H1067 H1067
bekhirah -- the firstborn daughter, the elder of two sisters or daughters
The feminine noun bekhirah designates the firstborn daughter, the elder of a pair of sisters. It appears exclusively in narrative contexts where birth order determines social precedent: Lot's elder daughter initiates the plan to preserve the family line (Gen 19:31-37), and Laban invokes custom to justify giving Leah before Rachel (Gen 29:26). Saul's firstborn daughter Merab is similarly distinguished (1 Sam 14:49). Spanish la primogenita, French le premier-ne, and German die Erstgeborene all confirm a single, stable meaning tied to female birth-order priority.
Senses
1. the firstborn — The firstborn or elder daughter, used in contexts where birth order carries social, legal, or narrative weight. In Gen 19:31-37, Lot's bekhirah takes the lead in the cave episode, reflecting the firstborn's customary initiative. In Gen 29:26, Laban appeals to the convention that the elder daughter must marry first, blocking Jacob's desire for Rachel. Cross-lingual evidence is uniform -- Spanish primogenita, German Erstgeborene -- pointing to a single, undifferentiated sense of 'firstborn female.' 6×
AR["الـ-بِكْرِ", "الْبِكْرُ", "الْبِكْرِ"]·ben["-বড়", "-বড়ের", "-সেই-জ্যেষ্ঠার"]·DE["der-Erstgeborenen", "der-firstborn", "die-Erstgeborene"]·EN["the-firstborn"]·FR["le-premier-né"]·heb["ה-בכירה"]·HI["पहलि-जयि", "पहलि-जयि-ने", "बड़ी-का", "बड़ी-के"]·ID["yang sulung", "yang-sulung"]·IT["il-primogenito"]·jav["ingkang-pembarep", "ingkang-pembayun", "ingkang-sepuh"]·KO["그-맏이의", "그-큰보다", "큰-딸이"]·PT["a-primogênita"]·RU["первородной", "старшая", "старшей"]·ES["la-primogénita"]·SW["binti-mkubwa", "mkubwa", "mzaliwa-wa-kwanza", "na-akakaa"]·TR["-büyük", "-büyüğün", "büyüğünün"]·urd["بڑی", "بڑی-سے", "بڑی-نے", "بڑی-کا"]
Related Senses
H3808 1. simple negation (not) (4839×)G1722 1. locative: in, within (2442×)H1004b 1. house, dwelling, building (2015×)G3756 1. not (negation particle) (1635×)H4480a 1. source or separation (1198×)H5892b 1. city, town (1093×)G1519 1. direction: into, to, toward (1061×)H3427 1. Qal: to dwell, inhabit (937×)G1537 1. from, out of (source/origin) (886×)H8034 1. Name (designation / identifier) (856×)G3361 1. subjective negation (not) (834×)G1909 1. on, upon (spatial surface) (757×)H0369 1. existential negation: there is not (738×)H5869a 1. in the eyes/sight of (evaluative) (734×)H5650 1. Servant, attendant, subject (723×)H0408 1. prohibitive negation do-not (712×)G2443 1. so that, in order that (purpose/result) (665×)G0575 1. from (649×)G1223 1. through, by means of (582×)H3541 1. thus, so, in this manner (569×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† בְּכִירָה n.f. first-born, always of women Gn 19:31, 33, 34, 37; 29:26 (JE) 1 S 14:49.