infinitive Construct 47 times (16%)
- Verb, Qal, Sequential Imperfect, 3rd Person, Masculine, Plural 23 times (8%)
- Verb, Qal, Imperative, 2nd Person, Masculine, Plural 18 times (6%)
- Verb, Qal, Imperfect, 3rd Person, Masculine, Plural 18 times (6%)
- Verb, Qal, Sequential Perfect, 2nd Person, Masculine, Plural 13 times (4%)
- Verb, Qal, Imperfect, 1st Person, Common, Plural 13 times (4%)
- Verb, Qal, Imperfect, 2nd Person, Masculine, Singular 12 times (4%)
- Verb, Qal, Sequential Imperfect, 3rd Person, Masculine, Singular 11 times (4%)
+35 more forms (134 occurrences)
Parsed forms decoded from the imported morphology (morphhb / Westminster Leningrad Codex — WLC text public domain, morphhb tagging CC BY 4.0), counted across 289 parsed occurrences — not distinct verses.
Page 1 of 2 — showing verses 1–200 of 262 distinct verses where H5647 appears, across 25 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.
Genesis 22 verses
- Genesis 2:5 לַֽ/עֲבֹ֖ד prep + Qal inf.cs No plant of the field was yet in the earth, and no herb of the field had yet sprung up; for Yahweh God had not caused it to rain on the earth. There was not a man to till the ground,
- Genesis 2:15 לְ/עָבְדָ֖/הּ prep + Qal inf.cs + sfx pers 3fs Yahweh God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.
- Genesis 3:23 לַֽ/עֲבֹד֙ prep + Qal inf.cs Therefore Yahweh God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.
- Genesis 4:2 עֹבֵ֥ד Qal ptcp.act ms cs Again she gave birth, to Cain's brother Abel. Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.
- Genesis 4:12 תַֽעֲבֹד֙ Qal impf 2ms From now on, when you till the ground, it won't yield its strength to you. You shall be a fugitive and a wanderer in the earth."
- Genesis 14:4 עָבְד֖וּ Qal pf 3cp Twelve years they served Chedorlaomer, and in the thirteenth year, they rebelled.
- Genesis 15:13 וַ/עֲבָד֖וּ/ם conj + Qal pf 3cp + sfx pers 3mp He said to Abram, "Know for sure that your seed will live as foreigners in a land that is not theirs, and will serve them. They will afflict them four hundred years.
- Genesis 15:14 יַעֲבֹ֖דוּ Qal impf 3mp I will also judge that nation, whom they will serve. Afterward they will come out with great substance.
- Genesis 25:23 יַעֲבֹ֥ד Qal impf 3ms Yahweh said to her, Two nations are in your womb, Two peoples will be separated from your body. The one people will be stronger than the other people. The elder will serve the younger.
- Genesis 27:29 יַֽעַבְד֣וּ/ךָ Qal juss 3mp + sfx pers 2ms Let peoples serve you, Nations bow down to you. Be lord over your brothers, Let your mother's sons bow down to you. Cursed be everyone who curses you, Blessed be everyone who blesses you."
- Genesis 27:40 תַּעֲבֹ֑ד Qal impf 2ms By your sword will you live, and you will serve your brother. It will happen, when you will break loose, That you shall shake his yoke from off your neck."
- Genesis 29:15 וַ/עֲבַדְתַּ֖/נִי conj + Qal wpf 2ms + sfx pers 1cs Laban said to Jacob, "Because you are my brother, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, what will your wages be?"
- Genesis 29:18 אֶֽעֱבָדְ/ךָ֙ Qal impf 1cs + sfx pers 2ms Jacob loved Rachel. He said, "I will serve you seven years for Rachel, your younger daughter."
- Genesis 29:20 וַ/יַּעֲבֹ֧ד conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Jacob served seven years for Rachel. They seemed to him but a few days, for the love he had for her.
- Genesis 29:25 עָבַ֣דְתִּי Qal pf 1cs It happened in the morning that, behold, it was Leah. He said to Laban, "What is this you have done to me? Didn't I serve with you for Rachel? Why then have you deceived me?"
- Genesis 29:27 תַּעֲבֹ֣ד Qal impf 2ms Fulfill the week of this one, and we will give you the other also for the service which you will serve with me yet seven other years."
- Genesis 29:30 וַ/יַּעֲבֹ֣ד conj + Qal wimpf 3ms He went in also to Rachel, and he loved also Rachel more than Leah, and served with him yet seven other years.
- Genesis 30:26 עָבַ֧דְתִּי עֲבַדְתִּֽי/ךָ Qal pf 1cs Qal pf 1cs + sfx pers 2ms Give me my wives and my children for whom I have served you, and let me go: for you know my service with which I have served you."
- Genesis 30:29 עֲבַדְתִּ֑י/ךָ Qal pf 1cs + sfx pers 2ms He said to him, "You know how I have served you, and how your cattle have fared with me.
- Genesis 31:6 עָבַ֖דְתִּי Qal pf 1cs You know that I have served your father with all of my strength.
- Genesis 31:41 עֲבַדְתִּ֜י/ךָ Qal pf 1cs + sfx pers 2ms These twenty years have I been in your house. I served you fourteen years for your two daughters, and six years for your flock, and you have changed my wages ten times.
- Genesis 49:15 עֹבֵֽד Qal ptcp.act ms He saw a resting-place, that it was good, The land, that it was pleasant; He bows his shoulder to the burden, And becomes a servant doing forced labor.
Exodus 29 verses
- Exodus 1:13 וַ/יַּעֲבִ֧דוּ conj + Hiphil wimpf 3mp The Egyptians ruthlessly made the children of Israel serve,
- Exodus 1:14 עָבְד֥וּ Qal pf 3cp and they made their lives bitter with hard service, in mortar and in brick, and in all manner of service in the field, all their service, in which they ruthlessly made them serve.
- Exodus 3:12 תַּֽעַבְדוּ/ן֙ Qal impf 2mp + sfx n He said, "Certainly I will be with you. This will be the token to you, that I have sent you: when you have brought forth the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain."
- Exodus 4:23 וְ/יַֽעַבְדֵ֔/נִי conj + Qal juss 3ms + sfx pers 1cp and I have said to you, "Let my son go, that he may serve me;" and you have refused to let him go. Behold, I will kill your son, your firstborn.'"
- Exodus 5:18 עִבְד֔וּ Qal impv 2mp Go therefore now, and work, for no straw shall be given to you, yet shall you deliver the same number of bricks!"
- Exodus 6:5 מַעֲבִדִ֣ים Hiphil ptcp.act mp Moreover I have heard the groaning of the children of Israel, whom the Egyptians keep in bondage, and I have remembered my covenant.
- Exodus 7:16 וְ/יַֽעַבְדֻ֖/נִי conj + Qal impf 3mp + sfx pers 1cs You shall tell him, 'Yahweh, the God of the Hebrews, has sent me to you, saying, "Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness:" and, behold, until now you haven't listened.
- Exodus 8:1 וְ/יַֽעַבְדֻֽ/נִי conj + Qal impf 3mp + sfx pers 1cs Yahweh spoke to Moses, Go in to Pharaoh, and tell him, "This is what Yahweh says, 'Let my people go, that they may serve me.
- Exodus 8:20 וְ/יַֽעַבְדֻֽ/נִי conj + Qal impf 3mp + sfx pers 1cs Yahweh said to Moses, "Rise up early in the morning, and stand before Pharaoh; behold, he comes forth to the water; and tell him, 'This is what Yahweh says, "Let my people go, that they may serve me.
- Exodus 9:1 וְ/יַֽעַבְדֻֽ/נִי conj + Qal impf 3mp + sfx pers 1cs Then Yahweh said to Moses, "Go in to Pharaoh, and tell him, 'This is what Yahweh, the God of the Hebrews, says: "Let my people go, that they may serve me.
- Exodus 9:13 וְ/יַֽעַבְדֻֽ/נִי conj + Qal impf 3mp + sfx pers 1cs Yahweh said to Moses, "Rise up early in the morning, and stand before Pharaoh, and tell him, 'This is what Yahweh, the God of the Hebrews, says: "Let my people go, that they may serve me.
- Exodus 10:3 וְ/יַֽעַבְדֻֽ/נִי conj + Qal impf 3mp + sfx pers 1cs Moses and Aaron went in to Pharaoh, and said to him, "This is what Yahweh, the God of the Hebrews, says: 'How long will you refuse to humble yourself before me? Let my people go, that they may serve me.
- Exodus 10:7 וְ/יַֽעַבְד֖וּ conj + Qal impf 3mp Pharaoh's servants said to him, "How long will this man be a snare to us? Let the men go, that they may serve Yahweh, their God. Don't you yet know that Egypt is destroyed?"
- Exodus 10:8 עִבְד֖וּ Qal impv 2mp Moses and Aaron were brought again to Pharaoh, and he said to them, "Go, serve Yahweh your God; but who are those who will go?"
- Exodus 10:11 וְ/עִבְד֣וּ conj + Qal impv 2mp Not so! Go now you who are men, and serve Yahweh; for that is what you desire!" They were driven out from Pharaoh's presence.
- Exodus 10:24 עִבְד֣וּ Qal impv 2mp Pharaoh called to Moses, and said, "Go, serve Yahweh. Only let your flocks and your herds stay behind. Let your little ones also go with you."
- Exodus 10:26 לַ/עֲבֹ֖ד נַּעֲבֹד֙ prep + Qal inf.cs 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 12:31 עִבְד֥וּ Qal impv 2mp He called for Moses and Aaron by night, and said, "Rise up, get out from among my people, both you and the children of Israel; and go, serve Yahweh, as you have said!
- Exodus 13:5 וְ/עָבַדְתָּ֛ conj + Qal wpf 2ms It shall be, when Yahweh shall bring you into the land of the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Amorite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite, which he swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, that you shall keep this service in this month.
- Exodus 14:5 מֵ/עָבְדֵֽ/נוּ prep + Qal inf.cs + sfx pers 1cp It was told the king of Egypt that the people had fled; and the heart of Pharaoh and of his servants was changed towards the people, and they said, "What is this we have done, that we have let Israel go from serving us?"
- Exodus 14:12 וְ/נַֽעַבְדָ֣ה עֲבֹ֣ד conj + Qal coh 1cp Qal inf.cs Isn't this the word that we spoke to you in Egypt, saying, 'Leave us alone, that we may serve the Egyptians?' For it were better for us to serve the Egyptians, than that we should die in the wilderness."
- Exodus 20:5 תָעָבְדֵ֑/ם Hophal impf 2ms + sfx pers 3mp you shall not bow yourself down to them, nor serve them, for I, Yahweh your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and on the fourth generation of those who hate me,
- Exodus 20:9 תַּֽעֲבֹ֔ד Qal impf 2ms You shall labor six days, and do all your work,
- Exodus 21:2 יַעֲבֹ֑ד Qal impf 3ms If you buy a Hebrew servant, he shall serve six years and in the seventh he shall go out free without paying anything.
- Exodus 21:6 וַ/עֲבָד֖/וֹ conj + Qal wpf 3ms + sfx pers 3ms then his master shall bring him to God, and shall bring him to the door or to the door-post, and his master shall bore his ear through with an awl, and he shall serve him for ever.
- Exodus 23:24 תָֽעָבְדֵ֔/ם Hophal impf 2ms + sfx pers 3mp You shall not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor follow their practices, but you shall utterly overthrow them and demolish their pillars.
- Exodus 23:25 וַ/עֲבַדְתֶּ֗ם conj + Qal wpf 2mp You shall serve Yahweh your God, and he will bless your bread and your water, and I will take sickness away from your midst.
- Exodus 23:33 תַעֲבֹד֙ Qal impf 2ms They shall not dwell in your land, lest they make you sin against me, for if you serve their gods, it will surely be a snare to you."
- Exodus 34:21 תַּעֲבֹ֔ד Qal impf 2ms Six days you shall work, but on the seventh day you shall rest: in plowing time and in harvest you shall rest.
Leviticus 3 verses
- Leviticus 25:39 תַעֲבֹ֥ד Qal impf 2ms "'If your brother has grown poor among you, and sells himself to you; you shall not make him to serve as a slave.
- Leviticus 25:40 יַעֲבֹ֥ד Qal impf 3ms As a hired servant, and as a sojourner, he shall be with you; he shall serve with you until the Year of Jubilee:
- Leviticus 25:46 תַּעֲבֹ֑דוּ Qal impf 2mp You may make them an inheritance for your children after you, to hold for a possession; of them may you take your slaves forever: but over your brothers the children of Israel you shall not rule, one over another, with harshness.
Numbers 21 verses
- Numbers 3:7 לַ/עֲבֹ֖ד prep + Qal inf.cs They shall keep his charge, and the charge of the whole congregation before the Tent of Meeting, to do the service of the tabernacle.
- Numbers 3:8 לַ/עֲבֹ֖ד prep + Qal inf.cs They shall keep all the furnishings of the Tent of Meeting, and the obligations of the children of Israel, to do the service of the tabernacle.
- Numbers 4:23 לַ/עֲבֹ֥ד prep + Qal inf.cs from thirty years old and upward until fifty years old shall you number them; all who enter in to wait on the service, to do the work in the Tent of Meeting.
- Numbers 4:24 לַ/עֲבֹ֖ד prep + Qal inf.cs This is the service of the families of the Gershonites, in serving and in bearing burdens:
- Numbers 4:26 וְ/עָבָֽדוּ conj + Qal wpf 3cp and the hangings of the court, and the screen for the door of the gate of the court, which is by the tabernacle and around the altar, and their cords, and all the instruments of their service, and whatever shall be done with them. Therein shall they serve.
- Numbers 4:30 לַ/עֲבֹ֕ד prep + Qal inf.cs from thirty years old and upward even to fifty years old shall you number them, everyone who enters on the service, to do the work of the Tent of Meeting.
- Numbers 4:37 הָ/עֹבֵ֖ד ptcl def.art + Qal ptcp.act ms These are those who were numbered of the families of the Kohathites, all who served in the Tent of Meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of Yahweh by Moses.
- Numbers 4:41 הָ/עֹבֵ֖ד ptcl def.art + Qal ptcp.act ms These are those who were numbered of the families of the sons of Gershon, all who served in the Tent of Meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of Yahweh.
- Numbers 4:47 לַ/עֲבֹ֨ד prep + Qal inf.cs from thirty years old and upward even to fifty years old, everyone who entered in to do the work of service, and the work of bearing burdens in the Tent of Meeting,
- Numbers 7:5 לַ/עֲבֹ֕ד prep + Qal inf.cs "Accept these from them, that they may be used in doing the service of the Tent of Meeting; and you shall give them to the Levites, to every man according to his service."
- Numbers 8:11 לַ/עֲבֹ֖ד prep + Qal inf.cs and Aaron shall offer the Levites before Yahweh for a wave offering, on the behalf of the children of Israel, that it may be theirs to do the service of Yahweh.
- Numbers 8:15 לַ/עֲבֹ֖ד prep + Qal inf.cs "After that, the Levites shall go in to do the service of the Tent of Meeting: and you shall cleanse them, and offer them as a wave offering.
- Numbers 8:19 לַ/עֲבֹ֞ד prep + Qal inf.cs I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and to his sons from among the children of Israel, to do the service of the children of Israel in the Tent of Meeting, and to make atonement for the children of Israel; that there be no plague among the children of Israel, when the children of Israel come near to the sanctuary."
- Numbers 8:22 לַ/עֲבֹ֤ד prep + Qal inf.cs After that, the Levites went in to do their service in the Tent of Meeting before Aaron, and before his sons: as Yahweh had commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so they did to them.
- Numbers 8:25 יַעֲבֹ֖ד Qal impf 3ms and from the age of fifty years they shall cease waiting on the work, and shall serve no more,
- Numbers 8:26 יַעֲבֹ֑ד Qal impf 3ms but shall minister with their brothers in the Tent of Meeting, to keep the charge, and shall do no service. Thus shall you do to the Levites concerning their duties."
- Numbers 16:9 לַ/עֲבֹ֗ד prep + Qal inf.cs [seems it but] a small thing to you, that the God of Israel has separated you from the congregation of Israel, to bring you near to himself, to do the service of the tent of Yahweh, and to stand before the congregation to minister to them;
- Numbers 18:6 לַ/עֲבֹ֕ד prep + Qal inf.cs I, behold, I have taken your brothers the Levites from among the children of Israel: to you they are a gift, given to Yahweh, to do the service of the tent of meeting.
- Numbers 18:7 וַ/עֲבַדְתֶּ֑ם conj + Qal wpf 2mp You and your sons with you shall keep your priesthood for everything of the altar, and for that within the veil; and you shall serve: I give you the priesthood as a service of gift: and the stranger who comes near shall be put to death.
- Numbers 18:21 עֹֽבְדִ֔ים Qal ptcp.act mp To the children of Levi, behold, I have given all the tithe in Israel for an inheritance, in return for their service which they serve, even the service of the tent of meeting.
- Numbers 18:23 וְ/עָבַ֨ד conj + Qal wpf 3ms But the Levites shall do the service of the tent of meeting, and they shall bear their iniquity: it shall be a statute forever throughout your generations; and among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance.
Deuteronomy 35 verses
- Deuteronomy 4:19 וַ/עֲבַדְתָּ֑/ם conj + Qal wpf 2ms + sfx pers 3mp and lest you lift up your eyes to the sky, and when you see the sun and the moon and the stars, even all the host of the sky, you are drawn away and worship them, and serve them, which Yahweh your God has allotted to all the peoples under the whole sky.
- Deuteronomy 4:28 וַ/עֲבַדְתֶּם conj + Qal wpf 2mp There you shall serve gods, the work of men's hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell.
- Deuteronomy 5:9 תָעָבְדֵ֑/ם Hophal impf 2ms + sfx pers 3mp you shall not bow down yourself to them, nor serve them; for I, Yahweh, your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, and on the third and on the fourth generation of those who hate me;
- Deuteronomy 5:13 תַּֽעֲבֹ֔ד Qal impf 2ms Six days shall you labor, and do all your work;
- Deuteronomy 6:13 תַעֲבֹ֑ד Qal impf 2ms You shall fear Yahweh your God; and him shall you serve, and shall swear by his name.
- Deuteronomy 7:4 וְ/עָבְד֖וּ conj + Qal wpf 3cp For he will turn away your son from following me, that they may serve other gods: so will the anger of Yahweh be kindled against you, and he will destroy you quickly.
- Deuteronomy 7:16 תַעֲבֹד֙ Qal impf 2ms You shall consume all the peoples who Yahweh your God shall deliver to you; your eye shall not pity them: neither shall you serve their gods; for that will be a snare to you.
- Deuteronomy 8:19 וַ/עֲבַדְתָּ֖/ם conj + Qal wpf 2ms + sfx pers 3mp It shall be, if you shall forget Yahweh your God, and walk after other gods, and serve them, and worship them, I testify against you this day that you shall surely perish.
- Deuteronomy 10:12 וְ/לַֽ/עֲבֹד֙ conj + prep + Qal inf.cs Now, Israel, what does Yahweh your God require of you, but to fear Yahweh your God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve Yahweh your God with all your heart and with all your soul,
- Deuteronomy 10:20 תַעֲבֹ֑ד Qal impf 2ms You shall fear Yahweh your God; him shall you serve; and to him shall you cleave, and by his name shall you swear.
- Deuteronomy 11:13 וּ/לְ/עָבְד֔/וֹ conj + prep + Qal inf.cs + sfx pers 3ms It shall happen, if you shall listen diligently to my commandments which I command you this day, to love Yahweh your God, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul,
- Deuteronomy 11:16 וַ/עֲבַדְתֶּם֙ conj + Qal wpf 2mp Take heed to yourselves, lest your heart be deceived, and you turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them;
- Deuteronomy 12:2 עָֽבְדוּ Qal pf 3cp You shall surely destroy all the places in which the nations that you shall dispossess served their gods, on the high mountains, and on the hills, and under every green tree:
- Deuteronomy 12:30 יַעַבְד֜וּ Qal impf 3mp take heed to yourself that you not be ensnared to follow them, after that they are destroyed from before you; and that you not inquire after their gods, saying, How do these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewise.
- Deuteronomy 13:2 וְ/נָֽעָבְדֵֽ/ם conj + Hophal impf 1cp + sfx pers 3mp and the sign or the wonder come to pass, of which he spoke to you, saying, Let us go after other gods, which you have not known, and let us serve them;
- Deuteronomy 13:4 תַעֲבֹ֖דוּ Qal impf 2mp You shall walk after Yahweh your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and you shall serve him, and cleave to him.
- Deuteronomy 13:6 וְ/נַֽעַבְדָה֙ conj + Qal coh 1cp If your brother, the son of your mother, or your son, or your daughter, or the wife of your bosom, or your friend, who is as your own soul, entice you secretly, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which you have not known, you, nor your fathers;
- Deuteronomy 13:13 וְ/נַעַבְדָ֛ה conj + Qal coh 1cp Certain base fellows are gone out from the midst of you, and have drawn away the inhabitants of their city, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which you have not known;
- Deuteronomy 15:12 וַ/עֲבָֽדְ/ךָ֖ conj + Qal wpf 3ms + sfx pers 2ms If your brother, a Hebrew man, or a Hebrew woman, be sold to you, and serve you six years; then in the seventh year you shall let him go free from you.
- Deuteronomy 15:18 עֲבָֽדְ/ךָ֖ Qal pf 3ms + sfx pers 2ms It shall not seem hard to you, when you let him go free from you; for to the double of the hire of a hireling has he served you six years: and Yahweh your God will bless you in all that you do.
- Deuteronomy 15:19 תַעֲבֹד֙ Qal impf 2ms All the firstborn males that are born of your herd and of your flock you shall sanctify to Yahweh your God: you shall do no work with the firstborn of your herd, nor shear the firstborn of your flock.
- Deuteronomy 17:3 וַֽ/יַּעֲבֹד֙ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms and has gone and served other gods, and worshiped them, or the sun, or the moon, or any of the host of the sky, which I have not commanded;
- Deuteronomy 20:11 וַ/עֲבָדֽוּ/ךָ conj + Qal wpf 3cp + sfx pers 2ms It shall be, if it make you answer of peace, and open to you, then it shall be, that all the people who are found therein shall become tributary to you, and shall serve you.
- Deuteronomy 21:3 עֻבַּד֙ Pual pf 3ms and it shall be, that the city which is nearest to the slain man, even the elders of that city shall take a heifer of the herd, which hasn't been worked with, and which has not drawn in the yoke;
- Deuteronomy 21:4 יֵעָבֵ֥ד Niphal impf 3ms and the elders of that city shall bring down the heifer to a valley with running water, which is neither plowed nor sown, and shall break the heifer's neck there in the valley.
- Deuteronomy 28:14 לְ/עָבְדָֽ/ם prep + Qal inf.cs + sfx pers 3mp and shall not turn aside from any of the words which I command you this day, to the right hand, or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.
- Deuteronomy 28:36 וְ/עָבַ֥דְתָּ conj + Qal wpf 2ms Yahweh will bring you, and your king whom you shall set over you, to a nation that you have not known, you nor your fathers; and there shall you serve other gods, wood and stone.
- Deuteronomy 28:39 וְ/עָבָ֑דְתָּ conj + Qal wpf 2ms You shall plant vineyards and dress them, but you shall neither drink of the wine, nor gather [the grapes]; for the worm shall eat them.
- Deuteronomy 28:47 עָבַ֨דְתָּ֙ Qal pf 2ms Because you didn't serve Yahweh your God with joyfulness, and with gladness of heart, by reason of the abundance of all things;
- Deuteronomy 28:48 וְ/עָבַדְתָּ֣ conj + Qal wpf 2ms therefore shall you serve your enemies whom Yahweh shall send against you, in hunger, and in thirst, and in nakedness, and in want of all things: and he shall put a yoke of iron on your neck, until he have destroyed you.
- Deuteronomy 28:64 וְ/עָבַ֨דְתָּ conj + Qal wpf 2ms Yahweh will scatter you among all peoples, from the one end of the earth even to the other end of the earth; and there you shall serve other gods, which you have not known, you nor your fathers, even wood and stone.
- Deuteronomy 29:18 לַ/עֲבֹ֔ד prep + Qal inf.cs lest there should be among you man, or woman, or family, or tribe, whose heart turns away this day from Yahweh our God, to go to serve the gods of those nations; lest there should be among you a root that bears gall and wormwood;
- Deuteronomy 29:26 וַ/יַּֽעַבְדוּ֙ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp and went and served other gods, and worshiped them, gods that they didn't know, and that he had not given to them:
- Deuteronomy 30:17 וַ/עֲבַדְתָּֽ/ם conj + Qal wpf 2ms + sfx pers 3mp But if your heart turn away, and you will not hear, but shall be drawn away, and worship other gods, and serve them;
- Deuteronomy 31:20 וַ/עֲבָד֔וּ/ם conj + Qal wpf 3cp + sfx pers 3mp For when I shall have brought them into the land which I swore to their fathers, flowing with milk and honey, and they shall have eaten and filled themselves, and grown fat; then will they turn to other gods, and serve them, and despise me, and break my covenant.
Joshua 16 verses
- Joshua 16:10 עֹבֵֽד Qal ptcp.act ms They didn't drive out the Canaanites who lived in Gezer: but the Canaanites dwell in the midst of Ephraim to this day, and are become servants to do forced labor.
- Joshua 22:5 וּ/לְ/עָבְד֕/וֹ conj + prep + Qal inf.cs + sfx pers 3ms Only take diligent heed to do the commandment and the law which Moses the servant of Yahweh commanded you, to love Yahweh your God, and to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and to cleave to him, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul.
- Joshua 22:27 לַ/עֲבֹ֞ד prep + Qal inf.cs but it shall be a witness between us and you, and between our generations after us, that we may do the service of Yahweh before him with our burnt offerings, and with our sacrifices, and with our peace-offerings; that your children may not tell our children in time to come, You have no portion in Yahweh.
- Joshua 23:7 תַעַבְד֔וּ/ם Qal impf 2mp + sfx pers 3mp that you not come among these nations, these that remain among you; neither make mention of the name of their gods, nor cause to swear [by them], neither serve them, nor bow down yourselves to them;
- Joshua 23:16 וַ/עֲבַדְתֶּם֙ conj + Qal wpf 2mp When you disobey the covenant of Yahweh your God, which he commanded you, and go and serve other gods, and bow down yourselves to them; then will the anger of Yahweh be kindled against you, and you shall perish quickly from off the good land which he has given to you.
- Joshua 24:2 וַ/יַּעַבְד֖וּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp Joshua said to all the people, Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel, Your fathers lived of old time beyond the River, even Terah, the father of Abraham, and the father of Nahor: and they served other gods.
- Joshua 24:14 וְ/עִבְד֥וּ עָבְד֨וּ וְ/עִבְד֖וּ conj + Qal impv 2mp Qal pf 3cp conj + Qal impv 2mp Now therefore fear Yahweh, and serve him in sincerity and in truth; and put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River, and in Egypt; and serve you Yahweh.
- Joshua 24:15 לַ/עֲבֹ֣ד תַעֲבֹדוּ/ן֒ עָבְד֣וּ נַעֲבֹ֖ד prep + Qal inf.cs Qal impf 2mp + sfx n Qal pf 3cp Qal impf 1cp If it seem evil to you to serve Yahweh, choose you this day whom you will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve Yahweh.
- Joshua 24:16 לַ/עֲבֹ֖ד prep + Qal inf.cs The people answered, Far be it from us that we should forsake Yahweh, to serve other gods;
- Joshua 24:18 נַעֲבֹ֣ד Qal impf 1cp and Yahweh drove out from before us all the peoples, even the Amorites who lived in the land: therefore we also will serve Yahweh; for he is our God.
- Joshua 24:19 לַ/עֲבֹ֣ד prep + Qal inf.cs Joshua said to the people, You can't serve Yahweh; for he is a holy God; he is a jealous God; he will not forgive your disobedience nor your sins.
- Joshua 24:20 וַ/עֲבַדְתֶּ֖ם conj + Qal wpf 2mp If you forsake Yahweh, and serve foreign gods, then he will turn and do you evil, and consume you, after that he has done you good.
- Joshua 24:21 נַעֲבֹֽד Qal impf 1cp The people said to Joshua, No; but we will serve Yahweh.
- Joshua 24:22 לַ/עֲבֹ֣ד prep + Qal inf.cs Joshua said to the people, You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen you Yahweh, to serve him. They said, We are witnesses.
- Joshua 24:24 נַעֲבֹ֔ד Qal impf 1cp The people said to Joshua, Yahweh our God will we serve, and to his voice will we listen.
- Joshua 24:31 וַ/יַּעֲבֹ֤ד conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Israel served Yahweh all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua, and had known all the work of Yahweh, that he had worked for Israel.
Judges 14 verses
- Judges 2:7 וַ/יַּעַבְד֤וּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp The people served Yahweh all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great work of Yahweh that he had worked for Israel.
- Judges 2:11 וַ/יַּעַבְד֖וּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp The children of Israel did that which was evil in the sight of Yahweh, and served the Baals;
- Judges 2:13 וַ/יַּעַבְד֥וּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp They forsook Yahweh, and served Baal and the Ashtaroth.
- Judges 2:19 לְ/עָבְדָ֖/ם prep + Qal inf.cs + sfx pers 3mp But it happened, when the judge was dead, that they turned back, and dealt more corruptly than their fathers, in following other gods to serve them, and to bow down to them; they didn't cease from their doings, nor from their stubborn way.
- Judges 3:6 וַ/יַּעַבְד֖וּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp and they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their own daughters to their sons and served their gods.
- Judges 3:7 וַ/יַּעַבְד֥וּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp The children of Israel did that which was evil in the sight of Yahweh, and forgot Yahweh their God, and served the Baals and the Asheroth.
- Judges 3:8 וַ/יַּעַבְד֧וּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp Therefore the anger of Yahweh was kindled against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of Cushan Rishathaim king of Mesopotamia: and the children of Israel served Cushan Rishathaim eight years.
- Judges 3:14 וַ/יַּעַבְד֤וּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp The children of Israel served Eglon the king of Moab eighteen years.
- Judges 9:28 נַעַבְדֶ֔/נּוּ עִבְד֗וּ נַעַבְדֶ֥/נּוּ Qal impf 1cp + sfx pers 1cp Qal impv 2mp Qal impf 1cp + sfx pers 1cp Gaal the son of Ebed said, Who is Abimelech, and who is Shechem, that we should serve him? Isn't he the son of Jerubbaal? and Zebul his officer? serve you the men of Hamor the father of Shechem: but why should we serve him?
- Judges 9:38 נַעַבְדֶ֑/נּוּ Qal impf 1cp + sfx pers 1cp Then said Zebul to him, Where is now your mouth, that you said, Who is Abimelech, that we should serve him? is not this the people that you have despised? go out now, I pray, and fight with them.
- Judges 10:6 וַ/יַּעַבְד֣וּ עֲבָדֽוּ/הוּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp Qal pf 3cp + sfx pers 3ms The children of Israel again did that which was evil in the sight of Yahweh, and served the Baals, and the Ashtaroth, and the gods of Syria, and the gods of Sidon, and the gods of Moab, and the gods of the children of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines; and they forsook Yahweh, and didn't serve him.
- Judges 10:10 וַֽ/נַּעֲבֹ֖ד conj + Qal wimpf 1cp The children of Israel cried to Yahweh, saying, We have sinned against you, even because we have forsaken our God, and have served the Baals.
- Judges 10:13 וַ/תַּעַבְד֖וּ conj + Qal wimpf 2mp Yet you have forsaken me, and served other gods: therefore I will save you no more.
- Judges 10:16 וַ/יַּעַבְד֖וּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp They put away the foreign gods from among them, and served Yahweh; and his soul was grieved for the misery of Israel.
1 Samuel 11 verses
- 1 Samuel 4:9 תַּעַבְד֣וּ עָבְד֖וּ Qal impf 2mp Qal pf 3cp Be strong, and behave yourselves like men, O you Philistines, that you not be servants to the Hebrews, as they have been to you: quit yourselves like men, and fight.
- 1 Samuel 7:3 וְ/עִבְדֻ֣/הוּ conj + Qal impv 2mp + sfx pers 3ms Samuel spoke to all the house of Israel, saying, If you do return to Yahweh with all your heart, then put away the foreign gods and the Ashtaroth from among you, and direct your hearts to Yahweh, and serve him only; and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.
- 1 Samuel 7:4 וַ/יַּעַבְד֥וּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp Then the children of Israel did put away the Baals and the Ashtaroth, and served Yahweh only.
- 1 Samuel 8:8 וַ/יַּעַבְד֖וּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt even to this day, in that they have forsaken me, and served other gods, so do they also to you.
- 1 Samuel 11:1 וְ/נַעַבְדֶֽ/ךָּ conj + Qal impf 1cp + sfx pers 2ms Then Nahash the Ammonite came up, and encamped against Jabesh Gilead: and all the men of Jabesh said to Nahash, Make a covenant with us, and we will serve you.
- 1 Samuel 12:10 וַ/נַּעֲבֹ֥ד וְ/נַעַבְדֶֽ/ךָּ conj + Qal wimpf 1cp conj + Qal impf 1cp + sfx pers 2ms They cried to Yahweh, and said, We have sinned, because we have forsaken Yahweh, and have served the Baals and the Ashtaroth: but now deliver us out of the hand of our enemies, and we will serve you.
- 1 Samuel 12:14 וַ/עֲבַדְתֶּ֤ם conj + Qal wpf 2mp If you will fear Yahweh, and serve him, and listen to his voice, and not rebel against the commandment of Yahweh, and both you and also the king who reigns over you are followers of Yahweh your God, [well]:
- 1 Samuel 12:20 וַ/עֲבַדְתֶּ֥ם conj + Qal wpf 2mp Samuel said to the people, "Don't be afraid; you have indeed done all this evil; yet don't turn aside from following Yahweh, but serve Yahweh with all your heart:
- 1 Samuel 12:24 וַ/עֲבַדְתֶּ֥ם conj + Qal wpf 2mp Only fear Yahweh, and serve him in truth with all your heart; for consider how great things he has done for you.
- 1 Samuel 17:9 וַ/עֲבַדְתֶּ֖ם conj + Qal wpf 2mp If he be able to fight with me, and kill me, then will we be your servants; but if I prevail against him, and kill him, then shall you be our servants, and serve us.
- 1 Samuel 26:19 עֲבֹ֖ד Qal impv 2ms Now therefore, please let my lord the king hear the words of his servant. If it be Yahweh that has stirred you up against me, let him accept an offering: but if it be the children of men, cursed be they before Yahweh: for they have driven me out this day that I shouldn't cling to Yahweh's inheritance, saying, Go, serve other gods.
2 Samuel 5 verses
- 2 Samuel 9:10 וְ/עָבַ֣דְתָּ conj + Qal wpf 2ms You shall till the land for him, you, and your sons, and your servants; and you shall bring in [the fruits], that your master's son may have bread to eat: but Mephibosheth your master's son shall eat bread always at my table." Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.
- 2 Samuel 10:19 וַ/יַּֽעַבְד֑וּ/ם conj + Qal wimpf 3mp + sfx pers 3mp When all the kings who were servants to Hadarezer saw that they were put to the worse before Israel, they made peace with Israel, and served them. So the Syrians feared to help the children of Ammon any more.
- 2 Samuel 15:8 וְ/עָבַדְתִּ֖י conj + Qal pf 1cs For your servant vowed a vow while I abode at Geshur in Syria, saying, If Yahweh shall indeed bring me again to Jerusalem, then I will serve Yahweh.
- 2 Samuel 16:19 אֶֽעֱבֹ֔ד עָבַ֨דְתִּי֙ Qal impf 1cs Qal pf 1cs Again, whom should I serve? Shouldn't I serve in the presence of his son? as I have served in your father's presence, so will I be in your presence.
- 2 Samuel 22:44 יַעַבְדֻֽ/נִי Qal impf 3mp + sfx pers 1cs You also have delivered me from the strivings of my people; You have kept me to be the head of the nations: A people whom I have not known shall serve me.
1 Kings 8 verses
- 1 Kings 4:21 וְ/עֹבְדִ֥ים conj + Qal ptcp.act mp Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the River to the land of the Philistines, and to the border of Egypt: they brought tribute, and served Solomon all the days of his life.
- 1 Kings 9:6 וַ/עֲבַדְתֶּם֙ conj + Qal wpf 2mp But if you shall turn away from following me, you or your children, and not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but shall go and serve other gods, and worship them;
- 1 Kings 9:9 וַ/יַּעַבְדֻ֑/ם conj + Qal wimpf 3mp + sfx pers 3mp and they shall answer, Because they forsook Yahweh their God, who brought forth their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and laid hold on other gods, and worshiped them, and served them: therefore has Yahweh brought all this evil on them.
- 1 Kings 9:21 עֹבֵ֔ד Qal ptcp.act ms their children who were left after them in the land, whom the children of Israel were not able utterly to destroy, of them did Solomon raise a levy of bondservants to this day.
- 1 Kings 12:4 וְ/נַעַבְדֶֽ/ךָּ conj + Qal impf 1cp + sfx pers 2ms Your father made our yoke grievous: now therefore make you the grievous service of your father, and his heavy yoke which he put on us, lighter, and we will serve you.
- 1 Kings 12:7 וַֽ/עֲבַדְתָּ֔/ם conj + Qal wpf 2ms + sfx pers 3mp They spoke to him, saying, If you will be a servant to this people this day, and will serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be your servants forever.
- 1 Kings 16:31 וַֽ/יַּעֲבֹ֣ד conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened, as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, that he took as wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and went and served Baal, and worshiped him.
- 1 Kings 22:53 וַֽ/יַּעֲבֹד֙ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms He served Baal, and worshiped him, and provoked to anger Yahweh, the God of Israel, according to all that his father had done.
2 Kings 14 verses
- 2 Kings 10:18 עָבַ֥ד יַעַבְדֶ֥/נּוּ Qal pf 3ms Qal impf 3ms + sfx pers 1cp Jehu gathered all the people together, and said to them, Ahab served Baal a little; but Jehu will serve him much.
- 2 Kings 10:19 עֹבְדָ֣י/ו עֹבְדֵ֥י Qal ptcp.act mp cs + sfx pers 3ms Qal ptcp.act mp cs Now therefore call to me all the prophets of Baal, all his worshippers, and all his priests; let none be wanting: for I have a great sacrifice [to do] to Baal; whoever shall be wanting, he shall not live. But Jehu did it in subtlety, to the intent that he might destroy the worshippers of Baal.
- 2 Kings 10:21 עֹבְדֵ֣י Qal ptcp.act mp cs Jehu sent through all Israel: and all the worshippers of Baal came, so that there was not a man left that didn't come. They came into the house of Baal; and the house of Baal was filled from one end to another.
- 2 Kings 10:22 עֹבְדֵ֣י Qal ptcp.act mp cs He said to him who was over the vestry, Bring forth vestments for all the worshippers of Baal. He brought them forth vestments.
- 2 Kings 10:23 לְ/עֹבְדֵ֣י עֹבְדֵ֥י prep + Qal ptcp.act mp cs Qal ptcp.act mp cs Jehu went, and Jehonadab the son of Rechab, into the house of Baal; and he said to the worshippers of Baal, Search, and look that there be here with you none of the servants of Yahweh, but the worshippers of Baal only.
- 2 Kings 17:12 וַ/יַּֽעַבְד֖וּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp and they served idols, of which Yahweh had said to them, You shall not do this thing.
- 2 Kings 17:16 וַ/יַּעַבְד֖וּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp They forsook all the commandments of Yahweh their God, and made them molten images, even two calves, and made an Asherah, and worshiped all the host of the sky, and served Baal.
- 2 Kings 17:33 עֹֽבְדִ֔ים Qal ptcp.act mp They feared Yahweh, and served their own gods, after the manner of the nations from among whom they had been carried away.
- 2 Kings 17:35 תַעַבְד֔וּ/ם Qal impf 2mp + sfx pers 3mp with whom Yahweh had made a covenant, and charged them, saying, You shall not fear other gods, nor bow yourselves to them, nor serve them, nor sacrifice to them:
- 2 Kings 17:41 עֹֽבְדִ֑ים Qal ptcp.act mp So these nations feared Yahweh, and served their engraved images; their children likewise, and their children's children, as did their fathers, so do they to this day.
- 2 Kings 18:7 עֲבָדֽ/וֹ Qal pf 3ms + sfx pers 3ms Yahweh was with him; wherever he went forth he prospered: and he rebelled against the king of Assyria, and didn't serve him.
- 2 Kings 21:3 וַֽ/יַּעֲבֹ֖ד conj + Qal wimpf 3ms For he built again the high places which Hezekiah his father had destroyed; and he reared up altars for Baal, and made an Asherah, as did Ahab king of Israel, and worshiped all the host of the sky, and served them.
- 2 Kings 21:21 וַֽ/יַּעֲבֹ֗ד עָבַ֣ד conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Qal pf 3ms He walked in all the way that his father walked in, and served the idols that his father served, and worshiped them:
- 2 Kings 25:24 וְ/עִבְד֛וּ conj + Qal impv 2mp Gedaliah swore to them and to their men, and said to them, Don't be afraid because of the servants of the Chaldeans: dwell in the land, and serve the king of Babylon, and it shall be well with you.
1 Chronicles 2 verses
- 1 Chronicles 19:19 וַ/יַּֽעַבְדֻ֑/הוּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp + sfx pers 3ms When the servants of Hadarezer saw that they were put to the worse before Israel, they made peace with David, and served him: neither would the Syrians help the children of Ammon any more.
- 1 Chronicles 28:9 וְ/עָבְדֵ֗/הוּ conj + Qal impv 2ms + sfx pers 3ms You, Solomon my son, know the God of your father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind; for Yahweh searches all hearts, and understands all the imaginations of the thoughts: if you seek him, he will be found of you; but if you forsake him, he will cast you off forever.
2 Chronicles 11 verses
- 2 Chronicles 2:18 לְ/הַעֲבִ֥יד prep + Hiphil inf.cs He set seventy thousand of them to bear burdens, and eighty thousand who were stone cutters in the mountains, and three thousand six hundred overseers to set the people at work.
- 2 Chronicles 7:19 וַ/עֲבַדְתֶּם֙ conj + Qal wpf 2mp But if you turn away, and forsake my statutes and my commandments which I have set before you, and shall go and serve other gods, and worship them;
- 2 Chronicles 7:22 וַ/יַּֽעַבְד֑וּ/ם conj + Qal wimpf 3mp + sfx pers 3mp They shall answer, Because they forsook Yahweh, the God of their fathers, who brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, and laid hold on other gods, and worshiped them, and served them: therefore has he brought all this evil on them.
- 2 Chronicles 10:4 וְ/נַֽעַבְדֶֽ/ךָּ conj + Qal impf 1cp + sfx pers 2ms Your father made our yoke grievous: now therefore make you the grievous service of your father, and his heavy yoke which he put on us, lighter, and we will serve you.
- 2 Chronicles 24:18 וַ/יַּֽעַבְד֥וּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp They forsook the house of Yahweh, the God of their fathers, and served the Asherim and the idols: and wrath came on Judah and Jerusalem for this their guiltiness.
- 2 Chronicles 30:8 וְ/עִבְדוּ֙ conj + Qal impv 2mp Now don't you be stiff-necked, as your fathers were; but yield yourselves to Yahweh, and enter into his sanctuary, which he has sanctified forever, and serve Yahweh your God, that his fierce anger may turn away from you.
- 2 Chronicles 33:3 וַֽ/יַּעֲבֹ֖ד conj + Qal wimpf 3ms For he built again the high places which Hezekiah his father had broken down; and he reared up altars for the Baals, and made Asheroth, and worshiped all the host of the sky, and served them.
- 2 Chronicles 33:16 לַ/עֲב֕וֹד prep + Qal inf.cs He built up the altar of Yahweh, and offered thereon sacrifices of peace-offerings and of thanksgiving, and commanded Judah to serve Yahweh, the God of Israel.
- 2 Chronicles 33:22 וַ/יַּֽעַבְדֵֽ/ם conj + Qal wimpf 3ms + sfx pers 3mp He did that which was evil in the sight of Yahweh, as did Manasseh his father; and Amon sacrificed to all the engraved images which Manasseh his father had made, and served them.
- 2 Chronicles 34:33 וַֽ/יַּעֲבֵ֗ד לַ/עֲב֖וֹד conj + Hiphil wimpf 3ms prep + Qal inf.cs Josiah took away all the abominations out of all the countries that pertained to the children of Israel, and made all who were found in Israel to serve, even to serve Yahweh their God. All his days they didn't depart from following Yahweh, the God of their fathers.
- 2 Chronicles 35:3 עִבְדוּ֙ Qal impv 2mp He said to the Levites who taught all Israel, who were holy to Yahweh, Put the holy ark in the house which Solomon the son of David king of Israel did build; there shall no more be a burden on your shoulders: now serve Yahweh your God, and his people Israel.
Nehemiah 1 verse
Job 3 verses
- Job 21:15 נַֽעַבְדֶ֑/נּוּ Qal impf 1cp + sfx pers 1cp What is the Almighty, that we should serve him? What profit should we have, if we pray to him?'
- Job 36:11 וְֽ/יַ֫עֲבֹ֥דוּ conj + Qal impf 3mp If they listen and serve him, They shall spend their days in prosperity, And their years in pleasures.
- Job 39:9 עָבְדֶ֑/ךָ Qal inf.cs + sfx pers 2ms "Will the wild ox be content to serve you? Or will he stay by your feeding trough?
Psalms 8 verses
- Psalms 2:11 עִבְד֣וּ Qal impv 2mp Serve Yahweh with fear, And rejoice with trembling.
- Psalms 18:43 יַֽעַבְדֽוּ/נִי Qal impf 3mp + sfx pers 1cs You have delivered me from the strivings of the people. You have made me the head of the nations. A people whom I have not known shall serve me.
- Psalms 22:30 יַֽעַבְדֶ֑/נּוּ Qal impf 3ms + sfx pers 3ms Posterity shall serve him. Future generations shall be told about the Lord.
- Psalms 72:11 יַֽעַבְדֽוּ/הוּ Qal impf 3mp + sfx pers 3ms Yes, all kings shall fall down before him. All nations shall serve him.
- Psalms 97:7 עֹ֬בְדֵי Qal ptcp.act mp cs Let all them be shamed who serve engraved images, Who boast in their idols. Worship him, all you gods!
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.
At its core, עבד (ʻâbad) means “to serve.” The verb spans 5 stems, from Qal to Niphal. Spanning 262 verses in 25 books, it ranks among the common words of the Hebrew Bible. Scripture first uses it in Genesis 2:5. From the same root come מעבד, עבד and עבד. Dig into 262-verse concordance and the renderings breakdown below.
Gloss history
Strong's 1890 vs modern scholarship
Strong's · 1890
[idiom] be
Modern gloss
to serve
Strong's 1890 sometimes compressed multiple senses — or homonymous roots — under one number, and used 19th-century English phrasing that no longer carries the same connotation. The modern gloss reflects current BDB scholarship; open the Lexicon Entry tab for the full sense breakdown.
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About this word
Strong's H5647 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 →
- 262
- distinct verses
- The word appears in 262 distinct verses.
- 25 / 39
- OT books
- The word appears in 25 of 39 Old Testament books.
- #172
- by frequency
- Top 250 most frequent Hebrew words (rank 172 of 8,640 Hebrew words by occurrence).
View all 262 occurrences in the concordance →
Most concentrated in
- Deuteronomy 35 verses 13%
- Jeremiah 31 verses 12%
- Exodus 29 verses 11%
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 262 distinct verses.
- Prophets (Nevi'im) 123 verses · 47%
- Torah (Pentateuch) 110 verses · 42%
- Writings (Ketuvim) 29 verses · 11%
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: Serve 70×, Served 43×, Shall serve 12×
- American Standard Version: Serve 53×, Served 29×, Them 9×
- Berean Standard Bible: Serve 52×, Served 30×, Worship 12×
- unfoldingWord Literal Text: Serve 58×, Served 18×, Serve them 15×
King James Version Public Domain
Renders H5647 across 291 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 85 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 2 further occurrences.
American Standard Version Public Domain
Renders H5647 across 292 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 93 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 H5647 across 285 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 83 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 4 further occurrences.
unfoldingWord Literal Text CC BY-SA 4.0
Renders H5647 across 328 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 83 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
17 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 17 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. 3 ms. ע׳ Ez 29:18 +; sf. עֲבָדוֹ Mal 3:18 +; 3 mpl. עָֽבְדוּ Dt 7:4; עָבָ֑דוּ Nu 4:26, + 64 times Pf.; Impf. 3 ms. יַעֲבֹד Gn 25:23 +; sf. יַעַבְדֵ֫נִי Ex 4:23; יַעַבְדֶ֫נּוּ ψ 22:31 2 K 10:18; 3 mpl. יַעַבְדוּ Dt 12:30 +; יַעֲבֹ֑דוּ Gn 15:14 (Dr§ 103) Jb 36:11; 2 mpl. תַּעַבְדוּן Ex 3:12, תַּעֲבֹד֑וּן Jos 24:15, + 99 times Impf.; (תָּעָבְדֵם, נָֽעָבְדֵם v. Hoph.); Imv. עֲבֹד 1 S 26:19; sf. עָבְדֵהוּ 1 Ch 28:9; עִבְדוּ Ex 5:18 + 15 times; עֲבֹ֑דוּ Ez 20:39; sf. עִבְדֻהוּ 1 S 7:3; Inf. cstr. עֲבֹד Mal 3:14 +; עֲבָד־ Je 34:9, 10; sf. עָבְדוֹ Je 27:6 +, etc.; Pt. עֹבֵד Gn 4:2 +; pl. עֹבְדִים Nu 18:21 +; cstr. עֹבְדֵי ψ 97:7 +; sf. עֹבְדָיו 2 K 10:19; עֹבְדֵיהֶם Zc 2:13;— e.g. Ezekiel 29:18
- 1. labour, work, do work: abs. Ex 20:9 = 34:21 = Dt 5:13 (4th word); Ex 5:18 (E) Ec 5:11; c. acc. rei, till the ground Gn 2:5; 3:23; 4:2, 12 (J), 2 S 9:10; Is 30:24; Je 27:11; Zc 13:5; Pr 12:11; 28:19; obj. om. Dt 15:19; Ez 48:19; vineyard Dt 28:39; garden Gn 2:15 (J); עֹבְדֵי פִשְׁתִּים Is 19:9 workers in flax; עֹבְדֵ(י) הָעִיר Ez 48:18, 19 labourers of the city; ע׳ עֲבֹדָתוֹ Is 28:21 work his work (only here of God, ‖ עשׂה מַעֲשֵׂהוּ); ע׳ עבדה על Ez 29:18 serve a military service against. e.g. Exodus 20:9
- 2. work for another, serve him by labour: abs. Ex 21:2 (E); c. acc. pers. Gn 29:15; 31:6; Ex 21:6 (E) Dt 15:12, 18; Mal 3:17; Je 34:14, king his people 1 K 12:7; subj. animals Je 27:6; Jb 39:9; c. acc. pers. et rei Gn 30:26(×2), 29 (J); c. לְ pers. 2 S 16:19; עִם Gn 29:25, 30 (E) Lv 25:40 (P); עִמָּדִי Gn 29:27 (E); לִפְנֵי 2 S 16:19(×2); c. בְּ of price Gn 29:18, 20, 25; 31:41 (E) Ho 12:13; Ez 29:20; c. בְּ pers. work by means of another, use him as slave, Ex 1:14; Lv 25:39, 46 (P) Je 22:13; 30:8; 34:9, 10; cf. Dt 15:19. e.g. Exodus 21:2
- 3. serve as subjects: usually c. acc., their own rulers Ju 9:28(×2), 38 1 S 11:1; 1 K 5:1 +; other kings, by tribute ψ 18:44 = 2 S 22:44; Je 27:7; 28:14; 2 K 25:24 +, other nations 2 S 10:19; Je 40:9; Zc 2:13 +, kings other kings 2 K 18:7 +, c. לְ, 1 S 4:9(×2); †מַס עֹבֵד Gn 49:15 (J) Jos 16:10; 1 K 9:21 (see מַס); †c. בְּ pers., work with, i.e. use as subjects, impose tribute upon, Je 25:14; 27:7; Ez 34:27. e.g. Judges 9:28
- 4. serve God:
- a. c. acc. י׳, Ex 3:12; 4:23; 7:16, 26 (JE), ψ 22:31; Jb 21:15; Mal 3:14 +; c. acc. pers. et rei Ex 10:26 (E); acc. pers. om., Je 2:20 (read אֶעֱבוֹד Kt), עבד זבח ומנחה Is 19:21 serve with peace-offering and grain-offering; עבד עֲבֹדָה Ex 13:5 (of מַצֹּת). e.g. Exodus 3:12
- b. other gods, c. acc. א׳ †Dt 7:16; 12:2, 30 †; אלהים אחרים 7:4; 8:19; 11:16; 13:7, 14; 17:3; 28:14, 36, 64; 29:25; 30:17; 31:20; Jos 23:16; 24:2, 16; Ju 2:19; 10:13; 1 S 8:8; 26:19; 1 K 9:6, 9; 2 K 17:35; 2 Ch 7:19, 22; Je 11:10; 13:10; 16:11, 13; 22:9; 25:6; 35:15 (all D and Je); אֱלֹהֵי הַגּוֹיִם Dt 29:17; זָרִים Je 5:19; †כל צבא השׁמים Dt 4:19; 2 K 21:3; 2 Ch 33:3; Je 8:2; †הבעל(ים) Ju 2:11; 3:7; 10:6, 10; 1 S 12:10; 1 K 16:31; 22:54; 2 K 10:18(×2), 19(×2), 21, 22, 23(×2); 17:16; †אלהי נֵכָר Jos 24:20; Je 5:19; †(הַ)גִּלּוּלִים 2 K 17:12; 21:21(×2) Ez 20:39; †האשׁרים 2 Ch 24:18; עצבים ψ 106:36; †פסיל(ים) 2 Ch 33:22; 2 K 17:41; פסל ψ 97:7; c. לְ, †לבעל Ju 2:13; †לאלהים אחרים Je 44:3. e.g. Deuteronomy 7:16
- 5. serve י׳ with Levitical service (all P; cf. RSSem i. 69): c. acc. עבד עֲבֹדָה (v. עֲבֹדָה) Nu 3:7, 8; 4:23, 30, 47; 7:5; 8:11, 19, 22, 26; 16:9; 18:6, 21, 23; Jos 22:27; acc. om. Nu 4:24, 26, 37, 41; 8:15 (but Sam 𝔊 עבדה), v 25 18:7. e.g. Numbers 3:7
Niphal
- Pf. 3 ms. נֶעְבָּ֑ד Ec 5:8; 2 mpl. נֶעֱבַדְתֶּם Ez 36:9; Impf. 3 ms. יֵעָבֵד Dt 21:4; 3 fs. תֵּעָבֵד Ez 36:34;— e.g. Ecclesiastes 5:8
- 1. be tilled, of land Dt 21:4; Ez 36:9, 34. e.g. Deuteronomy 21:4
- 2. Ec 5:8 מֶלָךְ לְשָׂדֶה נֶעְבָּ֑ד dub.: a king for (devoted to) the cultivated field (Hi); a king that maketh himself servant to the field (devoted to agriculture), De: v. Comm., especially De. e.g. Ecclesiastes 5:8
Pual
- Pf. 3 ms. עֻבַּד Dt 21:3; Is 14:3; pass. of Qal, c. בְּ: impers. Dt 21:3 of a calf with which it has not been worked; hard service with which it was worked with captives Is 14:3. e.g. Deuteronomy 21:3
Hiphil
- Pf. 3 ms. הֶעֱבִיד Ez 29:18; 2 ms. sf. הֶעֱבַדְתַּ֫נִי Is 43:24, הֶעֱבַדְתִּיךָ v 23, וְהַעֲבַדְתִּיךָ Je 17:4 Impf. 3 ms. וַיַּעֲבֵד 2 Ch 34:33; 3 mpl. יַעֲבִדוּ Ex 1:13; Inf. cstr. הַעֲבִיד 2 Ch 2:17; Pt. pl. מַעֲבִדִים Ex 6:5;— e.g. Ezekiel 29:18
- 1. compel to labour as slaves Ex 1:13; 6:5 (P) 2 Ch 2:17, + Gn 47:21 (reading הֶעֱבִיד לַעֲבָדִים), 2 S 12:31 (reading וְהֶעֱבִיד, + בְּ at; on both these v. עבר Hiph. ad fin.); cause to serve, of army’s service against, c. acc. + (על)אל Ez 29:18; cause to labour, weary, c. בְּ of means Is 43:23, 24 (perhaps play on meanings2, 3). e.g. Exodus 1:13
- 2. make to serve as subjects, c. 2 acc. Je 17:4, + Je 15:14 (read וְהַעֲבַדְתִּיךָ, v. עבר Hiph. ad fin.). e.g. Jeremiah 17:4
- 3. cause to serve God 2 Ch 34:33. e.g. 2 Chronicles 34:33
Hophal
- Impf. 2 ms. sf. תָּֽעָבְדֵם Ex 20:5 = Dt 5:9; Ex 23:24; 1 pl. sf. נָֽעָבְדֵם Dt 13:3 (Köi. 259 Sta§ 549 g Thes; Marg. 12 f. Qal anom. pointed (cf. WAG. ed. 2, i. 62 n. Fl Kl. Schr. i. 98); Ges§ 60, R. 1 Dr Qal falsely pointed as Hoph.);—be led or enticed to serve other gods Ex 20:5 = Dt 5:9; Ex 23:24; Dt 13:3. e.g. Exodus 20:5
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. work, serve (Old Aramaic עבד do, make, especially Nab. Palm. (often), Lzb331 f. Cook86, so 𝔗 עֲבַד, Syriac ܥܒܰܕ (very often); but also Old Aramaic Ph. עבד slave, vassal (and in many n.pr.), 𝔗 עַבְדָּא, Syriac ܥܰܒܕܳܐ id.; Assyrian abdu, id. (rare); NH עָבַד serve, perform acts of worship (c. acc. cogn.), and deriv.; Arabic عَبَدَ worship, obey (God); cf. WeSkizzen iii. 165; Heid. 141, ii. enslave; عَبْدٌ slave, worshipper; Sab. עבד id. DHMSudar. Alt. p. 18; GerberVerb. Denom.14 ff. thinks be slave, serve (Qal) and enslave (Hiph.) are denom., cf. also NöZMG xi (1886), 741);—
— 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.
עֲבַד I
- (corresp. to h. עָשָׂה)
- 1. to do, labor; to make; to act. Targ. Gen. I, 7. Ib. XXXI, 26; a. v. fr.—Ber. 60ᵇ לעולם … כל דעביד רחמנא לטב Ms. M. (ed. לטב עביד; v. Rabb. D. S. a. l. note 3) man should train himself always to say, Whatever the Merciful One does, is for good; Yalk. Job 893 כל … לטב עביד. Tem. 4ᵇ אי עביד מהני, v. הֲנִי. Yeb. 37ᵃ מי עָבוּד רבנן תקנתא וכ׳ (not עביד) have the Rabbis adopted special measures for priests &c.? Ib. עַבְדִּינָן כרבנן we act (decide) in accordance with the opinion of the Rabbis. Keth. 60ᵇ לא עַבְדֵי נשי דחנקן וכ׳ women will not do such a thing as strangling their children. Kidd. 50ᵃ לא ע׳ אינש דמשוי וכ׳ a man will not declare himself a wrongdoer; a. v. fr.
- 2. to do, fare, prosper. Lev. R. s. 5, end מה את עָבֵיד how art thou?; ומה ארעא עֲבִידָא and how does the field fare?; מה תורין עַבְדִין how are the oxen? Ib. ע׳ לב טב he assumes cheerfulness. Gen. R. s. 13 כל שיחתן … עַבְדַּת ארעא all the talk of people turns on the land (material prosperity): ‘the land is doing well’ (crops promise to be good); ‘the land is not doing well’; a. fr.
- 3. to spend time. Y. Shebi. VIII, 38ᵇ top עביד טמיר במערתא וכ׳ he remained hidden in a cave &c.; ib. IX, 38ᵈ. Y. Shek. V, 48ᵈ top עַבְדַת טמירא וכ׳ she (the ass) remained hidden with them &c.; Gen. R. s. 60 עבדת גבון; a. fr.—Part. pass. עָבִיד; f. עֲבִידָא made, liable to, likely, used to. Y. Peah III, 17ᵈ bot. היך ע׳ how did it happen (i.e. in what case would it make a practical difference for the slave)? R. Hash. 22ᵇ, a. e. מילתא דע׳ לאיגלויי, v. גְּלֵי. Shebu. 46ᵃ, v. גְּזַם; a. fr.
- 1. to make, produce. Targ. O. Ex. XXXII, 10 אַעַבֵּיד ed. Berl. (oth. אַעֲבֵיד; Y. אֶעְבַּד). Ib. XXX, 37; a. fr.—Lev. R. s. 28, end, v. infra.
- 2. to cause to prosper. Gen. R. s. 13 כל תפלתן … מרי תַעֲבִיד ארעא יכ׳ all the prayers of men turn on the earth (mundane affairs): Lord, make the land (crop) thrive, make the land prosper; a. e.
- 3. to work through. Part. pass. מְעַבַּד, מְעַבְּדָא. B. Mets. 116ᵇ טינא דמע׳ thoroughly kneaded clay.
- to be done; to be made, become. Targ. Gen. XXIX, 26. Targ. Koh. VIII, 4. Targ. Ps. LXII, 4; a. fr.—Lam. R. to II, 2 בעית לאִיעַבְדָּא וכ׳ (not לאיבדא, לעיבדא) dost thou want to be made a senator? Lev. R. s. 28, end מאן דעַבֵּיד … אתע׳ וכ׳ he who made the comes …, is now to become a bather &c.; Esth. R. to VI, 10 האי גברא מְעַבֵּיד … עביד בלן (corr. acc.); a. fr. [Zeb. 75ᵇ דאיעבד, read: דאיערוב, v. עֲרַב I.]—V. דִּיעֲבַד.
עָבַד
- (b. h.) [to work]
- 1. to serve, work for. Gitt. IV, 5 עוֹבֵד את רבו וכ׳ works one day for his master, and one for himself; a. fr. Esp. to do priestly service. Ḥull. 24ᵇ אחיו הכהנים … לַעֲבוֹד וכ׳ his brother priests allow him not to serve, until he is twenty years of age.
- 2. to prepare; to till the ground; to dress (hides). Gen. R. s. 22 קין עובד אדמה Cain the tiller of the ground. Y. Ab. Zar. II, 41ᵇ bot. גוי עוֹבְדָן; Tosef. ib. IV (V), 10 עוֹבְדוֹ, v. דָּבַב I; (Bab. ib. 33ᵃ עיבדן). Y. Sabb. I, 4ᵇ top נתן כלים … ומצאו עובד בו וכ׳ if one gave a gentile garments to wash, and found him working at them on the Sabbath; a. fr.—Part. pass. עָבוּד, pl. עֲבוּדִין dressed, v. infra.
- 3. (v. עֲבוֹדָה) to use esp. for idolatrous purposes; to worship. Tem. VI, 1, v. infra. Ab. Zar. III, 7 (defining אשרה) כל שעוֹבְדִין אותה a tree which is itself worshipped (not one at which idolatrous rites are performed). Ib. הואיל … הן עובדין since they worship merely the image (under the tree). Snh. VII, 6 העובד ע"ז אחד העובד וכ׳ he who worships an idol, whether he goes through the regular forms of that particular worship (v. ib. 60ᵇ), or sacrifices &c. Ab. Zar. III, 5 העכומ"ז העובדין וכ׳ as to idolaters that worship mountains and hills (as deities), they (the territories) may be used, but what is on them is forbidden. Ib. 45ᵇ אילן … ולבסוף עֲבָדוֹ if one planted a tree and afterwards made it a subject of worship. Ib. 46ᵃ ועוֹבְדֵיהֶן בסייף and those (Jews) who worship them are put to death by the sword; Tosef. ib. VI (VII), 8. Sabb. 56ᵇ אילמלי לא … ולא עָבְדוּ ישראל ע"א had David not listened to evil gossip (against Mephibosheth), … Israel would not have worshipped idols (under Jeroboam). Ib. 105ᵇ עד שיאמר לו עֲבוֹד ע"ז until he (the tempter) finally tells him, worship idols; Tosef. B. Kam. IX, 31. Ḥull. 13ᵇ נכרים שבח"ל לאו עוֹבְדֵי ע"א הן gentiles outside of Palestine must not be considered as idolaters; a. v. fr.
- 1. to be prepared, dressed. Tosef. B. Kam. l. c. עורות שאינן נֶעֱבָדִין ed. Zuck. (oth. ed. עֲבוּדִין) undressed hides; a. e.
- 2. to be used, esp. for illicit purposes; to be worshipped. Tem. l. c. המוקצה והנ׳ the animal designated for idolatrous purposes and the one used; expl. כל שעובדין אותו whatever they may use it for ((e.g. yoking the ox, shearing the sheep for the benefit of idolatrous temples). Ib. 28ᵃ נעבדה בהן עבירה an illicit act has been done with them (by coupling them); ib. לא נֵתְעַבְּדָה בה עבירה no sinful act has been done with it (by which to unfit it for the altar). Ab. Zar. 46ᵇ יש נ׳ במחובר אצל גבוה does the law forbidding the use in divine worship of objects which have been used for idolatrous purposes include things fixed in the ground? Ib. יש שינוי בנ׳ does change of form restore to legitimate use objects otherwise forbidden on account of their use in connection with idolatry? a. fr.
- same, v. supra.
- to enslave, oppress. Yalk. Ex. 162 הֶעֱבִידוֹ בכל וכ׳ he (Esau) oppressed him with all sorts of troubles.
- to prepare, esp. to dress hides. Sabb. VII, 2 (among the labors forbidden on the Sabbath) והמְעַבֵּד את עורו dressing the hide of the deer (to fit it for parchment). Ib. 75ᵇ חייב משום מעבד is guilty of a Sabbath offence coming under the category of tanning. Gitt. 54ᵇ גוילין … לא עִיבַּדְתִּין לשמן I did not prepare the parchment sheets with the proper intention; a. fr.
עֶבֶד
- preced. wds.) slave, servant. Kidd. 20ᵃ הקונה ע׳ עברי וכ׳ he who buys a Hebrew slave, has, so to say, bought a master over himself. Sabb. 89ᵃ כלום יש ע׳ שנותן וכ׳ dare a servant salute his master (first)? Snh. 58ᵇ (ref. to Prov. XII, 11) אם … כע׳ לאדמה וכ׳ if a man makes himself a slave to the soil, he will be satisfied with bread &c. Kidd. I, 3 ע׳ כנעני נקנה וכ׳ a Canaanite (gentile) slave is acquired by money, by deed &c. Ib. III, 13 ממזר … הולד ע׳ if a bastard marries a slave, the child is a slave; הרי זה ע׳ ממזר the child is a bastard slave (subject to the disabilities of both). Shebu. 47ᵇ ע׳ מלך כמלך a king’s officer is like a king (the inferior person is raised by association with a superior); a. v. fr.—Pl. עֲבָדִים. Kidd. 22ᵇ (ref. to Lev. XXV, 55) כי לי … ולא ע׳ לע׳ ‘the children of Israel are my servants’, but they must not make themselves servants of servants (of human beings). Ab. I, 3 אל תהיו כע׳ וכ׳ be not like the servants that wait upon their master for the sake of getting their fare (reward), v. פְּרָס; a. fr. e.g. Proverbs 12:11
עֲבַד
- 1. same. Targ. Gen. IX, 25 (O. ed. Berl. עַבַד; ed. Vien. עֶבֶד). Ib. 26; a. fr.—Gen. R. s. 86 ע׳ זבין … ע׳ לתרויהון a slave (Potiphar) buys, the son of a handmaid (the Ishmaelite) sells, and the free man (Joseph) is the slave of both; Koh. R. to X, 7. Gitt. 13ᵃ, a. e. ע׳ בהפקרא וכ׳, v. הֶפְקֵרָא; a. fr.—[Y. Ber. IV, 7ᶜ נפק ע׳, read: עוּבְדָּא.]—Pl. עַבְדִּין, עַבְדַּיָּא, עַבְדֵּי. Targ. Gen. XXIV, 25. Targ. Is. LIV, 17. Targ. Prov. XII, 9; a. fr.—B. Kam. 97ᵃ הוה תקיף ע׳ דאינשי וכ׳ used to seize slaves of men against whom he had a claim &c. Kidd. 70ᵃ רגיל דקרי אינשי ע׳ he is in the habit of calling people slaves; a. fr.
- 2. worshipper. Ned. 62ᵇ ע׳ דנורא fire-worshipper (Geber); a. e.
A Dictionary of the Targumim, the Talmud Babli and Yerushalmi, and the Midrashic Literature (Marcus Jastrow; London, Luzac, 1903) — Public Domain. Digitized via Sefaria. Digitized via Sefaria. Full attribution on Sources.
Forms in the corpus
The 219 distinct written forms H5647 takes in the Hebrew Bible, most frequent first — each parse links to that stem’s occurrences in the concordance. Hebrew forms include their vowel points and cantillation, so a single lemma takes many written forms.
The 60 most common forms are shown; 159 rarer forms follow in the full concordance.
Same root — word family
Other BDB entries built from the same root as H5647, 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
- מעבד maʻbâd H4566 work
- עבד ʻăbad H5648 to make
- עבד ʻebed H5650 servant
- עבד ʻăbâd H5652 work
- עבדה ʻăbôdâh H5656 service
- עבדה ʻăbuddâh H5657 service
- עבדות ʻabdûwth H5659 bondage
Proper names from this root
People and places named from this root — a name, not an additional meaning of the word.
- עבדא ʻAbdâʼ H5653 Abda
- עבד אדום ʻÔbêd ʼĔdôwm H5654 Obed-edom
- עבדאל ʻAbdᵉʼêl H5655 Abdeel
- עבדון ʻAbdôwn H5658 Abdon
- עבדי ʻAbdîy H5660 Abdi
- עבדיה ʻÔbadyâh H5662 Obadiah
- עובד ʻÔwbêd H5744 Obed
Compare all same-root words → Showing 4 of 15 — not the complete family. 7 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 255 verses that also exist in the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint), out of the 262 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 2:5
- Exodus 1:13
- Leviticus 25:39
- Numbers 3:7
- Deuteronomy 4:19
- Joshua 16:10
- Judges 2:7
- 1 Samuel 4:9
- 2 Samuel 9:10
- 1 Kings 9:6
- 2 Kings 10:18
- 1 Chronicles 19:19
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.
