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מְחִיר

𐤌𐤇𐤉𐤓

mᵉchîyr

H4242 noun

SILEX Entry

Root מחר to sell, to bargain, to value

Definition

A sum of money or other valuables exchanged in return for something; the price set or paid for goods, slaves, property, or a life. Refers specifically to the payment required for a transfer, whether commercial purchase, redemption, or compensation. In legal contexts, implies the recognized transactional value for something exchanged.

Semantic Range

price, payment, compensation, ransom, value, transactional worth, purchase price, sale price, redemption price, hire, gain

Root / Etymology

Root: מחר. The root מחר relates to commerce, specifically the act of bargaining or engaging in an exchange or sale. While the verbal form occurs rarely or not at all in the Hebrew Bible, the noun derives from the conceptual sense of setting a price or valuing an article for exchange. Cognates may appear in other Semitic languages, reinforcing the connection to trade or sale.

Historical & Contextual Notes

מְחִיר appears in various legal, ritual, and narrative texts of the Hebrew Bible, often denoting the price required for significant exchanges—particularly the redemption or selling of property, people (especially in reference to slaves), or life. For example, in Exodus 21:22 and 21:30 it refers to the compensation set for unintentional harm or death. It is specifically used in Levitical law to prohibit the offering of certain tainted gains (such as the 'price of a dog' in Deuteronomy 23:19) as votive gifts. The term's semantic range remained relatively constant from early to later biblical periods, commonly focusing on the transactional value rather than just the act of trade. The word distinctively emphasizes what is paid or required for the acquisition or legal transfer, in contrast to other roots such as שכר (wage, reward) or מכר (to sell). English translations as 'price' or 'payment' usually capture the meaning, but may lose the term's technical nuance in legal and cultic contexts. Later Hebrew adaptations retain the commercial aspect. ‘Worth’ in English captures the exchange value emphasized by מְחִיר but can obscure the concrete, transactional sense of the word.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

from an unused root meaning to buy; price, payment, wages; gain, hire, price, sold, worth.

Bantu Hebrew

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Root Family

מחר (m-ḥ-r) — to sell, to bargain, to value

Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H4243 מְחִיר price-of
H4283 מׇחֳרָת the after-day

Word Forms

6 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 Occurrences
H4242-01 בִּ/מְחִ֔יר bimechir HR/Ncmsa for a price for a price 6
H4242-03 מְחִ֥יר mechir HNcmsc price purchase-price of 3
H4242-06 בִ/מְחִיר֙ vimechir HR/Ncmsa for a price for a price 2
H4242-05 וּ/מְחִ֣יר umechir HC/Ncmsc and the price and price-of 2
H4242-02 בִּ/מְחִירֵי/הֶֽם bimechireyhem HR/Ncmpc/Sp3mp by their price in their purchase-prices 1
H4242-04 מְחִירָֽ/הּ mechirah HNcmsc/Sp3fs its price her price 1

Occurrences in Scripture

15 total occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1
H4242-05 Deuteronomy 23:19 וּ/מְחִ֣יר umechir HC/Ncmsc or-price-of and price-of
H4242-01 2 Samuel 24:24 בִּ/מְחִ֔יר bimechir HR/Ncmsa for a price for a price
H4242-01 1 Kings 10:28 בִּ/מְחִֽיר bimechir HR/Ncmsa at a price for a price
H4242-03 1 Kings 21:2 מְחִ֥יר mechir HNcmsc its price purchase-price of
H4242-06 Isaiah 45:13 בִ/מְחִיר֙ vimechir HR/Ncmsa for price for a price
H4242-03 Isaiah 55:1 מְחִ֖יר mechir HNcmsa price purchase-price of
H4242-06 Jeremiah 15:13 בִ/מְחִ֑יר vimechir HR/Ncmsa for a price for a price
H4242-01 Micah 3:11 בִּ/מְחִ֣יר bimechir HR/Ncmsa for a price for a price
H4242-02 Psalms 44:13 בִּ/מְחִירֵי/הֶֽם bimechireyhem HR/Ncmpc/Sp3mp by their price in their purchase-prices
H4242-03 Proverbs 17:16 מְחִ֣יר mechir HNcmsa price purchase-price of
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