כַּפְתּוֹר
kaph.tor
capital
Lexicon Entry
Lexicon data from STEPBible TIPNR, Tyndale House, Cambridge. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
What Original Readers Understood
Supported# Kaptor (כַּפְתּוֹר): The Architectural Capital The Hebrew word *kaptor* refers to a capital—the crowning architectural element that sits atop a column or pillar. Based on its 18 occurrences in the biblical text, this term appears to denote a specific structural component rather than serving as a general descriptor. The word's technical nature suggests it was a recognized architectural feature in ancient Israelite construction, likely borrowed from broader Near Eastern building practices that the Hebrew speakers would have encountered or adopted. The concentrated usage of *kaptor* across relatively few biblical passages indicates it was employed primarily in descriptions of formal religious or royal architecture, most notably in accounts of the temple and its furnishings. Its consistent application to this single architectural feature—without apparent figurative or metaphorical extension—demonstrates that Hebrew speakers used precise terminology for specific structural elements. The modest frequency of occurrence (18 times) reflects that biblical texts did not require extensive discussion of architectural details, mentioning such components only when construction narratives or detailed descriptions of sacred spaces demanded it.
Source data & methodology
Occurrences in Scripture
18 total occurrences across the text
I saw the Lord standing beside the altar, and he said, “Strike the tops of the pillars, that the thresholds may shake; and break them in pieces on the head of all of them; and I will kill the last of them with the sword: there shall not one of them flee away, and there shall not one of them escape.
Zephaniah 2:14Herds will lie down in the middle of her, all the animals of the nations. Both the pelican and the porcupine will lodge in its capitals. Their calls will echo through the windows. Desolation will be in the thresholds, for he has laid bare the cedar beams.
Exodus 25:31“You shall make a lamp stand of pure gold. The lamp stand shall be made of hammered work. Its base, its shaft, its cups, its buds, and its flowers shall be of one piece with it.
Exodus 25:33three cups made like almond blossoms in one branch, a bud and a flower; and three cups made like almond blossoms in the other branch, a bud and a flower, so for the six branches going out of the lamp stand;
Exodus 25:33three cups made like almond blossoms in one branch, a bud and a flower; and three cups made like almond blossoms in the other branch, a bud and a flower, so for the six branches going out of the lamp stand;
Exodus 25:34and in the lamp stand four cups made like almond blossoms, its buds and its flowers;
Exodus 25:35and a bud under two branches of one piece with it, and a bud under two branches of one piece with it, and a bud under two branches of one piece with it, for the six branches going out of the lamp stand.
Exodus 25:35and a bud under two branches of one piece with it, and a bud under two branches of one piece with it, and a bud under two branches of one piece with it, for the six branches going out of the lamp stand.
Exodus 25:35and a bud under two branches of one piece with it, and a bud under two branches of one piece with it, and a bud under two branches of one piece with it, for the six branches going out of the lamp stand.
Exodus 25:36Their buds and their branches shall be of one piece with it, all of it one beaten work of pure gold.
Exodus 37:17He made the lamp stand of pure gold. He made the lamp stand of beaten work. Its base, its shaft, its cups, its buds, and its flowers were of one piece with it.
Exodus 37:19three cups made like almond blossoms in one branch, a bud and a flower, and three cups made like almond blossoms in the other branch, a bud and a flower; so for the six branches going out of the lamp stand.
Exodus 37:19three cups made like almond blossoms in one branch, a bud and a flower, and three cups made like almond blossoms in the other branch, a bud and a flower; so for the six branches going out of the lamp stand.
Exodus 37:20In the lamp stand were four cups made like almond blossoms, its buds and its flowers;
Exodus 37:21and a bud under two branches of one piece with it, and a bud under two branches of one piece with it, and a bud under two branches of one piece with it, for the six branches going out of it.
Exodus 37:21and a bud under two branches of one piece with it, and a bud under two branches of one piece with it, and a bud under two branches of one piece with it, for the six branches going out of it.
Exodus 37:21and a bud under two branches of one piece with it, and a bud under two branches of one piece with it, and a bud under two branches of one piece with it, for the six branches going out of it.
Exodus 37:22Their buds and their branches were of one piece with it. The whole thing was one beaten work of pure gold.