טַבָּח H2876
executioner, bodyguard (royal slaughterer); cook, one who slaughters and prepares food
1. executioner, bodyguard (royal slaughterer) — The masculine noun טַבָּח in its primary biblical sense denotes a royal executioner or bodyguard — literally 'slaughterer' — a member of the king's armed retinue charged with executions and security. This usage dominates the OT (30 of 32 occurrences), especially in the phrase רַב־טַבָּחִים 'chief of the executioners/guard' applied to Potiphar (Gen 37:36, 39:1) and Nebuzaradan (2 Kgs 25, Jer 39-52). S99870 covers the construct/absolute plural (טַבָּחִים, 24x) and S99872 the articled forms (הַטַּבָּחִים, 6x). Multilingual translations reflect the guard/executioner sense: Arabic الشُّرَطِ/الْجَلَّادِينَ (police/executioners), Spanish guardia/verdugos (guard/executioners), Hindi देहरक्षकों/अंगरक्षकों (bodyguards), Korean 친위대/경호대/호위대 (royal guard/escort), Swahili walinzi (guards). 30×
AR["الشُرَطِ","الشُّرَطِ"]·ben["দেহরক্ষীদের","রক্ষীদের","রক্ষীদের।"]·DE["Schlaechter","executioners"]·EN["executioners","the-executioners"]·FR["executioners","garde"]·heb["טבחים"]·HI["अंगरक्षक","अंगरक्षकों-का","अंगरक्षकों-के","अंगरक्षकों-ने","तब्बाखीम","देहरक्षकों","देहरक्षकों-ने"]·ID["-pengawal","Tabakhim","pengawal"]·IT["boia","capitano-della-guardia"]·jav["juru-jagal","pengawal"]·KO["경호대의","친위대의"]·PT["Tabachim","guardas","os-guardas"]·RU["Тавахим","стражи","телохранителей"]·ES["guardias","la-guardia","los-guardias","verdugos"]·SW["walinzi"]·TR["Tabbahim","muhafizlarin","muhafızların"]·urd["جلادوں","جلادوں-نے","جلادوں-کا","جلادوں-کے","مویشی-خانے-کا","مویشی-خانے-کے"]
Gen 37:36, Gen 39:1, Gen 40:3, Gen 40:4, Gen 41:10, Gen 41:12, 2 Kgs 25:8, 2 Kgs 25:10, 2 Kgs 25:11, 2 Kgs 25:12, 2 Kgs 25:15, 2 Kgs 25:18 (+18 more)
▼ 1 more sense below
Senses
2. cook, one who slaughters and prepares food — The masculine noun טַבָּח in its culinary sense denotes a cook — one who slaughters animals and prepares meat for a meal. This rare usage (2x, both in 1 Sam 9:23-24) describes the cook whom Samuel instructs to serve Saul a reserved portion of meat at the sacrificial feast. The semantic shift from 'slaughterer' to 'cook' is natural since ancient cooks were also the butchers. Multilingual evidence clearly distinguishes this sense from the executioner meaning: Arabic الطَّبَّاخُ/لِلطَّبَّاخِ (the cook/to the cook), Spanish el cocinero/al cocinero (the cook/to the cook), Hindi रसोई (kitchen/cook), Korean 요리사 (cook/chef), Swahili mpishi (cook). The uniform culinary translation across all six languages confirms a distinct lexical sense from the guard/executioner. 2×
AR["الـ-طَبَّاخُ","لِلـ-طَبَّاخِ"]·ben["-রাঁধুনি","-রাঁধুনিকে"]·DE["der-cook","zu-der-cook"]·EN["the-cook","to-the-cook"]·FR["le-cook","à-le-cook"]·heb["ה-טבח","ל-טבח"]·HI["रसोई-ने","से-रसोई"]·ID["kepada-tukang-masak","tukang-masak"]·IT["a-il-cuoco","il-cuoco"]·jav["dhateng-juru-masak","juru-masak"]·KO["그-요리사가","그-요리사에게"]·PT["ao-cozinheiro","o-cozinheiro"]·RU["повар","повару"]·ES["al-cocinero","el-cocinero"]·SW["kwa-mpishi","mpishi"]·TR["-aşçı","-aşçıya"]·urd["باورچی-سے","باورچی-نے"]
BDB / Lexicon Reference
טַבָּח n.m. 1 S 9:23 1. cook, 2.guardsman;— †1. cook (who also killed the animal for food and served it) טַבָּח abs. 1 S 9:23, 24†. 2. elsewhere only pl. טַבָּחִים guardsmen, bodyguard (orig. royal slaughterers; v. RSOTJC 426 (262); Sem i. 1st ed., 396); always in the foll. combinations: שַׂר הַטּ׳ captain of Pharaoh’s bodyguard Gn 37:36; 39:1 (both J), 40:3, 4; 41:10, 12 (all E); רַב־ט׳ chief of…