Gold , figuratively, something gold-colored (i.e. yellow), as oil , a clear sky
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H2091 names gold, a durable and desirable material used for sacred craftsmanship, royal wealth, exchange, adornment, tribute, and idols. Exodus 25:11 directs gold overlay for the ark, placing costly material in skilled service to worship.
Reader summary
Full entry for זָהָב (H2091) · Open the biblical lexicon
H2091 names gold, a durable and desirable material used for sacred craftsmanship, royal wealth, exchange, adornment, tribute, and idols. Exodus 25:11 directs gold overlay for the ark, placing costly material in skilled service to worship.
The BSB source-word alignment has 389 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include gold (126), of gold (53), and gold (50), with gold (37), the gold (34).
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Genesis 2:11. Its strongest book concentrations include Exodus (105), 2 Chronicles (49), 1 Kings (44), 1 Chronicles (24).
H2091 names gold, a durable and desirable material used for sacred craftsmanship, royal wealth, exchange, adornment, tribute, and idols. Exodus 25:11 directs gold overlay for the ark, placing costly material in skilled service to worship. Deuteronomy 17:17 forbids Israel's king from greatly multiplying silver and gold, restraining royal accumulation. Exodus 32:31 recalls the people's grave sin in making a god of gold, showing that valuable material can be turned toward false worship.
Haggai 2:8 declares that silver and gold belong to the Lord. H2091 is neither morally pure nor inherently corrupt. Its use, ownership, source, and covenant setting matter. The word helps teachers address beauty, generosity, craft, wealth, empire, exploitation, idolatry, and stewardship without promising prosperity, shaming poverty, or confusing expensive religious objects with God's presence and favor.
H2091 appears in creation's resources, sanctuary craft, jewelry, tribute, royal accumulation, commercial wealth, idols, judgment, and restoration. Scripture treats gold as created material whose meaning follows worship, justice, ownership, and use.
Overlay it with pure gold both inside and out, and make a gold molding around it.
Gold overlays the ark according to the sanctuary instructions, joining valuable material to skilled, bounded service rather than magical holiness.
He must not take many wives for himself, lest his heart go astray. He must not accumulate for himself large amounts of silver and gold.
The king must not greatly multiply silver and gold, placing royal wealth under covenant restraint and preventing accumulation from becoming unquestioned power.
So Moses returned to the Lord and said, “Oh, what a great sin these people have committed! They have made gods of gold for themselves.
Moses names the people's sin in making a god of gold, exposing how a created material can be redirected into idolatry.
The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine, declares the Lord of Hosts.
The Lord claims silver and gold as his own within a promise concerning the house's future glory, relativizing human ownership.
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders ItA compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
Hebrew word. Precious metal whose radiant yellow hue extends metaphorically to represent divine wealth, beauty, and covenant value throughout Scripture.
Precious metal whose radiant yellow hue extends metaphorically to represent divine wealth, beauty, and covenant value throughout Scripture.
gold, figuratively, something gold-colored (i.e. yellow), as oil, a clear sky BDB: gold Usage: gold(-en), fair weather.
How this word appears across different grammatical cases and numbers.
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Showing 4 selected witnesses from 389 lexical occurrence verses.
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
H2091 refuses easy conclusions about wealth. The same material can adorn the ark and become a calf. Its beauty and durability make it suitable for skilled work, but no material contains God's presence or guarantees faithful worship. Deuteronomy's kingly limit exposes accumulation as a power question, not merely a private preference. Haggai's declaration that gold belongs to the Lord places every treasury under stewardship rather than absolute ownership.
Churches can therefore value excellent craft and generous giving while asking whether labor was justly paid, funds were transparently handled, vulnerable donors were pressured, or public splendor is hiding neglected neighbors. Poverty is not inferior faith, and wealth is not automatic condemnation; both rich and poor remain persons bearing God's image. H2091 also warns against prosperity promises that turn gifts into transactions for blessing.
Faithful stewardship tells the truth about budgets, refuses manipulation, protects designated funds, pays workers fairly, and chooses beauty within mission and care rather than institutional vanity. Gold may serve worship, but it cannot replace obedience, justice, mercy, or the living God.
Deut.17.17
H2091 is a Hebrew noun for gold and, in limited poetic description, golden or yellow appearance. Concrete objects, quantities, trade, craft, and comparison language show whether material, color, wealth, or value is emphasized.
Old Testament gold serves sanctuary craft, kings, trade, adornment, tribute, and idols while remaining the Lord's possession. New Testament texts relativize gold beside faithful witness, redemption, tested faith, care for the poor, and the final exposure of luxurious empire.