כָּבֵד
ka.ved
liver
Lexicon Entry
Lexicon data from STEPBible TIPNR, Tyndale House, Cambridge. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
What Original Readers Understood
ExploredThe Hebrew word "kaved" (H3516) translates to "liver". With its 14 occurrences in the Bible, it holds a significant place in the narrative. One might expect a word related to a primary organ to be limited to medical or physiological contexts, but surprisingly, "kaved" is linked to the semantic domain of "Death & Life". This connection suggests the liver's role in sustaining life is also inextricably linked to concepts of mortality and the human condition. Its usage spans several biblical texts: in the Pentateuch, it appears in connection with the animal sacrifice rituals; in other cases, it describes the visceral reaction of terror or fear. This dichotomy highlights the liver's multifaceted significance in the ancient Hebrew worldview. In the ritual context, the liver is likely associated with purity, while in the context of fear, it may be seen as a physical manifestation of anxiety. The liver's connection to mortality in these contexts points to the intricate relationships between life, death, and the human body in ancient Hebrew thought. Given its diverse usage and unique association with the domain of "Death & Life", "kaved" offers a compelling lens through which to explore the complex interplay between physiological processes and the human experience. Its prominence in the Hebrew Bible underscores the importance of the liver as a symbol, and perhaps even a source of understanding, for the profound and often mysterious connections between life and death.
Source data & methodology
Occurrences in Scripture
14 total occurrences across the text
and the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the loins, and the cover on the liver, with the kidneys, he shall take away.
Leviticus 8:16He took all the fat that was on the innards, and the cover of the liver, and the two kidneys, and their fat; and Moses burned it on the altar.
Proverbs 7:23Until an arrow strikes through his liver, as a bird hurries to the snare, and doesn’t know that it will cost his life.
Ezekiel 21:21For the king of Babylon stood at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination. He shook the arrows back and forth. He consulted the teraphim. He looked in the liver.
Lamentations 2:11My eyes fail with tears. My heart is troubled. My liver is poured on the earth, because of the destruction of the daughter of my people, because the young children and the infants swoon in the streets of the city.
Exodus 29:13You shall take all the fat that covers the innards, the cover of the liver, the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, and burn them on the altar.
Exodus 29:22Also you shall take some of the ram’s fat, the fat tail, the fat that covers the innards, the cover of the liver, the two kidneys, the fat that is on them, and the right thigh (for it is a ram of consecration),
Leviticus 3:4and the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the loins, and the cover on the liver, with the kidneys, he shall take away.
Leviticus 3:10and the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the loins, and the cover on the liver, with the kidneys, he shall take away.
Leviticus 4:9and the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the loins, and the cover on the liver, with the kidneys, he shall remove,
Leviticus 7:4and he shall take away the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the loins, and the cover on the liver, with the kidneys;
Leviticus 8:25He took the fat, the fat tail, all the fat that was on the innards, the cover of the liver, the two kidneys and their fat, and the right thigh;
Leviticus 9:10but the fat, and the kidneys, and the cover from the liver of the sin offering, he burned upon the altar, as Yahweh commanded Moses.
Leviticus 9:19and the fat of the bull and of the ram, the fat tail, and that which covers the innards, and the kidneys, and the cover of the liver;