Original Word: בְּכוֹר
Part of Speech: Noun Masculine
Transliteration: bkowr
Pronunciation: beh-kor
Phonetic Spelling: (bek-ore')
KJV: eldest (son), firstborn(-ling)
NASB: firstborn, oldest, firstlings, most
Word Origin: [from H1069 (בָּכַר - firstborn)]

1. firstborn
2. (hence) chief

eldest son, firstborn

From bakar; firstborn; hence, chief -- eldest (son), firstborn(-ling).

see HEBREW bakar

Word Origin
from bakar
Definition
first-born
NASB Translation
firstborn (118), firstlings (1), most (1), oldest (3).

בְּכוֺר₁₂₂ noun masculine first-born — Genesis 35:23 78t.; בְּכֹר Genesis 25:13 14t.; suffix בְּכֹּרִי Genesis 49:3 14t.; בְּכוֺרוֺ Genesis 38:6 3t.; plural construct בְּכוֺרֵי Nehemiah 10:37 2t.; בְּכוֺרֵיהֶם Psalm 136:10; plural feminine בְּכֹרוֺת Genesis 4:4; Nehemiah 10:37; בְּכֹרֹת Deuteronomy 12:6,17; Deuteronomy 14:23; —

1 men and women:

a. individuals Genesis 25:13 69t.

b. collective Numbers 3:46,50; Numbers 8:16; Numbers 18:15.

c. plural Nehemiah 10:37; Psalm 135:8; Psalm 136:10.

d. כל בכור Exodus 11:5; Exodus 12:12,29; Exodus 13:2,13,15 (twice in verse); Exodus 22:28; Exodus 34:2; Numbers 3:12 (3 t. in verse); Numbers 3:13,40,42,43,45; Numbers 8:17 (twice in verse); Numbers 8:18; Numbers 33:4; Psalm 78:51; Psalm 105:36.

2 animals:

a. individuals Leviticus 27:26; Numbers 18:17; Deuteronomy 15:19 (twice in verse); Deuteronomy 33:17.

b. collective בכור בהמה Exodus 11:5; Exodus 12:29; Exodus 13:15; Numbers 3:41; Numbers 18:15; כל הבכור Deuteronomy 15:19.

c. plural בכרות Genesis 4:4; Deuteronomy 12:6,17; Deuteronomy 14:23; Nehemiah 10:37.

3 figurative, noun of relation בכור מות first-born of death Job 18:13 (deadly disease); בְּכוֺרֵי דַלִּים first-born of the poor (the poorest) Isaiah 14:30; Israel is the first-born of Yahweh among the nations Exodus 4:22 compare Jeremiah 31:9; and the seed of David among dynasties Psalm 89:28.

Definition and Range of Meaning

בְּכוֹר designates the firstborn male—human or animal—who opens the womb. It conveys priority of birth, dignity, and legal pre-eminence. Although ordinarily a biological term, the word steadily broadens to include notions of privilege, devotion to the LORD, and symbolic pre-eminence.

Cultural and Legal Background in Patriarchal Times

Among the patriarchs the firstborn enjoyed headship of the clan and a double share of inheritance (Genesis 25:31-34; Genesis 43:33; Deuteronomy 21:17). The blessing of the firstborn carried prophetic weight, as seen when Isaac trembled after unknowingly blessing Jacob (Genesis 27:33). Reuben forfeited this right through transgression (Genesis 49:3-4; 1 Chronicles 5:1-2), underscoring that moral fitness could override mere chronology.

Inheritance Rights and Blessing

Deuteronomy 21:15-17 legislates against parental favoritism, safeguarding the firstborn’s double portion even when he is the son of an “unloved” wife. The birthright could be sold (Genesis 25:33) or transferred by divine choice, as when Jacob elevated Ephraim over Manasseh (Genesis 48:17-20). Such narratives illuminate God’s sovereign freedom while preserving the general principle: “the right of the firstborn belongs to him” (Deuteronomy 21:17).

Consecration to the LORD

After the Exodus the LORD claimed every firstborn in Israel: “Consecrate to Me every firstborn male… it belongs to Me” (Exodus 13:2). Redemption of human firstborn by five shekels (Numbers 18:15-16) kept families intact while affirming that God owns the first fruits of life. The Levites were taken in substitution (Numbers 3:12-13), binding priestly service to the theology of the firstborn.

Firstborn Livestock and Sacrificial Law

Firstborn male animals were sacrificed or redeemed without defect (Exodus 13:12-13; Deuteronomy 15:19-23). Their blood upon the altar dramatized substitutionary atonement. The unredeemed donkey’s neck was to be broken, a vivid reminder that complacency toward God’s claim invited loss.

The Firstborn in Judgment and Deliverance

The tenth plague struck “every firstborn male in the land of Egypt” (Exodus 12:29). By contrast, Israel’s firstborn were spared through the Passover lamb’s blood (Exodus 12:13). This dual scene—judgment on Egypt, redemption for Israel—anchors the biblical pattern of salvation through substitution.

Corporate Title for Israel

“Israel is My firstborn son” (Exodus 4:22) presents the nation as heir to covenant privilege and responsibility. Hosea later echoes the idea by portraying the Exodus as God calling His son out of Egypt (Hosea 11:1), a passage the New Testament applies typologically to Jesus Christ (Matthew 2:15).

Reversals of Firstborn Privilege

Scripture repeatedly records God bypassing the literal firstborn—Abel over Cain, Isaac over Ishmael, Jacob over Esau, Joseph over his brothers, David over his siblings. These reversals teach that divine election, not human order, secures true pre-eminence (Romans 9:11-13).

Prophetic and Messianic Dimensions

Psalm 89:27 exalts the Davidic king: “I will also appoint him to be My firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth”. Zechariah 12:10 pictures national repentance “as one mourns for an only child… bitterly as one grieves for a firstborn son”, foreshadowing the pierced Messiah. Though בְּכוֹר is an Old Testament term, it prepares for New Testament titles—“firstborn of all creation” (Colossians 1:15) and “firstborn from the dead” (Revelation 1:5)—binding Christ to the principle of supreme rank and redemption.

Ministry and Devotional Applications

1. Stewardship: Yielding the “first” of income or produce mirrors consecrating the firstborn, embodying trust in God’s provision (Proverbs 3:9).
2. Worship: Remembering the costliness of redemption (Numbers 3:13) calls believers to sacrificial devotion.
3. Discipleship: God’s continual right to the first and best challenges complacency and partial obedience.
4. Mission: The corporate identity of the church as “church of the firstborn” (Hebrews 12:23) summons believers to priestly service on behalf of the nations.

Key Old Testament References

Genesis 27:19; 43:33

Exodus 4:22-23; 11:5; 12:29; 13:2, 12-15

Numbers 3:12-13, 40-51; 8:17-18; 18:15-17

Deuteronomy 15:19-23; 21:17

2 Chronicles 21:3

Psalm 89:27

Jeremiah 31:9

Zechariah 12:10

בְּֽכוֹר־ בְּכ֑וֹר בְּכ֔וֹר בְּכ֖וֹר בְּכ֛וֹר בְּכ֜וֹר בְּכ֞וֹר בְּכ֣וֹר בְּכ֤וֹר בְּכ֥וֹר בְּכ֨וֹר בְּכֹ֖ר בְּכֹ֣ר בְּכֹ֣רִי בְּכֹ֤ר בְּכֹ֥ר בְּכֹ֥רִי בְּכֹר֑וֹ בְּכֹר֔וֹ בְּכֹר֖וֹ בְּכֹר֜וֹ בְּכֹר֤וֹת בְּכֹרֶ֔ךָ בְּכֹרֶֽךָ׃ בְּכֽוֹר־ בְּכוֹר֑וֹ בְּכוֹר֒ בְּכוֹר֔וֹ בְּכוֹר֙ בְּכוֹר֮ בְּכוֹרִי֙ בְּכוֹרֵ֣י בְּכוֹרֵ֨י בְכ֔וֹר בְכ֥וֹר בְכ֨וֹר בְכֹֽרְךָ֖ בְכֹרִ֖י בְכוֹרוֹ֙ בִּבְכֹ֣ר בִּבְכֹר֣וֹ בִּבְכוֹרֵיהֶ֑ם בבכוריהם בבכר בבכרו בכור בכור־ בכורו בכורי בכר בכרו בכרות בכרי בכרך בכרך׃ הַבְּכ֖וֹר הַבְּכ֗וֹר הַבְּכ֜וֹר הַבְּכ֡וֹר הַבְּכ֣וֹר ׀ הַבְּכֹ֔ר הַבְּכֹ֥ר הַבְּכֹ֨ר הַבְּכֹֽר׃ הַבְּכֹר֙ הַבְּכֽוֹר׃ הַבְּכוֹר֒ הַבְּכוֹר֙ הבכור הבכור׃ הבכר הבכר׃ לְבַכֵּר֙ לבכר מִבְּכ֖וֹר מִבְּכ֤וֹר מִבְּכֹ֤ר מִבְּכֹ֥ר מבכור מבכר bə·ḵō·re·ḵā ḇə·ḵō·rə·ḵā bə·ḵō·rî ḇə·ḵō·rî bə·ḵō·rō·wṯ bə·ḵō·rōw bə·ḵō·w·rê bə·ḵō·w·rî bə·ḵō·w·rōw ḇə·ḵō·w·rōw bə·ḵō·wr ḇə·ḵō·wr bə·ḵō·wr- bə·ḵōr beChor bechoRecha bechoRei beChori bechoRo bechoRot bəḵōr bəḵōreḵā ḇəḵōrəḵā bəḵōrî ḇəḵōrî bəḵōrōw bəḵōrōwṯ bəḵōwr ḇəḵōwr bəḵōwr- bəḵōwrê bəḵōwrî bəḵōwrōw ḇəḵōwrōw biḇ·ḵō·rōw biḇ·ḵō·w·rê·hem biḇ·ḵōr biḇḵōr biḇḵōrōw biḇḵōwrêhem bivChor bivchoreiHem bivchoRo hab·bə·ḵō·wr hab·bə·ḵōr habbeChor habbəḵōr habbəḵōwr lə·ḇak·kêr ləḇakkêr levakKer mib·bə·ḵō·wr mib·bə·ḵōr mibbeChor mibbəḵōr mibbəḵōwr veChor vechoreCha vechoRi vechoRoInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts