סָלַח
𐤎𐤋𐤇
çâlach
H5545 verb
SILEX Entry
Definition
To forgive, specifically indicating the act of pardoning or remitting wrongdoing, injury, or guilt, almost exclusively with reference to divine forgiveness as an act of mercy or grace. The verb denotes lifting or removal of liability for offense but does not erase all consequences. It is primarily used to describe YHWH's pardoning of individual or collective transgressions, rarely if ever ascribed to human action in the Hebrew Bible.
Semantic Range
to forgive (divine subject), to pardon, to remit or release from guilt, to spare from punishment (in a divine context); never describes mundane human forgiveness
Root / Etymology
Root is סלח (samekh-lamed-chet), etymology uncertain beyond biblical Hebrew. The word is a verbal root denoting the act of forgiving or pardoning. Distinct from roots meaning 'to cover' (כפר) or 'to bear/carry' (נשא), it focuses on the authoritative granting of release from guilt.
Historical & Contextual Notes
סָלַח is a verb found nearly exclusively in contexts of divine forgiveness. In the Hebrew Bible, it nearly always describes YHWH's willingness or reluctance to forgive the wrongdoing (חֵטְא, עָווֹן, פֶּשַׁע) of individuals, communities, or the nation, often in the context of intercessory prayer (e.g., Exodus 34:9, Numbers 14:19). Unlike כפר ('to atone') and נשא ('to bear, carry away'), סָלַח does not describe ritual or cultic action, but an inner disposition or sovereign act of God toward forgiveness. The term almost never describes interpersonal forgiveness between humans, making its usage distinctive compared to related verbs. Across Israelite history, its nuance remains stable from monarchic to post-exilic texts, with post-exilic and later literature making the theme of divine forgiveness central to penitential prayers (e.g., Daniel 9:19; Nehemiah 9:17). English translations typically render it as 'to forgive' or 'to pardon,' but these do not always convey its specific orientation toward divine prerogative.
Translation Consistency
SILEX defines H5545 as the divine act of pardoning or remitting guilt; 'forgive' is the most natural, idiomatic English rendering and is the most frequent choice in existing translations. It captures the primary semantic range (divine pardon/spare from punishment) and supports consistent, readable inflections across all forms.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
a primitive root; to forgive; forgive, pardon, spare.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been recorded for this word yet.
Root Family
סלח (çâlach) — to forgive, to pardon, to grant remission
Word Forms
15 distinct forms
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H5545-12 |
וְ/נִסְלַ֥ח | veniselach | HC/VNq3ms |
and it shall be forgiven | and he shall be pardoned | and he shall be forgiven | 13 |
H5545-13 |
וְ/סָלָֽחְתָּ | vesalacheta | HC/Vqq2ms |
and forgive | and you pardoned | and you will forgive | 12 |
H5545-15 |
יִסְלַ֥ח | yiselach | HVqi3ms |
may forgive | he will pardon | he will forgive | 5 |
H5545-01 |
אֶֽסְלַֽח | eselach | HVqi1cs |
I forgive | I will pardon | I will forgive | 3 |
H5545-04 |
לִ/סְלֹֽחַ | liselocha | HR/Vqc |
to forgive | to grant pardon | to forgive | 2 |
H5545-07 |
סְֽלַֽח | selach | HVqv2ms |
forgive | Forgive! | Forgive | 2 |
H5545-11 |
וְ/אֶסְלַח֙ | veeselach | HC/Vqi1cs |
and forgive | and I will pardon | and I will forgive | 2 |
H5545-14 |
וְ/סָלַחְתִּ֗י | vesalacheti | HC/Vqq1cs |
and-I-will-forgive | and I pardoned | and I will forgive | 2 |
H5545-02 |
הַ/סֹּלֵ֥חַ | hasolecha | HTd/Vqrmsa |
who forgives | the pardoning one | the pardoning one | 1 |
H5545-03 |
לָ֔/ךְ | lakhe | HR/Sp2fs |
you | to you | you | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
48 occurrences
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H5545-13 |
Exodus 34:9 | וְ/סָלַחְתָּ֛ | vesalacheta | HC/Vqp2ms |
pardon | and you pardoned | and you will pardon |
H5545-12 |
Leviticus 4:20 | וְ/נִסְלַ֥ח | veniselach | HC/VNq3ms |
and it shall be forgiven | and he shall be pardoned | and he shall be forgiven |
H5545-12 |
Leviticus 4:26 | וְ/נִסְלַ֥ח | veniselach | HC/VNq3ms |
and-it-shall-be-forgiven | and he shall be pardoned | and he shall be forgiven |
H5545-12 |
Leviticus 4:31 | וְ/נִסְלַ֥ח | veniselach | HC/VNq3ms |
and-it-shall-be-forgiven | and he shall be pardoned | and he shall be forgiven |
H5545-12 |
Leviticus 4:35 | וְ/נִסְלַ֥ח | veniselach | HC/VNq3ms |
and it shall be forgiven | and he shall be pardoned | and he shall be forgiven |
H5545-12 |
Leviticus 5:10 | וְ/נִסְלַ֥ח | veniselach | HC/VNq3ms |
and he shall be forgiven | and he shall be pardoned | and it shall be forgiven |
H5545-12 |
Leviticus 5:13 | וְ/נִסְלַ֣ח | veniselach | HC/VNq3ms |
and it shall be forgiven | and he shall be pardoned | and he shall be forgiven |
H5545-12 |
Leviticus 5:16 | וְ/נִסְלַ֥ח | veniselach | HC/VNq3ms |
and it shall be forgiven | and he shall be pardoned | and he shall be forgiven |
H5545-12 |
Leviticus 5:18 | וְ/נִסְלַ֥ח | veniselach | HC/VNq3ms |
and it shall be forgiven | and he shall be pardoned | and he shall be forgiven |
H5545-12 |
Leviticus 5:26 | וְ/נִסְלַ֣ח | veniselach | HC/VNq3ms |
and he shall be forgiven | and he shall be pardoned | and he shall be forgiven |
H5545-12 |
Leviticus 19:22 | וְ/נִסְלַ֣ח | veniselach | HC/VNq3ms |
and it shall be forgiven | and he shall be pardoned | and he shall be forgiven |
H5545-07 |
Numbers 14:19 | סְלַֽח | selach | HVqv2ms |
Pardon | Forgive! | Forgive |
H5545-06 |
Numbers 14:20 | סָלַ֖חְתִּי | salacheti | HVqp1cs |
I have forgiven | I have pardoned | I have forgiven |
H5545-12 |
Numbers 15:25 | וְ/נִסְלַ֣ח | veniselach | HC/VNp3ms |
and it shall be forgiven | and he shall be pardoned | and he shall be forgiven |
H5545-12 |
Numbers 15:26 | וְ/נִסְלַ֗ח | veniselach | HC/VNp3ms |
and it shall be forgiven | and he shall be pardoned | and it shall be pardoned |
H5545-12 |
Numbers 15:28 | וְ/נִסְלַ֥ח | veniselach | HC/VNp3ms |
and it shall be forgiven | and he shall be pardoned | and he shall be forgiven |
H5545-15 |
Numbers 30:6 | יִֽסְלַח | yiselach | HVqi3ms |
will-forgive | he will pardon | he will forgive |
H5545-15 |
Numbers 30:9 | יִֽסְלַֽח | yiselach | HVqi3ms |
will forgive | he will pardon | he will forgive |
H5545-15 |
Numbers 30:13 | יִֽסְלַֽח | yiselach | HVqi3ms |
forgives | he will pardon | he will forgive |
H5545-09 |
Deuteronomy 29:19 | סְלֹ֣חַֽ | selocha | HVqc |
to forgive | to grant pardon | to grant pardon |
H5545-13 |
1 Kings 8:30 | וְ/סָלָֽחְתָּ | vesalacheta | HC/Vqq2ms |
and-forgive | and you pardoned | and you will forgive |
H5545-13 |
1 Kings 8:34 | וְ/סָ֣לַחְתָּ֔ | vesalacheta | HC/Vqq2ms |
and forgive | and you pardoned | and you will forgive |
H5545-13 |
1 Kings 8:36 | וְ/סָ֨לַחְתָּ֜ | vesalacheta | HC/Vqq2ms |
and-forgive | and you pardoned | and you will forgive |
H5545-13 |
1 Kings 8:39 | וְ/סָלַחְתָּ֣ | vesalacheta | HC/Vqq2ms |
and forgive | and you pardoned | and you will forgive |
H5545-13 |
1 Kings 8:50 | וְ/סָלַחְתָּ֤ | vesalacheta | HC/Vqq2ms |
and forgive | and you pardoned | and you forgave |
H5545-15 |
2 Kings 5:18 | יִסְלַ֥ח | yiselach | HVqi3ms |
may forgive | he will pardon | may forgive |
H5545-15 |
2 Kings 5:18 | יִסְלַח | yiselach-2 | HVqj3ms |
may forgive | he will pardon | may forgive |
H5545-04 |
2 Kings 24:4 | לִ/סְלֹֽחַ | liselocha | HR/Vqc |
to forgive | to grant pardon | to forgive |
H5545-04 |
Isaiah 55:7 | לִ/סְלֽוֹחַ | liselocha | HR/Vqc |
to forgive | to grant pardon | to forgive |
H5545-11 |
Jeremiah 5:1 | וְ/אֶסְלַ֖ח | veeselach | HC/Vqi1cs |
and I will pardon | and I will pardon | and I will forgive |
H5545-10 |
Jeremiah 5:7 | אסלוח | slvch | HVqi1cs |
should I forgive | I will pardon | I will pardon |
H5545-01 |
Jeremiah 5:7 | אֶֽסְלַֽח | eselach | HVqi1cs |
I forgive | I will pardon | I will forgive |
H5545-03 |
Jeremiah 5:7 | לָ֔/ךְ | lakhe | HR/Sp2fs |
you | to you | you |
H5545-01 |
Jeremiah 31:34 | אֶסְלַח֙ | eselach | HVqi1cs |
I-will-forgive | I will pardon | I will forgive |
H5545-14 |
Jeremiah 33:8 | וְ/סָלַחְתִּ֗י | vesalacheti | HC/Vqq1cs |
and-I-will-forgive | and I pardoned | and I will forgive |
H5545-14 |
Jeremiah 36:3 | וְ/סָלַחְתִּ֥י | vesalacheti | HC/Vqq1cs |
and-I-will-forgive | and I pardoned | and I will forgive |
H5545-01 |
Jeremiah 50:20 | אֶסְלַ֖ח | eselach | HVqi1cs |
I will pardon | I will pardon | I will forgive |
H5545-07 |
Amos 7:2 | סְֽלַֽח | selach | HVqv2ms |
forgive | Forgive! | Forgive |
H5545-13 |
Psalms 25:11 | וְֽ/סָלַחְתָּ֥ | vesalacheta | HC/Vqp2ms |
pardon | and you pardoned | and you forgave |
H5545-02 |
Psalms 103:3 | הַ/סֹּלֵ֥חַ | hasolecha | HTd/Vqrmsa |
who forgives | the pardoning one | the pardoning one |
H5545-05 |
Lamentations 3:42 | סָלָֽחְתָּ | salacheta | HVqp2ms |
have pardoned | you pardoned | have forgiven |
H5545-08 |
Daniel 9:19 | סְלָ֔חָ/ה | selachah | HVqv2ms/Sh |
forgive! | Pardon! | Pardon |
H5545-13 |
2 Chronicles 6:21 | וְ/סָלָֽחְתָּ | vesalacheta | HC/Vqq2ms |
and-forgive | and you pardoned | and you forgive |
H5545-13 |
2 Chronicles 6:25 | וְ/סָ֣לַחְתָּ֔ | vesalacheta | HC/Vqq2ms |
and-forgive | and you pardoned | and you will pardon |
H5545-13 |
2 Chronicles 6:27 | וְ/סָ֨לַחְתָּ֜ | vesalacheta | HC/Vqq2ms |
and forgive | and you pardoned | and you will forgive |
H5545-13 |
2 Chronicles 6:30 | וְ/סָ֣לַחְתָּ֔ | vesalacheta | HC/Vqq2ms |
and forgive | and you pardoned | and you will forgive |
H5545-13 |
2 Chronicles 6:39 | וְ/סָלַחְתָּ֥ | vesalacheta | HC/Vqq2ms |
and forgive | and you pardoned | and you shall pardon |
H5545-11 |
2 Chronicles 7:14 | וְ/אֶסְלַח֙ | veeselach | HC/Vqi1cs |
and forgive | and I will pardon | and I will forgive |