Original Word: כֶּלֶא
Part of Speech: Noun Masculine
Transliteration: kele'
Pronunciation: keh'-leh
Phonetic Spelling: (keh'-leh)
KJV: prison
NASB: prison, prisons
Word Origin: [from H3607 (כָּלָא - shut)]

1. a prison

prison

From kala'; a prison -- prison. Compare kil'ayim, kliy'.

see HEBREW kala'

see HEBREW kil'ayim

see HEBREW kliy'

Word Origin
from kala
Definition
confinement, restraint, imprisonment
NASB Translation
prison (2), prison* (7), prisons (1).

כֶּ֫לֶא noun [masculine] confinement, restraint, imprisonment; — absolute ׳כ 1 Kings 22:27 6t.; suffix כִּלְאוֺ 2 Kings 25:29; Jeremiah 52:33; plural כְּלָאִים Isaiah 42:22; — confinement, in combination ׳בֵּית (ה)כ (compare Assyrian bit kili, prison, Dl^{HWB 328}) 1 Kings 22:27 2Chronicles 18:26; 2 Kings 17:4; Jeremiah 37:15,18; Isaiah 42:7; בָּֽתֵּי כְלָאִים Isaiah 42:22 (compare בַּיִת

1 (ε) (2) p. 109 above; see also כלוא below); בִּנְדֵי כִלְאוֺ 2 Kings 25:29 = Jeremiah 52:33 garments of imprisonment = prison-garb.

Definition and Scope

כֶּלֶא (keleʼ) denotes a place of confinement, translated “prison,” “dungeon,” or “house of restraint.” The term refers both to a literal facility in which a person is kept under guard and, by extension, to the condition of captivity itself.

Distribution

The noun appears ten times, all in the historical and prophetic books:

• 1 Kings 22:27
• 2 Kings 17:4; 25:27, 29
• 2 Chronicles 18:26
• Isaiah 42:7, 22
• Jeremiah 37:15, 18; 52:33

The contexts range from royal courts in Israel and Judah to prophetic oracles about Israel’s national bondage and the Messianic hope.

Historical Setting of Israelite Prisons

1. Royal Custody: Kings maintained private holding quarters within palaces or adjacent complexes (1 Kings 22:27). These facilities were often temporary, pending trial or royal decision.
2. Converted Structures: Jeremiah describes “the house of Jonathan the scribe, for it had been converted into a prison” (Jeremiah 37:15), indicating that large private residences could be requisitioned for incarceration.
3. Foreign Prisons: Jehoiachin’s Babylonian imprisonment (2 Kings 25:27) illustrates how conquering empires managed political captives, sometimes granting clemency to secure loyalty.

Representative Passages

1. Prophetic Opposition: Micaiah is incarcerated for contradicting royal propaganda (1 Kings 22:27; 2 Chronicles 18:26). The prophet’s faithful testimony leads to physical restraint but ultimately vindicates God’s word.
2. National Apostasy and Judgment: Hoshea’s revolt against Assyria ends with his capture—“and put him in prison” (2 Kings 17:4)—highlighting the political fallout of forsaking covenant obligations.
3. Messianic Liberation: The Servant of the LORD is commissioned “to open blind eyes, to bring prisoners out of the dungeon” (Isaiah 42:7). Here כֶּלֶא becomes a metaphor for spiritual bondage awaiting redemptive release.
4. Personal Suffering and Perseverance: Jeremiah, unjustly chained, pleads with Zedekiah, “that you have put me in prison?” (Jeremiah 37:18). His endurance models faithfulness amid official persecution.
5. Grace after Judgment: Babylon’s King Evil-merodach “released Jehoiachin king of Judah from prison” (2 Kings 25:27) and elevated him (Jeremiah 52:33). The detail foreshadows restoration beyond exile.

Theological Significance

• Judgment for Rebellion: Confinement often follows covenant infidelity or political treachery, emphasizing that disobedience carries tangible consequences (2 Kings 17:4).
• Testing of the Righteous: Prophets suffer imprisonment not for wrongdoing but for uncompromising allegiance to God’s revelation (1 Kings 22:27; Jeremiah 37:15). Their resilience points to the cost of proclaiming truth.
• Symbol of Spiritual Bondage: Isaiah broadens כֶּלֶא beyond stone walls to depict Israel’s blindness and captivity to sin (Isaiah 42:22). Deliverance, therefore, must be both physical and spiritual.
• Promise of Redemption: The Servant’s mission (Isaiah 42:7) anticipates Jesus Christ, who cites a related passage (Isaiah 61:1) to declare liberty to the captives (Luke 4:18). Thus, every prison door opened in Scripture prefigures the gospel’s power to free those enslaved by sin.

Ministry Implications

1. Advocacy for the Persecuted: Biblical precedent calls the Church to remember those “in prison, as if you were fellow prisoners” (Hebrews 13:3).
2. Confidence in Sovereignty: Even wrongful confinement serves God’s purposes, whether preserving prophetic witness (Jeremiah) or positioning kings for future mercy (Jehoiachin).
3. Gospel Presentation: כֶּלֶא challenges believers to present salvation in terms of liberation—Christ breaks the bonds no human authority can sever.
4. Pastoral Encouragement: Suffering saints can look to Jeremiah and Micaiah, assured that earthly cells cannot silence divine truth.

Summary

כֶּלֶא captures both the grim reality of ancient incarceration and the hopeful promise of divine deliverance. Whether applied to rebellious monarchs, persecuted prophets, or an entire nation under judgment, each occurrence reinforces the consistent biblical message: sin enslaves, but the LORD redeems.

הַכֶּ֑לֶא הַכֶּֽלֶא׃ הכלא הכלא׃ כְלָאִ֖ים כִלְא֑וֹ כֶּ֖לֶא כֶּֽלֶא׃ כלא כלא׃ כלאו כלאים chelaIm chilO hak·ke·le hakkele ḵə·lā·’îm ke·le ḵəlā’îm kele ḵil’ōw ḵil·’ōwInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts