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H5445 · Hebrew · Old Testament
סָבַל
Saval
Verb
To bear a burden, carry a heavy load

Definition

The Hebrew verb saval means to bear or carry a heavy burden — physical or metaphorical. It appears in contexts of laborers carrying loads (1 Kings 5:15), of Israel being carried by God (Isaiah 46:4), and most profoundly, of the Servant bearing Israel's sins (Isaiah 53:11). It emphasizes the weight and cost of what is borne.

Usage & Theological Significance

Saval in Isaiah 53 is one of the most theologically weighty uses of any Hebrew verb. The Servant "will bear their iniquities" (saval, v.11) — bearing the crushing weight of human sin as a substitutionary burden-bearer. This is not sympathy but substitution: He carries what we cannot. Paradoxically, God himself is the carrier: "I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you" (Isaiah 46:4). The same verb in Isaiah 53 and Isaiah 46 creates a stunning theological arc: the God who carries His people sends His Servant to carry their sins. Burden-bearing is God's own nature expressed in redemption.

Key Bible Verses

Isaiah 53:11 After he has suffered, he will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities.
Isaiah 46:4 Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.
1 Kings 5:15 Solomon had seventy thousand carriers and eighty thousand stonecutters in the hills.
Lamentations 5:7 Our ancestors sinned and are no more, and we bear their punishment.
Psalm 55:22 Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken.

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