כֹּפֶר
ko.pher (H3724A)
ransom
AI Word Study
# Kopher (כֹּפֶר): Ransom in Hebrew Scripture The Hebrew word *kopher* appears thirteen times in the biblical text with the core meaning of "ransom"—a payment made to secure the release or redemption of someone or something. The term denotes a concrete transaction where a price or compensation is offered as an alternative to another outcome, typically death or servitude. This transactional sense anchors the word's usage across its biblical occurrences. The consistent presence of this word across thirteen distinct biblical passages suggests that the concept of ransom held practical and theological significance in ancient Hebrew thought. The relatively modest frequency indicates that while ransom was an important concept, it represented a specific category of exchange rather than a general or dominant theme. The word's straightforward definition—without additional modifiers or specialized theological labels in the provided data—suggests that *kopher* maintained a fairly direct, literal meaning related to payment and redemption throughout its biblical usage. Without access to the specific contexts of each occurrence, the data confirms that *kopher* functioned as a fundamental vocabulary item for describing compensation or payment made to prevent loss of life or liberty. Its thirteen appearances across the biblical corpus indicate that ransom transactions were recognized as a legitimate institutional practice within ancient Hebrew society and religious law.
AI synthesis uses only provided lexicon data -- never training knowledge.
If a ransom is imposed on him, then he shall give for the redemption of his life whatever is imposed.
“When you take a census of the children of Israel, according to those who are counted among them, then each man shall give a ransom for his soul to Yahweh, when you count them; that there be no plague among them when you count them.
“ ‘Moreover you shall take no ransom for the life of a murderer who is guilty of death. He shall surely be put to death.
“ ‘You shall take no ransom for him who has fled to his city of refuge, that he may come again to dwell in the land before the death of the priest.
Here I am. Witness against me before Yahweh, and before his anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Whose donkey have I taken? Whom have I defrauded? Whom have I oppressed? Of whose hand have I taken a bribe to make me blind my eyes? I will restore it to you.”
then God is gracious to him, and says, ‘Deliver him from going down to the pit, I have found a ransom.’
Don’t let riches entice you to wrath, neither let the great size of a bribe turn you aside.
none of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give God a ransom for him.
He won’t regard any ransom, neither will he rest content, though you give many gifts.
The ransom of a man’s life is his riches, but the poor hear no threats.
The wicked is a ransom for the righteous, the treacherous for the upright.
For I am Yahweh your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. I have given Egypt as your ransom, Ethiopia and Seba in your place.
For I know how many your offenses, and how great are your sins— you who afflict the just, who take a bribe, and who turn away the needy in the courts.