---
title: בָּקַשׁ — seek · The Tanakh dictionary
description: בָּקַשׁ (1245), a word of Biblical Hebrew, used 225 times: seek. BDB 1906: vb. seek. With 2 verses in Hebrew, word for word and JPS 1917.
---

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# בָּקַשׁ

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«בָּקַשׁ» in the Tanakh dictionary: **seek** — 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:** 225 times · **Key:** 1245 · **BDB:** בָּקַשׁ

### Glosses

seek (40); he.sought (14); \[those.who\].seek (10)

### Meaning (OSHB)

seek [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1489/1245/#m1)

### Meaning (BDB 1906)

vb. seek [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1489/1245/#m2)

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**The whole BDB entry:** vb. seek (Ph. בקש)— Pf. בִּקֵּשׁ Dt 13:11 + 15 times; בִּקְשָׁה Ex 7:28 Est 2:15; sf. בִּקְשָׁתַם Ho 2:9; בִּקַּשְׁתִּיו Ct 3:1, 2 cf. 5:6; בִּקְשׁוּ Ezr 2:62 + 12 times; sf. בִּקְשֻׁנִי Is 65:1 + 2 times; Impf. יְבַקֵּשׁ Jos 22:23 + 37 times; יְבַקֶּשׁ־ Pr 15:14 + 2 times; אֲבַקְשָׁה ψ 122:9 + 3 times, sf. יְבַקְשֵׁהוּ 1 S 23:14 + 7 times; יְבַקְשׁוּ 1 S 16:16 + 23 times; Imv. בַּקֵּשׁ 1 S 9:3 + 3 times בַּקְּשׁוּ; 1 S 28:7 + 8 times; Inf. לְבַקֵּשׁ 1 S 10:2 + 29 times; Pt. מְבַקֵּשׁ Gn 37:16 + 23 times; pl. מְבַקְשִׁים Ex 10:11 + 38 times;— seek to find: abs. Ju 6:29 2 K 2:17 Je 5:1 Ez 34:6 Ec 3:6; 8:17 (yet v. Ew). acc. Gn 37:15, 16 Jos 2:22 (J) Ju 4:22; 14:4 1 S 9:3; 10:2, 14, 21; 16:16 1 S 23:14, 25; 24:3; 26:2; 27:1, 4 + 26:20 obj. a flea, but read נַפְשִׁי 𝔊 Th We Kirkp Klo Dr; 2 S 17:3, 20 1 K 1:3; 2:40; 18:10 2 K 2:16; 6:19 1 Ch 4:39 2 Ch 22:9 Ezr 2:62 (= Ne 7:64) Ne 12:27 ψ 37:25, 36; 119:176 Pr 2:4; 21:6; 23:35; Ec 7:28; Ct 3:1, 2; 5:6; 6:1 Is 41:12, 17 Je 2:24, 33 La 1:11 Ez 7:25; 22:30; 34:4, 16 Ho 2:9 Na 3:11 Zc 11:16 Mal 2:15 Ec 3:15. with לְ Jb 10:6. acc. rei לְ pers. Ju 18:1 1 S 13:14; 28:7 1 K 1:2 Ru 3:1 Est 2:2 ψ 122:9 Is 40:20 La 1:19 Na 3:7. seek to secure: acc. the priesthood Nu 16:10 (P); David for king 2 S 3:17; in battle 2 S 5:17 (= 1 Ch 14:8); ψ 27:4 Je 45:5 (cf. v 5); בקשׁ נפשׁ seek to take one’s life Ex 4:19 (J) 1 S 20:1; 22:23(×2); 23:15; 25:29 2 S 4:8; 16:11 1 K 19:10, 14 ψ 35:4; 38:13; 40:15; 54:5; 63:10; 70:3; 86:14 Pr 29:10 Je 4:30; 11:21; 19:7, 9; 21:7; 22:25; 34:20, 21; 38:16; 44:30(×2); 46:26; 49:37. aim at, practise: בקשׁ רעה seek hurt of Nu 35:23 (P) 1 S 24:10; 25:26 (אֶל) 1 K 20:7 ψ 71:13, 24 Est 9:2; ב׳ כזב ψ 4:3 cf. Pr 17:11, שׁבר Pr 17:19, רצון Pr 11:27, טובה Ne 2:10, אמונה Je 5:1, צדק, ענוה Zp 2:3(×2) שׁלום ψ 34:15, חכמה Pr 14:6 Ec 7:25, בינה Dn 8:15, דעת Pr 15:14; 18:15, תורה Mal 2:7, אהבה Pr 17:9, תאוה 18:1 (ל of dir. obj.), חשׁבנות Ec 7:29. Inf. Ex 4:24 (J) Je 26:21. לְ \& Inf. Gn 43:30 Ex 2:15 (JE) Dt 13:11 1 S 14:4; 19:2, 10; 23:10 2 S 20:19; 21:2 1 K 11:22, 40 Est 2:21; 3:6; 6:2 ψ 37:32 Ec 12:10 Zc 6:7; 12:9. seek the face of rulers 1 K 10:24 (= 2 Ch 9:23) Pr 29:26. of God (from resorting to sacred places) Ho 5:15 1 Ch 16:11 (= ψ 105:4) 2 Ch 7:14 2 S 21:1 ψ 24:6; 27:8(×2); without פְּנֵי יהוה Dt 4:29 Zp 1:6; 2:3 Ho 3:5; 5:6 Ex 33:7 (J) 1 Ch 16:10 (= ψ 105:3) 2 Ch 11:16; 20:4 Is 51:1 Pr 28:5 Zc 8:21, 22 Je 50:4; אלהים 2 S 12:16, cf. Ezr 8:22 Is 45:19; 65:1 2 Ch 15:4, 15 Ho 7:10 Je 29:13 Mal 3:1 ψ 40:17; 70:5; 69:7 Dn 9:3; דבר י׳ Am 8:12; שׁמד ψ 83:17. sq. Inf. c. לְ, of resort to wizards, but no obj. Lv 19:31 (H). desire, demand: acc. Ex 10:11 1 Ch 21:3. acc. rei מִן pers. Ez 7:26 Dn 1:20. require, exact, acc. rei מִיַּד pers. Is 1:12; מִן pers. Ne 5:12, acc. rei v 18. exact equivalent or penalty for, acc. rei, מִיַּד pers. Gn 31:39; 43:9 (JE) 1 S 20:16 2 S 4:11 Ez 3:18, 20; 33:8, cf. דרשׁ; no obj. expr. Jos 22:23 (P). (late) ask, request, acc. rei Est 2:15; עַל rei Ne 2:4; עַל rei מִן pers. Est 7:7 Ezr 8:23; עַל rei מִלִּפְנֵי pers. Est 4:8; acc. rei מִן pers. Dn 1:8 (obj. cl. c. אשׁר), ψ 104:21; מִן pers. 2 Ch 20:4. Impf. יְבֻקַּשׁ Je 50:20, וַיְב׳ Est 2:23; תֲּבֻקְשִׁי Ez 26:21 be sought.

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Why these entries: BDB: headword, part of speech agrees, 213 of its verses cited, 1 words shared with the glosses, lists its Strong's number (1 candidates); OSHB: headword, part of speech agrees, 1 words shared with the BDB entry, 1 with the glosses (1 candidates)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every English meaning of «בָּקַשׁ» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/tanakh/1489/1245/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.

### In the verses

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[Ezekiel 7:25](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/neviim/EZK.7.25/)

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קְפָ֖דָה־בָ֑א וּבִקְשׁ֥וּ שָׁל֖וֹם וָאָֽיִן׃

*Word for word:* anguish it.has.come and they.will.seek peace and there.\[will\].not.\[be\]

*JPS 1917:* Horror cometh; and they shall seek peace, and there shall be none.

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[Proverbs 18:1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/ketuvim/PRO.18.1/)

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לְֽ֭תַאֲוָה יְבַקֵּ֣שׁ נִפְרָ֑ד בְּכָל־תּ֝וּשִׁיָּ֗ה יִתְגַּלָּֽע׃

*Word for word:* (to) desire he.seeks \[one.who\].separates.himself on all sound.wisdom he.breaks.out

*JPS 1917:* He that separateth himself seeketh his own desire, and snarlest against all sound wisdom.

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