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קֶבֶר

𐤒𐤁𐤓

qeber

H6913 noun

SILEX Entry

Definition

Physical place where a human body is interred after death; specifically, a grave, burial place, or tomb. In biblical contexts, denotes a marked or unmarked location—often a pit, cave, or constructed chamber—serving as the final resting place for the deceased, either individually or as a family unit. The term's semantic range includes usage for simple individual graves, family burial caves, and at times more monumental tombs, though rarely denoting lavish built mausolea.

Semantic Range

grave, burial place, sepulchre, tomb, site of interment, family tomb, burial cave

Root / Etymology

Root: קבר (q-b-r), meaning 'to bury.' Qeber is a nominal formation from the root verb, carrying the sense of the place associated with the burial act. The core meaning of the root is 'to bury,' whereas qeber specifically denotes the location resulting from the burial process—the grave.

Historical & Contextual Notes

Appears across the Hebrew Bible in prose and poetic passages. In patriarchal and monarchic narratives (e.g., Genesis, Kings, Chronicles), qeber typically refers to family burial sites such as caves or plots; collective burial practices are implied in several passages (e.g., 'buried with their ancestors'). The term may indicate a degree of permanence and respect, but does not inherently imply monumental construction (as opposed to more elaborate Near Eastern tombs of other cultures). Compared to the related noun קִבְרָה (qibrah, fem.), qeber is more frequent and is the standard word for a grave. Unlike שְׁאוֹל (she'ol), which refers to the realm of the dead in more metaphysical terms, qeber always refers to the physical place of burial. English 'grave' generally matches the biblical meaning, but 'sepulchre,' used in older translations, captures the sense of a place set apart for burial but can suggest greater monumentality than is often warranted by the ancient context. No evidence suggests exclusive use for Israelites, and the term is used of graves for both Israelites and non-Israelites throughout the biblical text.

Translation Consistency

primary "grave" 48 occurrences

qeber denotes the place of interment (a grave, burial place, or tomb). "Grave" is the most natural, common single-word English equivalent that covers simple pits, family burial caves, and tombs; it is a noun (not the act of burying) and matches typical biblical usage, so it provides consistent, natural rendering across all forms.

Alternatives (2 occurrences):
"burial-places" (1x) "burial-sites" (1x)

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

or (feminine) קִבְרָה; from קָבַר; a sepulchre; burying place, grave, sepulchre.

Bantu Hebrew

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

Root Family

קבר (qᵉbûwrâh) — to bury, inter

Root קבר to bury, inter
Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H6900 קְבוּרָה in a burial-place
H6912 קָבַר I will be buried

Word Forms

33 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2 Occurrences
H6913-19 קֶ֥בֶר qever HNcmsc grave burial-place a grave 9
H6913-16 קָ֑בֶר qaver HNcmsa of a burial place burial place grave 7
H6913-03 בְּ/קֶ֣בֶר beqever HR/Ncmsc in the tomb in a grave in a grave 6
H6913-06 בְּ/קִבְר֥וֹת beqiverot HR/Ncmpc in the tombs in graves of in graves of 3
H6913-07 הַ/קְּבָרִ֔ים haqevarim HTd/Ncmpa the tombs the graves the graves 3
H6913-21 קִבְרֵ֣י qiverey HNcmpc graves graves of graves of 3
H6913-23 קִבְר֛/וֹ qivero HNcmsc/Sp3ms his grave his burial-place his grave 3
H6913-02 בַּ/קֶּ֕בֶר baqever HRd/Ncmsa in the grave in the grave in the grave 2
H6913-15 מִ/קִּבְרוֹתֵי/כֶ֖ם miqiveroteykhem HR/Ncmpc/Sp2mp from your graves from your burial-places from your graves 2
H6913-18 קְבָרִים֙ qevarim HNcmpa graves burial places graves 2

Occurrences in Scripture

67 occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2
H6913-19 Genesis 23:4 קֶ֨בֶר֙ qever HNcmsa of a burying place burial-place a grave
H6913-17 Genesis 23:6 קְבָרֵ֔י/נוּ qevareynu HNcmpc/Sp1cp of our graves our burial-places our burial-places
H6913-23 Genesis 23:6 קִבְר֛/וֹ qivero HNcmsc/Sp3ms his grave his burial-place his grave
H6913-16 Genesis 23:9 קָֽבֶר qaver HNcmsa of a burial place burial place grave
H6913-16 Genesis 23:20 קָ֑בֶר qaver HNcmsa of a burial place burial place grave
H6913-16 Genesis 49:30 קָֽבֶר qaver HNcmsa of a burial place burial place grave
H6913-04 Genesis 50:5 בְּ/קִבְרִ֗/י beqiveri HR/Ncmsc/Sp1cs in my grave in my burial-place in my grave
H6913-19 Genesis 50:13 קֶ֗בֶר qever HNcmsa of a burying place burial-place a grave
H6913-18 Exodus 14:11 קְבָרִים֙ qevarim HNcmpa graves burial places graves
H6913-31 Numbers 19:16 בְ/קָ֑בֶר veqaver HR/Ncmsa a grave in a burial-place in a grave
H6913-30 Numbers 19:18 בַ/קָּֽבֶר vaqaver HRd/Ncmsa a grave in the grave in the grave
H6913-03 Judges 8:32 בְּ/קֶ֨בֶר֙ beqever HR/Ncmsc in the tomb in a grave in a grave
H6913-03 Judges 16:31 בְּ/קֶ֖בֶר beqever HR/Ncmsc in the tomb in a grave in a grave
H6913-03 2 Samuel 2:32 בְּ/קֶ֣בֶר beqever HR/Ncmsc in the tomb in a grave in a grave
H6913-19 2 Samuel 3:32 קֶ֣בֶר qever HNcmsc tomb burial-place a grave
H6913-32 2 Samuel 4:12 בְ/קֶֽבֶר veqever HR/Ncmsc in grave in a grave of in a grave
H6913-03 2 Samuel 17:23 בְּ/קֶ֥בֶר beqever HR/Ncmsc in the grave in a grave in a grave
H6913-19 2 Samuel 19:38 קֶ֥בֶר qever HNcmsc the grave burial-place the grave
H6913-03 2 Samuel 21:14 בְּ/קֶ֨בֶר֙ beqever HR/Ncmsc in the grave in a grave in a grave
H6913-19 1 Kings 13:22 קֶ֥בֶר qever HNcmsc grave burial-place a grave
H6913-05 1 Kings 13:30 בְּ/קִבְר֑/וֹ beqivero HR/Ncmsc/Sp3ms in his grave in his grave in his grave
H6913-02 1 Kings 13:31 בַּ/קֶּ֕בֶר baqever HRd/Ncmsa in the tomb in the grave in the grave
H6913-16 1 Kings 14:13 קָ֑בֶר qaver HNcmsa grave burial place grave
H6913-03 2 Kings 13:21 בְּ/קֶ֣בֶר beqever HR/Ncmsc into the tomb in a grave in the grave
H6913-28 2 Kings 22:20 קִבְרֹתֶי/ךָ֮ qiveroteykha HNcmpc/Sp2ms your graves your burial-places your graves
H6913-19 2 Kings 23:6 קֶ֖בֶר qever HNcmsc graves burial-place a grave
H6913-07 2 Kings 23:16 הַ/קְּבָרִ֤ים haqevarim HTd/Ncmpa the tombs the graves the graves
H6913-07 2 Kings 23:16 הַ/קְּבָרִ֔ים haqevarim-2 HTd/Ncmpa the tombs the graves the graves
H6913-08 2 Kings 23:17 הַ/קֶּ֤בֶר haqever HTd/Ncmsa the tomb the burial-place the grave
H6913-13 Isaiah 14:19 מִֽ/קִּבְרְ/ךָ֙ miqiverekha HR/Ncmsc/Sp2ms from your grave from your grave from your grave
H6913-16 Isaiah 22:16 קָ֑בֶר qaver HNcmsa a tomb burial place grave
H6913-23 Isaiah 22:16 קִבְר֔/וֹ qivero HNcmsc/Sp3ms his tomb his burial-place his grave
H6913-23 Isaiah 53:9 קִבְר֔/וֹ qivero HNcmsc/Sp3ms his grave his burial-place his grave
H6913-01 Isaiah 65:4 בַּ/קְּבָרִ֔ים baqevarim HRd/Ncmpa among graves in the graves in the graves
H6913-09 Jeremiah 5:16 כְּ/קֶ֣בֶר keqever HR/Ncmsa as a grave as a burial-place as a grave
H6913-14 Jeremiah 8:1 מִ/קִּבְרֵי/הֶֽם miqivereyhem HR/Ncmpc/Sp3mp from-their-graves from their graves from their graves
H6913-22 Jeremiah 20:17 קִבְרִ֔/י qiveri HNcmsc/Sp1cs grave-my my burial-place my grave
H6913-21 Jeremiah 26:23 קִבְרֵ֖י qiverey HNcmpc graves graves of graves of
H6913-25 Ezekiel 32:22 קִבְרֹתָ֑י/ו qiverotayv HNcmpc/Sp3ms his graves his burial-sites his burial-sites
H6913-27 Ezekiel 32:23 קִבְרֹתֶ֨י/הָ֙ qiveroteyha HNcmpc/Sp3fs her graves her graves her graves
H6913-26 Ezekiel 32:25 קִבְרֹתֶ֑/הָ qiveroteha HNcmpc/Sp3fs her graves her burial-places her graves
H6913-27 Ezekiel 32:26 קִבְרוֹתֶ֑י/הָ qiveroteyha HNcmpc/Sp3fs her graves her graves her graves
H6913-29 Ezekiel 37:12 קִבְרֽוֹתֵי/כֶ֗ם qiveroteykhem HNcmpc/Sp2mp your-graves your burial-places your graves
H6913-15 Ezekiel 37:12 מִ/קִּבְרוֹתֵי/כֶ֖ם miqiveroteykhem HR/Ncmpc/Sp2mp from-your-graves from your burial-places from your graves
H6913-29 Ezekiel 37:13 קִבְרֽוֹתֵי/כֶ֗ם qiveroteykhem HNcmpc/Sp2mp your graves your burial-places your graves
H6913-15 Ezekiel 37:13 מִ/קִּבְרוֹתֵי/כֶ֖ם miqiveroteykhem HR/Ncmpc/Sp2mp from your graves from your burial-places from your graves
H6913-19 Ezekiel 39:11 קֶ֜בֶר qever HNcmsa of a grave burial-place a grave
H6913-20 Nahum 1:14 קִבְרֶ֖/ךָ qiverekha HNcmsc/Sp2ms your grave your grave your grave
H6913-19 Psalms 5:10 קֶֽבֶר qever HNcmsa grave burial-place a grave
H6913-19 Psalms 88:6 קֶ֗בֶר qever HNcmsa in the grave burial-place a grave
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