barach · bless, kneel

What it means

barach (בָּרַךְ) is a Hebrew word of the Bible that means “bless, kneel”.

Bless. When God blesses, he gives good: life, children, fruit, prosperity. When a person "blesses God", he gives him nothing: he praises and thanks him. Between people, it is wishing the other the good that comes from God; also greet. The root also means kneel.

How to say it

Approximate pronunciation. Vowels sound as in Spanish (a as in father, e as in bed, i as in machine, o as in note, u as in rule); the syllable in bold is stressed. The voice is your device's.

Its senses in the Bible

1. To kneel, or make a camel kneel.
2. God gives good things: life, children, harvests.
3. To praise God: "blessed be YHWH".
4. To wish someone God's good; to greet.
5. Said as its opposite, wishing someone harm.

From Brown-Driver-Briggs (1906)

Word study

Bless. BDB notes that the proper sense is “kneel”, and from there to bless God (as an act of worship) and man (as a good given to him); by euphemism, also “curse”. From the same root come בְּרָכָה, “blessing” (H1293), and בֶּרֶךְ, “knee”.

• God blesses: he gives life, fruit, offspring Genesis 1:22Genesis 12:3
• One person blesses another Genesis 14:19
• “Blessed be YHWH”: praise Genesis 14:20Genesis 24:27
• To greet Genesis 47:72 Kings 4:29
• By euphemism, to “curse” God 1 Kings 21:10

How we translate it

“Blessed” 168 times, “bless” 135. This edition's glossary sets “bless” with no deviations (and keeps “blessed” for בָּרוּךְ, distinct from “happy” for אַשְׁרֵי). When the verb is a greeting, “bless” is kept, with a note (2 Kings 4:29). In 1 Kings 21:10, 13 it is translated “cursed”, with a note, because the Hebrew says “bless” as a euphemism.

How it is translated

The words this translation uses for it, most frequent first.

• blessed ×168
• bless ×135
• blesses ×4
• blesses you ×4
• he blesses ×4
• cursed ×3
• curse you ×2
• you have done nothing but ×2
• Curse ×1
• He made the camels kneel ×1
• others ×6

Related words

Words of the same family, by Strong’s numbering.

Where it appears

• Genesis×73
• Exodus×6
• Leviticus×2
• Numbers×17
• Deuteronomy×39
• Joshua×8
• Judges×6
• Ruth×5
• 1 Samuel×11
• 2 Samuel×14
• 1 Kings×12
• 2 Kings×3
• 1 Chronicles×16
• 2 Chronicles×9
• Ezra×1
• Nehemiah×4
• Job×8
• Psalms×75
• Proverbs×6
• Isaiah×8
• Jeremiah×4
• Ezekiel×1
• Haggai×1
• Zechariah×1

• Genesis 1:22

  And Elohim blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let the birds multiply on the earth.”

• Genesis 1:28

  And Elohim blessed them, and Elohim said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every animal that creeps on the earth.”

• Genesis 2:3

  And Elohim blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he ceased from all his work that Elohim had created to make.

• Genesis 5:2

  Male and female he created them, and he blessed them and called their name “Human Being” in the day they were created.

• Genesis 9:1

  And Elohim blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.

• Genesis 9:26

  And he said, “Blessed be YHWH, the Elohim of Shem; and let Canaan be their slave.

• Genesis 12:2

  I will make you into a great nation, I will bless you, and I will make great your name; and be a blessing.

• Genesis 12:3

  I will bless those who bless you, and the one who treats you with contempt I will curse; and in you all the families of the ground will be blessed.”

• Genesis 14:19

  He blessed him and said, “Blessed be Abram of El Elyon, owner of the heavens and earth;

• Genesis 14:20

  and blessed be El Elyon, who has delivered your adversaries into your hand.” And he gave him a tenth of everything.

• Genesis 17:16

  I will bless her, and also I will give you a son by her; I will bless her, and she will become nations; kings of peoples will come from her.”

• Genesis 17:20

  As for Ishmael, I have heard you; look, I will bless him and make him fruitful and multiply him exceedingly. He will father twelve chiefs, and I will make him into a great nation.

• Genesis 18:18

  since Abraham will surely become a great and mighty nation, and in him all the nations of the earth will be blessed?

• Genesis 22:17

  that I will surely bless you and will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of the heavens and as the sand that is on the shore of the sea; and your offspring will possess the gate of its enemies.

• Genesis 22:18

  And through your offspring all the nations of the earth will bless themselves, because you listened to my voice.”

• Genesis 24:1

  Abraham was old, advanced in days, and YHWH had blessed Abraham in everything.

• Genesis 24:11

  He made the camels kneel outside the city by the well of water at the time of evening, the time the women who draw water go out.

• Genesis 24:27

  and said, “Blessed be YHWH, the Elohim of my lord Abraham, who has not abandoned his loyal love and his faithfulness toward my lord. As for me, YHWH has led me on the way to the house of my lord’s brothers.”

• Genesis 24:31

  He said, “Come in, blessed of YHWH! Why do you stand outside? I have prepared the house and a place for the camels.”

• Genesis 24:35

  YHWH has blessed my lord greatly, and he has become great. He has given him sheep and cattle, silver and gold, male slaves and female slaves, camels and donkeys.

• Genesis 24:48

  And I bowed my head and bowed down to YHWH, and I blessed YHWH, the Elohim of my lord Abraham, who had led me on a true way to take the daughter of my lord’s brother for his son.

• Genesis 24:60

  They blessed Rebekah and said to her, “Our sister, may you become thousands of ten thousands, and may your offspring possess the gate of those who hate it.”

• Genesis 25:11

  After the death of Abraham, Elohim blessed Isaac his son, and Isaac lived by Beer-lahai-roi.

• Genesis 26:3

  Reside as an alien in this land, and I will be with you and bless you, for to you and to your offspring I will give all these lands, and I will establish the oath that I swore to Abraham your father.

• Genesis 26:4

  I will multiply your offspring as the stars of the heavens and will give to your offspring all these lands; and through your offspring all the nations of the earth will bless themselves,

• Genesis 26:12

  Isaac sowed in that land and reaped in that year a hundredfold; and YHWH blessed him.

• Genesis 26:24

  YHWH appeared to him that night and said, “I am the Elohim of Abraham your father. Do not be afraid, for I am with you, and I will bless you and multiply your offspring because of Abraham my servant.”

• Genesis 26:29

  that you will not do us harm, just as we have not touched you and just as we have done to you only good and have sent you away in peace. You are now the blessed of YHWH.’”

• Genesis 27:4

  and make me tasty food such as I love, and bring it to me so that I may eat, so that I may bless you before I die.”

• Genesis 27:7

  ‘Bring me game and make me tasty food, so that I may eat and bless you before YHWH before my death.’

• Genesis 27:10

  Then you will bring it to your father, and he will eat, so that he may bless you before his death.”

• Genesis 27:19

  Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your firstborn. I have done as you told me. Get up, please, sit and eat of my game, so that you may bless me.”

• Genesis 27:23

  He did not recognize him, because his hands were hairy like the hands of Esau his brother; so he blessed him.

• Genesis 27:25

  He said, “Bring it near to me, and let me eat of the game of my son, so that I may bless you.” So he brought it near to him, and he ate; and he brought him wine, and he drank.

• Genesis 27:27

  So he came near and kissed him; and he smelled the smell of his garments and blessed him and said, “See, the smell of my son is like the smell of a field that YHWH has blessed.

• Genesis 27:29

  May peoples serve you, and nations bow down to you. Be master over your brothers, and may the sons of your mother bow down to you. Cursed be those who curse you, and blessed be those who bless you.”

• Genesis 27:30

  As soon as Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, and Jacob had only just gone out from the presence of Isaac his father, Esau his brother came in from his hunting.

• Genesis 27:31

  He also made tasty food and brought it to his father, and he said to his father, “Let my father get up and eat of his son’s game, so that you may bless me.”

• Genesis 27:33

  Isaac trembled with a great trembling, exceedingly, and said, “Who then was he who hunted game and brought it to me, and I ate of all before you came, and I blessed him? Indeed, he will be blessed.”

• Genesis 27:34

  When Esau heard the words of his father, he cried out with a great and exceedingly bitter cry, and said to his father, “Bless me, me too, my father!”

And 290 more times.