H2459 — חֶלֶב (cheleb)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: H2459
Original: חֶלֶב
Transliteration: cheleb
Pronunciation: kheh
Part of Speech: Masculine noun
Root: From an unused root meaning "to be fat"
Occurrences: 69 unique verses / 92 tokens across 14 books
First Occurrence: Gen 4:4 — "Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof"
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

From an unused root meaning to be fat; fat, whether literally or figuratively; hence, the richest or choice part: best, fat(-ness), finest, grease, marrow.

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Verses	%
the fat	41	59.4%
fat	4	5.8%
the fat thereof	4	5.8%
and the fat	3	4.3%
their fat	3	4.3%
with fatness	3	4.3%
with the fat	3	4.3%
his fat	2	2.9%
the best thereof	2	2.9%
Other (best, finest, grease, marrow, etc.)	11	15.9%

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
Leviticus	33	3.8
Numbers	5	0.4
Ezekiel	4	0.3
Isaiah	4	0.3
1 Samuel	3	0.4
2 Chronicles	3	0.4
Exodus	3	0.2
Deuteronomy	2	0.2
Psalms	6	0.2
Genesis	2	0.1
Judges	1	0.2
1 Kings	1	0.1
2 Samuel	1	0.1
Job	1	0.1

Leviticus is the dominant book by count and density, reflecting the sacrificial-procedure concentration. Outside Torah, the word extends to figurative abundance, battle imagery, and "choice/best" portions.

Semantic Categories¶

1. Sacrificial Fat Portions Burned on the Altar¶

Exo 29:13 — "take all the fat that covereth the inwards... and burn [them] upon the altar"
Lev 3:16 — "the priest shall burn them upon the altar... all the fat [is] the LORD'S"
Lev 7:31 — "the priest shall burn the fat upon the altar"
Lev 16:25 — "the fat of the sin offering shall he burn upon the altar"

2. Fat Distinguished from Blood in Sacrificial Law¶

Exo 23:18 — "neither shall the fat of my sacrifice remain until the morning"
Lev 3:17 — "ye eat neither fat nor blood"
Lev 7:25 — "whosoever eateth the fat of the beast... shall be cut off from his people"
Eze 44:15 — "they shall stand before me to offer unto me the fat and the blood"

3. Prohibited Edible Animal Fat¶

Lev 7:23 — "Ye shall eat no manner of fat, of ox, or of sheep, or of goat"
Lev 7:24 — "the fat of the beast that dieth of itself... may be used in any other use: but ye shall in no wise eat of it"
Eze 44:7 — "when ye offer my bread, the fat and the blood"

4. Choice / Best Portion¶

Gen 4:4 — "the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof"
Gen 45:18 — "ye shall eat the fat of the land"
Num 18:12 — "All the best of the oil, and all the best of the wine"
Num 18:29 — "of all the best thereof, [even] the hallowed part thereof"

5. Figurative Richness, Plenty, or Corpulence¶

Psa 63:5 — "My soul shall be satisfied as [with] marrow and fatness"
Psa 73:7 — "Their eyes stand out with fatness"
Psa 81:16 — "fed them also with the finest of the wheat"
Psa 119:70 — "Their heart is as fat as grease"

6. Judgment / Slaughter Imagery¶

Isa 34:6 — "filled with blood... made fat with fatness... the fat of the kidneys of rams"
Isa 34:7 — "their dust made fat with fatness"
Eze 39:19 — "eat fat till ye be full, and drink blood till ye be drunken"

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
יְהֹוָה (YHWH)	H3068	23x	sacrificial fat belonging/offered to the LORD
מִזְבֵּחַ (mizbeach)	H4196	17x	"burn the fat upon the altar"
קָטַר (qatar)	H6999	16x	priestly burning/smoking of fat portions
דָּם (dam)	H1818	13x	fat and blood paired in prohibition/offering contexts
כִּלְיָה (kilyah)	H3629	13x	kidneys and the fat upon them
זֶבַח (zebach)	H2077	12x	"fat of the sacrifice"
יֹתֶרֶת (yothereth)	H3508	11x	caul/lobe above the liver removed with fat
אָכַל (akal)	H398	10x	eating or not eating fat
כֹּהֵן (kohen)	H3548	10x	priestly handling of fat
שֶׁלֶם (shelem)	H8002	10x	peace-offering fat

Word Family / Cognates¶

No active root entry is supplied by the gatherer; the lexicon derives cheleb from an unused root meaning "to be fat."

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
פֶּדֶר (peder)	H6309	"the fat," "his fat"	peder is suet/fat in a few burnt-offering contexts; cheleb is the broad sacrificial and figurative term
שָׁמֵן (shamen)	H8082	"fat," "the fat"	shamen is an adjective for fat/rich/oily; cheleb is the noun for fat or choice portion
דָּשֵׁן (dashen)	H1879	"fat"	dashen describes fat/rich/fertile condition; cheleb names the fat/choice part itself
שֶׁמֶן (shemen)	H8081	"fat"	shemen is oil/grease, especially liquid oil; cheleb is animal fat or figurative choice part

Tool-Reported Semantic Domains¶

[002001001029] Good — cheleb appears in "best/choice" semantic space.
Referenced in existing studies: G399-anaphero.md, H6999-qatar.md, WG-carry-remove.md

LXX Mapping¶

Greek Equivalent	Co-occurrences	PMI	Notes
νεφρός (nephros) G3510	12	7.42	Kidney/fat-removal context; collocational bridge
περιαιρέω (periaireo) G4014	10	6.13	Removing/stripping fat portions
ἀναφέρω (anaphero) G399	13	5.02	Offering up/burning sacrificial portions
θυσιαστήριον (thysiastērion) G2379	17	4.16	Altar context
αἷμα (haima) G129	13	3.92	Blood paired with fat in sacrificial texts
θυσία (thysia) G2378	13	3.88	Sacrifice context

No single Greek equivalent reaches the cross-testament trace threshold; the LXX data is primarily collocational around altar, kidneys, removal, and blood.