A Hebrew verb meaning to take, receive, fetch, get, seize, carry away, accept. It is one of the most common verbs in the Hebrew Bible, with an enormous semantic range — from taking a wife in marriage, to receiving instruction, to God taking Enoch from the earth. Context determines whether the taking is gentle (receiving) or forceful (seizing).
The breadth of laqach makes it theologically rich. God took Adam and placed him in the Garden (Genesis 2:15) — a sovereign, purposeful act. God took Enoch, and 'he was not' (Genesis 5:24) — a mysterious, gracious taking into God's presence. Israel is told to take the Passover lamb (Exodus 12:3) — taking responsibility for the sacrifice. Proverbs 2:1 says to receive (laqach) God's words — active appropriation, not passive hearing. The word spans the spectrum from divine sovereignty (God taking) to human responsibility (we must take and receive). In marriage contexts, a man 'takes' a wife — but the taking is covenantal, not predatory.