Hebrew word · H1926
הָדָר
hadar
glory
Splendor, majesty, adornment, ornament: visible beauty that commands respect. Used of royal majesty (Psalm 45:3–4), of God ('splendor and majesty', hôd wəhādār, Psalm 96:6; 104:1), of a city's beauty (Lamentations 1:6), and of a fruitful tree (Leviticus 23:40, 'fruit of a splendid tree').
Appears 30 times in 29 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·
What it means
1) ornament, splendour, honour
1a) ornament
1b) splendour, majesty
1c) honour, glory
Abridged from Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).
In depth
- Range of meaning
Splendor, majesty, adornment, ornament: visible beauty that commands respect. Used of royal majesty (Psalm 45:3–4), of God ('splendor and majesty', hôd wəhādār, Psalm 96:6; 104:1), of a city's beauty (Lamentations 1:6), and of a fruitful tree (Leviticus 23:40, 'fruit of a splendid tree').
- Against the English
KJV/WEB 'excellency/excellence' suggests moral or qualitative superiority; BSB/NIV 'splendor' and ESV/NASB 'majesty' are closer. The word is about how something looks and the honor that its appearance commands.
- How it drifted
'Excellency' in 1611 meant surpassing eminence or dignity; today it sounds like a formal title for an ambassador, or simply 'high quality'.
- Used elsewhere in the period
Common in the Psalms for God's royal majesty; used in Isaiah 2:10, 19, 21 for 'the splendor of his majesty' before which people hide. Leviticus 23:40 applies it to lush fruit-bearing trees, which suits its use here for orchard-rich Carmel.
- Range of meaning
Splendor, magnificence, glorious adornment, especially royal display. It is used of a king in battle (Ps 45:3–4), of God's royal presence ('splendor and majesty are before him', Ps 96:6; 104:1), of the beauty of trees (Lev 23:40, 'fruit of a splendid tree'), and of honor given to humans (Ps 8:5).
- Against the English
KJV and WEB say 'glory', YLT says 'honour', BSB/ESV/NIV/NASB say 'splendor'. 'Splendor' is closest. 'Glory' is fine but can sound like a vague religious shine, while hādār is concrete, visible royal magnificence.
- Used elsewhere in the period
Ps 29:4; 90:16; 96:6; 104:1; 111:3. Paired with hôd ('majesty') in royal hymns. The refrain repeats it at Isa 2:19, 21. The Septuagint uses doxa ('glory').
- Range of meaning
Splendor, majesty, magnificence, adornment. It is often something worn: God is "clothed with splendor and majesty" (hod vehadar, Ps 104:1); the capable woman's clothing is "strength and hadar" (Prov 31:25). It is royal: the king rides out "in your splendor and majesty" (Ps 45:3–4); God lays "splendor and majesty" on the king (Ps 21:5). It can also be the dignity of age: "the hadar of the old is grey hair" (Prov 20:29). The servant of Isa 53:2 has "no form or hadar."
- Against the English
KJV, BSB and WEB give "honour/honor," which modern ears hear as integrity or respect. Hadar is more visible: the splendor and majesty of royal appearance. YLT's and NRSV-type "majesty" is closer.
- How it drifted
The Septuagint's timē ("honor, value") and the Vulgate's honore led to the English "honor," which carries the inner and moral sense of the English word rather than the outward splendor.
- Used elsewhere in the period
Ps 21:5; 29:2; 45:3–4; 96:6; 104:1; Prov 20:29; 31:25; Isa 53:2; Lev 23:40 ("fruit of splendid trees"). LXX timē.
Where it appears
Leviticus · 1
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Leviticus 23:40 הָדָר֙ splendor
On the first day you are to gather the fruit of majestic trees, the branches of palm trees, and the boughs of leafy trees and of willows of the brook. And you are to rejoice before the LORD your God for seven days.
Here: 'Splendor.' This word is normally used for royal or divine majesty, and here it describes the tree: a tree of splendour, a magnificent or beautiful tree. Jewish tradition from at least the first century identified it as the citron (etrog).
Deuteronomy · 1
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Deuteronomy 33:17 הָדָ֣ר splendor
His majesty is like a firstborn bull, and his horns are like those of a wild ox. With them he will gore the nations, even to the ends of the earth. Such are the myriads of Ephraim, and such are the thousands of Manasseh.”
Here: The visible magnificence of something powerful: a bull's bearing, a king's dignity. It is the impressive look of strength, not 'glory' in a heavenly sense.
1 Chronicles · 1
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1 Chronicles 16:27 וְהָדָר֙ and majesty
Splendor and majesty are before Him; strength and joy fill His dwelling.
Job · 1
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Job 40:10 וְהָדָ֣ר and honor
Then adorn yourself with majesty and splendor, and clothe yourself with honor and glory.
Here: 'And majesty.' It is regularly paired with hôd. Together, hôd and hādār are the standard Hebrew way of describing royal and divine magnificence (Ps 96:6; 104:1; 145:5).
Psalms · 13
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Psalm 8:5 וְהָדָ֣ר and majesty
You made him a little lower than the angels; You crowned him with glory and honor.
Here: "And splendor / majesty." The visible magnificence of a king or of God, often pictured as something worn like clothing. Paired with kavod it is royal language.
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Psalm 21:5 וְ֝הָדָר and majesty
Great is his glory in Your salvation; You bestow on him splendor and majesty.
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Psalm 29:4 בֶּהָדָֽר׃ [is] with <the> majesty
The voice of the LORD is powerful; the voice of the LORD is majestic.
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Psalm 45:3 וַהֲדָרֶֽךָ׃ and majesty your
Strap your sword at your side, O mighty warrior; appear in your majesty and splendor.
Here: 'And your majesty': the beauty and grandeur of something richly adorned. Paired with hôd, it forms a fixed phrase, 'splendor-and-majesty,' that elsewhere describes what God wears (Ps 104:1) and what God gives the king (Ps 21:5).
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Psalm 45:4 וַהֲדָ֬רְךָ֨׀ and majesty your
In your splendor ride forth in victory on behalf of truth and humility and justice; may your right hand show your awesome deeds.
Here: The visible royal splendor of the king: his bearing, his regalia, the glory people see when he appears. It picks up the last word of verse 3, so the king rides out wearing the majesty he was just told to put on, as if majesty were part of his armor.
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Psalm 90:16 וַ֝הֲדָרְךָ֗ and majesty your
May Your work be shown to Your servants, and Your splendor to their children.
Here: The visible splendor and dignity of a king, often pictured as something he wears. Here it is the shining display of God's royal power, which the psalmist asks to rest on the next generation.
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Psalm 96:6 וְהָדָ֥ר and majesty
Splendor and majesty are before Him; strength and beauty fill His sanctuary.
Here: 'And splendor.' This word carries the idea of adornment: the visible glory that dresses a person. Paired with hod it makes a fixed phrase, 'splendor and majesty,' that Hebrew poetry uses for royal glory, both God's and a king's.
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Psalm 104:1 וְהָדָ֣ר and majesty
Bless the LORD, O my soul! O LORD my God, You are very great; You are clothed with splendor and majesty.
Here: 'And majesty/glory.' Hadar is splendid adornment, the dazzling beauty of honor on display. Paired with hod it forms a fixed phrase for royal grandeur.
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Psalm 110:3 בְּֽהַדְרֵי־ in majesti<es> of
Your people shall be willing on Your day of battle. Arrayed in holy splendor, from the womb of the dawn, to You belongs the dew of Your youth.
Here: 'In splendors of.' The plural points to dazzling array or adornment. It describes how the volunteers appear (or, on another reading, where they gather: 'on the mountains of').
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Psalm 111:3 וְהָדָ֥ר and majesty
Splendid and majestic is His work; His righteousness endures forever.
Here: "And majesty." Hadar is the visible beauty and honor someone wears like royal dress. Joined to hod, the pair is a fixed phrase for kingly majesty (Ps 21:5; 45:3; 96:6; 104:1).
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Psalm 145:5 הֲ֭דַר [the] majesty of
the glorious splendor of Your majesty. And I will meditate on Your wondrous works.
Here: The visible splendor and grandeur that marks out a king. It starts the line with the letter he (ה), which is this verse's slot in the psalm's alphabet pattern, and it heads a three-word stack of royal glory.
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Psalm 145:12 הֲדַ֣ר [the] majesty of
to make known to men Your mighty acts and the glorious splendor of Your kingdom.
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Psalm 149:9 הָדָ֣ר [is] honor
to execute the judgment written against them. This honor is for all His saints. Hallelujah!
Proverbs · 2
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Proverbs 20:29 וַהֲדַ֖ר and [the] splendor of
The glory of young men is their strength, and gray hair is the splendor of the old.
Here: 'And the splendour of…' This word is often used for royal or divine majesty, and it carries dignity and honour as well as beauty. The 'and' sets the second stage of life beside the first. Some translations make it 'but'.
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Proverbs 31:25 וְהָדָ֥ר and honor
Strength and honor are her clothing, and she can laugh at the days to come.
Here: Visible splendor, the impressive bearing of royalty or of God. The Psalms use it for God's robes of majesty (Ps 104:1). Put next to 'strength', it pictures her as someone people look at with respect, the way they would look at a dignitary.
Isaiah · 7
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Isaiah 2:10 וּמֵהֲדַ֖ר and from [the] splendor of
Go into the rocks and hide in the dust from the terror of the LORD and the splendor of His majesty.
Here: 'And from the splendor of.' Hadar is the splendor of a king's display, the visible magnificence of royalty (Ps 45:3–4; Ps 96:6). Here it is the blazing royal display of YHWH, and no one can stand before it.
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Isaiah 2:19 וּמֵהֲדַ֣ר and from [the] splendor of
Men will flee to caves in the rocks and holes in the ground, away from the terror of the LORD and from the splendor of His majesty, when He rises to shake the earth.
Here: 'And from the splendor of'. Visible royal glory, the dazzling outward display of a king's dignity (Ps 45:3–4; 96:6). Here it is something people cannot bear to look at.
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Isaiah 2:21 וּמֵהֲדַ֣ר and from [the] splendor of
They will flee to caverns in the rocks and crevices in the cliffs, away from the terror of the LORD and from the splendor of His majesty, when He rises to shake the earth.
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Isaiah 5:14 הֲדָרָ֧הּ splendor its
Therefore Sheol enlarges its throat and opens wide its enormous jaws, and down go Zion’s nobles and masses, her revelers and carousers!
Here: 'Her splendor.' This stands for the city's glittering upper class, the 'glory' (kevodo) of verse 13, now going down the throat. 'Her' most likely means Jerusalem.
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Isaiah 35:2 הֲדַ֥ר הֲדַ֥ר [the] splendor of
It will bloom profusely and rejoice with joy and singing. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon. They will see the glory of the LORD, the splendor of our God.
Here: Visible beauty and dignity that people see and admire, like a king's majestic appearance. Here it is the lush beauty of Carmel and Sharon.
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Isaiah 53:2 הָדָ֑ר splendor
He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no stately form or majesty to attract us, no beauty that we should desire Him.
Here: 'Splendor'. This is the majesty of kings and of God himself (Ps 45:3–4; Ps 104:1). He had no royal bearing and nothing that commanded respect. The main pause in the verse falls here.
Lamentations · 1
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Lamentations 1:6 הֲדָרָ֑הּ splendor her
All the splendor has departed from the Daughter of Zion. Her princes are like deer that find no pasture; they lack the strength to flee in the face of the hunter.
Ezekiel · 2
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Ezekiel 16:14 בַּֽהֲדָרִי֙ on splendor my
Your fame spread among the nations on account of your beauty, for it was perfect in the splendor I bestowed on you, declares the Lord GOD.
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Ezekiel 27:10 הֲדָרֵֽךְ׃ splendor your
Men of Persia, Lydia, and Put served as warriors in your army. They hung their shields and helmets on your walls; they gave you splendor.
Here: 'Your splendor.' The word means majesty, honor and impressive dignity. It is used of kings and above all of God. It is a much bigger word than 'good looks.'
Micah · 1
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Micah 2:9 הֲדָרִ֖י glory my
You drive the women of My people from their pleasant homes. You take away My blessing from their children forever.
Here: 'My splendour': the visible honour and dignity God gave these children as members of his people. It most likely means their inheritance in God's land and their standing as free Israelites.
Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.