Hebrew word · H3366

יְקָר

yekar

preciousness

From the root meaning “to be heavy in value, precious, rare.” Its senses are preciousness or value (Job 28:10; Ps 49:12 “a man in his splendour”), splendour (Esth 1:4, the king's “splendour of his majesty”), and honour, especially public honour given by a superior.

Appears 17 times in 15 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

1) price, value, preciousness, honour, splendour, pomp

1a) preciousness

1b) price

1c) honour, esteem

Aramaic equivalent: ye.qar (יְקָר "honor" H3367)

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 Esther 6:3

Range of meaning

From the root meaning “to be heavy in value, precious, rare.” Its senses are preciousness or value (Job 28:10; Ps 49:12 “a man in his splendour”), splendour (Esth 1:4, the king's “splendour of his majesty”), and honour, especially public honour given by a superior.

Against the English

Nearly every English version says “honor,” which is accurate. Modern “honor” can sound like an inner quality or a private feeling of respect. Here yeqar is something done to a person, granted and put on display. In chapter 6 that means royal robes, the king's horse and a public procession.

Used elsewhere in the period

In the Bible the word is mostly a late one: used often in Esther (1:4, 1:20; 6:3, 6:6, 6:7, 6:9, 6:11; 8:16), and as Aramaic yeqar in Daniel (2:6, 2:37; 4:30, 4:36; 5:18, 5:20; 7:14), where too it is honour that kings give or receive. That fits the Persian-period setting of Esther.

From the study of Esther 8:16

Range of meaning

Preciousness, value, costliness; hence honor, prestige, splendor, dignity. The root means to be heavy, valuable or rare (compare the adjective yaqar, "precious"). It is common in Aramaic (Daniel 2:6, 37; 4:30, 36; 5:18, 20) and appears mostly in late biblical Hebrew. In Esther alone it occurs 10 times.

Against the English

All major versions say "honor." That is right, but modern English "honor" often means personal integrity or moral uprightness. Yeqar is public worth that others give you: rank, prestige, being treated as valuable. It can extend to splendor and costly things.

How it drifted

Modern "honor" has moved inward, toward conscience and character ("a person of honor"). In the ancient world honor was given socially and shown publicly.

Used elsewhere in the period

Esther 1:4 (the king displays "the yeqar of his greatness"); 1:20 (wives will give yeqar to husbands); 6:3, 6, 7, 9, 11 ("What has been done to give yeqar to Mordecai?", "the man whom the king delights to honor"). Also Psalm 49:12, 20; Proverbs 20:15; Jeremiah 20:5; Zechariah 11:13.

From the study of Jeremiah 20:5

Range of meaning

Preciousness, value. As a concrete noun, precious things or valuables. Also honour, splendour, dignity (in Esther 1:4, the splendour of the king's greatness; in Psalm 49:12[13], 'man in his yeqār does not remain').

Against the English

KJV, WEB and YLT have 'precious things.' BSB has 'valuables.' These are accurate, but no English word keeps the second sense of 'honour/splendour.'

Used elsewhere in the period

Ezekiel 22:25 has 'ḥōsen and yeqār' together. Esther 1:4; 6:3 use it for royal honour. Job 28:10: 'his eye sees every yeqār,' meaning precious stones and ore. It is related to the adjective yāqār, 'precious, costly' (used for precious stones in 1 Kings 10:2).

Where it appears

Esther · 10

  1. Esther 1:4 יְקָ֔ר [the] honor of

    And for a full 180 days he displayed the glorious riches of his kingdom and the magnificent splendor of his greatness.

  2. Esther 1:20 יְקָר֙ honor

    The edict the king issues will be heard throughout his vast kingdom—and so all women, from the least to the greatest, will honor their husbands.”

  3. Esther 6:3 יְקָ֧ר honor

    The king inquired, “What honor or dignity has been bestowed on Mordecai for this act?” “Nothing has been done for him,” replied the king’s attendants.

    Here: Public honour that can be seen and counted: tokens of the king's esteem. The same word comes back as a refrain in 6:6–11 (“the man whom the king delights to honor”).

  4. Esther 6:6 בִּיקָר֑וֹ יְקָ֖ר in honor his, honor

    Haman entered, and the king asked him, “What should be done for the man whom the king is delighted to honor?” Now Haman thought to himself, “Whom would the king be delighted to honor more than me?”

  5. Esther 6:7 בִּיקָרֽוֹ׃ in honor his

    And Haman told the king, “For the man whom the king is delighted to honor,

  6. Esther 6:9 בִּֽיקָר֑וֹ בִּיקָרֽוֹ׃ in honor his

    Let the robe and the horse be entrusted to one of the king’s most noble princes. Let them array the man the king wants to honor and parade him on the horse through the city square, proclaiming before him, ‘This is what is done for the man whom the king is delighted to honor!’”

  7. Esther 6:11 בִּיקָרֽוֹ׃ in honor his

    So Haman took the robe and the horse, arrayed Mordecai, and paraded him through the city square, crying out before him, “This is what is done for the man whom the king is delighted to honor!”

  8. Esther 8:16 וִיקָֽר׃ and honor

    For the Jews it was a time of light and gladness, of joy and honor.

    Here: "And honor." Literally "preciousness" or "weight": public standing and prestige that others recognise. It is a key word in Esther, used of the king's splendor (1:4) and of the honor Haman craved (6:6). Now it belongs to the Jews, the people Haman had called worthless to the king (3:8).

Job · 1

  1. Job 28:10 יְ֝קָ֗ר precious thing

    He hews out channels in the rocks, and his eyes spot every treasure.

Psalms · 2

  1. Psalm 49:12 בִּ֭יקָר in honor

    But a man, despite his wealth, cannot endure; he is like the beasts that perish.

  2. Psalm 49:20 בִּ֭יקָר with honor

    A man who has riches without understanding is like the beasts that perish.

Proverbs · 1

  1. Proverbs 20:15 יְ֝קָ֗ר preciousness

    There is an abundance of gold and rubies, but lips of knowledge are a rare treasure.

    Here: Value that comes from weight, worth and scarcity together. "A vessel of preciousness" means a costly, prized object. The root also means 'rare' (1 Sam 3:1), so both 'precious' and 'rare' are legitimate English choices.

Jeremiah · 1

  1. Jeremiah 20:5 יְקָרָ֑הּ precious thing its

    I will give away all the wealth of this city—all its products and valuables, and all the treasures of the kings of Judah—to their enemies. They will plunder them, seize them, and carry them off to Babylon.

    Here: 'Its precious things': costly goods and prized possessions. The same word can mean 'honour' or 'splendour,' so taking these away also strips the city of its prestige.

Ezekiel · 1

  1. Ezekiel 22:25 וִיקָר֙ and precious thing[s]

    The conspiracy of the princes in her midst is like a roaring lion tearing its prey. They devour the people, seize the treasures and precious things, and multiply the widows within her.

    Here: 'And precious things': valuables and prized possessions. The word can also mean honor or splendor, which is why YLT has 'glory', but the pairing with wealth points to concrete goods.

Zechariah · 1

  1. Zechariah 11:13 הַיְקָ֔ר the value

    And the LORD said to me, “Throw it to the potter”—this magnificent price at which they valued me. So I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw them to the potter in the house of the LORD.

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