פָּרָה (pa.rah)
pa.rah
Parah
N:N--LQuick Reference
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
- Testament
- Old Testament
- Occurrences
- 1 verses
- Root
- —
- Part of speech
- N:N--L
Word Overview
The Hebrew noun parah, meaning "heifer-town," appears only once in the Old Testament as a place name in Joshua 18:23. It identifies a settlement within the territory allotted to the tribe of Benjamin during the division of the Promised Land.
Its etymology combines parah ("heifer") with the suffix -ah, indicating possession or association. This suggests the town was either known for cattle herding or named after a specific landmark associated with heifers. The word itself carries no theological weight beyond its function as a geographical marker in the tribal inheritance lists.
Translators consistently render it as "Parah" to preserve the proper noun status, though the literal meaning points to an agricultural community. Its single occurrence highlights how many minor settlements were recorded in biblical geography without further narrative detail.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The name Parah appears in a long list of towns given to the tribe of Benjamin. It means "heifer" or is associated with cattle. This small detail reminds us that God cared about the daily lives of ordinary people who worked the land.
Even though this town is not mentioned again in the Bible, its name shows that God’s plan included real places and real families. He provided for them just as He provides for us today. We can trust that He sees our needs too.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 1 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- and/ <the>/ Parah1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- וְ/הַ/פָּרָ֖ה1×
Key Verses
-
Joshua 18:23
Avvim, Parah, Ophrah,
This verse lists Parah among the towns allotted to Benjamin, showing it was a real settlement in God's promised inheritance.