Lexical Summary
qashar: To bind, tie, conspire, make a league
Original Word:קָשַׁר
Part of Speech:Verb
Transliteration:qashar
Pronunciation:kah-SHAR
Phonetic Spelling:(kaw-shar')
NASB:conspired, bind, made, bound, conspirators, stronger, tie
Word Origin:[a primitive root]
1. bind (up), (make a) conspire(-acy, -ator), join together, knit, stronger, work (treason)
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
bind up, make a conspiracy join together, knit, stronger, work treason
A primitive root: to tie, physically (gird, confine, compact) or mentally (in love, league) -- bind (up), (make a) conspire(-acy, -ator), join together, knit, stronger, work (treason).
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origina prim. root
Definitionto bind, league together, conspire
NASB Translationbind (9), bound (2), carried (1), conspirators (2), conspired (19), joined together (1), knit (1), made (3), stronger (2), tie (2), tied (2).
Brown-Driver-Briggs
(Late Hebrew
id., bind, join,
knot; , Syriac
bind ( for after ) Nö
ZMG xi.735, who compare also ('perhaps') Arabic
force to do a thing, Ethiopic
bind); —
Perfect3masculine singularAmos 7:10;1 Kings 16:16; 2masculine singular suffix consecutiveDeuteronomy 6:8, etc.;Imperfect3masculine singular1 Kings 15:27 +,2 Kings 15:30, etc.;Imperative masculine singular suffixProverbs 3:3 +;Participle active plural2 Samuel 15:31 +;passive feminine singularGenesis 44:30;Proverbs 22:15; pluralGenesis 30:42; —
bind:
literal, with accusative of thing +Genesis 38:28 (J),Jeremiah 51:63, + ,Joshua 2:18,21 (JE);bind, confine, with accusativeJob 39:10 (+ ), accusative of crocodileJob 40:29.
figurative, with accusative +Deuteronomy 6:8;Deuteronomy 11:18;Proverbs 3:3;Proverbs 6:21;Proverbs 7:3 (all of religious and moral precepts); with ,Genesis 44:30his life is bound up with his [namely the boy's]life (J; of strong affection);Proverbs 22:15.
vigorous (properly well-knit; opposed to )Genesis 30:42 (J).
league together, conspire: with personagainst1 Samuel 22:8;1 Samuel 22:13;Amos 7:10;1 Kings 15:27;1 Kings 16:9;2 Kings 10:9;2 Kings 15:10;2 Kings 15:25, 21:23;2 Kings 21:24 2Chronicles 33:24,25; 24:21; with accusative of congnate meaning with verb ,1 Kings 16:20;2 Kings 12:21;2 Kings 15:15, + person2 Kings 14:19 2Chronicles 25:27;2 Kings 15:30; absolute1 Kings 16:16;Nehemiah 4:2 (+ infinitive purpose); with , together with,2 Samuel 15:31.
Perfect3feminine singular1 Samuel 18:1the life of Jonathan was bound up with the life of David ();Imperfect3feminine singularNehemiah 3:38all the wall was joined together (the circuit complete).
Imperfect
bind on (as ornament), 2 feminine singular suffixIsaiah 49:18 (figurative; "" ).
bind fast, 2 masculine singular ()Job 38:31canst thou bind fast the bands of the Pleiades?
ParticipleGenesis 30:41 (J), =conspire: Perfect3plural 2Chronicles 24:25 (""2 Kings 12:21 );Imperfect3masculine singular2 Kings 9:14;Participle plural 2Chronicles 24:26.
Topical Lexicon
Overviewקָשַׁר (qāshar) traces a thread through Scripture that links the concrete act of fastening things together with the moral and spiritual realities of loyalty, treachery, and covenant devotion. Whether binding priestly garments, tying instructions to one’s hands, or plotting the overthrow of a king, the verb always assumes purposeful attachment—either to strengthen or to subvert. About forty-four occurrences span Pentateuch, Historical Books, Wisdom Literature, and Prophets, furnishing a multifaceted portrait of bonds that can bless or betray.
Literal Sense: Tying, Fastening, Securing
1. Covenant Signs. Deuteronomy twice issues the command: “Bind them as a sign on your hands and let them be a symbol on your foreheads” (Deuteronomy 6:8; 11:18). Here physical fastening becomes a perpetual reminder that life and limb belong to the LORD.
2. Priestly Garments.Exodus 28:28 records the careful attaching of the breastpiece to the ephod “so that it will not swing out.” Worship requires things held firmly in place—an image of stability in God’s presence.
3. Parental Instruction. “Do not let kindness and truth leave you; bind them around your neck” (Proverbs 3:3; cf. 6:21; 7:3). Wisdom must be tethered close to the life-pulse.
4. Everyday Objects.Job 31:36 pictures Job fastening his defense “as a crown,” illustrating personal integrity bound openly for all to see.
Figurative Sense: Heart Loyalty and Moral Adhesion
Qāshar depicts the deliberate anchoring of the inner person to God’s Word. Meditating on Torah (Deuteronomy 6) or cherishing wisdom (Proverbs 7) is not casual; it is a binding that resists unraveling pressures. The steadfast believer ties affections, decisions, and aspirations to revealed truth, mirroring the secure knots of the ephod cords.
Political and Military Conspiracy
The dominant narrative use is treason:
•1 Kings 15:27 “Baasha son of Ahijah conspired against him and struck him down.”
•2 Kings 9:14; 10:9 Jehu’s uprising.
•2 Kings 12:20 “His servants conspired against him and killed Joash.”
•2 Samuel 15:12 “The conspiracy gained strength, and Absalom’s following kept increasing.”
•2 Chronicles 33:24 “The servants of Amon conspired against him and killed the king in his palace.”
Patterns emerge:
1. Conspiracies arise when covenant obligations are ignored, placing personal ambition above divine order.
2. God uses even seditious plots to advance His larger redemptive plan (e.g., Jehu executing judgment foretold by Elijah).
3. Unchecked conspiracy becomes a hallmark of national decline in Israel and Judah, culminating in exile (2 Kings 17:4).
Divine Sovereignty over Human Plots
Psalm 2 employs related imagery, though a different root, to depict nations binding themselves against the LORD. Qāshar passages affirm the same principle: rebellious bonds cannot overthrow the decreed King (cf.2 Kings 19, where Assyrian intrigues fail). The prophets repeatedly announce that clandestine alliances cannot void the covenant (Isaiah 8:9-10).
Prophetic Commentary on Covenant Treachery
Hosea 5:13 speaks of Judah’s leaders “binding wounds” through foreign treaties—an ironic misuse of qāshar’s imagery (LXX nuance).Ezekiel 37:16-17 anticipates a gracious reversal: two sticks “joined” into one nation under one Shepherd. God will perform the true qāshar, uniting what sin has sundered.
Ministry Significance: Guarding Against Spiritual Conspiracy
1. Churches must resist tolerated pockets of rebellion—secret grumbling, faction-forming, or doctrinal drift. What begins as whispered plotting can fracture Christ’s body (compare Absalom winning hearts at the gate).
2. Positive binding—membership covenants, accountability partnerships, and the Lord’s Supper—fosters healthy attachment that counters divisive conspiracies.
3. Leaders should heed Nathan’s model (2 Samuel 12) and expose hidden sin before it matures into full-blown qāshar.
Christological and Eschatological Reflections
The crucifixion itself was a sanctioned conspiracy (Acts 4:27-28), yet God wove human treachery into the binding cord of salvation. At the Cross, the Son was “bound” so that believers might be forever bound to Him in the New Covenant. Revelation envisions Satan finally “bound for a thousand years” (Revelation 20:2), the climactic reversal of every unrighteous qāshar. Thus Scriptures move from men binding commandments to themselves, through rebellious conspiracies, to God’s ultimate binding of evil and unbreakable joining of redeemed humanity to the Lamb.
Forms and Transliterations
בַּקֹּשְׁרִ֖ים בקשרים הֲֽתִקְשָׁר־ הִתְקַשְּׁר֨וּ הַֽ֭תְקַשֵּׁר הַמְקֻשָּׁרוֹת֒ הַמִּתְקַשְּׁרִ֣ים הַקֹּֽשְׁרִ֖ים הַקֹּשְׁרִ֖ים המקשרות המתקשרים הקשרים התקשר התקשר־ התקשרו וְ֝תִקְשְׁרֶ֗נּוּ וְהַקְּשֻׁרִ֖ים וַיִּקְשְׁר֣וּ וַיִּקְשְׁר֤וּ וַיִּקְשְׁר֥וּ וַיִּקְשְׁר֨וּ וַיִּקְשְׁרֽוּ־ וַיִּקְשָׁר־ וַיִּקְשֹׁ֣ר וַיִּקְשֹׁ֤ר וַיִּקְשֹׁ֨ר וַיִּתְקַשֵּׁ֗ר וַתִּקְשֹׁ֛ר וַתִּקְשֹׁ֨ר וַתִּקָּשֵׁ֥ר וּֽתְקַשְּׁרִ֖ים וּקְשַׁרְתֶּ֨ם וּקְשַׁרְתָּ֥ם והקשרים ויקשר ויקשר־ ויקשרו ויקשרו־ ויתקשר וקשרתם ותקשר ותקשרים ותקשרנו נִקְשְׁרָ֖ה נקשרה קְשַׁרְתֶּ֣ם קְשַׁרְתֶּ֨ם קְשׁוּרָ֣ה קְשׁוּרָ֥ה קָשְׁרֵ֣ם קָשְׁרֵ֥ם קָשַׁ֣ר קָשַׁ֤רְתִּי קָשַׁ֨ר קָשָׁ֑ר קשורה קשר קשרם קשרתי קשרתם תִּקְשְׁרִ֗י תִּקְשֹׁ֤ר תקשר תקשרי bakkosheRim baq·qō·šə·rîm baqqōšərîm hakkosheRim ham·miṯ·qaš·šə·rîm ham·quš·šā·rō·wṯ hamkushsharoT hammitkashsheRim hammiṯqaššərîm hamquššārōwṯ haq·qō·šə·rîm haqqōšərîm haṯ·qaš·šêr hatikshor hăṯiq·šār- hăṯiqšār- Hatkashsher haṯqaššêr hiṯ·qaš·šə·rū hitkashsheRu hiṯqaššərū kaShar kaSharti kasheRem kesharTem keshuRah niksheRah niq·šə·rāh niqšərāh qā·šar qā·šār qā·šar·tî qā·šə·rêm qāšar qāšār qāšartî qāšərêm qə·šar·tem qə·šū·rāh qəšartem qəšūrāh tiksheRi tikShor tiq·šə·rî tiq·šōr tiqšərî tiqšōr ū·qə·šar·tām ū·qə·šar·tem ū·ṯə·qaš·šə·rîm ukesharTam ukesharTem ūqəšartām ūqəšartem utekashsheRim ūṯəqaššərîm vaiyiksheru vaiyikShor vaiyitkashSher vattikkaSher vattikShor vehakkeshuRim vetiksheRennu wat·tiq·qā·šêr wat·tiq·šōr wattiqqāšêr wattiqšōr way·yiq·šār- way·yiq·šə·rū way·yiq·šə·rū- way·yiq·šōr way·yiṯ·qaš·šêr wayyiqšār- wayyiqšərū wayyiqšərū- wayyiqšōr wayyiṯqaššêr wə·haq·qə·šu·rîm wə·ṯiq·šə·ren·nū wəhaqqəšurîm wəṯiqšərennū
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