H6948 H6948
cult prostitute (female); a woman devoted to ritual sexual practices at a shrine
The feminine form of a noun designating a person consecrated to cultic sexual rites at a pagan shrine. In Genesis 38:21-22 Tamar is mistaken for a cult prostitute by the roadside, and Deuteronomy 23:17 prohibits Israelite daughters from becoming one. Hosea 4:14 condemns the men who consort with cult prostitutes. The root connection to 'holy' (qadash) reveals the disturbing irony: what Canaanite religion called 'set apart' for a deity, Israelite law condemned as abomination. Spanish 'prostituta del templo' and 'prostitutas sagradas' capture both the cultic and sexual dimensions.
Senses
1. sense 1 — A female cult prostitute associated with Canaanite shrine worship, distinguished from ordinary harlotry by its religious setting. In Gen 38:21-22 the locals ask about 'the cult prostitute' by the road, using the term as a recognized social role. Deut 23:17 explicitly forbids Israelite women from serving in this capacity. Hosea 4:14 links the practice to sacrificial rites. Spanish 'prostituta del templo' and 'prostitutas sagradas' reveal how translators wrestle with the paradox of the root meaning 'holy' applied to sexual service. 5×
AR["القَادِساتِ", "الْ-قَدِيسَةُ", "زَانِيَةٌ", "قَدِيسَةٌ"]·ben["-দেবদাসী", "দেবদাসী", "মন্দির-বেশ্যাদের-সেই-"]·DE["[הקדשות]", "cult-prostitute", "die-Geweihte", "eine-Geweihte"]·EN["a-cult-prostitute", "cult-prostitute", "the-cult-prostitute", "the-cult-prostitutes"]·FR["le-cult-prostitute", "prostitué-sacré", "prostituée", "un-cult-prostitute"]·heb["ה-קדשה", "ה-קדשות", "קדשה"]·HI["देवदासियों", "वेश्या", "वेश्या-देवी"]·ID["pelacur-pelacur-kuil", "perempuan-pelacur-kuil", "perempuan-sundal-kuil"]·IT["[הקדשות]", "cult-prostitute", "il-cult-prostitute", "un-cult-prostitute"]·jav["wanita-suci", "wanita-suci-punika", "wanita-sundel-kuil"]·KO["신전-매춘부가", "신전-창녀가"]·PT["a-prostituta-sagrada", "as-prostitutas-cultuais", "prostituta-cultual", "prostituta-sagrada"]·RU["блудницы", "храмовая-блудница", "храмовой-блудницы", "храмовыми-блудницами"]·ES["la-prostituta-del-templo", "las-prostitutas-sagradas", "prostituta-del-templo", "prostituta-sagrada"]·SW["kahaba-wa-hekalu", "makahaba-wa-hekalu"]·TR["-tapınak-fahişesi", "fahişe", "tapınak-fahişeleriyle", "tapınak-fahişesi"]·urd["طوائف-کوئی", "طوائف-یہ", "فاحشہ", "مندر-کی-فاحشاؤں-کے"]
Related Senses
H2896a 1. good (quality or moral) (305×)H7563 1. wicked person (259×)H7451c 1. moral evil or wickedness (234×)H5771 1. iniquity, sin, wrongdoing (222×)H6662 1. righteous person (substantive) (195×)G0266 1. sin, failure, transgression (173×)H2403b 1. sin, transgression (170×)H2617a 1. Covenant faithfulness, steadfast love (167×)H2398 1. Qal: to sin, commit sin (165×)H6666 1. righteousness, moral uprightness (145×)G5485 1. grace, divine favor (141×)H7451a 1. morally evil, wicked (129×)H2403b 2. sin-offering, sacrifice for sin (120×)G2570 1. good, right, excellent (98×)H6588 1. transgression, offense against God (88×)G0018 1. good (moral quality) (85×)H2896b 1. good, what is good (85×)H7451b 1. evil, wickedness (moral) (83×)H7451a 2. evil, harm, calamity (80×)G1342 1. righteous, upright (of persons) (70×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† I. קָדֵשׁ n.m. temple-prostitute (man) (cf. RSProph. ii, N. 19, and v. Assyrian sub √);—ק׳ Dt 23:18; coll. 1 K 14:24; 22:47; pl. קְדֵשִׁים 15:2 2 K 23:7; Jb 36:14; also f. קְדֵשָׁה (woman) Dt 23:18; pl. קְדֵשׁוֹת Ho 4:14; = harlot, fs. Gn 38:21(×2), 22 (J).