Lexical Summary
chamad: To desire, to covet, to take pleasure in, to delight in
Original Word:חָמַד
Part of Speech:Verb
Transliteration:chamad
Pronunciation:khaw-MAD
Phonetic Spelling:(khaw-mad')
KJV: beauty, greatly beloved, covet, delectable thing, (X great) delight, desire, goodly, lust, (be) pleasant (thing), precious (thing)
NASB:covet, desirable, desired, desires, precious, attracted, coveted
Word Origin:[a primitive root]
1. to delight in
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
beauty, greatly beloved, covet, delectable thing, great delight, desire, lust,
A primitive root; to delight in -- beauty, greatly beloved, covet, delectable thing, (X great) delight, desire, goodly, lust, (be) pleasant (thing), precious (thing).
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origina prim. root
Definitionto desire, take pleasure in
NASB Translationattracted (1), covet (6), coveted (1), delight (1), desirable (2), desire (1), desired (2), desires (2), pleasing (1), precious (2), precious things (1), took great delight (1).
Brown-Driver-Briggs
(Aramaic (not in Syriac); Arabic
praise, eulogize, appove of; Sabean
in gratitude [praise]
there-for DHM
ZMG 1875, 595; 1876, 686) —
PerfectPsalm 68:17;Proverbs 12:12;Proverbs 1:22; consecutiveMicah 2:2;Isaiah 1:29;ImperfectExodus 34:24; 2masculine singularExodus 20:16 (twice in verse) + 3t. (includingProverbs 6:25 jussive); suffixJoshua 7:21;Isaiah 53:2;Passive participlePsalm 39:12;Job 20:20,Isaiah 44:9; —desire:
, followed by accusativeExodus 20:17 (twice in verse) (E) =Deuteronomy 5:18 (Deuteronomy 5:18 b has ),Exodus 34:24 (JE)Deuteronomy 7:25;Joshua 7:21 (JE)Micah 2:2;Proverbs 12:12; of lustful desireProverbs 6:25.
=take pleasure in, of idolatrous tendencyIsaiah 1:29, so participle pluralIsaiah 44:9their delightful things (things in which they delight, see alsoIsaiah 44:11 and BevJPhoenician xvii. 1888. p. 126);Proverbs 1:22 how long doscorners delight in scoring.
, said of God , poeticPsalm 68:17; object the suffering servant of ,Isaiah 53:2 no beauty in him,that we should desire him (choose him, be drawn toward him); passive participle collectivePsalm 39:12his desired things, i. e. chosen, choice, desirable (see Niph`al); so probablyJob 20:20.
ParticipleGenesis 2:9 2t.;Psalm 19:11; —desirable:Genesis 2:9,Genesis 3:6,Psalm 19:11 which aremore desirable than gold;Proverbs 21:20desirable, i.e. costlytreasure.
Perfect1singulardelight greatlySongs 2:3in his shadow I greatly delighted and sate, i.e. sate with great delight.
[] —Plural absoluteDaniel 9:23;Ezra 8:37; 2Chronicles 20:25 4t.;Genesis 27:15; constructDaniel 11:43; —desirable, choice things i.e. garmentsGenesis 27:15 ("" ); compareDaniel 11:38 ("" ),Daniel 11:43 (); =precious thingsEzra 8:27 (as gold); 2Chronicles 20:25;Deuteronomy 10:3; of man onlyDaniel 10:11,19, and, without ,Daniel 9:23thou art a precious treasure (on construction see Dr§ 189, 2; see Bev and compare negativeIsaiah 53:2).
Topical Lexicon
Scope and Nuances of חָמַדThe root paints a spectrum that ranges from wholesome delight to illicit craving. Scripture uses it for what is “pleasant” to behold (Genesis 2:9), for treasures rightly valued (Psalm 19:10), and for coveting that violates God’s law (Exodus 20:17). Context alone distinguishes noble appreciation from sinful grasping; the same verb can introduce Eden’s beauty or Achan’s theft.
Edenic Delight and the Fall
Genesis locates the first occurrences. The trees were “pleasing to the sight” (Genesis 2:9)―an unspoiled capacity to recognize God-given goodness. InGenesis 3:6 the same sense is twisted: “the tree was desirable for obtaining wisdom.” The verb thus becomes a hinge between innocence and rebellion, illustrating how a God-installed appetite can be bent toward autonomy.
Covenant Ethics: The Tenth Commandment
At Sinai the Lord legislates inward desire: “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house … wife … or anything that belongs to your neighbor” (Exodus 20:17;Deuteronomy 5:21). Unlike previous commands that regulate external actions, this statute exposes the heart. Later prophets review Israel’s breaches—Micah 2:2 indicts land–seizing nobles who “covet fields and seize them,” proving that social injustice springs from violated interior boundaries.
Historical Narratives: Craving that Costs
Joshua 7:21 records Achan’s confession: “I saw among the spoil a beautiful cloak … and I coveted them and took them.” The act undermined Israel’s entire campaign. In1 Kings 20:6 Ben-hadad threatens to take “whatever is pleasant in your eyes,” weaponizing desire to demoralize Israel. These accounts show חָמַד as a tactical fault line where obedience may either hold or collapse.
Wisdom Literature: Ordering Desire
Proverbs contrasts right and wrong longings: “The wicked covet the plunder of evil men, but the root of the righteous bears fruit” (Proverbs 12:12).Psalm 19:10 extols God’s judgments: “They are more desirable than gold.” Desire becomes an evaluative faculty harnessed by revelation; the fear of the LORD reshapes what the heart finds attractive.
Song of Songs: Celebrated Delight
In a book dedicated to covenant love, the bride sings, “I delight to sit in his shade, and his fruit is sweet to my taste” (Song of Songs 2:3). Here חָמַד dignifies romantic and physical enjoyment within divinely sanctioned marriage, balancing the negative prohibitions elsewhere.
Prophetic Reproof and Consolation
Isaiah 1:29 foretells shame for those who “delighted in the oaks,” exposing idolatrous desire. YetIsaiah 53:2 declares the Servant lacked the beauty “to attract us to Him,” indicating that redemption arrives in a form men do not naturally desire, confronting our aesthetic expectations.
Daniel’s Visions: The Beloved of God
Three times Daniel is addressed as “highly precious” (Daniel 9:23; 10:11; 10:19). The root shifts from human yearning to divine esteem: the prophet is the object of heavenly delight. The passages foreshadow New Testament teaching that God’s gracious regard, not human merit, defines true worth.
Eschatological Hints
ThoughHaggai 2:7 uses the related noun, the connection suggests an ultimate “desired” advent that will shake the nations. The verb teaches that final restoration involves rightly directed global longing, fulfilled in Messiah.
Ministry and Discipleship Applications
1. Heart Diagnosis: Since חָמַד may denote sin before any outward act, preaching and counseling must address motives, not merely behaviors (compareRomans 7:7).
2. Cultivating Holy Delight:Psalm 19 invites believers to train desire toward Scripture, turning the appetite redeemed in Christ toward what enriches the soul.
3. Contentment and Stewardship:Exodus 20:17 guards community life; practical ministry equips saints to resist consumerism and envy.
4. Worship Orientation: Isaiah exposes misplaced delight in idols; corporate worship re-centers affections on God’s splendor.
Key Themes Interwoven
• Desire is originally good yet easily corrupted.
• God’s law penetrates the level of longing, revealing sin’s depth.
• Rightly ordered desire magnifies the worth of God, His Word, His people, and covenant relationships.
• Messianic redemption re-calibrates human longing and demonstrates what God Himself finds desirable.
Representative References
Genesis 2:9; 3:6
Exodus 20:17
Deuteronomy 5:21
Joshua 7:21
1 Kings 20:6
Psalm 19:10; 68:16
Proverbs 12:12
Song of Songs 2:3
Isaiah 1:29; 53:2
Daniel 9:23; 10:11; 10:19
Micah 2:2
Forms and Transliterations
בַּ֝חֲמוּד֗וֹ בחמודו הַֽנֶּחֱמָדִ֗ים הנחמדים וְחָמְד֤וּ וְנֶחְמְדֵֽהוּ׃ וְנֶחְמָ֤ד וַחֲמוּדֵיהֶ֖ם וָֽאֶחְמְדֵ֖ם וּבַחֲמֻדֽוֹת׃ ואחמדם ובחמדות׃ וחמדו וחמודיהם ונחמד ונחמדהו׃ חֲ֠מֻדוֹת חֲמַדְתֶּ֑ם חֲמֻד֔וֹת חֲמֻד֛וֹת חֲמֻד֞וֹת חֲמֻד֣וֹת חֲמוּד֑וֹ חֲמוּד֖וֹת חִמַּ֣דְתִּי חָמְד֣וּ חָמַ֣ד חמד חמדו חמדות חמדתי חמדתם חמודו חמודות יַחְמֹ֥ד יחמד נֶחְמָ֣ד נֶחְמָ֥ד נחמד תַּחְמֹ֣ד תַחְמֹ֖ד תַחְמֹ֞ד תַחְמֹד֩ תחמד ba·ḥă·mū·ḏōw bachamuDo baḥămūḏōw chaMad chamadTem chameDu chamuDo chamuDot chimMadti ḥā·maḏ ḥă·maḏ·tem ḥā·mə·ḏū ḥă·mu·ḏō·wṯ ḥă·mū·ḏō·wṯ ḥă·mū·ḏōw ḥāmaḏ ḥămaḏtem ḥāməḏū ḥămūḏōw ḥămuḏōwṯ ḥămūḏōwṯ han·ne·ḥĕ·mā·ḏîm hannechemaDim hanneḥĕmāḏîm ḥim·maḏ·tî ḥimmaḏtî nechMad neḥ·māḏ neḥmāḏ tachMod taḥ·mōḏ ṯaḥ·mōḏ taḥmōḏ ṯaḥmōḏ ū·ḇa·ḥă·mu·ḏō·wṯ ūḇaḥămuḏōwṯ uvachamuDot vachamudeiHem vaechmeDem vechameDu venechMad venechmeDehu wā’eḥməḏêm wā·’eḥ·mə·ḏêm wa·ḥă·mū·ḏê·hem waḥămūḏêhem wə·ḥā·mə·ḏū wə·neḥ·māḏ wə·neḥ·mə·ḏê·hū wəḥāməḏū wəneḥmāḏ wəneḥməḏêhū yachMod yaḥ·mōḏ yaḥmōḏ
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