שַׂר
prince
also: ruler, leader, chief, chieftain fuller range ↓
Full lexicon entry — Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
From Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
Where this word appears
See every Construct-state word in the Hebrew Bible →
Grammar key — what these labels mean
Part of speech
- Noun
- A naming word — a person, place, thing, or idea.
Noun type
- Common
- A common noun — a general class of person, place, or thing (“king,” “city,” “water”), not a specific name.
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.
Gender
- Masculine
- Grammatically masculine.
Number
- Plural
- More than one (in Hebrew, generally three or more).
- Singular
- One.
Every verse where H8269 appears in the Book of Jeremiah — 52 distinct verses. Click any verse to open its interlinear word-by-word view. Verse text shown in the World English Bible for context — . Each verse’s Hebrew form is shown with its reference; the English is not keyword-highlighted, since the data carries no word-level English alignment. Use “Compare translations” on any verse to read it across multiple English versions. This concordance covers the Hebrew Bible; Septuagint (Greek Old Testament) occurrences are not indexed here.
Jeremiah
- Jeremiah 1:18 לְ/שָׂרֶ֔י/הָ prep + n c mp cs + sfx pers 3fs For, behold, I have made you this day a fortified city, and an iron pillar, and brazen walls, against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, against the princes of it, against the priests of it, and against the people of the land.
- Jeremiah 2:26 שָֽׂרֵי/הֶ֔ם n c mp cs + sfx pers 3mp As the thief is ashamed when he is found, so is the house of Israel ashamed; they, their kings, their princes, and their priests, and their prophets;
- Jeremiah 4:9 הַ/שָּׂרִ֑ים ptcl def.art + n c mp It shall happen at that day, says Yahweh, that the heart of the king shall perish, and the heart of the princes; and the priests shall be astonished, and the prophets shall wonder.
- Jeremiah 8:1 שָׂרָי/ו֩ n c mp cs + sfx pers 3ms At that time, says Yahweh, they shall bring out the bones of the kings of Judah, and the bones of his princes, and the bones of the priests, and the bones of the prophets, and the bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, out of their graves;
- Jeremiah 17:25 וְ/שָׂרִ֡ים וְ/שָׂ֣רֵי/הֶ֔ם conj + n c mp conj + n c mp cs + sfx pers 3mp then shall there enter in by the gates of this city kings and princes sitting on the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, they, and their princes, the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and this city shall remain forever.
- Jeremiah 24:1 שָׂרֵ֨י n c mp cs Yahweh shown me, and, behold, two baskets of figs set before the temple of Yahweh, after that Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon had carried away captive Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and the princes of Judah, with the craftsmen and smiths, from Jerusalem, and had brought them to Babylon.
- Jeremiah 24:8 שָׂרָי/ו֙ n c mp cs + sfx pers 3ms As the bad figs, which can't be eaten, they are so bad, surely thus says Yahweh, So will I give up Zedekiah the king of Judah, and his princes, and the residue of Jerusalem, who remain in this land, and those who dwell in the land of Egypt,
- Jeremiah 25:18 שָׂרֶ֑י/הָ n c mp cs + sfx pers 3fs [to wit], Jerusalem, and the cities of Judah, and the kings of it, and the princes of it, to make them a desolation, an astonishment, a hissing, and a curse, as it is this day;
- Jeremiah 25:19 שָׂרָ֖י/ו n c mp cs + sfx pers 3ms Pharaoh king of Egypt, and his servants, and his princes, and all his people;
- Jeremiah 26:10 שָׂרֵ֣י n c mp cs When the princes of Judah heard these things, they came up from the king's house to the house of Yahweh; and they sat in the entry of the new gate of Yahweh's [house].
- Jeremiah 26:11 הַ/שָּׂרִ֔ים ptcl def.art + n c mp Then spoke the priests and the prophets to the princes and to all the people, saying, This man is worthy of death; for he has prophesied against this city, as you have heard with your ears.
- Jeremiah 26:12 הַ/שָּׂרִ֔ים ptcl def.art + n c mp Then spoke Jeremiah to all the princes and to all the people, saying, Yahweh sent me to prophesy against this house and against this city all the words that you have heard.
- Jeremiah 26:16 הַ/שָּׂרִים֙ ptcl def.art + n c mp Then said the princes and all the people to the priests and to the prophets: This man is not worthy of death; for he has spoken to us in the name of Yahweh our God.
- Jeremiah 26:21 הַ/שָּׂרִים֙ ptcl def.art + n c mp and when Jehoiakim the king, with all his mighty-men, and all the princes, heard his words, the king sought to put him to death; but when Uriah heard it, he was afraid, and fled, and went into Egypt:
- Jeremiah 29:2 שָׂרֵ֨י n c mp cs (after that Jeconiah the king, and the queen-mother, and the eunuchs, [and] the princes of Judah and Jerusalem, and the craftsmen, and the smiths, were departed from Jerusalem),
- Jeremiah 32:32 שָֽׂרֵי/הֶ֔ם n c mp cs + sfx pers 3mp because of all the evil of the children of Israel and of the children of Judah, which they have done to provoke me to anger, they, their kings, their princes, their priests, and their prophets, and the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
- Jeremiah 34:10 הַ/שָּׂרִ֨ים ptcl def.art + n c mp All the princes and all the people obeyed, who had entered into the covenant, that everyone should let his man-servant, and everyone his maid-servant, go free, that none should make bondservants of them any more; they obeyed, and let them go:
- Jeremiah 34:19 שָׂרֵ֨י וְ/שָׂרֵ֣י n c mp cs conj + n c mp cs the princes of Judah, and the princes of Jerusalem, the eunuchs, and the priests, and all the people of the land, who passed between the parts of the calf;
- Jeremiah 34:21 שָׂרָ֗י/ו n c mp cs + sfx pers 3ms Zedekiah king of Judah and his princes will I give into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those who seek their life, and into the hand of the king of Babylon's army, who have gone away from you.
- Jeremiah 35:4 הַ/שָּׂרִ֔ים ptcl def.art + n c mp and I brought them into the house of Yahweh, into the chamber of the sons of Hanan the son of Igdaliah, the man of God, which was by the chamber of the princes, which was above the chamber of Maaseiah the son of Shallum, the keeper of the threshold.
- Jeremiah 36:12 הַ/שָּׂרִ֖ים הַ/שָּׂרִֽים ptcl def.art + n c mp ptcl def.art + n c mp he went down into the king's house, into the scribe's chamber: and, behold, all the princes were sitting there, [to wit], Elishama the scribe, and Delaiah the son of Shemaiah, and Elnathan the son of Achbor, and Gemariah the son of Shaphan, and Zedekiah the son of Hananiah, and all the princes.
- Jeremiah 36:14 הַ/שָּׂרִ֜ים ptcl def.art + n c mp Therefore all the princes sent Jehudi the son of Nethaniah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Cushi, to Baruch, saying, Take in your hand the scroll in which you have read in the ears of the people, and come. So Baruch the son of Neriah took the scroll in his hand, and came to them.
- Jeremiah 36:19 הַ/שָּׂרִים֙ ptcl def.art + n c mp Then said the princes to Baruch, Go, hide you, you and Jeremiah; and let no man know where you are.
- Jeremiah 36:21 הַ/שָּׂרִ֔ים ptcl def.art + n c mp So the king sent Jehudi to get the scroll; and he took it out of the chamber of Elishama the scribe. Jehudi read it in the ears of the king, and in the ears of all the princes who stood beside the king.
- Jeremiah 37:14 הַ/שָּׂרִֽים ptcl def.art + n c mp Then said Jeremiah, It is false; I am not falling away to the Chaldeans. But he didn't listen to him; so Irijah laid hold on Jeremiah, and brought him to the princes.
- Jeremiah 37:15 הַ/שָּׂרִ֛ים ptcl def.art + n c mp The princes were angry with Jeremiah, and struck him, and put him in prison in the house of Jonathan the scribe; for they had made that the prison.
- Jeremiah 38:4 הַ/שָּׂרִ֜ים ptcl def.art + n c mp Then the princes said to the king, Let this man, we pray you, be put to death; because he weakens the hands of the men of war who remain in this city, and the hands of all the people, in speaking such words to them: for this man doesn't seek the welfare of this people, but the hurt.
- Jeremiah 38:17 שָׂרֵ֤י n c mp cs Then said Jeremiah to Zedekiah, Thus says Yahweh, the God of hosts, the God of Israel: If you will go forth to the king of Babylon's princes, then your soul shall live, and this city shall not be burned with fire; and you shall live, and your house.
- Jeremiah 38:18 שָׂרֵי֙ n c mp cs But if you will not go forth to the king of Babylon's princes, then shall this city be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and you shall not escape out of their hand.
- Jeremiah 38:22 שָׂרֵ֖י n c mp cs behold, all the women who are left in the king of Judah's house shall be brought forth to the king of Babylon's princes, and those women shall say, Your familiar friends have set you on, and have prevailed over you: [now that] your feet are sunk in the mire, they are turned away back.
- Jeremiah 38:25 הַ/שָּׂרִים֮ ptcl def.art + n c mp But if the princes hear that I have talked with you, and they come to you, and tell you, Declare to us now what you have said to the king; don't hide it from us, and we will not put you to death; also what the king said to you:
- Jeremiah 38:27 הַ/שָּׂרִ֤ים ptcl def.art + n c mp Then came all the princes to Jeremiah, and asked him; and he told them according to all these words that the king had commanded. So they left off speaking with him; for the matter was not perceived.
- Jeremiah 39:3 שָׂרֵ֣י שָׂרֵ֖י n c mp cs n c mp cs that all the princes of the king of Babylon came in, and sat in the middle gate, [to wit], Nergal Sharezer, Samgar-nebo, Sarsechim, Rabsaris, Nergal Sharezer, Rabmag, with all the rest of the princes of the king of Babylon.
- Jeremiah 40:7 שָׂרֵ֨י n c mp cs Now when all the captains of the forces who were in the fields, even they and their men, heard that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah the son of Ahikam governor in the land, and had committed to him men, and women, and children, and of the poorest of the land, of those who were not carried away captive to Babylon;
- Jeremiah 40:13 שָׂרֵ֥י n c mp cs Moreover Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces who were in the fields, came to Gedaliah to Mizpah,
- Jeremiah 41:11 שָׂרֵ֥י n c mp cs But when Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces who were with him, heard of all the evil that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had done,
- Jeremiah 41:13 שָׂרֵ֥י n c mp cs Now it happened that, when all the people who were with Ishmael saw Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces who were with him, then they were glad.
- Jeremiah 41:16 שָׂרֵ֧י n c mp cs Then took Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces who were with him, all the remnant of the people whom he had recovered from Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, from Mizpah, after that he had killed Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, [to wit], the men of war, and the women, and the children, and the eunuchs, whom he had brought back from Gibeon:
- Jeremiah 42:1 שָׂרֵ֣י n c mp cs Then all the captains of the forces, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and Jezaniah the son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least even to the greatest, came near,
- Jeremiah 42:8 שָׂרֵ֥י n c mp cs Then called he Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces who were with him, and all the people from the least even to the greatest,
- Jeremiah 43:4 שָׂרֵ֧י n c mp cs So Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces, and all the people, didn't obey the voice of Yahweh, to dwell in the land of Judah.
- Jeremiah 43:5 שָׂרֵ֣י n c mp cs But Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces, took all the remnant of Judah, who were returned from all the nations where they had been driven, to sojourn in the land of Judah;
- Jeremiah 44:17 וְ/שָׂרֵ֔י/נוּ conj + n c mp cs + sfx pers 1cp But we will certainly perform every word that is gone forth out of our mouth, to burn incense to the queen of the sky, and to pour out drink-offerings to her, as we have done, we and our fathers, our kings and our princes, in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem; for then had we plenty of food, and were well, and saw no evil.
- Jeremiah 44:21 וְ/שָׂרֵי/כֶ֖ם conj + n c mp cs + sfx pers 2mp The incense that you burned in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, you and your fathers, your kings and your princes, and the people of the land, didn't Yahweh remember them, and didn't it come into his mind?
- Jeremiah 48:7 וְ/שָׂרָ֖י/ו conj + n c mp cs + sfx pers 3ms For, because you have trusted in your works and in your treasures, you also shall be taken: and Chemosh shall go forth into captivity, his priests and his princes together.
- Jeremiah 49:3 וְ/שָׂרָ֖י/ו conj + n c mp cs + sfx pers 3ms Wail, Heshbon, for Ai is laid waste; cry, you daughters of Rabbah, gird you with sackcloth: lament, and run back and forth among the fences; for Malcam shall go into captivity, his priests and his princes together.
- Jeremiah 49:38 וְ/שָׂרִ֖ים conj + n c mp and I will set my throne in Elam, and will destroy from there king and princes, says Yahweh.
- Jeremiah 50:35 שָׂרֶ֖י/הָ n c mp cs + sfx pers 3fs A sword is on the Chaldeans, says Yahweh, and on the inhabitants of Babylon, and on her princes, and on her wise men.
- Jeremiah 51:57 שָׂרֶ֨י/הָ n c mp cs + sfx pers 3fs I will make drunk her princes and her wise men, her governors and her deputies, and her mighty men; and they shall sleep a perpetual sleep, and not wake up, says the King, whose name is Yahweh of Hosts.
- Jeremiah 51:59 שַׂ֥ר n c ms cs The word which Jeremiah the prophet commanded Seraiah the son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, when he went with Zedekiah the king of Judah to Babylon in the fourth year of his reign. Now Seraiah was chief chamberlain.
- Jeremiah 52:10 שָׂרֵ֥י n c mp cs The king of Babylon killed the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes: he killed also all the princes of Judah in Riblah.
- Jeremiah 52:25 שַׂ֣ר n c ms cs and out of the city he took an officer who was set over the men of war; and seven men of those who saw the king's face, who were found in the city; and the scribe of the captain of the host, who mustered the people of the land; and sixty men of the people of the land, who were found in the midst of the city.
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.
שר — transliterated sar — is a Hebrew noun carrying the sense “prince.” The King James Version usually renders it “princes,” while modern versions prefer “commanders” (Berean Standard Bible) — see the renderings breakdown. With 368 verses in 28 books, it is a common word in the Hebrew Bible. Debuting at Genesis 12:15, it then recurs through the corpus. Alongside “prince” the lexicon also lists “ruler”, “leader”, and “chief” — part of its full sense range. Each statement above links to its evidence; the full detail follows below.
Gloss history
Strong's 1890 vs modern scholarship
About this word
Strong's H8269 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 →
- 368
- distinct verses
- The word appears in 368 distinct verses.
- 28 / 39
- OT books
- The word appears in 28 of 39 Old Testament books.
- #117
- by frequency
- Top 250 most frequent Hebrew words (rank 117 of 8,640 Hebrew words by occurrence).
View all 368 occurrences in the concordance →
Most concentrated in
- Jeremiah 52 verses 14%
- 2 Chronicles 47 verses 13%
- 1 Chronicles 37 verses 10%
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 368 distinct verses.
- Prophets (Nevi'im) 166 verses · 45%
- Writings (Ketuvim) 160 verses · 43%
- Torah (Pentateuch) 42 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).
BDB lists this Strong’s number as 2 distinct words (homographs). Each count above pools all of them and is not split by sense — see the Senses section below. A low-frequency rendering may belong to a different one of those words, not the primary meaning.
- King James Version†: Princes 139×, Captains 57×, Captain 39×
- American Standard Version†: Princes 133×, Captains 54×, Captain 42×
- Berean Standard Bible†: Commanders 73×, Officials 67×, Princes 61×
- unfoldingWord Literal Text†: Princes 46×, Commanders of 39×, Leaders of 36×
King James Version Public Domain
Renders H8269 across 420† tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 62 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings. Not rendered by a distinct English word in 1 further occurrence.
American Standard Version Public Domain
Renders H8269 across 418† tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 77 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 H8269 across 399† tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 25 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 21 further occurrences.
unfoldingWord Literal Text CC BY-SA 4.0
Renders H8269 across 390† tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 20 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
19 senses and sub-senses in the full BDB
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 19 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.
שר I be stubborn, rebellious (usually towards י׳) (NH id., (rare)
Qal
- Pf. 3 ms. ס׳ יִשְׂרָאֵל Ho 4:16 Isr. is stubborn; Pt. act. בֵּן סוֹרֵר וּמוֹרֶה Dt 21:18, cf. v 20; בָּנִים סוֹרְרִים Is 30:1, עַם סוֹרֵר 65:2, דּוֹר ס׳ וּמֹרֶה ψ 78:8 (all of Isr.); לֵב ס׳ וּמוֹרֶה Je 5:23; פָּרָה סֹרֵרָ֔ה Ho 4:16 (sim. of Isr., v. supr.); as pred. שָׂרֵיהֶם סוֹרְרִים Ho 9:15 cf. Is 1:23; סָרֵי סוֹרְרִים Je 6:28 revolters among the rebellious (? cf. סור Qal ad fin., and סַר infr.); of loose woman הֹמִיָּה הִיא וְסוֹרָ֑רֶת Pr 7:11; as subst. = the stubborn, ψ 66:7; 68:7, 19; fs. וַיִּתְּנוּ כָתֵף סֹרֶ֫רֶת Ne 9:29 and they presented a stubborn shoulder (of Isr.) = Zc 7:11 (סֹרָ֑רֶת). e.g. Hosea 4:16
שר II chieftain, chief, ruler, official, captain, prince (NH especially of angels
- 1. chieftain, leader:
- a. pl. of Isr. Nu 21:18 (poem in JE; ‖ נְדִיב הָעָם), of Issachar Ju 5:15 (poem); שָׂרֵי גִלְעָד 10:18 is dub. (we should expect וְשׂ׳, and cf. זִקְנֵי ג׳, instead, 11:5–11); of Midian 7:25; 8:3; Philistines 1 S 29:3(×2), 4(×2), 9 (appar. = סְרָנִים v 2, 6, 7 [We], yet disting. by HPS and [with reserve] Bu; 𝔊 𝔖 𝔙 Th Bu del. in v 4b), cf. 18:30; poet., of כְּמוֹשׂ (i.e. the leading Moabites) Je 48:7, of מלכם (q.v.; i.e. the leading Ammonites) Am 1:15 = Je 49:3. e.g. Numbers 21:18
- b. sg. David as leader of freebooters 1 S 22:2; cf. שׂ׳ גְּדוּד 1 K 11:24, pl. 2 S 4:2. e.g. 1 Samuel 22:2
- 2. vassal, noble, official, under king (acting, on occasion, as counsellor, commander, etc.):
- a. pl., in Egypt Gn 12:15 (J) + 3 times Is + 30:4 Di Du Skinner (> of foreign embassy [cf. ‖ מַלְאָכָיו] Che al. reading [CheHeb.Hpt. Marti] שָׂרִים), 105:22; Moab Nu 22:8 + 8 times 22, 23 (JE), Am 2:3; Edom Is 34:12 (‖ חֹרִים); As. 10:8; 31:9; Bab. 21:5 + 7 times Je + 2 Ch 32:31 (but here perhaps vaguely = authorities); other nations Je 49:38 + 17 times Ezr Est; in gen. Is 49:7; officials, officials class, under kings of Israel: David (only Chr) 1 Ch 22:17 + 5 times 1 Ch, Ezr 8:20; Sol. 1 K 4:2; Jehoiachin 2 K 24:12, 14; Zedek. Je 34:21; 2 Ch 36:18; other kings 19 times 2 Chr; in gen. Ec 10:16, 17; see also (Judah) Je 1:18 + 31 times Je (17:25a del. שׂ׳ Gf Che Gie Du), 4 times La, Ez 17:12, Zp 1:8 (where disting. from בְּנֵי הַמֶּלֶךְ, who are never called שׂ׳); so, in gen., Ne 9:32, 34 Dn 9:6, 8; and (N. Isr.) Ho 3:4 + 6 times Ho. e.g. Genesis 12:15
- b. as having powers of magistrate Ex 2:14 (E. + שֹׁפֵט); under Moses (over groups of 1000, 100, 50, 10) 18:21 + 7 times 18 (E), Dt 1:15(×4); later in Judah Ho 5:10 (Now reads שָׂרֵי יִשׂ׳), Is 1:23, cf. 3:4, 14; 32:1; Mi 7:3 (sg.; ‖ שֹׁפֵט), Zp 3:3 (‖ id.), Ez 22:27, cf. Pr 8:16 (‖ נְדִיבִים); 28:2 read perhaps צָרֶיהָ, v. Toy. e.g. Exodus 2:14
- c. as ruler or magistrate of a district (מְדִינָה), 1 K 20:14, 15, 17, 19 (cf. Est 1:3; 8:9; 9:3, שָׂרֵי עַם וָעָם 3:12). e.g. 1 Kings 20:14
- d. as commandant of city, שׂ׳ הָעִיר Ju 9:30, cf. 1 K 22:26 = 2 Ch 18:25, 2 K 23:8; 2 Ch 34:8; of citadel, שׂ׳ הַבִּירָה Ne 7:2; pl. of city officials, שׂ׳ סֻכּוֹת Ju 8:6, 14 (disting. from זְקֵנִים), cf. 2 K 10:1; 2 Ch 29:20. e.g. Judges 9:30
- 3. specif. military, = captain, general:
- a. שַׂר־(ה)צבא Gn 21:22, 32 (E), 26:26 (J), 1 S 12:9 + 23 times, + שׂ׳־צ׳־י׳ Jos 5:14, 15 (JE; צָבָא 1 b), angel-captain in vision; v. also 8, 9; שָׂרֵי הַצּ׳ 1 K 1:25 + 3 times Chr, שָׂרִים בַּצּ׳ 1 Ch 12:22 (Gi Baer; van d. H. v 21); שָׂרֵי צְבָאוֹת Dt 20:9; 1 K 2:5; 1 Ch 27:3; שַׂר־הַחַ֫יִל 2 S 24:2 (but read וְאֶל־שָׂרֵי as 𝔊L and ‖ 1 Ch 21:2 Th We Dr HPS Bu), שָׂרֵי (הַ)ח׳ v 4(×2), 2 K 9:5; 2 Ch 33:14; Ne 2:9, שָׂרֵי הַחֲיָלִים 1 K 15:20 = 2 Ch 16:4; 2 K 25:23; 26 Je 40:7, 13 + 7 times Je; שָׂרֵי מִלְחָמוֹת 2 Ch 32:6; so (ה)שׂר alone 2 S 18:5; 19:7 1 K 9:22 = 2 Ch 8:9 𝔊B Be Kit (שָׂרָיו וְשָׁלִישָׁיו, for MT שָׂרֵי שׂ׳), 2 K 9:5(×2); 1 Ch 11:6, 21 + 9 times, + Jb 39:25 Dn 11:5; שׂ׳ וְגָדוֹל 2 S 3:38 (of Abner); poss. military fig. also in שַׂר שָׁלוֹם Is 9:5 (Mess. name). e.g. Genesis 21:22
- b. leading companies of 50 2 K 1:9–14; Is 3:3, of 100; 1 S 22:7 + 16 times + 8:12 (reading מֵאוֹת for חֲמִשִּׁים 𝔊 HPS, cf. We; Bu ins. שָׂרֵי מֵאוֹת), of 1000; 1 S 17:18 + 11 times, + שָׂרֵי הָאֲלָפִים וְהַמֵּאוֹת 1 Ch 13:1 26:26 (disting. from שָׂרֵי הַצָּבָא), 27:1; 29:6; 2 Ch 1:2; also שׂ׳ הָרֶכֶב captain of the chariotry 1 K 22:31, 32, 33 = 2 Ch 18:30, 31, 32 + 3 times + שָׂרֵי ר׳ וּפָרָשָׁיו 1 K 9:22 = 2 Ch 8:9. e.g. 2 Kings 1:9
- 4.
- a. chief, head, of other official classes: שַׂר הַטַּבָּחִים, Egypt, Gn 37:36 + 5 times; שָׂרֵי הָרָצִים 1 K 14:27 = 2 Ch 12:10; שָׂרֵי הַנִּצָּבִים 1 K 5:30; 9:23 = 2 Ch 8:10; even domestic positions (court of Pharaoh), שַׂר הַמַּשְׁקִים Gn 40:2 + 5 times, שַׂר הָאוֹפוֹת 40:2 + 4 times (all E); שָׂרֵי הַמַּהְלְקוֹת 1 Ch 28:1, i.e. of the successive courses of royal military officials; cf. הַשַּׂר 27:28; שַׂר הַסָּרִיסִים Dn 1:7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 18; שַׂר מְנוּחָה Je 51:59. e.g. Genesis 37:36
- b. = overseer: שַׂר בֵּית הַסֹּהַר Gn 39:21, 23, שָׂרֵי מִקְנֶה 47:6 (all J; cf. אַבִּיר הָרֹעִים 1 S 21:8), שָׂרֵי מִסִּים Ex 1:11 (J); cf. 1 Ch 15:27; 29:6; 27:31; 28:1.—In 1 Ch 15:22 read prob. סַר הַמַּשָּׂא (= שַׂר) overseer of the carrying (for MT בְּמַשָּׂא יָסֹר בַּמַּשָּׂא), so 𝔊 Benz Kit, Be יָסֹר = יָשׂר; v. another view יָסַר Qal. e.g. Genesis 39:21
- 5. of religious office: שָׂרֵי הַכֹּהֲנִים Ezr 8:24, 29; 10:5 2 Ch 36:14; שׂ׳ הַלְוִיִּם 1 Ch 15:16, 22 2 Ch 35:9, cf. 1 Ch 15:5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10; heads of classes or courses of priests, called שָׂרֵי קֹדֶשׁ 1 Ch 24:5, שׂ׳ אֱלֹהִים v 5;—שָׂרֵי ק׳ Is 43:28 (usually consecrated princes, whether priests, or kings, or both) is prob. corrupt, read perhaps שַׁעֲרֵי (Du) or וַיְחַלְּלוּ שָׂרֶיךָ קָדְשִׁי 𝔊 Houb Klo CheHpt Gr (substantially). e.g. Ezra 8:24
- 6. late, of representative leaders of people, tribal heads, שׂ׳ שִׁבְטֵי יִשׂ׳ 1 Ch 27:22; 29:6, cf. 28:1; appar. = elders, שׂ׳ הָעָם Ez 11:1; 2 Ch 24:23; שׂ׳ alone, ψ 68:28(×3); in post-exilic Jerus. Ezr 9:1; 2 Ne 4:10; 10:1; 11:1 (שָׂרֵי הָעָם), + elders Ezr 10:8, 14; called שָׂרֵי יְהוּדָה Ne 12:31, 32; of district-rulers 3:9, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19; of heads of families, שָׂרֵי הָאָבוֹת Ezr 8:29; 1 Ch 29:6 (= רָאשֵׁי הָא׳ 24:31; 27:1; Ne 7:70). e.g. 1 Chronicles 27:22
- 7. late, as term of rank and dignity, Is 23:8 (cf. ‘merchant-princes’), Jb 3:15; 29:9 (‖ נְגִידִים), 34:19 ψ 45:17; 82:7; 148:11, opp. עבד(ים) Pr 19:10; Ec 10:7; formidable foes ψ 119:23, 161. e.g. Isaiah 23:8
- 8. = patron-angel, only Dn: פָּרַס (מַלְכוּת) שַׂר 10:13, 20, שׂ׳ יָוָן v 20; specif. of מִיכָאֵל v 13, 21; 12:1. e.g. Daniel 10:13
- 9. שַׂר־הַצָבָא 8:11 = God (prob., cf. צָבָא 1 c; yet v. also צ׳ 1 b), so שַׂר שָׂרִים v 25. e.g. Daniel 8:11
Senses from the full Brown-Driver-Briggs lexicon (Brown, Driver, Briggs; Oxford 1906 — public domain), digitized via Sefaria, supplemented by the OpenScriptures HebrewLexicon (CC BY 4.0). Full attribution on Sources.
Word origin
I. vb. be stubborn, rebellious (usually towards י׳) (NH id., (rare); Assyrian sarâru);—
II. n.m. chieftain, chief, ruler, official, captain, prince (NH especially of angels; Assyrian šarru, king);—abs. שַׂר 2 S 3:38 +, הַשַּׂר Mi 7:3 +, שָׂ֑ר Ho 3:4 +; cstr. שַׂר Ju 4:2 +; sf. שַׂרְכֶם Dn 10:21; pl. שָׂרִים 1 K 4:2 +; cstr. שָׂרֵי Gn 12:15 +; sf. שָׂרַי Ju 5:15; Is 10:8, שָׂרֵיכֶם Je 44:21, שָׂרֵיהֶם Is 3:4 +;—
— Brown-Driver-Briggs (Oxford 1906, public domain), digitized via Sefaria, supplemented by the OpenScriptures HebrewLexicon (CC BY 4.0). See Sources.
Derived from שרר (sârar) (H8323) — to rule.
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.
שֵׁר
- Tower of Sher (or Shed), Straton’s Tower (v. Hildesh. Beitr. p. 4 sq.). Sifré Deut. 51 מדבר שרשך דור, read: מגדל שר שן דור; Yalk. ib. 874 מגדל שרשן דירו (corr. acc.); Y. Shebi. VI, 36ᶜ top מגדל שיד.
שַׂר
- prince, chief.; שר (של מעלה) guardian angel, genius. Zeb. 116ᵇ שר ונגיד a prince or a nobleman. Yeb. 16ᵇ שר העולם the genius of the universe; Ḥull. 60ᵃ. Ex. R. s. 22 נטל הקב"ה שר שלהם וכ׳ the Lord took first their (the Egyptians’) guardian angel and drowned him. Pes. 118ᵃ שר הברד, v. יוּרְקָמִי. Ib. אני שר של אש I (Gabriel) am the angel of fire. B. Bath. 74ᵇ שר של ים the angel of the sea. Mekh. B’shall., Shir., s. 2 כיון שראו שָׂרָהּ של מלכות נופל (not נופלת) when they saw the genius of the (Egyptian) empire fallen; Yalk. Ex. 243; a. v. fr.—Pl. שָׂרִים. Ib. אין … משָׂרֵיהֶן תחלה the Lord will not punish governments, unless he have punished their guardian angels first. Gen. R. s. 78, beg. מיכאל … שהם ש׳ של מעלה Michael and Gabriel who are the princes on high. Yalk. l. c. קרא … לכל שָׂרֵי האומות the Lord summoned all the tutelary angels of the nations. Cant. R. to VIII, 14 ש׳ של מעלה the princes on high (angels); ש׳ של מטה the earthly (human) governors. Ib. (play on הרי בשמים, ib.) המתינו לי … על הריהם שהם שָׂרֵיהֶם שנתונים אצלי בַּשָּׁמַיִם (not שנתונות) wait until I shall have sat in judgment over their mounts, that is, their chiefs that are placed with me in heaven; a. fr.—Gen. R. s. 98 גני ש׳, v. גִּינֵּיסַר.—Fem. שָׂרָה. Tosef. Ber. I, 12 (ref. to Gen. XVII, 15) בתחלה הרי היא ש׳ על עמה ועכשיו הרי היא ש׳ על אומות העולם ed. Zuck. (Var. שָׂרַי על עמה … על כל באי העולם, v. ed. Zuck. note) at first she was a princess of her own people, and now she is a princess for the nations of the world (for all that enter into the world); Ber. 13ᵃ שרי לאומתה … ש׳ לכל העולם. e.g. Genesis 17:15
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 134 distinct written forms H8269 takes in the Hebrew Bible, most frequent first — each parse links to that state’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; 74 rarer forms follow in the full concordance.
Same root — word family
Other BDB entries built from the same root as H8269, grouped by Strong’s listed origin. These share a root / origin per the lexicon — not necessarily a shared meaning. Each links to that word’s own entry.
Derives from
Derived from this word
Proper names from this root
People and places named from this root — a name, not an additional meaning of the word.
Compare all same-root words → 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 335 verses that also exist in the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint), out of the 368 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 12:15
- Exodus 1:11
- Numbers 21:18
- Deuteronomy 1:15
- Joshua 5:14
- Judges 4:2
- 1 Samuel 8:12
- 2 Samuel 2:8
- 1 Kings 1:19
- 2 Kings 1:9
- 1 Chronicles 11:6
- 2 Chronicles 1:2
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.
