קָבַר132 H6912
To bury a dead person in a grave or tomb; in passive stems, to be buried; by extension, one who buries.
Qabar is the universal Hebrew verb for interment of the dead, appearing across every stem and spanning the entire biblical narrative from Abraham's purchase of the cave of Machpelah (Gen 23) to Ezekiel's apocalyptic valley of mass burial (Ezek 39). The word's semantic core is remarkably stable across languages: Arabic qabara, Aramaic qebar, Akkadian qibiru, and even the Phoenician inscriptions all preserve the same root with the same meaning, making this one of the most deeply shared Semitic concepts. What shifts across stems is agency and intensity — the Qal describes the straightforward act of burying, the Nifal and Pual mark the honored or dishonorable state of being buried, and the Piel intensifies into systematic or mass interment. The refrain 'and he was buried' punctuates the book of Judges like a drumbeat, reminding readers that even mighty leaders return to the earth.
Senses
1. bury (Qal active) — The core Qal active sense: to bury a dead person in a grave, tomb, or sepulcher. This accounts for the vast majority of occurrences and spans the full range of finite forms, infinitives, and the infinitive absolute. Abraham buries Sarah in the cave of Machpelah (Gen 23:19), Joseph fulfills Jacob's dying wish to be buried in Canaan (Gen 50:13), and Deuteronomy 21:23 insists that even an executed criminal must be buried the same day. The cross-Semitic unanimity is striking: Arabic dafana, Swahili -zika, Korean 장사하다/묻다, and Spanish enterrar/sepultar all converge on dedicated burial vocabulary rather than generic 'put in ground' language. 82×
AR["فَدَفَنُوا","فَدَفَنُوهُ","وَ-دَفَنوا","وَ-دَفَنوهُ","وَ-دَفَنوهُم","وَ-دَفَنُوا","وَ-دَفَنُوهُ","وَ-دُفِنَ","وَ-قَبِرُوا","وَدَفَنوهُ","وَدَفَنُوهُ"]·ben["আর-কবর-দিল-তাকে","আর-কবর-দিলেন","আর-তাঁকে-সমাধিস্থ-করল","আর-তাঁকে-সমাধিস্থ-করলেন","এবং-কবর-দিল","এবং-কবর-দিল-তারা","এবং-কবর-দিলেন","এবং-তাঁকে-কবর-দিলেন","এবং-তারা-কবর-দিল","ও-কবর-দেওয়া-হল-তাঁকে"]·DE["And-sie-begrub","und-begraben","und-begrub","und-sie-begrub"]·EN["And-they-buried","and-buried","and-buried-him","and-they-buried","and-they-buried-him"]·FR["Et-ils-enterra","et-ensevelir","et-ensevelit","et-enterra","et-ils-ensevelit","et-ils-enterra"]·heb["ו-יקברו","ו-קבר-ו","ו-קברו"]·HI["और-गअद","और-गाड़ा","और-गाड़ा-उसे","और-गाड़ा-गया","और-गाड़ा-गया-वह","और-गाड़ाउसे","और-दफनाया-गया-उसे","वय्यिक्बरू"]·ID["Dan-menguburkanlah-mereka","Dan-menguburkannya","Dan-mereka-menguburkan","dan-dikuburkan","dan-mengubur","dan-menguburkannya","dan-mereka-mengubur","dan-mereka-menguburkan","di-kubur"]·IT["E-essi-seppellì","e-essi-seppellì","e-seppellire","e-seppellì"]·jav["Lan-kasarèkaken","Lan-makamaken","Lan-mendem","Lan-ngarèkaké-piyambakipun","Lan-ngubur","lan-dikubur","lan-dipunmakamaken","lan-dipunpendèm","lan-dipunsarèkaké-piyambakipun","lan-makamaken","lan-ngarèkaké-piyambakipun","lan-ngubur","lan-nyarekaken","lan-piyambakipun-sami-makamaken","lan-piyambakipun-sedaya-ngubur"]·KO["그래서-그들이-장사하였다","그리고-그들이-장사지냈다-그를","그리고-매장했다","그리고-묻었다","그리고-묻었다-그를","그리고-묻혔다","그리고-장사지냈다","그리고-장사하였다","그리고-장사하였다-그를","그리고-장사했다"]·PT["E-sepultaram","E-sepultaram-no","e-o-sepultaram","e-sepultaram","e-sepultaram-o","¶ E-sepultaram"]·RU["И-похоронили","и-погребли","и-похоронили","и-похоронили-его"]·ES["Y-lo-enterraron","Y-lo-sepultaron","Y-sepultaron","y-lo-sepultaron","y-sepultaron"]·SW["Na-wakamzika","na-akazikwa","na-wakaizika","na-wakamzika","wakamzika","wakazika"]·TR["Ve-gömdüler","Ve-gömdüler-onu","ve-gömdüler","ve-gömdüler-onu"]·urd["اور-اُنہوں-نے-دفنایا","اور-دفنایا","اور-دفنایا-اُسے","اور-دفنایا-گیا","اور-دفنایا-گیا-اُسے"]
2. be buried (Nifal/Pual passive) — The Nifal and Pual passive: to be buried, to be interred. This form carries immense theological weight in the Deuteronomistic history, where the formulaic 'and he was buried in...' (wayyiqqaber be-) signals the closure of a king's or judge's life. Being buried well is a mark of divine favor and social honor; the refusal of burial is one of Scripture's harshest judgments (Jer 22:19). Korean 묻히다/장사되다, Swahili -zikwa, and Spanish fue sepultado all shift to passive constructions, confirming that this voice distinction is a real semantic boundary across languages. 42×
AR["فَدُفِنَ","فَـ-دُفِنَ","وَ-دُفِنَ","وَدُفِنَ"]·ben["এবং-কবর-দেওয়া-হল","এবং-কবর-দেওয়া-হলো","এবং-তাকে-কবর-দেওয়া-হল","এবং-সমাধিস্থ-হলেন","এবং-সমাহিত-হলেন","এবং-সে-কবর-পেল","এবং-সে-সমাধিস্থ-হলেন"]·DE["und-er-war-begrub","und-war-begrub"]·EN["and-he-was-buried","and-was-buried"]·FR["et-fut-ensevelit","et-il-fut-ensevelit","et-était-buried","et-était-enterra"]·heb["ו-ייקבר","ו-יקבר","ו-נקבר"]·HI["और-गाड़ा-गया","और-दफनाया-गया","और-दफ़नाया-गया","वय्यिक्कावेर"]·ID["dan dikuburkan","dan-dia-dikuburkan","dan-dikuburkan","dan-ia-dikuburkan"]·IT["e-egli-era-seppellì","e-era-seppellì","e-fu-seppelli","e-fu-seppellì"]·jav["lan-dikubur","lan-dipun-kubur","lan-dipunkubur","lan-dipunmakamaken","lan-kakubur","lan-piyambakipun-dipunkubur"]·KO["그래서-장사되었다","그리고-그가-묻혔다","그리고-그가-장사되었다","그리고-매장되었다","그리고-묻혔다","그리고-장사되었느니라","그리고-장사되었다"]·PT["e-foi-sepultado"]·RU["и-был-погребён","и-погребён","и-погребён-был","и-похоронен"]·ES["y-fue-sepultado"]·SW["akazikwa","katika-nyumba-yake","na-akazikwa"]·TR["ve-gömüldü"]·urd["اور-دفن-ہوا","اور-دفنایا-گیا","اور-وہ-دفنایا-گیا"]
3. burier (Piel participle) — The Piel participial form used substantively: a designated burier, one whose task is burial on a systematic scale. The key passage is Ezekiel 39:14-15, where professional haqqoberim ('the buriers') are appointed to cleanse the land after Gog's defeat — a seven-month operation requiring organized teams who set up markers for bones they discover. Spanish los enterradores and French les ensevelisseurs both select occupational nouns, confirming the lexicalized agent sense. Only 4 occurrences, but each presupposes an organized burial role distinct from ordinary family interment. 4×
AR["الدَّافِنُونَ","دَافِنِينَ","مَنْ-يَدْفِنُهُمْ","يَدْفِنُونَ"]·ben["কবর-দিচ্ছিল","কবরকারীদের","কবরকারীরা","কবরদাতা"]·DE["begraben","burying","von-Grab"]·EN["burying","one-burying","the-buriers"]·FR["de-enterrer","ensevelir","enterrant"]·heb["ה-מקברים","מקבר","מקברים"]·HI["गाड़-रहे-थे","गाड़ने-वाला","दफनानेवाले"]·ID["mengubur","para-pengubur","yang-mengubur"]·IT["burying","seppellire"]·jav["ingkang-ngubur","ngubur","tiyang-ngubur"]·KO["그-묻는자들이","매장하고-있었다","매장하는-자가","묻는자들이"]·PT["enterradores","enterrando","os-enterradores","quem-enterre"]·RU["хоронящего","хоронящие","хоронящий","хоронящих"]·ES["enterrando","los-enterradores","quien-entierre","sepultando"]·SW["mzishi","walikuwa-wakizika","watakaozika","wazikaji"]·TR["gömen","gömenler","gömücüler","gömüyordu"]·urd["دفن-کر-رہے-تھے","دفنانے-والا","دفنانے-والے"]
4. one who buries (Qal participle) — The Qal active participle used as an agent noun: one who buries, a burier in context. Distinguished from sense 3 by stem (Qal rather than Piel) and by the lack of organizational or professional connotation — these are simply persons described as performing burial. In 2 Kings 9:10 Jezebel is declared to have 'no one to bury her' (en qober), and Psalm 79:3 laments that Jerusalem's dead have 'no one burying' them. The absence of a burier is itself the horror. Korean 장사하는 자 and Swahili mzikaji both render this as a simple agentive. 3×
AR["دافِنَ","مَنْ-يَدْفِنُ","يَدْفِنُونَ"]·ben["কবর-দিচ্ছিল","কবর-দেওয়ার","কবরদাতা"]·DE["begrabend","eins-begrabend","zu-bury"]·EN["burying","one-burying","to-bury"]·FR["ensevelissant","enterrer","un-ensevelissant"]·heb["קובר","קוברים"]·HI["कोवेर","गाड़-रहे-थे","गाड़नेवाला"]·ID["menguburkan","yang-mengubur"]·IT["seppellendo","seppelli'","uno-seppellendo"]·jav["ingkang-ngubur","ngubur","tiyang-ingkang-mengubur"]·KO["장사-지내는-자-가","장사하는","장사하는-자가"]·PT["enterrador","enterrando","quem-sepultasse"]·RU["погребающего","хоронящего","хоронящие"]·ES["enterrando","quien-entierre"]·SW["atakayemzika","mzikaji","wakizika"]·TR["gömen","gömüyorlardı"]·urd["دفنا-رہے-تھے","دفنانے-والا"]
5. bury thoroughly (Piel intensive) — The Piel finite/intensive: to carry out burial thoroughly or on a large scale, emphasizing completeness or effort beyond ordinary interment. In 1 Kings 11:15 Joab remains in Edom six months 'until he had buried all the males' — mass wartime interment requiring sustained, intensive action. Hosea 9:6 warns that Egypt's Memphis 'will bury them' — a grim oracle of exile-death. The Piel intensification is confirmed by Korean 매장하다 (formal/intensive burial) versus the simpler Qal 묻다, and by the Arabic intensive Form II pattern. 2×
AR["تَدفِنُهُم","لِ-يَدْفِنَ"]·ben["কবর-দিতে","কবর-দেবে-তাদের"]·DE["[תקברם]","zu-begrabe"]·EN["shall-bury-them","to-bury"]·FR["ensevelir","à-ensevelis"]·heb["ל-קבור","תקברם"]·HI["गाड़ेगा-उन्हें","दफ़नाने"]·ID["akan-menguburkan-mereka","untuk menguburkan"]·IT["a-seppellisci","seppellire"]·jav["kanggé-nangekaken","sami-ngubur-piyambakipun"]·KO["매장하려고","묻으리라-그들을"]·PT["enterrará-eles","para-enterrar"]·RU["похоронит-их","чтобы-хоронить"]·ES["los-sepultará","para-enterrar"]·SW["itawazika","kuzika"]·TR["gömecek-onları","gömmek-için"]·urd["دفن-کرے-گا-اُن-کو","دفنانے-کو"]
Related Senses
G3588 1. definite article (18298×)H0853 1. definite direct object marker (10915×)G2532 1. (8312×)H3068 1. YHWH (the divine name) (6522×)H0834a 1. relative pronoun (who/which/that) (4839×)H3588a 1. causal: because, for (3498×)G1161 1. and (2806×)H3478 1. Israel (proper name and nation) (2507×)G4771 1. you (plural address) (1853×)H1931 1. personal pronoun he/she/it (1431×)G3739 1. relative pronoun who/which/that (1149×)H1732 1. David (proper name) (1075×)H2088 1. this, this one (demonstrative) (1059×)G1063 1. (1047×)G3778 1. this thing, these things (1003×)H???? 2. (1002×)G2424 1. (924×)G3754 1. that (content clause) (881×)H2009 1. presentative particle: behold, look (881×)H0589 1. I (first person singular pronoun) (874×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
קָבַר132 vb. bury (NH id.; Ph. קבר, bury, קבר tomb; Arabic قَبَرَ, Assyrian ḳibîru, Aramaic קְבַר, ܩܒܰܪ, Nab. קבר, all bury; Palm. Nab. קברא tomb, so Sab. קבר HomChrest. 126 Liḥy. קבר bury; DHMEpigr. Denkm. No. 35, 2, 3, cf. מקבר(הם) burial-place CISiv, No. 20, 1, 2, 4);— Qal86 Pf. 3 ms. ק׳ Gn 23:19; 2 ms. sf. consec. וּקְבַרִתַּנְי 47:30, etc.; Impf. 3 ms. וַיִּקְבֹּר Dt 34:6; 2 K 21:26, etc.;…