קֵבָה H6897
belly or stomach, used of a woman in a context of violent death
While sharing the same root as H6896, this form appears with a third feminine suffix ('her belly') and carries a more general anatomical sense. In Numbers 25:8, Phinehas's spear pierces through both the Israelite man and the Midianite woman 'through her belly'—a graphic detail emphasizing the zeal and violence of his intervention. The multilingual evidence shows translations favor 'belly' over the more technical 'stomach,' suggesting a broader anatomical reference than the cultic term.
Senses
1. sense 1 — The belly or abdominal region of a woman, used in a narrative of violent death. The suffixed form (qobatah, 'her belly') appears only in the Phinehas account where his spear runs through the bodies of both sinners. Cross-linguistic renderings prefer 'belly/abdomen' (Spanish vientre, French ventre) over technical stomach terminology, indicating general anatomical reference rather than specific organ. 1×
AR["بَطْنِهَا"]·ben["তার-গর্ভাশয়ে"]·DE["ihr-belly"]·EN["her-belly"]·FR["sa-ventre"]·heb["קבתה"]·HI["पेट-उसके"]·ID["perutnya"]·IT["lei-belly"]·jav["wetengipun"]·KO["그녀-의-배"]·PT["ventre-dela"]·RU["чрево-её"]·ES["vientre-de-ella"]·SW["tumbo-lake"]·TR["karnına-onun"]·urd["اُس-کے-پیٹ"]
Related Senses
H7200 1. Qal: to see, perceive (1257×)G4771 2. you (singular address) (1077×)H8085 1. Qal: hear, perceive aurally (921×)H0859a 1. you (2nd person masculine singular pronoun) (743×)H0398 1. eat (consume food) (697×)H4191 1. die (Qal: natural/general death) (645×)G3708 1. see, perceive visually (419×)G0191 1. hear, perceive sound (360×)H???? 3. (352×)G3708 2. behold, look (exclamatory) (256×)H7272 1. foot (body part) (236×)H8354 1. drink, consume liquid (209×)H3205 1. Qal active: bear/give birth (female subject) (204×)H3205 2. Qal active: beget/father (male subject) (198×)H2421 1. Qal: live, be alive (177×)H8085 2. Qal: listen, heed, pay attention (172×)H2416a 1. alive, living (state/attribute) (146×)H2416e 1. life, lifespan, lifetime (145×)G2198 1. be alive, have life (133×)H8193 1. lip, lips (body part) (123×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
קֵבָה sf. קֳבָתָהּ (Köl.c. cf. Ges§ 10 h) n.f. stomach, belly;— 1. abs. הַקּ׳ of sacrificial victim, assigned to priest Dt 18:3, 𝔊 τὸ ἔνυστρον, i.e. fourth stomach of ruminants (cf. Dr), 𝔙 ventriculum. 2. sf. of woman, appar. more gen., belly Nu 25:8 (P).