Hebrew word · H3520

כָּבוֹד

hakevudah

glorious

From kāvēd, 'to be heavy'. Related to kāvôd, 'weight, wealth, honor, glory'. This form appears as a noun meaning 'valuables, goods' (Judges 18:21) and as an adjective meaning 'stately, splendid' (Ezekiel 23:41, 'a stately couch').

Appears 3 times in 3 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

glorious

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 Psalm 45:13

Range of meaning

From kāvēd, 'to be heavy'. Related to kāvôd, 'weight, wealth, honor, glory'. This form appears as a noun meaning 'valuables, goods' (Judges 18:21) and as an adjective meaning 'stately, splendid' (Ezekiel 23:41, 'a stately couch').

Against the English

'Glorious' is acceptable. To modern ears, especially in church, 'glory' tends to sound spiritual or heavenly. Here it means visible magnificence, wealth and honor: a richly dressed royal bride.

How it drifted

'Glory' in church language has drifted toward divine radiance or a heavenly state. The Hebrew weight-word covers wealth, finery and social standing as well.

Used elsewhere in the period

Judges 18:21 (the Danites put 'the valuables', hakkəvûddāh, in front of them); Ezekiel 23:41 (miṭṭāh kəvûddāh, 'a splendid couch'). The Septuagint renders it doxa, 'glory, splendor'.

Where it appears

Judges · 1

  1. Judges 18:21 הַכְּבוּדָּ֖ה the valuable[s]

    Putting their small children, their livestock, and their possessions in front of them, they turned and departed.

Psalms · 1

  1. Psalm 45:13 כְּבוּדָּ֣ה glorious

    All glorious is the princess in her chamber; her gown is embroidered with gold.

    Here: From the root for 'weight, heaviness'. Here it means the splendid, richly adorned one. The same form can also mean 'valuables, finery', as in Judges 18:21. Either way it is about visible magnificence and worth.

Ezekiel · 1

  1. Ezekiel 23:41 כְבוּדָּ֔ה glorious

    You sat on a couch of luxury with a table spread before it, on which you had set My incense and My oil,

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