Original Word: חָפְשִׁי
Part of Speech: Adjective
Transliteration: chophshiy
Pronunciation: khof-shee'
Phonetic Spelling: (khof-shee')
KJV: free, liberty
NASB: free, free man, forsaken
Word Origin: [from H2666 (חָפַשׁ - free)]

1. exempt (from bondage, tax or care)

free, liberty

From chaphash; exempt (from bondage, tax or care) -- free, liberty.

see HEBREW chaphash

Word Origin
from chaphash
Definition
free
NASB Translation
forsaken (1), free (14), free man (2).

חָפְשִׁי adjective free (Late Hebrew id.) — ׳ח Exodus 21:5 10t. + Psalm 88:6; plural חָפְשִׁים Isaiah 58:6 4t. —

1 free from slavery: of Hebrew bondslave (male or female) set free in 7th year Exodus 21:2,5 (JE), Deuteronomy 15:12,13,18, compare Jeremiah 34:9,10,11,14,16; of slave (male or female) set free on account of injury done Exodus 21:26,27 (JE); מֵאֲדֹנָיו ׳עֶבֶד ח Job 3:19 a slave is free from his master (i.e. in Sh®°ôl); but בַּמֵּתִים חָפְשִׁי Psalm 88:6 among the dead I am free (i.e. adrift, cut off from Yahweh's remembrance); more Generally, שַׁלַּח רְצוּצִים חָפְשִׁים Isaiah 58:6 to let oppressed ones go free.

2 free from taxes, obligations, etc. אֵת בֵּית אָבִיו יַעֲשֶׂה חָפְשִׁי בְּיְשְׂרָאֵל 1 Samuel 17:25 his father's house will he make free in Israel.

Core Concept of חָפְשִׁי

The term depicts a person released from compulsory service, standing opposite slavery or indenture. It speaks of social, legal, and spiritual liberty granted within covenant boundaries, never of autonomy from God but of restored dignity under His rule.

Covenantal Legislation

Exodus 21 and Deuteronomy 15 anchor חָפְשִׁי in Israel’s civil code. A Hebrew servant was to serve six years and “in the seventh he shall leave as a free man without paying anything” (Exodus 21:2). Freedom here is:

• Timed – tied to the Sabbath principle, reminding Israel that God freed them from Egypt (Deuteronomy 15:15).
• Protected – bodily injury secured immediate release (Exodus 21:26-27).
• Provisioned – liberally supplied at departure (Deuteronomy 15:13-14).

Thus חָפְשִׁי became a tangible sign of covenant mercy and social equity.

Voluntary Bond-Service

Exodus 21:5 shows a servant who, out of love, declines חָפְשִׁי. The option dignifies service by making it a choice. Later prophets will use this picture to portray willing devotion to the Lord (compare Psalm 40:6-8 with Hebrews 10:5-7).

Narrative Illustration

In the valley of Elah, Saul promises that the victor over Goliath will make “his father’s house free in Israel” (1 Samuel 17:25), underlining the value of tax-exempt status in a tribal economy. The offer magnifies David’s triumph as not only military but emancipatory for his family line.

Wisdom and Poetic Reflection

Job pictures ultimate levelling: “the slave is freed from his master” (Job 3:19). Later the Creator asks, “Who set the wild donkey free?” (Job 39:5). Freedom here becomes a metaphor for God’s sovereign ordering of creation. Psalm 88:5 employs the word ironically; the psalmist feels as one cut off—free—from covenant care, demonstrating that liberty without fellowship can resemble abandonment.

Prophetic Enforcement

Jeremiah 34 chronicles Judah’s last king, Zedekiah, covenanting to proclaim חָפְשִׁי for fellow Hebrews. The people comply (Jeremiah 34:9-10) but renege (verse 11). The LORD condemns them: “You recently repented and did what pleased Me… but now you have profaned My name” (verses 15-16). The revocation of freedom triggers judgment, proving that social injustice is covenant breach.

Redemptive Trajectory

Isaiah 58:6 links true fasting with “let the oppressed go free,” connecting ritual piety to tangible liberation. The Servant of the LORD fulfills this ideal; Jesus applies the Jubilee language of Isaiah 61 to His ministry (Luke 4:18-19). The New Testament vocabulary of redemption, ransom, and adoption echoes חָפְשִׁי, showing that release from sin’s bondage is God’s ultimate act of freedom (John 8:36; Galatians 5:1).

Ministry Implications

1. Justice: Churches champion policies and personal actions that honor the image of God in workers, migrants, and the exploited.
2. Mercy: Believers provide material help as Israel was told, ensuring that freedom is sustainable, not merely symbolic.
3. Discipleship: True freedom expresses itself in voluntary servanthood to Christ, mirroring the Exodus 21 bond-servant.
4. Proclamation: The gospel declares emancipation from sin’s tyranny, urging people to stand “fast in the freedom for which Christ has set us free” (Galatians 5:1).

Summary

חָפְשִׁי intertwines social legislation, prophetic ethics, and eschatological hope. God’s people receive freedom to serve Him and to grant the same to others, prefiguring the greater deliverance accomplished in Messiah.

חָ֫פְשִׁ֥י חָפְשִֽׁי׃ חָפְשִׁ֑י חָפְשִׁ֑ים חָפְשִׁ֔ים חָפְשִׁ֖י חָפְשִׁ֖ים חָפְשִׁ֥י חָפְשִׁי֙ חפשי חפשי׃ חפשים לַֽחָפְשִׁ֖י לַֽחָפְשִׁ֥י לחפשי chafeShi chafeShim ḥā·p̄ə·šî ḥā·p̄ə·šîm ḥāp̄əšî ḥāp̄əšîm la·ḥā·p̄ə·šî lachafeShi laḥāp̄əšîInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts