← H7938 H7940 →

שָׂכָר

𐤔𐤊𐤓

sâkâr

H7939 noun

SILEX Entry

Definition

A payment or compensation given in exchange for work, service, or some action; in broader contexts, refers to the result or consequence (positive or negative) that follows from an action. The primary lexical meaning is 'wages' or 'reward,' but it also encompasses any compensation, remuneration, or tangible or intangible benefit resulting from an agreement or performance.

Semantic Range

wages, compensation, payment for work, hire, salary, price paid (for service or goods), reward (literal or metaphorical), benefit, consequence (positive or negative) of an action, dividend, profit, merited return

Root / Etymology

From the root שכר (שׂ-כ-ר), meaning 'to hire' or 'to hire oneself out.' The noun שָׂכָר originally denotes what is given as a result of hiring, i.e., wages or remuneration, but extends to any kind of reward or recompense, whether material or immaterial.

Historical & Contextual Notes

Throughout the Hebrew Bible, שָׂכָר is used for both literal wages paid for labor (e.g., to a hired worker, Genesis 30:32-33) and metaphorical rewards or consequences (both positive and negative) for actions (e.g., Psalm 109:20; Isaiah 62:11). During the patriarchal and monarchic periods, it primarily described compensation for agricultural, pastoral, or manual labor, often with the legal or ethical concern that hired workers receive their due (cf. Leviticus 19:13; Deuteronomy 24:15). In post-exilic and later prophetic literature, the sense widens: שָׂכָר can refer to abstract or divine reward (Isaiah 40:10; Jeremiah 31:16), including eschatological concepts of recompense. The term overlaps with גְּמוּל (gemûl, 'recompense') but שָׂכָר usually implies payment due by arrangement or merit, rather than retribution or response in general. English renderings like 'reward,' 'wages,' or 'hire' are context-dependent; 'reward' can be misleadingly narrow, as שָׂכָר often simply means that which is owed or earned, not necessarily a bonus or additional benefit. The same form is also used in personal names (e.g., Issachar), with interpretations connected to recompense or reward, especially in narrative etiologies (Genesis 30:18). In later rabbinic and post-biblical usage, שָׂכָר continues to denote both payment for work and divine reward for righteousness, with potential for further spiritualization of its semantic range.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

from שָׂכַר; payment of contract; concretely, salary, fare, maintenance; by implication, compensation, benefit; hire, price, reward(-ed), wages, worth.

Bantu Hebrew

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

Root Family

שכר (Yisashkhar) — to become drunk, to be intoxicated

Root שכר to hire, to rent, to reward
Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H3485 יִשָּׂשכָר in Reward-bringer
H4909 מַשְׂכֹּרֶת your compensation
H7910 שִׁכּוֹר drunken one
H7916 שָׂכִיר as a wage-earner
H7917 שְׂכִירָה the hire-wage

Word Forms

10 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2 Occurrences
H7939-02 שָׂכָ֖ר sakhar HNcmsa reward wage-payment reward 7
H7939-07 שְׂכָרִ֔/י sekhari HNcmsc/Sp1cs my wages my wages my wages 5
H7939-05 שְׂכָרְ/ךָ֖ sekharekha HNcmsc/Sp2ms your wages your wage your wages 4
H7939-03 שְׂכַ֣ר sekhar HNcmsc wage wage of wage of 3
H7939-08 שְׂכָר֜/וֹ sekharo HNcmsc/Sp3ms his reward his wages his reward 3
H7939-09 וּ/שְׂכַ֤ר usekhar HC/Ncmsc and wages and wages of and wage of 2
H7939-01 בִּ/שְׂכָרֽ/וֹ bisekharo HR/Ncmsc/Sp3ms for its hire in his compensation in his compensation 1
H7939-04 שְׂכָרָ֜/הּ sekharah HNcmsc/Sp3fs its fare her wage her wage 1
H7939-06 שְׂכָרֵ֑/ךְ sekharekhe HNcmsc/Sp2fs your wages your wages your wages 1
H7939-10 וְ֠/שָׂכָר vesakhar HC/Ncmsa but wages and wages and wages 1

Occurrences in Scripture

28 occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2
H7939-05 Genesis 15:1 שְׂכָרְ/ךָ֖ sekharekha HNcmsc/Sp2ms your reward your wage your reward
H7939-07 Genesis 30:18 שְׂכָרִ֔/י sekhari HNcmsc/Sp1cs my wages/reward my wages my wages
H7939-05 Genesis 30:28 שְׂכָרְ/ךָ֛ sekharekha HNcmsc/Sp2ms your wages your wage your wages
H7939-07 Genesis 30:32 שְׂכָרִֽ/י sekhari HNcmsc/Sp1cs my wages my wages my wages
H7939-07 Genesis 30:33 שְׂכָרִ֖/י sekhari HNcmsc/Sp1cs my wages my wages my wages
H7939-05 Genesis 31:8 שְׂכָרֶ֔/ךָ sekharekha HNcmsc/Sp2ms your wages your wage your wages
H7939-05 Genesis 31:8 שְׂכָרֶ֔/ךָ sekharekha-2 HNcmsc/Sp2ms your wages your wage your wages
H7939-06 Exodus 2:9 שְׂכָרֵ֑/ךְ sekharekhe HNcmsc/Sp2fs your wages your wages your wages
H7939-01 Exodus 22:14 בִּ/שְׂכָרֽ/וֹ bisekharo HR/Ncmsc/Sp3ms for its hire in his compensation in his compensation
H7939-02 Numbers 18:31 שָׂכָ֥ר sakhar HNcmsa reward wage-payment reward
H7939-03 Deuteronomy 15:18 שְׂכַ֣ר sekhar HNcmsc wages wage of wages
H7939-08 Deuteronomy 24:15 שְׂכָר֜/וֹ sekharo HNcmsc/Sp3ms his wages his wages his wages
H7939-09 1 Kings 5:20 וּ/שְׂכַ֤ר usekhar HC/Ncmsc and wages and wages of and wages for
H7939-08 Isaiah 40:10 שְׂכָר/וֹ֙ sekharo HNcmsc/Sp3ms his reward his wages his reward
H7939-08 Isaiah 62:11 שְׂכָר/וֹ֙ sekharo HNcmsc/Sp3ms his reward his wages his reward
H7939-02 Jeremiah 31:16 שָׂכָ֤ר sakhar HNcmsa reward wage-payment reward
H7939-10 Ezekiel 29:18 וְ֠/שָׂכָר vesakhar HC/Ncmsa but wages and wages and wages
H7939-02 Ezekiel 29:19 שָׂכָ֖ר sakhar HNcmsa wages wage-payment wages
H7939-04 Jonah 1:3 שְׂכָרָ֜/הּ sekharah HNcmsc/Sp3fs its fare her wage her wage
H7939-03 Zechariah 8:10 שְׂכַ֤ר sekhar HNcmsc wage wage of wage of
H7939-09 Zechariah 8:10 וּ/שְׂכַ֥ר usekhar HC/Ncmsc nor wage and wages of and wage of
H7939-07 Zechariah 11:12 שְׂכָרִ֖/י sekhari HNcmsc/Sp1cs my wages my wages my wages
H7939-07 Zechariah 11:12 שְׂכָרִ֖/י sekhari-2 HNcmsc/Sp1cs my wages my wages my wages
H7939-03 Malachi 3:5 שְׂכַר sekhar HNcmsc wage wage of the wages of
H7939-02 Psalms 127:3 שָׂ֝כָ֗ר sakhar HNcmsa a reward wage-payment reward
H7939-02 Ecclesiastes 4:9 שָׂכָ֥ר sakhar HNcmsa wage-payment reward
H7939-02 Ecclesiastes 9:5 שָׂכָ֔ר sakhar HNcmsa a reward wage-payment wage-payment
H7939-02 2 Chronicles 15:7 שָׂכָ֖ר sakhar HNcmsa reward wage-payment reward
← H7938 Hebrew Lexicon H7940 →