שַׁחַד
𐤔𐤇𐤃
shachad
H7810 noun
SILEX Entry
Definition
A material gift or present, typically given to obtain favor or influence an outcome, especially in the context of legal or public decisions; most often refers to a bribe intended to corrupt justice or gain unfair advantage, but can carry the neutral sense of a present intended as an expression of respect or to secure goodwill, depending on context. The primary sense in the Hebrew Bible is negative, signaling an illicit gift offered to subvert justice.
Semantic Range
bribe, illicit gift given to corrupt justice, present offered to influence favor, reward given to manipulate outcome, rarely neutral gift or present
Root / Etymology
From the root שׁחד, which conveys the sense of 'to give a present,' especially to influence someone; the nominal form שַׁחַד denotes a tangible item given as a gift, particularly as a bribe in judicial or political contexts.
Historical & Contextual Notes
In biblical usage, שַׁחַד typically appears in contexts condemning bribery and corruption, especially within the Israelite legal system (e.g., Deuteronomy 16:19, Isaiah 1:23, Amos 5:12), with strong injunctions against accepting gifts that pervert justice. The word is distinct from other terms for generic gifts (such as מִנְחָה, 'offering' or 'tribute') in that שַׁחַד is almost always associated with the intent to improperly influence legal or social outcomes. In rare cases or extra-biblical Hebrew, the term can refer more generally to a gift, but in the Hebrew Bible, the negative connotation is dominant and understood by context. Later Jewish and Judean writings and translations render שַׁחַד as 'bribe,' but in other ancient Near Eastern legal systems, similar words could sometimes have a neutral or even positive sense. English translations uniformly render it as 'bribe' or 'bribery,' but note that its root meaning is broader, though its biblical application is narrowly pejorative.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
from שָׁחַד; a donation (venal or redemptive); bribe(-ry), gift, present, reward.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.
+ Add Bantu Hebrew WordRoot Family
שחד (sh-ḥ-d) — to give a gift, to offer a present to win favor, to influence through a gift
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H7809 | שָׁחַד | and you bribed |
Word Forms
5 distinct forms
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H7810-04 |
שֹֽׁחַד | shochad | HNcmsa |
a bribe | bribe-gift | 14 |
H7810-05 |
וְ/שֹׁ֖חַד | veshochad | HC/Ncmsa |
and bribe | corrupting bribe | 4 |
H7810-03 |
הַ/שֹּׁ֨חַד֙ | hashochad | HTd/Ncmsa |
the bribe | the bribe | 3 |
H7810-02 |
בְּ/שֹׁ֣חַד | beshochad | HR/Ncmsa |
for a bribe | by a bribe | 1 |
H7810-01 |
בַּ/שֹּׁ֔חַד | bashochad | HRd/Ncmsa |
bribe | in the bribe | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
23 total occurrences
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H7810-05 |
Exodus 23:8 | וְ/שֹׁ֖חַד | veshochad | HC/Ncmsa |
and-a-bribe | corrupting bribe |
H7810-03 |
Exodus 23:8 | הַ/שֹּׁ֨חַד֙ | hashochad | HTd/Ncmsa |
the-bribe | the bribe |
H7810-04 |
Deuteronomy 10:17 | שֹֽׁחַד | shochad | HNcmsa |
bribe | bribe-gift |
H7810-04 |
Deuteronomy 16:19 | שֹׁ֔חַד | shochad | HNcmsa |
bribe | bribe-gift |
H7810-03 |
Deuteronomy 16:19 | הַ/שֹּׁ֗חַד | hashochad | HTd/Ncmsa |
the bribe | the bribe |
H7810-04 |
Deuteronomy 27:25 | שֹׁ֔חַד | shochad | HNcmsa |
a bribe | bribe-gift |
H7810-04 |
1 Samuel 8:3 | שֹׁ֔חַד | shochad | HNcmsa |
bribes | bribe-gift |
H7810-04 |
1 Kings 15:19 | שֹׁ֨חַד֙ | shochad | HNcmsa |
a bribe | bribe-gift |
H7810-04 |
2 Kings 16:8 | שֹֽׁחַד | shochad | HNcmsa |
a bribe | bribe-gift |
H7810-04 |
Isaiah 1:23 | שֹׁ֔חַד | shochad | HNcmsa |
bribe | bribe-gift |