Lexical Summary kabed: Heavy, weighty, burdensome, honored, important Original Word: כָּבֵד Strong's Exhaustive Concordance so great, grievous, hardened, too heavier, laden, much, slow, sore, From kabad; heavy; figuratively in a good sense (numerous) or in a bad sense (severe, difficult, stupid) -- (so) great, grievous, hard(-ened), (too) heavy(-ier), laden, much, slow, sore, thick. see HEBREW kabad NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Originfrom kabad Definition heavy NASB Translation burdensome (1), difficult (2), great (4), grievous (1), heavier (1), heavy (11), huge (1), large (4), large number (1), much (1), numerous (1), rich (1), severe (7), slow (2), sorrowful (1), stubborn (1), thick (1), weighed down (1). Brown-Driver-Briggs כָּבֵד adjective heavy; — ׳כ Genesis 41:31+ 34 t.; construct כְּבַד Exodus 4:10 (twice in verse); כֶּבֶד Isaiah 1:4; plural כְּבֵדִים Exodus 17:12; construct כִּבְדֵי Ezekiel 3:5,6; — 1. a. heavy, a burden Psalm 38:5; hands (weary of holding up) Exodus 17:12 (E), hair of head 2 Samuel 14:26, a corpulent old man 1 Samuel 4:18; עַם כֶבֶד עָוֺן Isaiah 1:4 a people heavy with (the burden of) iniquity; a cloud charged with rain Exodus 19:16 (E); a rock of large size Isaiah 32:2; oppressive, grievous, burdensome, a yoke 1 Kings 12:4,11 2Chronicles 10:4,11; a famine Genesis 12:10; Genesis 41:31; Genesis 43:1; Genesis 47:4,13 (J); the vexation (כַּעַס) of a fool Proverbs 27:3; vehement, sore, of a mourning Genesis 50:11(J). b. massive, abundant, numerous, of a people עַם Numbers 20:20 (J) 1 Kings 3:9; army חיל 2 Kings 6:14; 2 Kings 18:14 = Isaiah 36:2 insect swarm Exodus 8:20 (J). c. heavy, dull of speech and tongue Exodus 4:10 (twice in verse) (JE); of the לֵב, hard Exodus 7:14 (J). d. hard, difficult, of a thing to be done Exodus 18:18 (E) Numbers 11:14 (J); of a language to be understood Ezekiel 3:5,6. 2 in the usage of J כָּבֵד מְאֹד is frequent: a. very oppressive, grievous, of hail Exodus 9:18,24; murrain Exodus 9:8; lamentation Genesis 50:10. b. very numerous, cattle Exodus 12:38; army, מַחֲנֶה Genesis 50:9; locusts Exodus 10:14; so חַיִל 1 Kings 10:2 2Chronicles 9:1. c. very rich, במקנה in cattle Genesis 13:2. Topical Lexicon Overview The adjective kāvēd (Strong’s 3515) portrays something weighty in mass, intensity, or significance. Its thirty-nine Old Testament appearances move between literal heaviness, oppressive burden, and the moral gravity that both invites and resists the glory belonging to God alone. By following those movements, one sees how Israel’s history, worship, and prophetic hope are repeatedly interpreted through the idea of “weight.” Physical Heaviness and Severity 1. Famine: Genesis 12:10; 41:31—“the famine…was so severe.” The tangible sense of weight grounds the word in Israel’s concrete experience. Life in a fallen world can literally crush. The Weight of Divine Judgment “Now the hand of the LORD was heavy on the people of Ashdod” (1 Samuel 5:6, 11). When the ark was misappropriated, God’s “heavy” hand vindicated His holiness. Similarly, Pharaoh’s livestock-plague (Exodus 9:3) and the hailstorm (9:24) show that divine retribution can come with unbearable intensity. The adjective underscores that God’s judgments are never casual; they land with full moral force. Stubborn Hearts and Moral Gravity “Pharaoh’s heart is unyielding” (Exodus 7:14). The same term that can describe a stone’s weight also depicts a conscience deadened under sin. The irony is deliberate: the heavier the heart grows in self-will, the less responsive it becomes to the God whose glory is true weight. In later prophetic literature, Israel herself becomes “laden with iniquity” (Isaiah 1:4), proving that hardness is not limited to pagan rulers. Heavy Burdens in Covenant Life 1. Administrative overload: Jethro warns Moses, “The task is too heavy for you” (Exodus 18:18). These texts acknowledge legitimate social burdens while insisting that covenant leaders must not add crushing loads to God’s people. The concept prepares the way for the Messiah who declares, “My yoke is easy and My burden is light” (Matthew 11:30). From Weight to Honor Though 3515 itself never means “glory,” it shares the root k-b-d with kābōd (3519, “glory”). This linguistic kinship hints that true honor is never light or trivial. The Old Testament’s “weight of glory” (cf. 2 Corinthians 4:17) stands opposite the hollow vanity of idolatry (Isaiah 44:9). What God counts weighty is what ultimately lasts. Prophetic and Poetic Nuances • Psalm 38:4 pictures sin as “a heavy burden…too much for me to bear,” driving the sufferer to repentance. Worship and Reverence Tabernacle and Temple liturgies assume that those who approach God sense His “weight.” The thunder at Sinai (Exodus 19:16) and the train of His robe filling the Temple (Isaiah 6:1) communicate the same theological reality: God’s presence is substantial, not lightweight. Every appearance of kāvēd that speaks of unbearable circumstance serves as a darkened mirror to that positive glory. Christological Fulfillment In the Gospels, the incarnate Son carries humanity’s heaviest load—sin itself (Isaiah 53:4-5; 1 Peter 2:24). When He dies, the weight of divine judgment falls on Him, so that all who believe experience instead “an eternal weight of glory” (2 Corinthians 4:17). The trajectory from oppressive heaviness to redemptive glory culminates at the cross and empty tomb. Pastoral and Ministry Implications • Burden-Bearing: Galatians 6:2 calls believers to “carry one another’s burdens.” The Old Testament backdrop exposes how devastating unchecked weight can be. Historical Resonance Throughout Israel’s story—patriarchal famines, Exodus judgments, monarchic taxation, exilic woes—the adjective kāvēd registers crisis points when life became almost too heavy to bear. Remembering those moments gives believers today historical assurance that God both sends and lifts burdens in perfect wisdom. Summary Insight Strong’s 3515 charts a path from crushing circumstances and hardened hearts to the discovered glory of God. Whether describing famine, hail, yokes, or moral insensibility, the word insists that weight belongs finally to the Lord and to all that accords with His righteous purposes. Forms and Transliterations הַכָּבֵ֖ד הַכָּבֵ֛ד הכבד וְכִבְדֵ֣י וְכִבְדֵ֥י וְכָבֵ֑ד וְכָבֵ֖ד וּכְבַ֥ד וכבד וכבדי כְּבֵדִ֔ים כְבַד־ כֶּ֣בֶד כָ֝בֵ֗ד כָּבֵ֑ד כָּבֵ֔ד כָּבֵ֖ד כָּבֵ֣ד כָּבֵ֥ד כָּבֵד֙ כָבֵ֖ד כָבֵ֤ד כָבֵ֥ד כבד כבד־ כבדים chaVed chevad hak·kā·ḇêḏ hakkāḇêḏ hakkaVed kā·ḇêḏ ḵā·ḇêḏ kāḇêḏ ḵāḇêḏ kaVed ḵə·ḇaḏ- kə·ḇê·ḏîm ke·ḇeḏ ḵəḇaḏ- keḇeḏ kəḇêḏîm Keved keveDim ū·ḵə·ḇaḏ ucheVad ūḵəḇaḏ vechaVed vechivDei wə·ḵā·ḇêḏ wə·ḵiḇ·ḏê wəḵāḇêḏ wəḵiḇḏêLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel TextsEnglishman's Concordance Genesis 12:10 HEB: שָׁ֔ם כִּֽי־ כָבֵ֥ד הָרָעָ֖ב בָּאָֽרֶץ׃ NAS: for the famine was severe in the land. KJV: there; for the famine [was] grievous in the land. INT: there for was severe the famine the land Genesis 41:31 Genesis 43:1 Genesis 47:4 Genesis 47:13 Genesis 50:9 Genesis 50:10 Genesis 50:11 Exodus 4:10 Exodus 4:10 Exodus 7:14 Exodus 8:24 Exodus 9:3 Exodus 9:18 Exodus 9:24 Exodus 10:14 Exodus 12:38 Exodus 17:12 Exodus 18:18 Exodus 19:16 Numbers 11:14 Numbers 20:20 1 Samuel 4:18 1 Kings 3:9 1 Kings 10:2 39 Occurrences |
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