חָבֵת
𐤇𐤁𐤕
châbêth
H2281 noun
SILEX Entry
Definition
A griddle or a cake baked or fried on a griddle; refers either to the flat implement (griddle, frying-pan, or shallow pan) used for baking, frying, or roasting food, or to the thin, unleavened cake cooked on such a pan. The word may denote both the cooking vessel and the food prepared upon it in ritual or everyday contexts.
Semantic Range
shallow pan, griddle, type of unleavened griddle-cake, implement for cooking grain offerings, fried or baked cake, vessel for ritual food preparation
Root / Etymology
The root is uncertain. Though Strong's suggests a connection with מַחֲבַת (machavat, 'pan, griddle'), the exact origin and derivational pattern of חָבֵת is unclear. The word is likely related to forms or roots indicating 'pan' or 'griddle,' but the etymology is not conclusively established in the extant Hebrew lexicon.
Historical & Contextual Notes
חָבֵת appears rarely in the Hebrew Bible, twice in Levitical ritual texts (Leviticus 2:5; 7:12), where it designates a specific type of offering prepared on a griddle, distinct from those baked in an oven (תַּנּוּר) or deep-fried (using סִיר or מַרְחֶשֶׁת, other terms for cooking vessels). It may refer to both the griddle and the thin, flat cake prepared on it, akin to מַחֲבַת but possibly a different shape or size. English translations usually render it 'pan,' 'griddle,' or 'cake,' but this string of meanings can obscure the close connection between vessel and food in biblical practice. In contrast to מַחֲבַת, which is more widely attested and clearly denotes a metal pan or griddle, חָבֵת appears to be used in early priestly language for a particular offering form. Later periods and Jewish tradition identify similar implements, but the exact nature of the biblical חָבֵת remains uncertain. Its exclusive occurrence in ritual contexts suggests its meaning may not correspond fully to a household cooking vessel.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
from an unused root probably meaning to cook (compare מַחֲבַת); something fried, probably a griddle-cake; pan.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.
+ Add Bantu Hebrew WordRoot Family
חבת (ḥ-b-t) — to bake, to fry, to cook on a griddle
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H4227 | מַחֲבַת | the shallow ritual griddle |
Word Forms
1 distinct form
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H2281-01 |
הַ/חֲבִתִּֽים | hachavitim | HTd/Ncmpa |
of the pans | the griddle-cakes | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
1 total occurrence
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H2281-01 |
1 Chronicles 9:31 | הַ/חֲבִתִּֽים | hachavitim | HTd/Ncmpa |
of the pans | the griddle-cakes |