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בְּעִיר

𐤁𐤏𐤉𐤓

bᵉʻîyr

H1165 noun

SILEX Entry

Definition

Domesticated herd animal, typically referring to cattle, including oxen or bovines; at times extended to beasts of burden or livestock in general. The word often denotes animals raised for agricultural purposes, especially for plowing, work, or as a possession of wealth. Rarely, used more broadly for domesticated animals as a class distinct from wild creatures.

Semantic Range

(domesticated) cattle, herd animal, beast of burden, livestock (esp. bovines); in some contexts, animal property; never wild beast

Root / Etymology

Derived from the root בער (b-'-r), which primarily means 'to consume, graze, eat' and, by nominal formation, refers to 'that which eats or grazes.' The formation with the mem prefix classifies it as a collective noun, originally designating 'grazing animal.'

Historical & Contextual Notes

בְּעִיר appears in poetic and narrative contexts as a term for cattle, especially when emphasizing the animals' status as domestic, tamed, and economically important. Unlike other Hebrew terms such as פָּר (par, 'bull'), שׁוֹר (shor, 'ox'), or בָּקָר (baqar, 'herd, cattle'), בְּעִיר is often collective and non-gendered, emphasizing the animals' function rather than species type or sex. In later Hebrew periods and translations (including LXX and Vulgate), the term is sometimes rendered generically as 'beast,' which can obscure its more precise reference in earlier Israelite contexts. There is no evidence that the term was used for wild animals; its semantic sphere is domesticated, grazing livestock, particularly bovines. In ritual, legal, and sacrificial passages, other terms are more precise, but בְּעִיר retains connotations of property, wealth, and agrarian economy throughout the Hebrew Bible.

Translation Consistency

primary "cattle" 2 occurrences

The SILEX range centers on domesticated bovines/oxen and herd animals. "Cattle" is the natural, widely used English term that best matches the typical sense (oxen/bovines) while fitting traditional biblical style. It’s also easy to inflect consistently; rarer broader senses (livestock, beasts of burden) can be handled contextually.

Alternatives (5 occurrences):
"livestock" (4x) "herd-animal" (1x)

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

from בָּעַר (in the sense of eating); cattle; beast, cattle.

Bantu Hebrew

No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been recorded for this word yet.

Root Family

בער (Beor) — to burn, consume, be kindled

Root בער to consume, eat, graze
Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H1160 בְּעוֹר Beor
H1197 בָּעַר she burned
H1198 בַּעַר beast-like senseless
H1199 בָּעֲרָא Baʿarah
H1200 בְּעֵרָה the blazing

Word Forms

6 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2 Occurrences
H1165-01 בְּעִירָֽ/ם beiram HNcmsc/Sp3mp their cattle their grazing-animal their cattle 2
H1165-02 בְּעִ֣ירְ/כֶ֔ם beirekhem HNcmsc/Sp2mp your beasts your herd-animal your herd-animal 1
H1165-03 בְּעִיר֔/וֹ beiro HNcmsc/Sp3ms his livestock his herd-animal his livestock 1
H1165-04 וּ/בְעִירָֽ/ם uveiram HC/Ncmsc/Sp3mp and their livestock and their grazing-animal and their livestock 1
H1165-05 וּ/בְעִירֵֽ/נוּ uveirenu HC/Ncmsc/Sp1cp and-our-livestock and our grazing-herd and our livestock 1
H1165-06 בעיר/ה vyrh HNcmsc/Sp3ms his livestock his grazing-animal his livestock 1

Occurrences in Scripture

7 occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2
H1165-02 Genesis 45:17 בְּעִ֣ירְ/כֶ֔ם beirekhem HNcmsc/Sp2mp your beasts your herd-animal your herd-animal
H1165-06 Exodus 22:4 בעיר/ה vyrh HNcmsc/Sp3ms his livestock his grazing-animal his livestock
H1165-03 Exodus 22:4 בְּעִיר֔/וֹ beiro HNcmsc/Sp3ms his livestock his herd-animal his livestock
H1165-05 Numbers 20:4 וּ/בְעִירֵֽ/נוּ uveirenu HC/Ncmsc/Sp1cp and-our-livestock and our grazing-herd and our livestock
H1165-01 Numbers 20:8 בְּעִירָֽ/ם beiram HNcmsc/Sp3mp their-livestock their grazing-animal their cattle
H1165-04 Numbers 20:11 וּ/בְעִירָֽ/ם uveiram HC/Ncmsc/Sp3mp and their livestock and their grazing-animal and their livestock
H1165-01 Psalms 78:48 בְּעִירָ֑/ם beiram HNcmsc/Sp3mp their cattle their grazing-animal their cattle
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