2666. chaphash
Lexical Summary
chaphash: To search, to explore, to examine

Original Word: חָפַשׁ
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: chaphash
Pronunciation: khaw-fas'
Phonetic Spelling: (khaw-fash')
KJV: be free
NASB: free
Word Origin: [a primitive root]

1. to spread loose
2. (figuratively) to manumit

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
be free

A primitive root; to spread loose; figuratively, to manumit -- be free.

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
a prim. root
Definition
to be free
NASB Translation
free (1).

Brown-Driver-Briggs
[חָפַשׁ] verb be free — only

Pu`al Perfect3feminine singular כִּי לֹא חֻמָּ֑שָׁה Leviticus 19:20 (H), because she was not freed (a freed-woman).

Topical Lexicon
Root Idea of Release

חָפַשׁ conveys the act of setting someone at liberty. Scripture applies the term to the critical moment when an enslaved person moves from bondage into freedom, underscoring a change of status bestowed by lawful authority rather than seized by human striving.

Canonical Context: Leviticus 19:20

The sole occurrence appears in the holiness code:

“If a man lies carnally with a woman who is a slave girl promised to another man, but who has not been redeemed or given her freedom, an inquiry shall be held. They shall not be put to death, because she was not free.” (Leviticus 19:20)

The verse places חָפַשׁ at the intersection of morality, justice, and compassion. While affirming sexual purity, the law recognizes the diminished agency of the slave girl and mitigates punishment accordingly. By mentioning the freedom that had not yet been granted, the text places emancipation squarely within Israel’s ethical horizon.

Social and Legal Backdrop

1. Slavery in Israel was regulated, not endorsed without restraint. Release was expected in the seventh year (Exodus 21:2) and protected from exploitation (Deuteronomy 15:12–18).
2. חָפַשׁ highlights freedom as a gift from the covenant community. The slave’s inability to demand release underscores the need for an outside redeemer, foreshadowing God’s own redemptive initiative.

Redemptive Echoes in Israel’s Law

The mention of “freedom given her” implicitly invites comparison with other liberation motifs:
• Jubilee liberty for land and people (Leviticus 25:10).
• Ransom language for the firstborn (Exodus 13:13), where redemption changes ownership.
• Deliverance from Egypt, the foundational narrative of liberation (Deuteronomy 5:15).

חָפַשׁ therefore belongs to a fabric of laws that reveal God’s character as the Liberator who hates oppression and upholds human dignity.

Prophetic and Messianic Trajectory

Later prophets proclaim a fuller deliverance:

“Proclaim liberty to the captives” (Isaiah 61:1), a text Jesus applies to Himself in Luke 4:18. Though Isaiah uses a different Hebrew root, the goal is identical: God-sent liberty that human efforts cannot secure. The Levitical statute sets the stage for Messiah’s greater emancipation—freedom from sin and death (John 8:36; Romans 8:2).

Application in Ministry Today

• Advocacy: Believers champion the oppressed, mirroring God’s concern that no one remain bound when freedom can be granted.
• Restoration: Pastoral care recognizes diminished responsibility where agency is restricted, following Leviticus 19:20’s nuance.
• Gospel proclamation: The historical picture of a slave awaiting freedom prefigures the sinner awaiting Christ’s redeeming act. Preachers connect tangible emancipation with spiritual liberation: “For freedom Christ has set us free” (Galatians 5:1).

Summary

חָפַשׁ, though used only once, anchors a profound biblical theme: liberty bestowed by rightful authority. In Leviticus it guards the vulnerable; in the broader canon it anticipates the ultimate freedom granted through the Redeemer. Contemporary disciples honor this heritage by advancing justice, preaching deliverance, and living as those whom the Son has set free indeed.

Forms and Transliterations
חֻפָּֽשָׁה׃ חפשה׃ chupPashah ḥup·pā·šāh ḥuppāšāh
Links
Interlinear GreekInterlinear HebrewStrong's NumbersEnglishman's Greek ConcordanceEnglishman's Hebrew ConcordanceParallel Texts
Englishman's Concordance
Leviticus 19:20
HEB: כִּי־ לֹ֥א חֻפָּֽשָׁה׃
NAS: because she was not free.
KJV: they shall not be put to death, because she was not free.
INT: because nor free

1 Occurrence

Strong's Hebrew 2666
1 Occurrence


ḥup·pā·šāh — 1 Occ.

2665
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