דֹּבֶר
𐤃𐤁𐤓
dôber
H1699 noun
SILEX Entry
Definition
Pasture, grazing land, or area designated for livestock; in context, a place where domestic animals, particularly sheep, graze and are tended. It may also carry the nuance of an orderly arrangement or enclosure for livestock, emphasizing structured provision and care.
Semantic Range
pasture, grazing land, managed grazing area, sheepfold (by extension), arranged area for flocks
Root / Etymology
From the root דבר (dalet-bet-resh), whose core meaning relates to arranging, ordering, or leading. דֹּבֶר derives from the idea of orderly arrangement, with its application in this noun referring specifically to the orderly arrangement or the managed area of grazing for livestock.
Historical & Contextual Notes
דֹּבֶר appears rarely in the Hebrew Bible, notably in Jeremiah 23:10, in a context describing the physical pastures of the land suffering as a result of wrongdoing. The term highlights the role of human management—arrangement, leading, and provision—in the care of flocks and may contrast with other terms such as מרעה (mirʿeh), which emphasizes the act of pasturing or the general concept of grazing land, regardless of degree of order. In post-biblical Hebrew, terms for pasture diversified, but דֹּבֶר retained its association with deliberate arrangement or structured grazing. English translations as 'pasture' are generally accurate but do not always capture the nuance of arrangement inherent in the Hebrew term, nor its rare and formal flavor in ancient sources.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
from דָבַר (in its original sense); a pasture (from its arrangement of the flock); fold, manner.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.
+ Add Bantu Hebrew WordRoot Family
דבר (d-b-r) — to speak, to arrange, to lead
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H1682 | דְּבוֹרָה | bees |
| H1683 | דְּבּוֹרָה | Bee-woman |
| H1687 | דְּבִיר | in the innermost sanctuary |
| H1688 | דְּבִיר | Devir |
| H1696 | דָבַר | I will speak |
Word Forms
3 distinct forms
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H1699-02 |
כְּ/דָבְרָ֑/ם | kedaveram | HR/Ncmsc/Sp3mp |
as in their pasture | like their arranged pasture | 1 |
H1699-03 |
וְ/הַ/דִּבֵּ֖ר | vehadiber | HC/Td/Ncmsa |
and-the-word | the ordered pasture | 1 |
H1699-01 |
הַ/דָּֽבְר֔/וֹ | hadavero | HTd/Ncmsc/Sp3ms |
of their pasture | his managed pasture | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
3 total occurrences
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H1699-02 |
Isaiah 5:17 | כְּ/דָבְרָ֑/ם | kedaveram | HR/Ncmsc/Sp3mp |
as in their pasture | like their arranged pasture |
H1699-03 |
Jeremiah 5:13 | וְ/הַ/דִּבֵּ֖ר | vehadiber | HC/Td/Ncmsa |
and-the-word | the ordered pasture |
H1699-01 |
Micah 2:12 | הַ/דָּֽבְר֔/וֹ | hadavero | HTd/Ncmsc/Sp3ms |
of their pasture | his managed pasture |