Midvash

אָבʼâb

father

Pronunciation: awb · Hebrew/Aramaic (Old Testament) · H1

Meanings

1. father of individual (Genesis 2:24; Genesis 11:28; Genesis 11:29)

2. of God as father of his people (Deuteronomy 32:6; Jeremiah 3:4; Jeremiah 3:19)

3. head of household, family or clan (Genesis 38:11; Leviticus 22:13; Genesis 24:40)

4. ancestor

a of individual (Genesis 28:13; Genesis 32:10; 1 Kings 15:13)

b of people (Genesis 10:21; Genesis 17:4; Genesis 17:5)

5. originator or patron of a class, profession, or art (Genesis 4:20; Genesis 4:21)

6. figurative of producer, generator (Job 38:28)

7. figurative of benevolence & protection (Job 29:6; Job 31:18; Isaiah 22:21)

8. term of respect & honour (2 Kings 5:13; Judges 17:10; Judges 18:19)

9. specifically, ruler, chief (1 Chronicles 2:24; 1 Chronicles 2:42)

Same root

Where it appears

Appears 1,213 times in the Bible.

  • Genesis 2:24 This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.
  • Genesis 4:20 Adah gave birth to Jabal, who was the first of those who raise livestock and live in tents.
  • Genesis 4:21 His brother’s name was Jubal, the first of all who play the harp and flute.
  • Genesis 9:18 The sons of Noah who came out of the boat with their father were Shem, Ham, and Japheth. (Ham is the father of Canaan.)
  • Genesis 9:22 Ham, the father of Canaan, saw that his father was naked and went outside and told his brothers.
  • Genesis 9:23 Then Shem and Japheth took a robe, held it over their shoulders, and backed into the tent to cover their father. As they did this, they looked the other way so they would not see him naked.
See every passage

Source: Brown, Driver and Briggs, Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), public domain; markup by unfoldingWord, CC BY (github.com/unfoldingWord/Brown-Driver-Briggs-Enhanced).