Original Word: בְּרִיחַ
Part of Speech: Noun Masculine
Transliteration: briyach
Pronunciation: beh-ree'-akh
Phonetic Spelling: (ber-ee'-akh)
KJV: bar, fugitive
NASB: bars, bar, bolt
Word Origin: [from H1272 (בָּרַח - fled)]

1. a bolt

bar, fugitive

From barach; a bolt -- bar, fugitive.

see HEBREW barach

Word Origin
from barach
Definition
a bar
NASB Translation
bar (3), bars (36), bolt (1).

בְּרִיחַ noun masculine bar (compare Assyrian burû—u, spearshaft, spear, COT^Gloss) — בְּרִיחַ Deuteronomy 3:5 11t. (construct Amos 1:5 etc.); בְּרִיחוֺ Exodus 35:11; Exodus 39:38 Kt (Qr both חַֿיו needless); plural בְּרִיחִם Exodus 26:26 8t., בְּרִיחִים2Chron 14:6, בְּרִיחֵי Exodus 36:31 3t., בְּרִיחָ֑יִךְ Nahum 3:13, בְּרִיחָיו Exodus 40:18 7t. (+ Qr Exodus 35:11; Exodus 39:33), בְּרִיחֶיהָ Jeremiah 51:30; Lamentations 2:9, בְּרִחֶיהָ Jonah 2:7, בְּרִיחֶ֑הָ Isaiah 15:5 but compare below; —

1. a. bar, of wood, joining boards of tabernacle Exodus 26:26,27 (twice in verse); Exodus 26:28,29 (twice in verse); Exodus 35:11; Exodus 36:31,32 (twice in verse); Exodus 36:33,34 (twice in verse); Exodus 40:18; Numbers 3:36; Numbers 4:31 (all P).

b. bar (s) of city-gates Deuteronomy 3:5; Judges 16:8; 1 Samuel 23:7; 2Chronicles 8:5; 2 Chronicles 14:6; id. of gates of Jerusalem Lamentations 2:9; also ("" מנעולים) Nehemiah 3:3,6,18,14,15 compare Psalm 147:13; compare Amos 1:5; Nahum 3:13; Jeremiah 49:31; Ezekiel 38:11; Jeremiah 51:30; bars of city-gates, נחשׁת ׳ב 1 Kings 4:13, ברזל ׳ב Isaiah 45:2 (of Babylon, broken before Cyrus); בְּרִיחֶ֑הָ Isaiah 15:5 read probably with ᵑ7 Di and others ׳בָּר see בָּרִיחַ; yet compare Che's critical note

2 figurative בַּרְזָל ׳ב of distress, etc. Psalm 107:16; of fortress, אַרְמוֺן ׳ב in simile Proverbs 18:19; figurative ׳ב of earth (pictured as house out of which Jonah is shut) Jonah 2:7. (Older usage singular of bar of door or gate, i.e. the great bar across the gate; so Deuteronomy 3:5; Judges 16:3; Amos 1:5; 1 Samuel 23:7; 1 Kings 4:13; Jeremiah 49:31; Proverbs 18:9; Job 38:10; 2Chronicles 8:5; Ezekiel 38:11 Later plural Isaiah 45:2; Lamentations 2:9; 2Chron 14:6; Nehemiah 3:3,6,13,14,15; Psalm 147:13, but also Nahum 3:13.)

Definition and Scope of Usage

בְּרִיחַ designates the bar, bolt, or crosspiece that secures, fastens, or unifies structural elements. About forty-one occurrences show it in three main settings: (1) the wilderness tabernacle, (2) city and temple gates, and (3) figurative or prophetic poetry.

Structural Role in the Tabernacle (Exodus)

• Five crossbars on each side of the tabernacle framed the acacia-wood boards (Exodus 26:26-29; 36:31-34).
• The “middle bar running from end to end” (Exodus 26:28) visually and structurally bound the dwelling into one unified whole.
• Gold overlay (Exodus 26:29) linked durability with holiness, underscoring that security and sanctity are inseparable when God prescribes the pattern.

Ministry significance: the connecting bars speak of covenant stability; individual boards needed the bar to stand together, foreshadowing the unity of God’s redeemed people (compare Ephesians 2:21-22).

Security and Fortification in Israelite Architecture

• Samson wrenched the gate “bar and all” from Gaza (Judges 16:3), exhibiting superhuman strength yet also exposing the frailty of human defenses before God’s appointed deliverer.
• Solomon’s administrative district that included “the fortress with its bars” (1 Kings 4:13) shows how strategic strongholds depended on sturdy bolts.
• In the rebuilt Jerusalem, Nehemiah repeatedly mentions “doors, their bolts, and bars” (Nehemiah 3:3, 6, 13-15; 7:3), stressing thorough restoration.
• Hezekiah reinforced Jerusalem’s defenses with “bars and gates” (2 Chronicles 32:5).

Practical lesson: genuine reform addresses both spiritual and physical vulnerabilities; oversight that ignores either realm is incomplete.

Symbolic and Poetic Uses

1. Deliverance from captivity

“He has broken down the gates of bronze and cut through the bars of iron.” (Psalm 107:16; Isaiah 45:2; Jeremiah 51:30). Divine power nullifies the strongest human restraints.
2. Judgment on nations

“I will break the bar of Damascus” (Amos 1:5; compare Nahum 3:13), portraying total defeat.
3. Personal lament and hope
• Jonah cried that “the earth with its bars closed around me forever” (Jonah 2:6), yet God raised him.
• Song of Solomon pictures intimacy: “My hands dripped with myrrh on the handles of the bolt” (Song of Solomon 5:5), the only occurrence where בְּרִיחַ is touched rather than broken or forged.
4. Blessing of peace

“He strengthens the bars of your gates; He blesses your children within you.” (Psalm 147:13). Security is a divine gift, not merely an engineering achievement.

Theological and Ministry Implications

• God designs and empowers the true “bars” that hold His dwelling and His people together; human ingenuity alone cannot replace His pattern.
• Every bolt God breaks (deliverance) or strengthens (preservation) advances His redemptive purposes (compare Acts 5:19; Revelation 3:7).
• The middle bar that united the tabernacle frames prefigures the one Mediator who joins believers into a holy habitation (John 17:23; Ephesians 4:13-16).
• Leadership must heed both spiritual cohesion and practical safeguards; Nehemiah’s example combines prayer, vigilance, and skilled workmanship.

Representative Passage List

Exodus 26:26-29; 36:31-34

Judges 16:3

1 Kings 4:13

2 Chronicles 32:5

Nehemiah 3:3, 6, 13-15; 7:3

Job 17:16 (parallel idea)

Psalm 107:16; 147:13

Song of Solomon 5:5

Isaiah 45:2

Jeremiah 51:30

Jonah 2:6

Amos 1:5

Nahum 3:13

בְּרִ֣יחַ בְּרִחֶ֥יהָ בְּרִיחֵ֖י בְּרִיחֵ֣י בְּרִיחֶ֑יהָ בְּרִיחֶ֕הָ בְּרִיחָ֑יו בְּרִיחָ֕ו בְּרִיחָֽיִך׃ בְרִ֛יחַ בְרִיחִ֔ם בְרִיחִ֖ם בְרִיחִ֗ם בְרִיחִם֙ בְרִיחֶֽיהָ׃ בְּרִיחָ֖יו ברחיה בריח בריחה בריחו בריחי בריחיה בריחיה׃ בריחיו בריחיך׃ בריחם הַבְּרִ֔יחַ הַבְּרִ֣יחַ הַבְּרִיחִ֖ם הבריח הבריחם וְהַבְּרִ֥יחַ וּבְרִ֑יחַ וּבְרִ֥יחַ וּבְרִֽיחַ׃ וּבְרִיחִים֒ וּבְרִיחֵ֖י וּבְרִיחֵ֥י וּבְרִיחָ֑יו וּבְרִיחָ֖יו וּבְרִיחָֽיו׃ ובריח ובריח׃ ובריחי ובריחיו ובריחיו׃ ובריחים והבריח כִּבְרִ֥יחַ כבריח לַבְּרִיחִ֑ם לבריחם bə·rî·aḥ ḇə·rî·aḥ bə·rî·ḥā·yiḵ bə·rî·ḥāw bə·rî·ḥê bə·ri·ḥe·hā bə·rî·ḥe·hā ḇə·rî·ḥe·hā ḇə·rî·ḥim beRiach bərîaḥ ḇərîaḥ beriChav beriChayich beriCheha beriChei beriCheiha bərîḥāw bərîḥāyiḵ bərîḥê bəriḥehā bərîḥehā ḇərîḥehā ḇərîḥim hab·bə·rî·aḥ hab·bə·rî·ḥim habbeRiach habbərîaḥ habberiChim habbərîḥim kiḇ·rî·aḥ kiḇrîaḥ kivRiach lab·bə·rî·ḥim labberiChim labbərîḥim ū·ḇə·rî·aḥ ū·ḇə·rî·ḥāw ū·ḇə·rî·ḥê ū·ḇə·rî·ḥîm ūḇərîaḥ ūḇərîḥāw ūḇərîḥê ūḇərîḥîm uveRiach uveriChav uveriChei uveriChim vehabbeRiach veRiach veriCheiha veriChim wə·hab·bə·rî·aḥ wəhabbərîaḥInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts