H1700 H1700
cause, reason, manner, order; on account of, for the sake of
A feminine noun used almost exclusively in construct or with prepositions, conveying the ideas of cause, reason, or established order. Its most celebrated occurrence is Psalm 110:4, where God swears the Messianic king is a priest forever 'al divrati Malki-Tsedeq ('after the order of Melchizedek'), a phrase that became foundational in both Jewish and Christian theology (cf. Heb 7). In Ecclesiastes it appears as a causal preposition meaning 'because of' or 'on account of' (3:18; 7:14; 8:2). In Job 5:8 Eliphaz uses it to mean 'my case' or 'my cause.'
Senses
1. sense 1 — Cause, reason, or established manner/order. Used prepositionally as 'al divrat to mean 'because of, on account of' (Eccl 3:18; 7:14; 8:2), and in Ps 110:4 as 'after the order of' Melchizedek, denoting a priestly pattern or rank. Spanish 'orden de' and 'causa de' capture both nuances. In Job 5:8 it means 'my cause/case,' the matter one brings before God. The range from legal cause to established order reflects a single underlying concept of the ground or basis for something. 5×
AR["أَمْري", "الكَلَامِ", "بِسَبَبِ", "رُتبَة", "كَلَامِ"]·ben["আমার-বচনের", "আমার-বিষয়", "ব্যাপারে"]·DE["Sache", "der-order-von"]·EN["account", "matter-of", "my-case", "the-order-of"]·FR["mon-à-cause-de-moi", "raison", "à-cause-de"]·heb["דברי", "דברת", "דיברתי"]·HI["मामले-के", "मेरी-बात", "मेरी-विधि"]·ID["cara", "perkara", "perkaraku"]·IT["[דברתי]", "account", "matter-of", "mio-case-mio"]·jav["bab", "prakawis-kawula", "prakawisipun", "pranatan-Kula", "prekawis"]·KO["나의-말을", "말-의", "반열-을"]·PT["a-ordem", "assunto-de", "causa-minha", "o-assunto-de"]·RU["дела", "дела,", "деле", "дело-моё", "чину-моему"]·ES["causa-de", "el-asunto-de", "el-orden-de", "mi-palabra"]·SW["jambo-la", "kwamba", "mpangilio-wa", "shauri-langu"]·TR["davamnı", "düzenimi", "konusu"]·urd["اپنا-معاملہ", "بات", "بات-کے", "ملکی-صدق-کے"]
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
† [דִּבְרָה] n.f. cause, reason, manner—cstr. עַל דִּבְרַת because of, for the sake of Ec 3:18; 7:14; 8:2; עַל־דִּבְרָתִי מַלְכִּי־צֶדֶק after the order, or manner, of Melchizedek ψ 110:4 (י ancient genit. ending, to soften transition in poetry, Ges§ 90 (3) a); sf. דִּבְרָתִי my cause, suit Jb 5:8.