Hebrew word · H211

אוֹפִיר

'ofir

Ophir

A distant land reached by sea from the Red Sea and proverbial for the finest gold. Genesis 10:29 lists Ophir among the sons of Joktan, alongside Sheba and Havilah, which points toward southern Arabia.

Appears 13 times in 12 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

§ Ophir = "reducing to ashes"

a land or city in southern Arabia in Solomon's trade route where gold evidently was traded for goods

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

From the study of 1 Kings 22:48

Range of meaning

A distant land reached by sea from the Red Sea and proverbial for the finest gold. Genesis 10:29 lists Ophir among the sons of Joktan, alongside Sheba and Havilah, which points toward southern Arabia. The main proposals for its location are south-western Arabia, the Horn of Africa (Somalia/Eritrea, the possible region of the Egyptians' 'Punt'), and western India. Solomon's voyages there apparently took a long time (compare 1 Kings 10:22, 'once every three years', though that verse may describe a combined trade).

Against the English

All English versions transliterate it as 'Ophir'. The word itself is accurate. What modern readers miss is that 'Ophir gold' was a byword for top-quality gold, something like a premium brand name.

Used elsewhere in the period

Job 22:24; 28:16; Psalm 45:9 ('the queen in gold of Ophir'); Isaiah 13:12; 1 Chronicles 29:4. An 8th-century BC ostracon (inscribed potsherd) from Tell Qasile near Tel Aviv reads 'gold of Ophir to Beth-horon, 30 shekels'. This confirms that 'Ophir gold' was a real trade designation in Israel's world.

Where it appears

Genesis · 1

  1. Genesis 10:29 אוֹפִ֥ר Ophir

    Ophir, Havilah, and Jobab. All these were sons of Joktan.

1 Kings · 4

  1. 1 Kings 9:28 אוֹפִ֔ירָה Ophir towards

    They sailed to Ophir and imported gold from there—420 talents—and delivered it to Solomon.

  2. 1 Kings 10:11 מֵאוֹפִ֑יר מֵאֹפִ֜יר from Ophir

    (The fleet of Hiram that brought gold from Ophir also brought from Ophir a great cargo of almug wood and precious stones.

  3. 1 Kings 22:48 אוֹפִ֛ירָה Ophir towards

    Jehoshaphat built ships of Tarshish to go to Ophir for gold, but they never set sail, because they were wrecked at Ezion-geber.

    Here: 'To Ophir'. The ending -āh marks direction. Ophir was a distant land famous for fine gold, reached by sea from the Red Sea. Its exact location is unknown.

1 Chronicles · 2

  1. 1 Chronicles 1:23 אוֹפִ֥יר Ophir

    Ophir, Havilah, and Jobab. All these were sons of Joktan.

  2. 1 Chronicles 29:4 אוֹפִ֑יר Ophir

    three thousand talents of gold (the gold of Ophir) and seven thousand talents of refined silver, to overlay the walls of the buildings,

2 Chronicles · 2

  1. 2 Chronicles 8:18 אוֹפִ֔ירָה Ophir towards

    So Hiram sent him ships captained by his servants, along with crews of experienced sailors. They went with Solomon’s servants to Ophir and acquired from there 450 talents of gold, which they delivered to King Solomon.

  2. 2 Chronicles 9:10 מֵאוֹפִ֑יר from Ophir

    (The servants of Hiram and of Solomon who brought gold from Ophir also brought algum wood and precious stones.

Job · 2

  1. Job 22:24 אוֹפִֽיר׃ gold of Ophir

    and consign your gold to the dust and the gold of Ophir to the stones of the ravines,

  2. Job 28:16 אוֹפִ֑יר Ophir

    It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir, in precious onyx or sapphire.

Psalms · 1

  1. Psalm 45:9 אוֹפִֽיר׃ Ophir

    The daughters of kings are among your honored women; the queen stands at your right hand, adorned with the gold of Ophir.

    Here: A distant land famous for top-grade gold, reached by long sea voyages. 'Gold of Ophir' was a byword for the best gold there was.

Isaiah · 1

  1. Isaiah 13:12 אוֹפִֽיר׃ Ophir

    I will make man scarcer than pure gold, and mankind rarer than the gold of Ophir.

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.