sharat · serve, minister

What it means

sharat (שָׁרַת) is a Hebrew word of the Bible that means “serve, minister”.

Serve someone closely, attend to them personally; also minister in worship.

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 wait on someone closely.
2. To serve in worship before YHWH.

From Brown-Driver-Briggs (1906)

Word study

To serve someone closely, to attend to him; in worship, to minister before YHWH. BDB: to attend as a menial or worshiper; to minister. From the same root is שָׁרֵת, “service”.

• Serving a master: Joseph in Potiphar's house Genesis 39:4
• The attendant: Joshua with Moses, Elisha with Elijah Exodus 24:13Joshua 1:11 Kings 19:21
• The priests and Levites who minister Exodus 28:43Deuteronomy 10:81 Samuel 2:11
• The ministers of God and of the king Psalms 104:4Esther 1:10

How we translate it

“Minister” 41 times, “ministers” 16, “ministering” 13; “attendant” 5, “attendants” 3, “assistant” 3. This edition sets שֵׁרֵת = “minister” (Exodus 28:35), to distinguish it from עָבַד, “serve”, and כְּלֵי הַשָּׁרֵת = “utensils of ministry” (Numbers 4:12). The participle is translated “attendant” or “assistant” when it is the one who accompanies a prophet or a leader (Joshua 1:1).

How it is translated

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

• minister ×41
• ministers ×16
• ministering ×13
• attendant ×5
• assistant ×3
• attendants ×3
• they ministered ×3
• ministered to him ×2
• who ministered ×2
• who served him ×2
• others ×7

Related words

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

Where it appears

• Genesis×2
• Exodus×10
• Numbers×10
• Deuteronomy×5
• Joshua×1
• 1 Samuel×3
• 2 Samuel×2
• 1 Kings×5
• 2 Kings×3
• 1 Chronicles×8
• 2 Chronicles×10
• Ezra×1
• Nehemiah×2
• Esther×3
• Psalms×3
• Proverbs×1
• Isaiah×4
• Jeremiah×3
• Ezekiel×17
• Joel×4

• Genesis 39:4

  So Joseph found favor in his eyes, and he served him; and he appointed him over his house, and all that he had he put in his hand.

• Genesis 40:4

  The chief of the guard appointed Joseph to be with them, and he attended them; and they were some days in custody.

• Exodus 24:13

  Moses rose, with Joshua his attendant, and Moses went up to the mountain of Elohim.

• Exodus 28:35

  It shall be on Aaron to minister, and its sound shall be heard when he goes into the Holy Place before YHWH and when he comes out, so that he will not die.

• Exodus 28:43

  They shall be on Aaron and on his sons when they go into the tent of meeting, or when they come near to the altar to minister in the Holy Place, so that they do not bear iniquity and die. It is a statute forever for him and for his offspring after him.

• 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 30:20

  When they go into the tent of meeting, they shall wash with water so that they will not die; or when they come near to the altar to minister, to offer up in smoke a fire offering to YHWH,

• Exodus 33:11

  And YHWH would speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his companion. Then he would return to the camp, but his assistant Joshua son of Nun, a young man, would not depart from inside the tent.

• 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 39:1

  And from the blue and the purple and the scarlet they made woven garments for ministering in the Holy Place; and they made the holy garments that were for Aaron, as YHWH had commanded Moses.

• Exodus 39:26

  a bell and a pomegranate, a bell and a pomegranate, on the hem of the robe all around, for ministering, as YHWH had commanded Moses.

• 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.

• Numbers 1:50

  But you appoint the Levites over the dwelling of the testimony, and over all its utensils, and over all that belongs to it. They shall carry the dwelling and all its utensils, and they shall minister to it, and around the dwelling they shall camp.

• Numbers 3:6

  “Bring near the tribe of Levi and set it before Aaron the priest, and they shall minister to him.

• Numbers 3:31

  And their charge is the ark, and the table, and the lampstand, and the altars, and the utensils of the Holy Place with which they minister, and the screen, and all its service.

• Numbers 4:9

  And they shall take a cloth of blue and cover the lampstand for the light, and its lamps, and its snuffers, and its trays, and all its vessels for oil with which they minister to it.

• Numbers 4:12

  And they shall take all the utensils of ministry with which they minister in the Holy Place, and put them into a cloth of blue, and cover them with a covering of fine leather, and put them on the carrying frame.

• Numbers 4:14

  And they shall put on it all its utensils with which they minister on it: the firepans, the forks, and the shovels, and the basins, all the utensils of the altar; and they shall spread over it a covering of fine leather, and put in its poles.

• Numbers 8:26

  He may minister to his brothers in the tent of meeting in keeping the charge, but he shall do no service. Thus you shall do for the Levites regarding their charges.”

• Numbers 11:28

  And Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ assistant from his youth, answered and said, “My lord Moses, stop them.”

• Numbers 16:9

  Is it too little for you that the Elohim of Israel has separated you from the community of Israel to bring you near to himself, to do the service of the dwelling of YHWH and to stand before the community to minister to them,

• Numbers 18:2

  And also your brothers, the tribe of Levi, the tribe of your father, bring near with you, so that they may be joined to you and minister to you, while you and your sons with you are before the tent of the testimony.

• Deuteronomy 10:8

  At that time YHWH set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of the covenant of YHWH, to stand before YHWH to minister to him and to bless in his name, to this day.

• Deuteronomy 17:12

  And the man who acts with arrogance so as not to listen to the priest who stands to minister there to YHWH your Elohim, or to the judge, that man shall die. So you shall remove the evil from Israel.

• Deuteronomy 18:5

  For YHWH your Elohim has chosen him out of all your tribes to stand to minister in the name of YHWH, him and his sons, all the days.

• Deuteronomy 18:7

  and ministers in the name of YHWH his Elohim, like all his brothers, the Levites, who stand there before YHWH,

• Deuteronomy 21:5

  And the priests, the sons of Levi, shall come forward, for YHWH your Elohim has chosen them to minister to him and to bless in the name of YHWH, and by their word every dispute and every blow shall be settled.

• Joshua 1:1

  And it came about after the death of Moses the servant of YHWH, that YHWH said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ assistant:

• 1 Samuel 2:11

  Then Elkanah went to Ramah, to his house. And the boy was ministering to YHWH before Eli the priest.

• 1 Samuel 2:18

  But Samuel was ministering before YHWH, a boy girded with a linen ephod.

• 1 Samuel 3:1

  And the boy Samuel was ministering to YHWH before Eli. And the word of YHWH was rare in those days; there was no vision breaking through.

• 2 Samuel 13:17

  He called his young man, his attendant, and said, “Send this woman away from me, outside, and bolt the door after her.”

• 2 Samuel 13:18

  She was wearing a long robe, for so the king’s virgin daughters used to dress, in robes. His attendant brought her outside and bolted the door after her.

• 1 Kings 1:4

  The young woman was very beautiful; and she became the king’s caretaker and ministered to him, but the king did not know her.

• 1 Kings 1:15

  So Bathsheba went in to the king, into the chamber; now the king was very old, and Abishag the Shunammite was ministering to the king.

• 1 Kings 8:11

  and the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of YHWH filled the house of YHWH.

• 1 Kings 10:5

  and the food of his table, and the seating of his servants, and the station of his attendants and their clothing, and his cupbearers, and his burnt offering that he offered at the house of YHWH; and there was no more spirit in her.

• 1 Kings 19:21

  He turned back from following him, and took the yoke of oxen and sacrificed it; and with the equipment of the oxen he boiled the meat, and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he got up and went after Elijah and ministered to him.

• 2 Kings 4:43

  His attendant said, “How can I set this before a hundred men?” He said, “Give it to the people, and let them eat, for thus says YHWH, ‘They will eat and have some left over.’”

• 2 Kings 6:15

  The attendant of the man of Elohim rose early to get up and went out, and there was a force surrounding the city, with horses and chariots. His young man said to him, “Alas, my lord! What shall we do?”

And 57 more times.