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בָּטַח

𐤁𐤈𐤇

bâṭach

H982 verb

SILEX Entry

Root בטח to trust, to rely on, to feel secure

Definition

To trust, have confidence in, feel secure, or rely on; primarily expressing a state of being securely reliant upon a person, power, or thing, either in a practical or psychological sense. Used for both human and divine objects of reliance, the term conveys a sense of assurance, lack of fear, and settled confidence, whether justifiable or misplaced. Often used with prepositions indicating the object of trust (e.g., in Yahweh, in chariots, in riches, in people), it may denote a secure hope, an act of entrusting oneself, or even a sense of complacency.

Semantic Range

to trust, to rely on, to feel secure, to have confidence in (with or without justification), to depend upon, to be careless (as overconfident or complacent), to hope, be sure, act boldly (because of reliance)

Root / Etymology

Root: בָּטַח. The root carries the core idea of being secure or feeling assured. From this sense, the verb בָּטַח develops the meaning 'to trust' or 'to feel confident.' The connection to 'hiding for refuge' is less literal than terms like חָסָה (to seek shelter, take refuge); rather, בָּטַח emphasizes psychological assurance and confidence rather than a physical act of hiding.

Historical & Contextual Notes

בָּטַח is a central term for 'trust' in classical Hebrew, distinct from חָסָה ('to seek refuge') by emphasizing internal assurance rather than physical refuge or helpless reliance. Its use ranges from trusting in Yahweh (the Deity of Israel), to trusting in human alliances, fortifications, or material wealth. In the patriarchal and monarchic periods, it often contrasts appropriate trust in Yahweh with inappropriate reliance upon foreign powers or material means. In wisdom literature, the term frequently denotes prudent or imprudent confidence — e.g., the contrast between the wise person who trusts in Yahweh and the fool who trusts in himself (Proverbs 28:26). Over time, especially post-exilic and in liturgical writings, בָּטַח retains religious overtones, but also continues to appear in secular contexts. Later translation traditions sometimes render בָּטַח as 'believe' or 'hope,' but its Hebrew nuance is more about security and confident reliance than intellectual assent or mere optimism. The English 'trust' often approximates the sense, but standard translations may narrow the semantic field, especially in contexts where the term connotes overconfidence or complacency (e.g., Isaiah 47:10).

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

a primitive root; properly, to hide for refuge (but not so precipitately as חָסָה); figuratively, to trust, be confident or sure; be bold (confident, secure, sure), careless (one, woman), put confidence, (make to) hope, (put, make to) trust.

Bantu Hebrew

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Root Family

בטח (b-ṭ-ḥ) — security, confidence, reliance

Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H4009 מִבְטָח in your refuges
H983 בֶּטַח secure confidence
H984 בֶּטַח and from Betach
H985 בִּטְחָה and in confidence
H986 בִּטָּחוֹן confident security

Word Forms

46 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 Occurrences
H982-12 בֹּטֵ֥חַ botecha HVqrmsa trusts the one who trusts 12
H982-28 וּ/בֹטֵ֗חַ uvotecha HC/Vqrmsa but trusts and one who trusts 6
H982-18 הַ/בֹּטְחִ֖ים habotechim HTd/Vqrmpa who trust the trusting ones 6
H982-04 בָּ֝טַ֗חְתִּי batacheti HVqp1cs have trusted I trusted 6
H982-32 בָטַ֔חְתָּ vatacheta HVqp2ms you have trusted you trusted 6
H982-15 אֶבְטַ֖ח evetach HVqi1cs I will trust I will trust 5
H982-33 בָטַחְתִּי֮ vatacheti HVqp1cs I trust I trusted 5
H982-46 יִבְטַח֙ yivetach HVqi3ms trusts he trusts 5
H982-34 בָֽטְחוּ֙ vatechu HVqp3cp they trusted they trusted 4
H982-29 בָטַ֥ח vatach HVqp3ms trusts he trusted 4

Occurrences in Scripture

120 total occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1
H982-12 Deuteronomy 28:52 בֹּטֵ֥חַ botecha HVqrmsa trust the one who trusts
H982-40 Judges 9:26 וַ/יִּבְטְחוּ vayivetechu HC/Vqw3mp and they trusted and they trusted
H982-28 Judges 18:7 וּ/בֹטֵ֗חַ uvotecha HC/Vqrmsa and confident and one who trusts
H982-12 Judges 18:10 בֹּטֵ֗חַ botecha HVqrmsa secure the one who trusts
H982-28 Judges 18:27 וּ/בֹטֵ֔חַ uvotecha HC/Vqrmsa and secure and one who trusts
H982-34 Judges 20:36 בָֽטְחוּ֙ vatechu HVqp3cp they trusted they trusted
H982-01 2 Kings 18:5 בָּטָ֑ח batach HVqp3ms he trusted he trusted
H982-03 2 Kings 18:19 בָּטָֽחְתָּ batacheta HVqp2ms you trust you trusted
H982-32 2 Kings 18:20 בָטַ֔חְתָּ vatacheta HVqp2ms do you rely you trusted
H982-32 2 Kings 18:21 בָטַ֣חְתָּ vatacheta HVqp2ms you have trusted you trusted
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