---
title: בָּקַר — inquire · The Tanakh dictionary
description: בָּקַר (1239), a word of Biblical Hebrew, used 7 times: inquire. BDB 1906: vb. inquire, seek. With 2 verses in Hebrew, word for word and JPS 1917.
---

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# בָּקַר

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«בָּקַר» in the Tanakh dictionary: **inquire** — how often it is used, MACULA's glosses, its meanings in the printed dictionaries and why they were chosen, and 2 verses in layers.

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**Used:** 7 times · **Key:** 1239 · **BDB:** בָּקַר

### Glosses

he.will.seek (2); I (1); I.will.seek (1)

### Meaning (OSHB)

inquire [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1489/1239/#m1)

### Meaning (BDB 1906)

vb. inquire, seek [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1489/1239/#m2)

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**The whole BDB entry:** vb. inquire, seek (NH id., Aramaic בְּקַר, ܒܩܰܪ; also Ethiopic በቀለ in deriv.; orig. divide, discern, cf. Arabic بَقَرَ slit, rip, split)—only Pf. 1 s. sf. וּבִקַּרְתִּים consec. Ez 34:11; Impf. יְבַקֵּר Lv 13:36; 27:33, אֲבַקֵּר Ez 34:12; Inf. cstr. לְבַקֵּר 2 K 16:15 + 2 times;—seek, look for, sq. לְ Lv 13:36; seek (to distinguish) sq. בֵּין־טוֹב לָרַע Lv. 27:33; seek (in order to care for) sq. acc. צֹאן Ez 34:11 (‖ דרשׁ) v 12, fig. of י׳ seeking his people; contemplate, sq. בְּ ψ 27:4 (‖ חָזָה בְּ); consider, reflect, abs. Pr 20:25 אַחַר נְדָרִים i.e. whether the vows were wise, or should be kept (cf. Str ad loc. \& reff.); cf. perhaps 2 K 16:15 consider (what shall be done with the old altar); look at Klo, (so לְבַקֵּר 1 K 3:21 for 2nd בַּבֹּקֶר), AV RV to inquire by, 𝔖 for praying; perhaps denoting some religious service to be performed by king himself, cf. especially RSSem i.467.

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Why these entries: BDB: headword, part of speech agrees, 7 of its verses cited, 1 words shared with the glosses, lists its Strong's number (4 candidates); OSHB: headword, part of speech agrees, 1 words shared with the BDB entry, 0 with the glosses (4 candidates)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every English meaning of «בָּקַר» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1489/1239/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.

### In the verses

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[Proverbs 20:25](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/ketuvim/PRO.20.25/)

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מוֹקֵ֣שׁ אָ֭דָם יָ֣לַע קֹ֑דֶשׁ וְאַחַ֖ר נְדָרִ֣ים לְבַקֵּֽר׃

*Word for word:* \[is\].a.snare of.a.person \[one.who\].he.will.say.rashly holiness and after \[the\].vows to consider

*JPS 1917:* It is a snare to a man rashly to say: 'Holy', and after vows to make inquiry.

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[Ezekiel 34:11](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/neviim/EZK.34.11/)

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כִּ֛י כֹּ֥ה אָמַ֖ר אֲדֹנָ֣י יְהוִ֑ה הִנְנִי־אָ֕נִי וְדָרַשְׁתִּ֥י אֶת־צֹאנִ֖י וּבִקַּרְתִּֽים׃

*Word for word:* (dm) thus he.says Lord \[the\] Yahweh here I.\[am\] I and I.will.search.for (et) flock my and I will.seek.them

*JPS 1917:* For thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, here am I, and I will search for My sheep, and seek them out.

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- ← previous: [בָּקַק](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/tanakh/w/lemma_3a_5d1_5b8_5bc_5e7_5b7_5e7.md)
- next →: [בָּקָר](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/tanakh/w/1241.md)
- ↑ back to [ב](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/tanakh/1489-3.md)