Word study
Pay
21 Hebrew and 6 Greek words behind this English word
The original-language words that the Berean Standard Bible translates with one of these: pay, paid, paying, pays. English often uses one word where Hebrew or Greek has several, each with its own shade of meaning. Under each word are verses where it is translated this way; choose the word itself for its full study: every verse, how else it is translated, the forms it takes and what the dictionaries say.
At a glance
How often each original word is translated “pay” or one of its forms.
Compare the Hebrew words side by side Compare the Greek words side by side
Hebrew and Aramaic words (Old Testament)
- נָתַן nâthangive, put, settranslated this way 24 times of its 1,957 uses · Strong’s H5414Verb · Translated: give 326, gave 206, given 187, put 135Full study and all 1,785 verses →
Genesis 23:13 and said to Ephron in their presence, “If you will please listen to me, I will pay you the price of the field. Accept it from me, so that I may bury my dead there.”
Exodus 2:9 Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Take this child and nurse him for me, and I will pay your wages.” So the woman took the boy and nursed him.
- שָׁלַם shâlambe complete, soundtranslated this way 11 times of its 109 uses · Strong’s H7999Verb · Translated: repay 20, fulfill 14, make restitution 7, made peace 6Full study and all 106 verses →
Exodus 21:36 But if it was known that the ox had a habit of goring, yet its owner failed to restrain it, he shall pay full compensation, ox for ox, and the dead animal will be his.’’
2 Samuel 12:6 Because he has done this thing and has shown no pity, he must pay for the lamb four times over.”
- קָשַׁב qâshabincline, attendtranslated this way 11 times of its 46 uses · Strong’s H7181Verb · Translated: listen 12, pay attention 10, Attend 6, incline 2Full study and all 45 verses →
Job 33:31 Pay attention, Job, and listen to me; be silent, and I will speak.
Proverbs 4:1 Listen, my sons, to a father’s instruction; pay attention and gain understanding.
- שׁוּב shûbturn back, returntranslated this way 10 times of its 1,007 uses · Strong’s H7725Verb · Translated: return 218, returned 105, restore 62, turn 56Full study and all 920 verses →
Exodus 21:34 the owner of the pit shall make restitution; he must pay its owner, and the dead animal will be his.
Leviticus 25:51 If many years remain, he must pay for his redemption in proportion to his purchase price.
- שָׁחָה shâchâhbow downtranslated this way 6 times of its 171 uses · Strong’s H7812Verb · Translated: worship 38, bow 36, bowed 33, worshiped 23Full study and all 166 verses →
2 Samuel 1:2 On the third day a man with torn clothes and dust on his head arrived from Saul’s camp. When he came to David, he fell to the ground to pay him homage.
1 Chronicles 29:20 Then David said to the whole assembly, “Bless the LORD your God.” So the whole assembly blessed the LORD, the God of their fathers. They bowed down and paid homage to the LORD and to the king.
- אָזַן âzangive ear, listen, heartranslated this way 3 times of its 41 uses · Strong’s H238Verb · Translated: give ear 14, listen 13, Hear 6, pay attention 3Full study and all 41 verses →
Exodus 15:26 saying, “If you will listen carefully to the voice of the LORD your God, and do what is right in His eyes, and pay attention to His commands, and keep all His statutes, then I will not bring on you any of the diseases I inflicted on the Egyptians. For I am the LORD who heals you.”
Isaiah 8:9 Huddle together, O peoples, and be shattered; pay attention, all you distant lands; prepare for battle, and be shattered; prepare for battle, and be shattered!
- שָׁקַל shâqalweightranslated this way 3 times of its 21 uses · Strong’s H8254Verb · Translated: weighed 11, weigh 4, pay 2Full study and all 21 verses →
Exodus 22:17 If her father absolutely refuses to give her to him, the man still must pay an amount comparable to the bridal price of a virgin.
Esther 3:9 If it pleases the king, let a decree be issued to destroy them, and I will deposit ten thousand talents of silver into the royal treasury to pay those who carry it out.”
- שָׁמַר shâmarkeep, watch, preservetranslated this way 3 times of its 461 uses · Strong’s H8104Verb · Translated: keep 133, careful 39, kept 33, guard 25Full study and all 436 verses →
Exodus 23:13 Pay close attention to everything I have said to you. You must not invoke the names of other gods; they must not be heard on your lips.
Psalm 107:43 Let him who is wise pay heed to these things and consider the loving devotion of the LORD.
- אַל alprohibition, do not . . ., let not . . .translated this way 3 times of its 662 uses · Strong’s H408Adverb · Translated: do not 400, and do not 41, not 29, no 24Full study and all 559 verses →
1 Samuel 25:25 My lord should pay no attention to this scoundrel Nabal, for he lives up to his name: His name means Fool, and folly accompanies him. I, your servant, did not see my lord’s young men whom you sent.
Isaiah 43:18 “Do not call to mind the former things; pay no attention to the things of old.
- יְהַב yehabgivetranslated this way 3 times of its 26 uses · Strong’s H3052Verb · Translated: given 11, paid 3, gave 3Full study and all 26 verses →
Ezra 4:20 And mighty kings have ruled over Jerusalem and exercised authority over the whole region west of the Euphrates; and tribute, duty, and toll were paid to them.
Ezra 6:4 with three layers of cut stones and one of timbers. The costs are to be paid from the royal treasury.
- עָשָׂה âsâhdo, maketranslated this way 2 times of its 2,478 uses · Strong’s H6213Verb · Translated: done 292, made 265, make 143, did 112Full study and all 2,206 verses →
- שִׁית shîthput, settranslated this way 2 times of its 80 uses · Strong’s H7896Verb · Translated: set 13, make 7, put 6, placed 5Full study and all 78 verses →
1 Samuel 4:20 As she was dying, the women attending to her said, “Do not be afraid, for you have given birth to a son!” But she did not respond or pay any heed.
Proverbs 27:23 Be sure to know the state of your flocks, and pay close attention to your herds;
- יָצָא yâtsâgo or come outtranslated this way 2 times of its 1,035 uses · Strong’s H3318Verb · Translated: brought 108, went 103, go 82, came 78Full study and all 975 verses →
- נָשָׂא nâsâlift, take, carrytranslated this way 2 times of its 642 uses · Strong’s H5375Verb · Translated: bear 49, lift 45, lifted 41, carried 38Full study and all 601 verses →
2 Kings 18:14 So Hezekiah king of Judah sent word to the king of Assyria at Lachish, saying, “I have done wrong; withdraw from me, and I will pay whatever you demand from me.” And the king of Assyria exacted from Hezekiah king of Judah three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold.
- נְתַן nethangivetranslated this way 2 times of its 7 uses · Strong’s H5415Verb · Translated: gives 3, pay 2, supply 1, give 1Full study and all 6 verses →
Ezra 4:13 Let it now be known to the king that if that city is rebuilt and its walls are restored, they will not pay tribute, duty, or toll, and the royal treasury will suffer.
Ezra 7:20 And if anything else is needed for the house of your God that you may have occasion to supply, you may pay for it from the royal treasury.
- חִנָּם chinnâmout of favourtranslated this way 2 times of its 31 uses · Strong’s H2600Adverb · Translated: without cause 12, nothing 3, needless 2, cost me nothing 2Full study and all 30 verses →
Exodus 21:2 If you buy a Hebrew servant, he is to serve you for six years. But in the seventh year, he shall go free without paying anything.
Jeremiah 22:13 “Woe to him who builds his palace by unrighteousness, and his upper rooms without justice, who makes his countrymen serve without pay, and fails to pay their wages,
- שׂוּם sûmput, place, settranslated this way 2 times of its 560 uses · Strong’s H7760Verb · Translated: put 84, set 71, make 45, made 39Full study and all 533 verses →
- לֹא lônottranslated this way 2 times of its 4,657 uses · Strong’s H3808Adverb · Translated: no 309, not 269, never 218, will not 156Full study and all 3,775 verses →
- נָתַךְ nâthakpour forthtranslated this way 2 times of its 21 uses · Strong’s H5413Verb · Translated: poured 11, melt 3, paid 2, pour 2Full study and all 19 verses →
2 Kings 22:9 And Shaphan the scribe went to the king and reported, “Your servants have paid out the money that was found in the temple and have put it into the hands of the workers and supervisors of the house of the LORD.”
2 Chronicles 34:17 They have paid out the money that was found in the house of the LORD and have put it into the hands of the supervisors and workers.”
- בִּין bîndiscerntranslated this way 2 times of its 166 uses · Strong’s H995Verb · Translated: understand 27, discerning 16, understanding 12, consider 10Full study and all 160 verses →
Job 32:12 I paid you full attention. But no one proved Job wrong; not one of you rebutted his arguments.
Psalm 94:7 They say, “The LORD does not see; the God of Jacob pays no heed.”
- קָנָה qânâhget, acquiretranslated this way 2 times of its 82 uses · Strong’s H7069Verb · Translated: buy 16, bought 13, purchased 7, acquire 6Full study and all 75 verses →
2 Samuel 24:24 “No,” replied the king, “I insist on paying a price, for I will not offer to the LORD my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing.” So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.
1 Chronicles 21:24 “No,” replied King David, “I insist on paying the full price, for I will not take for the LORD what belongs to you, nor will I offer burnt offerings that cost me nothing.”
Greek words (New Testament)
- ἀποδίδωμι apodídōmiI give back, return, selltranslated this way 10 times of its 47 uses · Strong’s G591Verb · Translated: repay 9, pay 8, give 8, reward 3Full study and all 45 verses →
Matthew 5:26 Truly I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.
Luke 12:59 I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the very last penny.”
- δίδωμι dídōmiI offer, givetranslated this way 5 times of its 403 uses · Strong’s G1325Verb · Translated: give 110, given 107, gave 72, gives 14Full study and all 370 verses →
Matthew 20:4 ‘You also go into my vineyard,’ he said, ‘and I will pay you whatever is right.’
Mark 12:14 “Teacher,” they said, “we know that You are honest and seek favor from no one. Indeed, You are impartial and teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not? Should we pay them or not?”
- προσέχω proséchōI pay attention to, devote myself totranslated this way 5 times of its 24 uses · Strong’s G4337Verb · Translated: Beware 7, paid close attention 2, devote 2, Watch 2Full study and all 24 verses →
Acts 8:6 The crowds all paid close attention to Philip’s message and to the signs they saw him perform.
Titus 1:14 and will pay no attention to Jewish myths or to the commands of men who have rejected the truth.
- βλέπω blépōI look, seetranslated this way 3 times of its 128 uses · Strong’s G991Verb · Translated: see 53, seeing 10, saw 8, sees 6Full study and all 117 verses →
Matthew 22:16 They sent their disciples to Him along with the Herodians. “Teacher,” they said, “we know that You are honest and that You teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You seek favor from no one, because You pay no attention to external appearance.
Mark 4:24 He went on to say, “Pay attention to what you hear. With the measure you use, it will be measured to you, and even more will be added to you.
- ἀποδεκατόω apodekatóōI take off a tenth part, pay tithetranslated this way 3 times of its 4 uses · Strong’s G586Verb · Translated: pay tithes 3, collect a tenth 1Full study and all 4 verses →
Matthew 23:23 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You pay tithes of mint, dill, and cumin. But you have disregarded the weightier matters of the law: justice, mercy, and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.
Luke 11:42 Woe to you Pharisees! For you pay tithes of mint, rue, and every herb, but you disregard justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without neglecting the former.
- τελέω teléōI end, accomplish, paytranslated this way 2 times of its 28 uses · Strong’s G5055Verb · Translated: finished 8, fulfilled 4, complete 3, pay 2Full study and all 28 verses →
Matthew 17:24 After they had arrived in Capernaum, the collectors of the two-drachma tax came to Peter and asked, “Does your Teacher pay the two drachmas?”
Romans 13:6 This is also why you pay taxes. For the authorities are God’s servants, who devote themselves to their work.
How to study a word well
- Start from the verse, not the dictionary. Find which Hebrew or Greek word stands in the verse you are studying. One English word often translates several different original words.
- Read every place the word is used. A word means what its writers used it to mean. The list of verses and the count by book show its range, and who uses it most.
- Look at how it is translated. A word rendered five different ways has a wider meaning than any one English word can carry.
- Notice the form. A command is not a statement, and a passive verb is something done to the subject. The form in your verse is part of the meaning.
- See what it keeps company with. The words that appear beside it again and again show how the Bible itself connects ideas.
- Then read the dictionaries. They give the considered view of scholars, with their evidence.
- Come back to the verse. Context decides. A word does not carry every one of its meanings into every verse, and where a word came from does not settle what it means in a sentence written centuries later.
Scripture text and translation counts: Berean Standard Bible. Full entry: Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906, public domain), in the digital edition Brown-Driver-Briggs Enhanced by unfoldingWord (Joel Ruark, J. de Joode), based on data by Eliran Wong and Stephen Ku; its additions are used under CC BY 4.0. Strong’s Hebrew Dictionary: Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible Project, CC BY 4.0. Hebrew-to-English verse numbering: original work of the Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible available at https://github.com/openscriptures/morphhb, CC BY 4.0. We reformatted the data, linked the references to this site’s Bible text and left out words in other scripts that the source holds only as images. These are historical reference works; an entry gives its authors’ view, and a word’s meaning in any verse depends on how it is used there.