Hebrew
זֶ֫רַע ze·ra
“seed” · 229 times in the Old Testament
Through the Bible
- “descendants” 82
- “offspring” 41
- “seed” 31
- “children” 7
- “semen” 5
- other ways 63
- sperma, the Greek the New Testament uses for it 43
In the New Testament it continues as sperma: Galatians 3:16 quotes Genesis 13:15, and puts this word in Greek.
As a table, book by book
| Book | Times |
|---|---|
| Genesis | 59 |
| Exodus | 6 |
| Leviticus | 24 |
| Numbers | 9 |
| Deuteronomy | 14 |
| Joshua | 1 |
| Ruth | 1 |
| 1 Samuel | 6 |
| 2 Samuel | 3 |
| 1 Kings | 5 |
| 2 Kings | 4 |
| 1 Chronicles | 2 |
| 2 Chronicles | 2 |
| Ezra | 2 |
| Nehemiah | 3 |
| Esther | 5 |
| Job | 3 |
| Psalms | 18 |
| Proverbs | 1 |
| Ecclesiastes | 1 |
| Isaiah | 26 |
| Jeremiah | 21 |
| Ezekiel | 6 |
| Daniel | 2 |
| Amos | 1 |
| Haggai | 1 |
| Zechariah | 1 |
| Malachi | 2 |
| Matthew | 7 |
| Mark | 5 |
| Luke | 2 |
| John | 3 |
| Acts | 4 |
| Romans | 9 |
| 1 Corinthians | 1 |
| 2 Corinthians | 1 |
| Galatians | 5 |
| 2 Timothy | 1 |
| Hebrews | 3 |
| 1 John | 1 |
| Revelation | 1 |
How the BSB translates it
Each way the Berean Standard Bible puts it into English, and how often.
Its meanings, as STEP Bible divides them
- children 177
- seed 44
- semen 8
With a pronoun joined
Hebrew joins “me”, “you”, “him” and the like to the end of a word.
Where it occurs
Grouped by how it’s translated, then by book. Each reference opens the verse.
“descendants” 82
Genesis 15
- 9:9 …with you and your descendants after you…
- 15:13 …Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in…
- 15:18 …covenant with Abram saying To your descendants I have given this…
- 17:8 …And to you and your descendants I will give the…
- 17:9 …keep My covenant you and your descendants in the generations after…
- 17:10 …is My covenant with you and your descendants after you which you…
- 17:19 …as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him…
- 22:17 …and I will multiply your descendants like the stars in…
- 22:17 …sand on the seashore Your descendants will possess the gates…
- 26:24 …bless you and multiply your descendants for the sake of…
- 28:4 …of Abraham to you and your descendants so that you may…
- 28:13 …I will give you and your descendants the land on which…
- 28:14 Your descendants will be like the…
- 35:12 …will give this land to your descendants after you…
- 48:4 …will give this land to your descendants after you as an…
Exodus 3
Leviticus 3
Numbers 3
Deuteronomy 9
- 1:8 …Abraham Isaac and Jacob and to their descendants after them…
- 4:37 …your fathers He chose their descendants after them and brought…
- 10:15 …He has chosen you their descendants after them above all…
- 11:9 …fathers to give them and their descendants a land flowing with…
- 28:46 …a wonder upon you and your descendants forever…
- 30:6 …hearts and the hearts of your descendants and you will love…
- 30:19 …life so that you and your descendants may live…
- 31:21 …forgotten from the lips of their descendants For I know their…
- 34:4 …said I will give it to your descendants I have let you…
Joshua 1
- 24:3 …Canaan and I multiplied his descendants I gave him Isaac…
1 Samuel 2
2 Samuel 2
1 Kings 2
2 Kings 2
1 Chronicles 1
- 17:11 …I will raise up your descendant after you one of…
2 Chronicles 1
- 20:7 …and give it forever to the descendants of Abraham Your friend…
Nehemiah 1
- 9:8 …Girgashites to give it to his descendants You have kept Your…
Esther 3
Job 1
- 21:8 Their descendants are established around them…
Psalms 6
- 18:50 …His anointed to David and his descendants forever…
- 22:23 …LORD praise Him All descendants of Jacob honor Him…
- 25:13 …will dwell in prosperity and his descendants will inherit the land…
- 69:36 The descendants of His servants will…
- 102:28 …servants will dwell securely and their descendants will be established before…
- 112:2 His descendants will be mighty in…
Isaiah 9
- 41:8 …whom I have chosen descendant of Abraham My friend…
- 44:3 …out My Spirit on your descendants and My blessing on…
- 45:19 …I did not say to the descendants of Jacob Seek Me…
- 45:25 …In the LORD all descendants of Israel will be…
- 48:19 Your descendants would have been as…
- 54:3 …the right and left your descendants will dispossess the nations…
- 61:9 Their descendants will be known among…
- 65:9 …I will bring forth descendants from Jacob and heirs…
- 66:22 …declares the LORD so your descendants and your name will…
Jeremiah 15
- 7:15 …all your brothers all the descendants of Ephraim…
- 22:28 …wants Why are he and his descendants hurled out and cast…
- 22:30 …in his lifetime None of his descendants will prosper to sit…
- 23:8 …who brought and led the descendants of the house of…
- 29:32 …punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his descendants He will have no…
- 30:10 …of a distant place your descendants from the land of…
- 31:36 …the LORD would Israel’s descendants ever cease to be…
- 31:37 …reject all of Israel’s descendants because of all they…
- 33:22 …too will I multiply the descendants of My servant David…
- 33:26 …I would also reject the descendants of Jacob and of…
- 33:26 …as not to take from his descendants rulers over the descendants…
- 33:26 …his descendants rulers over the descendants of Abraham Isaac and…
- 36:31 …will punish him and his descendants and servants for their…
- 46:27 …of a distant place your descendants from the land of…
- 49:10 …unable to conceal himself His descendants will be destroyed along…
Ezekiel 1
- 20:5 …I swore an oath to the descendants of the house of…
And 2 more, on the full page.
“offspring” 41
Genesis 22
- 7:3 …and female to preserve their offspring on the face of…
- 12:7 …will give this land to your offspring So Abram built an…
- 13:15 …will give to you and your offspring forever…
- 13:16 …I will make your offspring like the dust of…
- 13:16 …of the earth then your offspring could be counted…
- 15:3 …have given me no offspring so a servant in…
- 15:5 …told him So shall your offspring be…
- 16:10 …I will greatly multiply your offspring so that they will…
- 17:12 …those who are not your offspring
- 21:12 …for through Isaac your offspring will be reckoned…
- 21:13 …woman’s son because he is your offspring
- 24:7 …me on oath saying To your offspring I will give this…
- 24:60 …of thousands upon thousands May your offspring possess the gates of…
- 26:3 …these lands to you and your offspring and I will confirm…
- 28:14 …be blessed through you and your offspring
- 32:12 …and I will make your offspring like the sand of…
- 38:8 …law and raise up offspring for your brother…
- 38:9 …But Onan knew that the offspring would not belong to…
- 38:9 …he would not produce offspring for his brother…
- 46:6 …and Jacob and all his offspring went to Egypt…
- 46:7 …daughters and granddaughters all his offspring
- 48:19 …be greater than he and his offspring shall become a multitude…
Leviticus 2
Numbers 1
- 18:19 …the LORD for you and your offspring
Ruth 1
- 4:12 …to Judah because of the offspring the LORD will give…
2 Samuel 1
- 4:8 …the king against Saul and his offspring
Job 1
- 5:25 …You will know that your offspring will be many your…
Psalms 6
- 21:10 …descendants from the earth and their offspring from the sons of…
- 22:23 …Jacob honor Him All offspring of Israel revere Him…
- 37:28 …They are preserved forever but the offspring of the wicked will…
- 89:4 …I will establish your offspring forever and build up…
- 89:36 his offspring shall endure forever and…
- 106:27 …to disperse their offspring among the nations and…
Proverbs 1
- 11:21 …will not go unpunished but the offspring of the righteous will…
Isaiah 5
- 14:20 …slaughtered your own people The offspring of the wicked will…
- 43:5 …you I will bring your offspring from the east and…
- 53:10 …offering He will see His offspring He will prolong His…
- 57:3 …sons of a sorceress you offspring of adulterers and prostitutes…
- 57:4 …not children of transgression offspring of deceit…
Malachi 1
- 2:15 …Because He seeks godly offspring So guard yourselves in…
“seed” 31
Genesis 8
- 1:11 …trees each bearing fruit with seed according to its kind…
- 1:12 …and trees bearing fruit with seed according to their kinds…
- 1:29 …tree whose fruit contains seed They will be yours…
- 3:15 …the woman and between your seed and her seed He…
- 3:15 …and between your seed and her seed He will crush your…
- 4:25 …has granted me another seed in place of Abel…
- 47:19 …to Pharaoh Give us seed that we may live…
- 47:23 …Pharaoh this day here is seed for you to sow…
Exodus 1
- 16:31 …was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers…
Leviticus 4
Numbers 2
Deuteronomy 2
1 Kings 1
- 18:32 …to hold two seahs of seed
Ezra 1
- 9:2 …so that the holy seed has been mixed with…
Psalms 1
- 126:6 …weeping bearing a trail of seed will surely return with…
Ecclesiastes 1
- 11:6 …Sow your seed in the morning and…
Isaiah 4
Jeremiah 3
Amos 1
- 9:13 …of grapes the sower of seed The mountains will drip…
Haggai 1
- 2:19 …Is there still seed in the barn The…
Zechariah 1
- 8:12 …For the seed will be prosperous the…
“children” 7
Genesis 1
- 48:11 …has let me see your children as well…
Leviticus 1
- 22:13 …priest’s daughter with no children becomes widowed or divorced…
Numbers 1
- 5:28 …and able to conceive children
1 Samuel 1
- 2:20 …the LORD give you children by this woman in…
Psalms 2
Isaiah 1
- 59:21 …or from the mouths of your children and grandchildren from now…
“semen” 5
“family” 5
“seed bearing” 3
“line” 3
“grain” 3
“through your offspring” 2
“make your descendants” 2
“carnally” 2
“heirs” 2
“o offspring” 2
“descended” 2
“descent” 2
“grandchildren” 2
“people” 2
“seedtime” 1
Genesis 1
- 8:22 …as the earth endures seedtime and harvest cold and…
“after you” 1
Genesis 1
- 17:7 …you and your descendants after you to be your God…
“god of your descendants” 1
Genesis 1
- 17:7 …to be your God and the God of your descendants after you…
“them” 1
Genesis 1
- 26:4 …and I will give them all these lands and…
“as seed” 1
Genesis 1
- 47:24 …fifths will be yours as seed for the field and…
“aaron and his descendants” 1
Exodus 1
- 30:21 …be a permanent statute for Aaron and his descendants for the generations to…
“any of your children” 1
Leviticus 1
- 18:21 …You must not give any of your children to be sacrificed to…
“any of his children” 1
Leviticus 1
- 20:2 …in Israel who gives any of his children to Molech must be…
“one of his children” 1
Leviticus 1
- 20:4 …the man who gives one of his children to Molech…
“if a descendant” 1
Leviticus 1
- 22:4 If a descendant of Aaron has a…
“until sowing time” 1
Leviticus 1
- 26:5 …grape harvest will continue until sowing time you will have your…
“seed required for it” 1
Leviticus 1
- 27:16 …valuation shall be proportional to the seed required for it fifty shekels of silver…
“whether from the seed” 1
Leviticus 1
- 27:30 …tithe from the land whether from the seed of the land or…
“another man” 1
Numbers 1
- 5:13 …by sleeping with another man and it is concealed…
“produce” 1
Deuteronomy 1
- 14:22 …a tenth of all the produce brought forth each year…
“both the crop” 1
Deuteronomy 1
- 22:9 …harvest will be defiled both the crop you plant and the…
“bring upon you and your descendants” 1
Deuteronomy 1
- 28:59 …He will bring upon you and your descendants extraordinary disasters severe and…
“son” 1
1 Samuel 1
- 1:11 …maidservant but giving her a son then I will dedicate…
“mine” 1
1 Samuel 1
- 20:42 …between your descendants and mine forever Then David got…
“descendants forever” 1
1 Kings 1
- 2:33 …heads of Joab and his descendants forever but for David his…
“since” 1
Esther 1
- 6:13 …Zeresh said to him Since Mordecai before whom your…
“countrymen” 1
Esther 1
- 10:3 …speaking peace to all his countrymen
“posterity” 1
Psalms 1
- 22:30 Posterity will serve Him they…
“line forever” 1
Psalms 1
- 89:29 …I will establish his line forever his throne as long…
“brood” 1
Isaiah 1
- 1:4 …people laden with iniquity a brood of evildoers children who…
“help your seed” 1
Isaiah 1
- 17:11 …and on that morning you help your seed sprout yet the harvest…
“came the grain” 1
Isaiah 1
- 23:3 …On the great waters came the grain of Shihor the harvest…
“and” 1
Jeremiah 1
- 31:27 …the seed of man and of beast…
“crops” 1
Jeremiah 1
- 35:9 …any vineyards or fields or crops
“some of the seed” 1
Ezekiel 1
- 17:5 …He took some of the seed of the land and…
“fertile” 1
Ezekiel 1
- 17:5 …the land and planted it in fertile soil he placed it…
In our notes
The Hebrew and Greek words, their glosses and grammar: STEP Bible (CC BY 4.0). The English: the Berean Standard Bible, which also gives which English words render which. Counts are ours.