kohen · priest

What it means

kohen (כֹּהֵן) is a Hebrew word of the Bible that means “priest”.

One who serves God on behalf of the people and presents the offerings.

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. One who serves in the sanctuary and offers for the people.
2. A priest of other gods.

From Brown-Driver-Briggs (1906)

Word study

Priest. From the verb כָּהַן, “serve as priest”.

• The priests of Israel, sons of Aaron Leviticus 21:1Leviticus 1:9Malachi 2:7
• Priests of other peoples Genesis 41:45Exodus 2:16
• Melchizedek, priest of El Elyon Genesis 14:18
• All Israel as “a kingdom of priests” Exodus 19:6

Historical and cultural background

In the law, the priest burns the offerings on the altar (Leviticus 1:9), examines sores on the skin and declares the person clean or unclean (Leviticus 13:3), and guards and teaches instruction (Malachi 2:7).

How we translate it

“Priest” 440 times and “priests” 310: a constant rendering, with no exceptions.

How it is translated

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

• priest ×440
• priests ×310

Related words

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

Where it appears

• Genesis×7
• Exodus×11
• Leviticus×194
• Numbers×69
• Deuteronomy×14
• Joshua×37
• Judges×15
• 1 Samuel×32
• 2 Samuel×9
• 1 Kings×29
• 2 Kings×44
• 1 Chronicles×19
• 2 Chronicles×89
• Ezra×26
• Nehemiah×44
• Job×1
• Psalms×5
• Isaiah×6
• Jeremiah×41
• Lamentations×6
• Ezekiel×24
• Hosea×4
• Joel×3
• Amos×1
• Micah×1
• Zephaniah×2
• Haggai×8
• Zechariah×6
• Malachi×3

• Genesis 14:18

  And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was priest of El Elyon.

• Genesis 41:45

  Pharaoh called Joseph’s name Zaphenath-paneah, and he gave him Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera, priest of On, as a wife. And Joseph went out over the land of Egypt.

• Genesis 41:50

  To Joseph were born two sons before the year of famine came, whom Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera, priest of On, bore to him.

• Genesis 46:20

  To Joseph in the land of Egypt were born Manasseh and Ephraim, whom Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera, priest of On, bore to him.

• Genesis 47:22

  Only the land of the priests he did not buy, for the priests had an allotment from Pharaoh, and they ate their allotment that Pharaoh gave them; therefore they did not sell their land.

• Genesis 47:26

  Joseph made it a statute, to this day, concerning the land of Egypt: to Pharaoh belongs the fifth. Only the land of the priests by itself did not become Pharaoh’s.

• Exodus 2:16

  The priest of Midian had seven daughters. They came and drew water and filled the troughs to water the flock of their father.

• Exodus 3:1

  Moses was shepherding the flock of Jethro, his father-in-law, the priest of Midian; and he led the flock beyond the wilderness and came to the mountain of Elohim, to Horeb.

• Exodus 18:1

  Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard of all that Elohim had done for Moses and for Israel his people, how YHWH had brought Israel out of Egypt.

• Exodus 19:6

  and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the sons of Israel.”

• Exodus 19:22

  And also the priests who come near to YHWH must consecrate themselves, lest YHWH break out against them.”

• Exodus 19:24

  YHWH said to him, “Go, go down, and come up, you and Aaron with you; but the priests and the people must not break through to come up to YHWH, lest he break out against them.”

• Exodus 29:30

  Seven days the priest who succeeds him from among his sons shall wear them, the one who goes into the tent of meeting to minister in the Holy Place.

• Exodus 31:10

  and the woven garments, and the holy garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments of his sons to serve as priests;

• Exodus 35:19

  the woven garments for ministering in the Holy Place, the holy garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments of his sons to serve as priests.’”

• Exodus 38:21

  These are the accounts of the dwelling, the dwelling of the testimony, which were recorded by order of Moses, the service of the Levites, under the direction of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest.

• Exodus 39:41

  the woven garments for ministering in the Holy Place, the holy garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments of his sons to serve as priests.

• Leviticus 1:5

  He shall slaughter the young bull before YHWH, and the sons of Aaron, the priests, shall present the blood and splash the blood against the altar all around, the altar that is at the entrance of the tent of meeting.

• Leviticus 1:7

  The sons of Aaron the priest shall put fire on the altar and arrange wood on the fire.

• Leviticus 1:8

  The sons of Aaron, the priests, shall arrange the pieces, the head and the suet, on the wood that is on the fire that is on the altar.

• Leviticus 1:9

  Its entrails and its legs he shall wash in water, and the priest shall offer up in smoke all of it on the altar as a burnt offering, a fire offering, a pleasing aroma to YHWH.

• Leviticus 1:11

  He shall slaughter it on the side of the altar northward before YHWH, and the sons of Aaron, the priests, shall splash its blood against the altar all around.

• Leviticus 1:12

  He shall cut it into its pieces, with its head and its suet, and the priest shall arrange them on the wood that is on the fire that is on the altar.

• Leviticus 1:13

  The entrails and the legs he shall wash in water, and the priest shall present all of it and offer it up in smoke on the altar; it is a burnt offering, a fire offering, a pleasing aroma to YHWH.

• Leviticus 1:15

  The priest shall bring it to the altar, wring off its head, and offer it up in smoke on the altar; and its blood shall be drained out on the wall of the altar.

• Leviticus 1:17

  He shall tear it open by its wings —he shall not divide it— and the priest shall offer up in smoke it on the altar, on the wood that is on the fire; it is a burnt offering, a fire offering, a pleasing aroma to YHWH.

• Leviticus 2:2

  He shall bring it to the sons of Aaron, the priests, and he shall take from there his full handful of its fine flour and of its oil, with all its frankincense, and the priest shall offer up in smoke its memorial portion on the altar, a fire offering, a pleasing aroma to YHWH.

• Leviticus 2:8

  You shall bring the grain offering that is made from these things to YHWH, and he shall present it to the priest, and he shall bring it near to the altar.

• Leviticus 2:9

  The priest shall take up from the grain offering its memorial portion and offer it up in smoke on the altar, a fire offering, a pleasing aroma to YHWH.

• Leviticus 2:16

  The priest shall offer up in smoke its memorial portion, part of its crushed grain and of its oil, with all its frankincense, a fire offering to YHWH.

• Leviticus 3:2

  He shall lay his hand on the head of his offering and slaughter it at the entrance of the tent of meeting, and the sons of Aaron, the priests, shall splash the blood against the altar all around.

• Leviticus 3:11

  The priest shall offer it up in smoke on the altar; it is food of a fire offering to YHWH.

• Leviticus 3:16

  The priest shall offer them up in smoke on the altar; it is food of a fire offering for a pleasing aroma. All fat belongs to YHWH.

• Leviticus 4:3

  if the anointed priest sins, bringing guilt on the people, he shall present for his sin that he has sinned a young bull without defect to YHWH as a sin offering.

• Leviticus 4:5

  The anointed priest shall take some of the blood of the bull and bring it into the tent of meeting.

• Leviticus 4:6

  The priest shall dip his finger in the blood and sprinkle some of the blood seven times before YHWH, in front of the veil of the Holy Place.

• Leviticus 4:7

  The priest shall put some of the blood on the horns of the altar of fragrant incense before YHWH that is in the tent of meeting, and all the rest of the blood of the bull he shall pour out at the base of the altar of burnt offering that is at the entrance of the tent of meeting.

• Leviticus 4:10

  just as it is taken off from the ox of the sacrifice of peace; and the priest shall offer them up in smoke on the altar of burnt offering.

• Leviticus 4:16

  The anointed priest shall bring some of the blood of the bull into the tent of meeting.

• Leviticus 4:17

  The priest shall dip his finger in the blood and sprinkle it seven times before YHWH, in front of the veil.

And 710 more times.