H7521 — רָצָה (râtsâh)¶

Core Data¶

Strong's: H7521
Original: רָצָה
Transliteration: râtsâh
Pronunciation: raw-tsaw'
Part of Speech: Verb (primitive root)
Root: Primitive root (cognate noun: H7522 רָצוֹן râtsôwn "favour, acceptance, delight, will")
Occurrences: 54 unique verses (68 tokens) across 20 books
First Occurrence: Gen 33:10 — "if now I have found grace in thy sight, then receive my present at my hand"
Hapax Legomenon: No

Lexicon Definition¶

A primitive root; to be pleased with; specifically, to satisfy a debt:—(be) accept(-able), accomplish, set affection, approve, consent with, delight (self), enjoy, (be, have a) favour(-able), like, observe, pardon, (be, have, take) please(-ure), reconcile self.

Verb Stem Distribution¶

Stem	Count	Typical Meaning
Qal	46	be pleased with, accept, delight in, enjoy
Niphal	7	be accepted (passive — of sacrifices and debts)
Piel	1	seek to please (intensive — Job 20:10)
Hiphil	1	pay off, cause to enjoy (causative — Lev 26:34)
Hithpael	1	reconcile oneself, make oneself acceptable (reflexive — 1 Sam 29:4)

The Qal dominates (82%), expressing active divine or human pleasure/acceptance. The Niphal (13%) is reserved almost exclusively for sacrificial acceptability in Leviticus. The three remaining stems appear only once each.

Translation Distribution (KJV)¶

Translation	Verses	%
accept / be accepted / acceptable	14	26%
please / be pleased / pleasure	10	19%
delight / delighteth	6	11%
enjoy / enjoyed	4	7%
favour / favourable	5	9%
like / liked	2	4%
approve / consent	2	4%
accomplish / pardoned	2	4%
affection / reconcile / other	9	17%

Distribution by Book¶

Book	Count	Per 100 Verses
Malachi	3	5.5
Haggai	1	2.6
Leviticus	9	1.0
Micah	1	1.0
Amos	1	0.7
Esther	1	0.6
Psalms	13	0.5
Ecclesiastes	1	0.5
Hosea	1	0.5
Job	4	0.4
1 Chronicles	3	0.3
Deuteronomy	2	0.2
2 Chronicles	2	0.2
Proverbs	2	0.2
Isaiah	2	0.2
Ezekiel	3	0.2
Genesis	1	0.1
1 Samuel	1	0.1
2 Samuel	1	0.1
Jeremiah	2	0.1

Psalms has the highest raw count (13 occurrences, 24% of all uses), followed by Leviticus (9, 17%). Malachi has the highest density (5.5 per 100 verses). The word concentrates in worship/sacrificial contexts (Leviticus, Ezekiel, Malachi) and personal devotion (Psalms). Absent from the Pentateuchal narrative books Exodus and Numbers despite their heavy sacrificial legislation — those books use the noun H7522 râtsôwn instead.

Semantic Categories¶

1. Sacrificial Acceptance (Levitical/Cultic)¶

God accepting or refusing offerings based on their fitness. The Niphal passive is characteristic here. - Lev 1:4 — "it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him" - Lev 7:18 — "it shall not be accepted" (peace offering eaten on the third day) - Lev 22:25 — "they shall not be accepted for you" (blemished animals from foreigners) - Lev 22:27 — "from the eighth day and thenceforth it shall be accepted for an offering" - Ezek 43:27 — "I will accept you, saith the Lord GOD" (restored altar worship)

2. Divine Pleasure in Persons¶

God taking pleasure in people, their character, or their ways — not sacrificial objects but relational delight. - Psalm 44:3 — "thy right hand... and the light of thy countenance, because thou hadst a favour unto them" - Psalm 147:11 — "The LORD taketh pleasure in them that fear him, in those that hope in his mercy" - Psalm 149:4 — "the LORD taketh pleasure in his people: he will beautify the meek with salvation" - 1 Chr 28:4 — "he liked me to make me king over all Israel" (David chosen)

3. Divine Pleasure in Conduct/Worship¶

God's acceptance or rejection of worship, works, and moral behaviour — evaluative rather than relational. - Psalm 51:16 — "thou delightest not in burnt offering" (God desires contrition, not ritual) - Psalm 147:10 — "He delighteth not in the strength of the horse" - Prov 16:7 — "When a man's ways please the LORD, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him" - Mal 1:10 — "I have no pleasure in you, saith the LORD of hosts, neither will I accept an offering"

4. Prophetic Rejection of False Worship¶

God withholding ratsah from Israel's offerings due to sin — the negative of category 1. - Jer 14:10 — "the LORD doth not accept them; he will now remember their iniquity" - Jer 14:12 — "when they offer burnt offering and an oblation, I will not accept them" - Hos 8:13 — "the LORD accepteth them not; now will he remember their iniquity" - Amos 5:22 — "I will not accept them: neither will I regard the peace offerings"

5. Sabbath Rest / Debt Satisfaction¶

The land "enjoying" its sabbaths — a specialized sense of satisfying an obligation or paying off a debt. - Lev 26:34 — "then shall the land enjoy her sabbaths, as long as it lieth desolate" - Lev 26:43 — "the land... shall enjoy her sabbaths, while she lieth desolate without them" - 2 Chr 36:21 — "until the land had enjoyed her sabbaths" - Isa 40:2 — "her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned" (Niphal: debt satisfied)

6. Human Acceptance / Favour¶

People accepting, approving, or being pleased with others — interpersonal rather than divine. - Gen 33:10 — "receive my present at my hand" (Jacob to Esau) - Deut 33:24 — "let him be acceptable to his brethren" - Est 10:3 — "Mordecai... accepted of the multitude of his brethren" - 1 Sam 29:4 — "wherewith should he reconcile himself unto his master?" (David among Philistines)

7. Human Affection / Delight¶

Personal delight or pleasure directed toward something or someone. - 1 Chr 29:3 — "I have set my affection to the house of my God" - 1 Chr 29:17 — "thou triest the heart, and hast pleasure in uprightness" - Psalm 50:18 — "When thou sawest a thief, then thou consentedst with him" - Psalm 62:4 — "they delight in lies"

Common Collocations¶

Word	Strong's	Co-occurrences	Typical Pattern
יְהֹוָה (Yehowah)	H3068	20x (37%)	God as subject who accepts/is pleased
לֹא (loʼ)	H3808	14x (26%)	Negation: "will NOT accept/be pleased"
אָמַר (ʼamar)	H559	11x (20%)	Prophetic formula: "saith the LORD... I will not accept"
עָוֺן (ʻavon)	H5771	6x (11%)	Iniquity blocking acceptance
מִנְחָה (minchah)	H4503	5x (9%)	Grain/meal offering as object of acceptance
עֹלָה (ʻolah)	H5930	5x (9%)	Burnt offering as object of acceptance
חַטָּאָה (chattaʼah)	H2403	4x (7%)	Sin/sin-offering in acceptance contexts
נֶפֶשׁ (nephesh)	H5315	4x (7%)	"My soul delighteth" — personal/relational pleasure

The YHWH collocation (37%) confirms this as predominantly a divine-evaluation verb. The high negation rate (26%) reflects the prophetic rejection pattern. The sacrificial vocabulary cluster (minchah + olah + chattaʼah) anchors the cultic acceptance sense.

Word Family / Cognates¶

H7522 רָצוֹן (râtsôwn) — noun: favour, acceptance, delight, will (56v). The nominal form expressing the state or quality of being accepted/pleasing. "From H7521" per lexicon.

Synonyms¶

H14 אָבָה (ʼabah) — be willing, consent (domain: Willing)
H977 בָּחַר (bachar) — choose, select (domain: Willing)
H157 אָהַב (ʼahab) — love (domain: Love)
H2654 חָפֵץ (chaphets) — delight in, be pleased with, desire

Easily Confused Words¶

Word	Strong's	Shared Translation	Key Difference
נָשָׂא (nasaʼ)	H5375	"accept"	nasaʼ = "lift up" (accept by taking up/bearing); ratsah = "be pleased with" (accept by finding favour)
נָפַל (naphal)	H5307	"be accepted"	naphal = "fall" (Gen 4:7 "be accepted" = face lifted up); ratsah = active divine pleasure
דָּשֵׁן (dashен)	H1878	"accept"	dashен = "make fat" (accept an offering by making it rich/prosperous); ratsah = relational acceptance

Semantic Domain¶

Willing (SDBH 002001002028) — alongside ʼabah, bachar
Love (SDBH 002001002018) — alongside ʼahab, chabab, chamal

LXX Mapping¶

Greek Equivalent	Co-occurrences	PMI	Notes
εὐδοκέω (eudokeō) G2106	21x	25.20	Primary — "think well of, approve, be well pleased"
προσδέχομαι (prosdechomai) G4327	12x	18.84	"receive favourably, accept, welcome"
δέχομαι (dechomai) G1209	8x	13.53	"receive, accept"
δεκτός (dektos) G1184	4x	9.35	"acceptable, approved" (adjective)
θέλω (thelō) G2309	3x	4.93	"will, wish, desire"

The primary LXX equivalent εὐδοκέω (21x, PMI 25.20) carries directly into NT usage — Matt 3:17 "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased" uses the same verb the LXX chose for ratsah.