Lexical Summary chaphas: To search, to search out, to explore, to examine Original Word: חָפַשׂ Strong's Exhaustive Concordance change, make diligent search, disguise self, hide, search for, out A primitive root; to seek; causatively, to conceal oneself (i.e. Let be sought), or mask -- change, (make) diligent (search), disquise self, hide, search (for, out). NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Origina prim. root Definition to search NASB Translation devise (1), disguise (2), disguised (5), distorted (1), examine (1), hide (1), ponders (1), ransacked (1), search (6), searched (2), searching (1), well-conceived (1). Brown-Driver-Briggs [חָפַשׂ] verb search (ᵑ7Jer חֲפַס dig, seek; Palestinian, Syriac dig (Schw); perhaps Assyrian êppêšu, êtpêšu, sensible, LyonSargontexte 65) — Qal Imperfect2masculine singular suffix תַּחְמְּשֶׂ֫נָּה Proverbs 2:4; יַחְמְּשׂוּ Psalm 64:7; נַחְמְּשָׂה Lamentations 3:40; Participle חֹפֵשׂ Proverbs 20:27; — search, search out, figurative; 1 search for, object בִּינָה etc. Proverbs 2:4 ("" בקשׁ). 2 = think out, devise, with accusative עולות unjust acts Psalm 64:7 (compare also sub. Pu`al) 3 search = test, Lamentations 3:40 (object דרכינו; "" חקר), Proverbs 20:27. Niph`al Perfect נַחְמְּשׁוּ Obadiah 6 subject עֵשָׂו collective; searched out = exposed and plundered ("" נִבְעוּ מַצְמּוּנָיו). Pi`el Perfect וְחִמַּשְׂתִּ֫י 1 Samuel 23:23; וְחִמְּשׂוּ 1 Kings 20:6; Imperfect וַיְחַמֵּשׂ Genesis 31:35 2t.; אֲחַמֵּשׂ Amos 9:3; Zephaniah 1:12; Imperative חַמְּשׂוּ 2 Kings 10:23; — 1 search through, with accusative, a house 1 Kings 20:6, Jerusalem (metaphor) Zephaniah 1:12; no object expressed 2 Kings 10:23. 2 search for: a. a person with accusative 1 Samuel 23:23. b. a thing, with accusative Genesis 44:12 (J; Joseph searching for his cup); Genesis 31:35 (E; no object expressed, Laban looking for his teraphim); Amos 9:3 (׳י searching for evildoers), Psalm 77:7 (soul searching to understand ׳יs dealings with his servants). Pu`al Imperfect יְחֻמַּשׂ Proverbs 28:12 be searched for = be hidden; Participle מְחֻמָּשׂ Psalm 64:7 in ׳חֵפֶשׂ מ = a searched out search, i.e. a device well thought out (compare Che; "" Qal q. v.); see also חֵ֫פֶשׂ. Hithpa`el Perfect הִתְחַמֵּשׂ2Chronicles 35:22 (but ᵐ5 הִתְחַזֵּק, compare also ᵑ9 ᵑ63Esdr 1:26; so Be Öttli); Imperfect יִתְחַמֵּשׂ Job 30:18; וַיִּתְחַמֵּשׂ 1 Samuel 28:8 3t.; Infinitive absolute הִתְחַמֵּשׂ 1 Kings 22:30 2Chronicles 18:29; — disguise oneself (literally let oneself be searched for) 1 Samuel 28:8; 1 Kings 22:30 (twice in verse) = 2Chronicles 18:29 (twice in verse), 2Chronicles 35:22 (but see above), all of disguise by change of garments; 1 Kings 20:38 באפר i.e. with headgear over eyes; subject לבושׂ Job 30:18, i.e. his garment is disguised, no longer looks like the mantle it is. Topical Lexicon Key Textual Patterns Across its twenty-three occurrences, חָפַשׂ portrays two interwoven actions: intensive searching and intentional concealment. Whether men scour tents for stolen idols (Genesis 31:35) or a king masks his identity on the battlefield (1 Kings 22:30), the root exposes the tension between revelation and hiddenness that runs through redemptive history. Human Search for the Tangible 1. Domestic and legal settings: Laban “searched Jacob’s tent” (Genesis 31:35) and Joseph’s steward “searched” the brothers’ sacks (Genesis 44:12), illustrating diligence in settling grievances. Divine Search and Judgment Prophets apply the verb to God’s unstoppable scrutiny: “Though they hide on the summit of Carmel… I will search them out” (Amos 9:3). Zephaniah pictures the LORD “searching Jerusalem with lamps” (Zephaniah 1:12), an image of inescapable exposure preceding the Day of the LORD. The same verb in Obadiah 1:6 anticipates Edom’s treasures being “searched out,” proving that no fortress—material or national—can withstand divine investigation. Inner Examination and Spiritual Accountability חָפַשׂ also penetrates the unseen depths of the heart. “The spirit of a man is the lamp of the LORD, searching all his inmost parts” (Proverbs 20:27). Lamentations summons the community: “Let us examine and test our ways, and return to the LORD” (Lamentations 3:40). The psalmist echoes, “At night my heart searches” (Psalm 77:6), modeling honest reflection that leads to repentance rather than despair. Pursuit of Wisdom The same intensity of inspection is redirected toward wisdom: “If you seek her like silver and search for her as for hidden treasure” (Proverbs 2:4). What tyrants use to confiscate wealth, the believer channels into uncovering God’s truth, underscoring Scripture’s call to diligent study and disciplined discipleship. Disguise and Concealment A secondary nuance emerges in battlefield narratives. Saul “disguised himself” before consulting the medium at Endor (1 Samuel 28:8). Ahab twice “disguised himself to go into battle” (1 Kings 22:30; 2 Chronicles 18:29), and Josiah followed the same tactic at Megiddo (2 Chronicles 35:22). The root thus embraces self-concealment undertaken either to deceive or to elude danger. Yet each instance warns that outward camouflage cannot thwart God’s sovereign purposes: Saul meets prophetic judgment, Ahab falls to a random arrow, and Josiah is mortally wounded despite his reforming zeal. Plots of the Wicked Psalm 64 repeats the verb: “They devise injustice and say, ‘We have perfected a secret plan’” (Psalm 64:6). Seen again in Proverbs 28:12, the wicked “search out” the righteous. The motif unites covert scheming with moral culpability; secrecy before men never equates to secrecy before God. Christ-Centered Trajectory Though the verb itself does not appear in the New Testament, its themes converge in Jesus Christ, who “needed no testimony about man, for He knew what was in a man” (John 2:25). The risen Lord “searches minds and hearts” (Revelation 2:23), and His gospel bids believers to “examine yourselves” (2 Corinthians 13:5), echoing Lamentations 3:40. Ministry Implications • Preaching: Contrast God’s righteous search with human attempts to hide sin; proclaim the gospel as the only safe refuge. Summary חָפַשׂ intertwines the diligence of seekers, the craftiness of schemers, and the omniscience of God. From tents in Gilead to the lamp-lit streets of Jerusalem, the verb presses every reader toward transparency before the One who “will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and disclose the motives of the heart” (1 Corinthians 4:5). Forms and Transliterations אֲחַפֵּ֖שׂ אֲחַפֵּ֥שׂ אחפש הִתְחַפֵּ֔שׂ הִתְחַפֵּשׂ֙ התחפש וְחִפְּשׂוּ֙ וְחִפַּשְׂתִּ֣י וַיְחַפֵּ֕שׂ וַיְחַפֵּ֥שׂ וַיִּתְחַפֵּ֣שׂ וַיִּתְחַפֵּ֥שׂ וַיִּתְחַפֵּשׂ֙ וחפשו וחפשתי ויחפש ויתחפש חֵ֣פֶשׂ חַפְּשׂ֤וּ חֹ֝פֵ֗שׂ חפש חפשו יְחֻפַּ֥שׂ יִתְחַפֵּ֣שׂ יַֽחְפְּֽשׂוּ־ יחפש יחפשו־ יתחפש נֶחְפְּשׂ֣וּ נַחְפְּשָׂ֤ה נחפשה נחפשו תַּחְפְּשֶֽׂנָּה׃ תחפשנה׃ ’ă·ḥap·pêś ’ăḥappêś achapPes chappeSu Chefes choFes ḥap·pə·śū ḥappəśū ḥê·p̄eś ḥêp̄eś hiṯ·ḥap·pêś hitchapPes hiṯḥappêś ḥō·p̄êś ḥōp̄êś nachpeSah naḥ·pə·śāh naḥpəśāh nechpeSu neḥ·pə·śū neḥpəśū tachpeSennah taḥ·pə·śen·nāh taḥpəśennāh vaiyitchapPes vaychapPes vechippasTi vechippeSu way·ḥap·pêś way·yiṯ·ḥap·pêś wayḥappêś wayyiṯḥappêś wə·ḥip·paś·tî wə·ḥip·pə·śū wəḥippaśtî wəḥippəśū yachpesu yaḥ·pə·śū- yaḥpəśū- yə·ḥup·paś yechupPas yəḥuppaś yiṯ·ḥap·pêś yitchapPes yiṯḥappêśLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel TextsEnglishman's Concordance Genesis 31:35 HEB: נָשִׁ֖ים לִ֑י וַיְחַפֵּ֕שׂ וְלֹ֥א מָצָ֖א NAS: of women is upon me. So he searched but did not find KJV: of women [is] upon me. And he searched, but found INT: the manner of women searched did not find Genesis 44:12 1 Samuel 23:23 1 Samuel 28:8 1 Kings 20:6 1 Kings 20:38 1 Kings 22:30 1 Kings 22:30 2 Kings 10:23 2 Chronicles 18:29 2 Chronicles 18:29 2 Chronicles 35:22 Job 30:18 Psalm 64:6 Psalm 64:6 Psalm 77:6 Proverbs 2:4 Proverbs 20:27 Proverbs 28:12 Lamentations 3:40 Amos 9:3 Obadiah 1:6 Zephaniah 1:12 23 Occurrences |
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