H8636 H8636
Increase, interest, or usurious profit gained through lending; consistently paired with 'neshekh' in legal prohibitions.
This noun denotes financial increase or profit extracted from a loan, virtually always appearing alongside neshekh ('interest' or 'bite'). Together the two terms form a hendiadys covering all forms of exploitative lending. The Torah flatly prohibits both (Lev 25:36), the prophets condemn them as markers of social injustice (Ezek 18:8, 13, 17; 22:12), and Proverbs warns that wealth gathered through usury will ultimately pass to the generous (Prov 28:8). The Arabic cognate riba, still the standard Islamic finance term for prohibited interest, shares the same Semitic root.
Senses
1. increase / usurious interest — Financial increase or usurious profit gained through lending, always in the context of economic ethics. The word is paired with neshekh in six of its seven occurrences, forming a comprehensive prohibition against exploitative interest. Leviticus 25:36 (Holiness Code) forbids it outright; Ezekiel 18:8, 13, 17 and 22:12 treat it as a litmus test for righteousness; Proverbs 28:8 promises redistributive justice. Spanish 'interés' and French 'accroître' both capture the root idea of growth or increase, while English 'usury' carries the stronger connotation of unlawful gain that the prophetic context demands. 7×
AR["(وَ-فائِدَةٍ)", "[وفائدة]", "وَزِيَادَةً"]·ben["(উচ্চ-সুদে)", "[উচ্চ-সুদে]", "আর-মুনাফা", "এবং-বৃদ্ধি", "এবং-লাভ,"]·DE["[(ותרבית)]", "[[ובתרבית]]", "[ותרבית]", "und-vermehren"]·EN["[and-usury]", "and-increase", "and-usury"]·FR["et-(ותרבית)", "et-[ובתרבית]", "et-accroître", "et-gain"]·heb["(ו-תרבית)", "[ובתרבית]", "ו-תרבית"]·HI["(और-वृद्धि)", "[और-वृद्धि]", "और-मुनाफ़ा", "और-लाभ"]·ID["(dan-riba)", "[dan-riba]", "dan-bunga", "dan-riba"]·IT["e-accrescere", "e-e-usury", "e-in-[and-usury]", "e-usura"]·jav["lan-bathi", "lan-kauntungan", "lan-tambahan"]·KO["그리고-과다한-이익을", "그리고-이득을", "그리고-이익으로", "그리고-이익을"]·PT["[e-usura]", "e-lucro", "e-usura"]·RU["[ктив:и-лихвой]", "и-лихвой", "и-лихву", "и-лихвы", "и-прибыли", "и-проценты"]·ES["(y-con-interés)", "[y-con-interés]", "e-interés", "ni-interés", "y-ganancia"]·SW["(na-faida-kubwa)", "[na-faida-kubwa]", "na-faida"]·TR["(ve-tefecilikle)", "[ve-tefecilikle]", "ve-kar", "ve-kâr", "ve-tefeciliği"]·urd["اور-منافع", "اور-نفع"]
Related Senses
H5414 1. give, bestow (1855×)H3947 1. take, seize, grasp (Qal) (940×)G2192 1. possess / have (680×)G1325 1. give, bestow (336×)H5159 1. inherited land or property (170×)G2983 1. receive, obtain (134×)H3423 1. Qal: take possession of land (130×)G2983 2. take, take up (113×)G2398 1. one's own, belonging to oneself (91×)G3860 1. hand over, deliver to custody (78×)H7998 1. spoil, plunder, booty (74×)G1325 2. be given, be granted (70×)H5414 2. put, place, set (68×)H7999a 1. pay, repay, recompense (63×)H7069 1. Buy, purchase (59×)H1892 1. vanity, futility, absurdity (58×)H5159 2. heritage as covenant portion (52×)H6299 1. redeem or ransom (Qal active) (49×)H4376 1. Sell (Qal active) (47×)H1350a 1. Redeem, buy back (46×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† תַּרְבִּית n.f. increment, interest, usury (= מַרְבִּית 1 b; cf. (on both) Arabic رَبَا iv. take usury, رِبًا interest, usury, Syriac ܪܶܒܺܝܬܳܐ; SaalschützMos. Recht (ii. 1848), 859 HoelemannLetzte Bibelstud. (1885). 297 f. Di Lv 25:36 Benn Hast. DB debt);—alw. abs. ת׳: + נֶשֶׁךְ Lv 25:36 (H), Ez 18:17; 22:12; Pr 28:8; ‖ id. Ez 18:8, 13.