patach · open, engrave

What it means

patach (פָּתַח) is a Hebrew word of the Bible that means “open, engrave”.

Open; loosen, set free. In another form, engrave (cut lines in stone or metal).

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 open a door, mouth or eyes.
2. To free a prisoner, or remove a load.
3. To cut a shape or letters into stone or metal.

From Brown-Driver-Briggs (1906)

Word study

To open; also to loosen, and in another form, to engrave (to open furrows in stone or metal). BDB: to open wide, literally or figuratively; specifically, to loosen, begin, plow, carve. From the same root comes פֶּתַח, “entrance” (H6607).

• Noah opens the window of the ark Genesis 8:6
• YHWH opens the womb Genesis 29:31
• “Open my lips” Psalms 51:15
• Opening the floodgates of the heavens; opening the graves Malachi 3:10Ezekiel 37:12
• Engraving names on stones Exodus 28:9

How we translate it

“Open” 57 times, “opened” 49, “opening” 3, “opens” 3… “Loosen” 4 or “set free” 2 when it is untying, and “engrave” in the work on the stones of the ephod. “Opened her womb” is left literal.

How it is translated

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

• open ×57
• opened ×49
• engrave ×5
• loosen ×4
• opening ×3
• opens ×3
• drawn ×2
• he engraved ×2
• loosed ×2
• set free ×2
• others ×15

Related words

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

Where it appears

• Genesis×9
• Exodus×6
• Numbers×4
• Deuteronomy×6
• Joshua×2
• Judges×4
• 1 Samuel×1
• 1 Kings×4
• 2 Kings×5
• 2 Chronicles×7
• Nehemiah×6
• Job×13
• Psalms×18
• Proverbs×4
• Song of Songs×4
• Isaiah×21
• Jeremiah×6
• Ezekiel×15
• Daniel×1
• Amos×1
• Nahum×3
• Zechariah×3
• Malachi×1

• Genesis 7:11

  In the six hundredth year of the life of Noah, in the second month, on the seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the springs of the great deep burst open, and the floodgates of the heavens were opened.

• Genesis 8:6

  And it happened at the end of forty days that Noah opened the window of the ark that he had made,

• Genesis 24:32

  The man came into the house, and he unloaded the camels and gave straw and fodder to the camels and water to wash his feet and the feet of the men who were with him.

• Genesis 29:31

  YHWH saw that Leah was hated, and he opened her womb; but Rachel was barren.

• Genesis 30:22

  Elohim remembered Rachel, and Elohim heard her and opened her womb.

• Genesis 41:56

  The famine was over all the face of the earth, and Joseph opened all the storehouses that were in them and sold grain to the Egyptians; and the famine grew strong in the land of Egypt.

• Genesis 42:27

  One of them opened his sack to give fodder to his donkey at the lodging place, and he saw his silver, and look, it was in the mouth of his bag.

• Genesis 43:21

  And when we came to the lodging place and opened our bags, look, each man’s silver was in the mouth of his bag, our silver in its full weight; so we have brought it back in our hand.

• Genesis 44:11

  Quickly each man lowered his bag to the ground, and each man opened his bag.

• Exodus 2:6

  She opened it and saw him, the child, and look, a boy crying! She had pity on him and said, “This is one of the children of the Hebrews.”

• Exodus 21:33

  When a man opens a pit, or when a man digs a pit and does not cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls into it,

• Exodus 28:9

  You shall take two onyx stones and engrave on them the names of the sons of Israel,

• Exodus 28:11

  As the work of a stonecutter, with engravings of a signet, you shall engrave the two stones with the names of the sons of Israel; mounted in settings of gold you shall make them.

• Exodus 28:36

  You shall make a plate of pure gold and engrave on it, with engravings of a signet, ‘Holiness to YHWH.’

• Exodus 39:6

  And they made the onyx stones, set in settings of gold, engraved with the engravings of a seal with the names of the sons of Israel.

• Numbers 16:32

  And the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them and their households and all the people who belonged to Korah and all the goods.

• Numbers 19:15

  And every open vessel that has no lid fastened on it is unclean.

• Numbers 22:28

  Then YHWH opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?”

• Numbers 26:10

  The earth opened its mouth and swallowed them and Korah when the community died, when the fire consumed two hundred fifty men, and they became a sign.

• Deuteronomy 15:8

  But you shall freely open your hand to him and freely lend him enough for his need, whatever he lacks.

• Deuteronomy 15:11

  For the needy one will never cease from the midst of the land; therefore I am commanding you, saying, “You shall freely open your hand to your brother, to your poor, and to your needy in your land.”

• Deuteronomy 20:11

  And if it answers you with peace and opens its gates to you, then all the people who are found in it shall be yours for forced labor and shall serve you.

• Deuteronomy 28:12

  YHWH will open to you his good storehouse, the heavens, to give the rain of your land in its season and to bless all the work of your hand; and you will lend to many nations, but you will not borrow.

• Joshua 8:17

  Not a man was left in Ai or Bethel who did not go out after Israel; and they abandoned the city open and pursued Israel.

• Joshua 10:22

  Then Joshua said, “Open the mouth of the cave and bring out to me these five kings from the cave.”

• Judges 3:25

  They waited until they were ashamed, and look, he was not opening the doors of the upper room. So they took the key and opened them, and there was their lord, fallen to the ground, dead.

• Judges 4:19

  He said to her, “Give me to drink, please, a little water, for I am thirsty.” She opened the skin of milk, gave him a drink, and covered him.

• Judges 19:27

  And her master arose in the morning and opened the doors of the house and went out to go on his way; and look, the woman, his concubine, was fallen at the entrance of the house, with her hands on the threshold.

• 1 Samuel 3:15

  And Samuel lay until the morning; then he opened the doors of the house of YHWH. And Samuel was afraid to tell the vision to Eli.

• 1 Kings 7:36

  And he engraved on the plates of its handles and on its panels cherubim, lions, and palm trees, according to the space of each, and wreaths all around.

• 1 Kings 8:29

  that your eyes may be open toward this house night and day, toward the place of which you said, ‘My name shall be there,’ to listen to the prayer that your servant prays toward this place.

• 1 Kings 8:52

  May your eyes be open to the supplication of your servant and to the supplication of your people Israel, to listen to them in all for which they call to you.

• 1 Kings 20:11

  The king of Israel answered and said, “Tell him, ‘Let not the one who girds on his armor boast like the one who takes it off.’”

• 2 Kings 9:3

  Then take the flask of oil and pour it on his head and say, ‘Thus says YHWH, “I have anointed you king over Israel.”’ Then open the door and flee, and do not wait.”

• 2 Kings 9:10

  And Jezebel the dogs will eat in the portion of Jezreel, and there will be no one to bury her.’” Then he opened the door and fled.

• 2 Kings 13:17

  He said, “Open the window toward the east.” And he opened it. Elisha said, “Shoot.” And he shot. He said, “An arrow of victory of YHWH, and an arrow of victory against Aram! You will strike Aram at Aphek until you have finished it.”

• 2 Kings 15:16

  Then Menahem struck Tiphsah and all who were in it and its territories from Tirzah, because they did not open to him; and he struck it; all its pregnant women he ripped open.

• 2 Chronicles 2:7

  So now send me a wise man to work in gold, in silver, in bronze, in iron, and in purple, crimson, and blue, and who knows how to engrave engravings, with the wise men who are with me in Judah and in Jerusalem, whom David my father prepared.

• 2 Chronicles 2:14

  the son of a woman from the daughters of Dan, and his father is a man of Tyre; he knows how to work in gold, in silver, in bronze, in iron, in stone, and in wood, in purple, in blue, in fine linen, and in crimson, and to engrave any engraving and to devise any design that may be assigned to him, with your wise men and the wise men of my lord David your father.

• 2 Chronicles 3:7

  He covered the house —the beams, the thresholds, its walls and its doors— with gold, and he engraved cherubim on the walls.

And 104 more times.