What does בָּחַר · דֶּרֶךְ mean in the Bible?
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Hebrew · H977, H1870
בָּחַר / דֶּרֶךְ
Properly, to try , i.e. (by implication) select · a road (as trodden ); figuratively, a course of life or mode of action, often adverb
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Words in this compound — expand to study each participant
בָּחַר H977 properly, to try , i.e. (by implication) select
Pronunciation bāḥar
Selection emerges from testing or scrutiny; implies deliberate evaluation before choosing, especially God's covenant choice.
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דֶּרֶךְ H1870 a road (as trodden ); figuratively, a course of life or mode of action, often adverb
Pronunciation derek
Path literally walked becomes metaphor for life's moral and spiritual trajectory; covenant-defining directional term
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What does בָּחַר / דֶּרֶךְ (bāḥar / derek) mean in the Bible?
בָּחַר · דֶּרֶךְ is a Hebrew phrase meaning "to choose one’s own ways.".
Full entry for בָּחַר / דֶּרֶךְ (H977, H1870) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How many biblical occurrences are listed for H977, H1870?
H977, H1870 is connected to 882 lexical occurrence verses in the lexicon data.
Evidence Summary
Hebrew phrase. to choose one’s own ways.
Source Gloss
to choose one’s own ways.
Grammatical Forms
How the stem changes the meaning of this verb across the biblical text.
This verb appears through different tense, voice, mood, or stem patterns. Those forms help readers see how the action is presented in context.
Form groups 4 Aligned forms 132
Qal basic active stem — the word in its most common, direct sense 124×
Perfect 1Chr 15:2 · 1Chr 28:4 · 1Chr 28:10 · 1Chr 29:1 · 1Kgs 14:21 · 1Sam 10:24 · 1Sam 16:8 · 1Sam 16:9 · 1Sam 16:10 · 2Chr 12:13 · 2Chr 29:11 · 2Sam 6:21 · 2Sam 16:18 · Deut 7:6 · Deut 14:2 · Deut 18:5 60×
Imperfect 2Sam 15:15 · Deut 12:5 · Deut 12:11 · Deut 12:14 · Deut 12:18 · Deut 12:21 · Deut 12:26 · Deut 14:23 · Deut 14:24 · Deut 14:25 · Deut 15:20 · Deut 16:2 · Deut 16:6 · Deut 16:7 · Deut 16:11 · Deut 16:15 39×
Participle passive 1Chr 19:10 · 1Kgs 12:21 · 1Sam 24:3 · 1Sam 26:2 · 2Chr 11:1 · 2Chr 13:3 · 2Chr 13:17 · 2Chr 25:5 · 2Sam 6:1 · 2Sam 10:9 · Exod 14:7 · Judg 20:15 · Judg 20:16 · Judg 20:34 · Song 5:15 16×
Sequential imperfect 1Chr 21:10 · 2Sam 24:12 · Exod 17:9 · 1Kgs 18:25 · Josh 24:15 5×
Cohortative 2Sam 17:1 · Job 9:14 2×
Participle active 1Sam 20:30 1×
Jussive Prov 3:31 1×
Niphal passive or reflexive — the subject receives or experiences the action 6×
Participle active Prov 8:10 · Prov 8:19 · Prov 10:20 · Prov 16:16 · Prov 21:3 · Prov 22:1 6×
Pual intensive passive — intensive action received by the subject 1×
Imperfect Eccl 9:4 1×
Qal passive 1×
Participle passive Jer 49:19 1×
Word Origins
בָּחַר / דֶּרֶךְ is a primitive root - no further derivation.
Sources
MorphGNT Strong's Dictionary XML — CC0 1.0 Public Domain
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible (morphhb/OSHB) — CC BY 4.0
Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon — CC BY 4.0
Berean Standard Bible (BSB) source-word alignment - CC0 Public Domain