H2764 — חֵרֶם (chêrem)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: H2764
Original: חֵרֶם
Transliteration: chêrem
Pronunciation: khay'-rem
Part of Speech: Masculine noun
Root: חָרַם (charam) H2763 — primitive root, to seclude, devote to destruction, ban
Occurrences: 39 tokens in 31 unique verses across 14 books of the OT
First Occurrence: Lev 27:21 — "But the field, when it goeth out in the jubile, shall be holy unto the LORD, as a field devoted"
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

From H2763 (charam). Physical (as shutting in) a net — either literally (a fishing net) or figuratively. Usually a doomed object: that which has been placed under the ban, set apart as devoted exclusively to the LORD and therefore withdrawn from common use, whether for sacred dedication or for irrevocable destruction. Abstractly: extermination. KJV renders: (ac-)curse(-d, -d thing), dedicated thing, things which should have been utterly destroyed, (appointed to) utter destruction, devoted (thing), net.

The word carries two distinct but linked semantic streams: (1) sacred/destructive ban — object or person irrevocably given to YHWH, often by destruction; (2) net/snare — that which "shuts in" or encloses prey. Both streams share the root idea of enclosure/seclusion from normal use.

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Count	%
the accursed thing / an accursed thing / in the accursed thing / with the accursed thing / etc.	12	~39%
devoted / devoted thing / thing devoted	4	~13%
nets / in my net / in their net / with a net / of nets / and nets / unto their net	9	~29%
a curse / to the curse / of my curse / with a curse	4	~13%
a cursed thing / the cursed thing	2	~6%
dedicated thing	1	~3%
utter destruction / (appointed to) utter destruction / things which should have been utterly destroyed	3	~10%

The KJV cluster splits roughly: "accursed thing / devoted / curse" (~70%) vs. "net" (~29%).

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
Habakkuk	3	5.4
Malachi	1	1.8
Joshua	8	1.2
Micah	1	1.0
Ecclesiastes	1	0.5
Zechariah	1	0.5
Ezekiel	5	0.4
Leviticus	3	0.3
Deuteronomy	2	0.2
Isaiah	2	0.2
Numbers	1	0.1
1 Samuel	1	0.1
1 Kings	1	0.1
1 Chronicles	1	0.1

Patterns: Heaviest concentration in Joshua (8 tokens — the Achan / Jericho herem narratives) and Habakkuk (3 tokens — all in the "net" sense, 1:15–17). Torah use (Lev/Num/Deut) establishes the legal-cultic category; historical books document execution and breach; prophets use the term metaphorically (curse) or for fishing tackle imagery (Ezek 26, 32, 47; Hab 1; Mic 7; Eccl 7).

Semantic Categories¶

1. The Sacred Ban: Persons/Objects Devoted to YHWH by Destruction¶

The herem as irrevocable consecration-by-destruction in holy war. - Deut 7:26 — "Neither shalt thou bring an abomination into thine house, lest thou be a cursed thing like it" - Josh 6:17 — "And the city shall be accursed, even it, and all that are therein, to the LORD" - Josh 6:18 — "keep yourselves from the accursed thing, lest ye make yourselves accursed" - 1 Sam 15:21 — "sheep and oxen, the chief of the things which should have been utterly destroyed"

2. Dedicated / Devoted Property Given to the Sanctuary¶

Non-destructive sense: property irrevocably transferred to YHWH's priests. - Lev 27:21 — "a field devoted; the possession thereof shall be the priest's" - Lev 27:28 — "no devoted thing, that a man shall devote unto the LORD... shall be sold or redeemed" - Num 18:14 — "Every thing devoted in Israel shall be thine" (spoken to Aaron) - Ezek 44:29 — "every dedicated thing in Israel shall be theirs"

3. Breach of the Ban — Corporate Guilt¶

Narratives where taking from the herem incurs corporate wrath. - Josh 7:1 — "the children of Israel committed a trespass in the accursed thing: for Achan... took" - Josh 7:11–13 — Israel "hath taken of the accursed thing... neither will I be with you any more, except ye destroy the accursed from among you" - Josh 22:20 — "Did not Achan the son of Zerah commit a trespass in the accursed thing, and wrath fell on all the congregation" - 1 Chr 2:7 — "Achar, the troubler of Israel, who transgressed in the thing accursed"

4. Judicial Curse / Utter Destruction (Prophetic)¶

The herem applied to peoples and nations as divine judgment. - 1 Kgs 20:42 — "a man whom I appointed to utter destruction" - Isa 34:5 — "upon the people of my curse, to judgment" - Isa 43:28 — "given Jacob to the curse, and Israel to reproaches" - Mal 4:6 — "lest I come and smite the earth with a curse"

5. Eschatological Removal of the Ban¶

Reversal of herem status as a sign of restored peace. - Zech 14:11 — "there shall be no more utter destruction; but Jerusalem shall be safely inhabited"

6. Fishing Net / Dragnet (Homonym or Extended Sense)¶

The root idea "that which encloses"; used literally of nets and figuratively of snares. - Ezek 26:5 — "a place for the spreading of nets in the midst of the sea" (of Tyre) - Ezek 32:3 — "I will therefore spread out my net over thee" (Pharaoh) - Ezek 47:10 — "a place to spread forth nets" (En-gedi to En-eglaim) - Hab 1:15–17 — "they catch them in their net... therefore they sacrifice unto their net" - Eccl 7:26 — "the woman, whose heart is snares and nets" - Mic 7:2 — "they all lie in wait for blood; they hunt every man his brother with a net"

Lexicographers debate whether the "net" uses represent a true homonym (II חרם) or a figurative extension of the root sense of "enclosure/seclusion." Either way, the KJV concordance treats them under one Strong's number.

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
יִשְׂרָאֵל Yisraʼel	H3478	11x (35%)	"in Israel" — national scope of ban/devoted thing
יְהֹוָה YHWH	H3068	10x (32%)	"devoted unto the LORD" — recipient of the ban
לֹא lo	H3808	10x (32%)	negation — "shall not be redeemed," "no more utter destruction"
כֹּל kol	H3605	8x (26%)	"all... devoted" — totality of the ban
עַל al	H5921	8x (26%)	"upon" — judgment/ban falling on object
מִן min	H4480	7x (23%)	"from" — separation, remove the herem
בֵּן ben	H1121	5x (16%)	"sons/children of Israel"
עַם am	H5971	5x (16%)	"people" — people of the curse
לָקַח laqach	H3947	4x (13%)	"took" — illicit taking of the banned thing
חָרַם charam	H2763	3x (10%)	cognate verb — "devote/utterly destroy the herem" (figura etymologica)
יָד yad	H3027	3x (10%)	"to thine hand" — contact/possession of the banned object
אָדַם adam / אִישׁ ish	H120 / H376	3x / 4x	"man" — persons placed under ban

Word Family / Cognates¶

H2763 חָרַם (charam) — root verb: to seclude, devote, utterly destroy, put under ban. The verbal counterpart used in the very Joshua narratives where H2764 appears as the resulting object/state.
H2762 חֶרֶם (cherem II) — homographic sense cluster: "net" (sometimes treated as separate root by lexica).
H2766 חָרִם (charim) — proper name derived from the root.

Synonyms¶

חַכָּה (H2443) — returned by search_relationships.py.
מִכְמֶרֶת (H4365) — returned by search_relationships.py.
רֶשֶׁת (H7568) — returned by search_relationships.py.

Antonyms¶

No antonyms were returned by search_relationships.py for H2764.

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
ἀνάθεμα (anathema)	G331	"accursed" / "a curse"	NT Greek equivalent: an object placed under divine ban; NT uses figuratively for excommunication / self-imprecation (Rom 9:3; 1 Cor 16:22; Gal 1:8–9).
חָרַם (charam)	H2763	"accursed" (verb form)	The action of placing under ban vs. H2764 the object/state under ban.
קְלָלָה (qelalah)	H7045	"curse"	Generic vilification or spoken malediction; lacks the cultic "devoted-to-destruction" sense of herem.
מִכְמֶרֶת (mikmereth)	H4365	"nets"	Common word for fishing net; lacks the sacral overtones of chērem.
שָׂבָךְ (sabak)	H7638	"net"	Lattice/network; purely literal.
δίκτυον (diktyon)	G1350	"nets" (NT)	Standard NT Greek word for fishing nets.
תּוֹעֵבָה (toʻevah)	H8441	"abomination" (paired in Deut 7:26)	Abomination is the category from which a herem-cursed object comes; herem is the resulting status.

Semantic Domains¶

UBS / Relationship Domains¶

[001002008001018] Traps — Neighboring entries returned by search_relationships.py: גּוּמָּץ (H1475), חֶבֶל (H2256), חֹוחַ (H2336), חֹוחַ (H2337), חָח (H2397), חַכָּה (H2443).
[002003002009] Dissociate — Neighboring entries returned by search_relationships.py: אחז (H270), אַלְמֹון (H489), אַלְמָן (H488), אַלְמָנוּת (H491), בַּד (H905), בַּד (H906).
[002002002006] Non-Exist — Neighboring entries returned by search_relationships.py: אבד (A7), אבד (H6), אֹבֵד (H8), אַבְדָן (H12), אָבְדָן (H13), אֶבֶן (A69).

LXX Mapping¶

Greek Equivalent	Strong's	Co-occ	PMI	Notes
ἀνάθεμα (anathema)	G331	12	9.19	Primary sacral-ban equivalent; carries the herem concept into NT usage
σαγήνη (sagēnē)	G4522	5	9.25	Dragnet — renders the "net" sense in LXX
ἀμφίβληστρον (amphiblēstron)	G293	3	8.78	Casting-net — a second "net" equivalent
ὀργή (orgē)	G3709	3	3.34	"Wrath" — used where herem connotes the outpoured curse
Ἰσραήλ (Israēl)	G2474	10	1.75	Name co-occurrence, not semantic equivalent

The LXX thus preserves both semantic streams of chērem: ἀνάθεμα for the sacral ban, and σαγήνη / ἀμφίβληστρον for the net sense.