'Bear' in the Bible

Cain said to the Lord, “My punishment is greater than I can bear.

The Angel of the Lord continued,“Behold, you are with child,And you will bear a son;And you shall name him Ishmael (God hears),Because the Lord has heard and paid attention to your persecution (suffering).

Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said in his heart, “Shall a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? And shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?”

But God said, “No, Sarah your wife shall bear you a son indeed, and you shall name him Isaac (laughter); and I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant and with his descendants after him.

But My covenant [My promise, My solemn pledge], I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you at this time next year.”

And the Lord asked Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh [to herself], saying, ‘Shall I really give birth [to a child] when I am so old?’

Isaac prayed to the Lord for his wife, because she was unable to conceive children; and the Lord granted his prayer and Rebekah his wife conceived [twins].

Now when the Lord saw that Leah was unloved, He made her able to bear children, but Rachel was barren.

When Leah saw that she had stopped bearing [children], she took Zilpah her maid and gave her to Jacob as a [secondary] wife.

I will be security (a guarantee) for him; you may hold me [personally] responsible for him. If I do not bring him [back] to you and place him [safely] before you, then let me bear the blame before you forever.

For your servant became security for the young man to my father, saying, ‘If I do not bring him back to you, then let me bear the blame before my father forever.’

“When he saw that the resting place was goodAnd that the land was pleasant,He bowed his shoulder to bear [burdens],And became a servant at forced labor.

They shall judge the people at all times; have them bring every major dispute to you, but let them judge every minor dispute themselves. So it will be easier for you, and they will bear the burden with you.

You shall not follow a crowd to do [something] evil, nor shall you testify at a trial or in a dispute so as to side with a crowd in order to pervert justice;

You shall put the two stones on the [two] shoulder pieces of the ephod [of the high priest], as memorial stones for Israel; and Aaron shall bear their names on his two shoulders as a memorial before the Lord.

So Aaron shall carry the names of the sons of Israel (Jacob) in the breastpiece of judgment over his heart when he enters the Holy Place, to bring them in continual remembrance before the Lord.

In the breastpiece of judgment you shall put the Urim (Lights) and the Thummim (Perfections) [to be used for determining God’s will in a matter]. They shall be over Aaron’s heart whenever he goes before the Lord, and Aaron shall always carry the judgment (verdict, judicial decisions) of the sons of Israel over his heart before the Lord.

It shall be on Aaron’s forehead, and Aaron shall take away the guilt from the holy things which the sons of Israel dedicate, with regard to all their holy gifts. It shall always be on his forehead, so that they may be accepted before the Lord.

‘If anyone sins after he hears a public adjuration (solemn command to testify) when he is a witness, whether he has seen or [otherwise] known [something]—if he fails to report it, then he will bear his guilt and be held responsible.

“Now if anyone sins and does any of the things which the Lord has forbidden, though he was not aware of it, still he is guilty and shall bear his punishment.

If any of the meat of the sacrifice of his peace offerings is ever eaten on the third day, then it will not be accepted, and the one who brought it will not be credited with it. It shall be an abhorred (offensive) thing; the one who eats it shall bear his own guilt.

“Why did you not eat the sin offering in the holy place? For it is most holy; and God gave it to you to remove the guilt of the congregation, to make atonement for them before the Lord.

The goat shall carry on itself all their (the Israelites) wickedness, carrying them to a solitary (infertile) land; and he shall release the goat in the wilderness.

But if he does not wash his clothes or bathe his body, he shall bear his guilt [for it will not be borne by the sacrifice of atonement].”

Everyone who eats it will bear [the responsibility for] his wickedness, for he has profaned a holy thing of the Lord; and that person shall be cut off from his people [excluding him from the atonement made for them].

You shall not take revenge nor bear any grudge against the sons of your people, but you shall love your neighbor (acquaintance, associate, companion) as yourself; I am the Lord.

‘If a man takes his sister, his father’s daughter or his mother’s daughter, so that he sees her nakedness and she sees his nakedness, it is a disgrace; and they shall be cut off in the sight of the sons of their people. He has uncovered his sister’s nakedness; he bears [responsibility for] his guilt.

You shall not uncover the nakedness of (have intimate relations with) your mother’s sister or your father’s sister, for such a one has uncovered his blood relative; they will bear their guilt.

If there is a man who lies [intimately] with his uncle’s wife, he has uncovered his uncle’s nakedness; they will bear their sin. They will die childless.

Therefore the priests shall observe My ordinance, so that they will not bear sin because of it and die if they profane it; I am the Lord who sanctifies them.

and so cause them [by neglect of any essential observance] to bear the punishment of guilt when they eat their holy things; for I am the Lord who sanctifies them.’”

You shall speak to the Israelites, saying, ‘Whoever curses his God will bear his sin [through his own death].

Further, the husband will be free from guilt, but that woman [if guilty] shall bear her guilt.’”

But the man who is [ceremonially] clean and is not on a journey, and yet does not observe the Passover, that person shall be cut off from among his people [excluding him from the atonement made for them] because he did not bring the Lord’s offering at its appointed time; that man will bear [the penalty of] his sin.

Then I will come down and speak with you there, and I will take away some of the Spirit who is upon you, and will put Him upon them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, so that you will not have to bear it all alone.

According to the number of days in which you spied out the land [of Canaan], forty days, for each day, you shall bear and suffer a year for your sins and guilt, for forty years, and you shall know My displeasure [the revoking of My promise and My estrangement because of your sin].

So the Lord said to Aaron, “You and your sons and your father’s household (family) with you shall bear the guilt in connection with the sanctuary [that is, through your service as priests you will atone for the offenses which the people unknowingly commit when brought into contact with the manifestations of God’s presence]; and you and your sons with you shall bear the guilt in connection with your priesthood [that is, your own unintentional offenses].

Only the Levites shall perform the service of the Tent of Meeting (tabernacle), and they shall bear their iniquity; it shall be a statute forever throughout your generations, that the Levites shall have no inheritance [of land] among the children of Israel.

But if he indeed nullifies them after he hears of them, then he shall be responsible for and bear her guilt [for breaking her promise].”

“I spoke to you at that time, saying, ‘I am not able to bear the burden of you alone.

How can I alone bear the weight and pressure and burden of you and your strife (contention) and complaining?

At that time the Lord set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of the covenant of the Lord, to stand before the Lord to serve Him and to bless in His name until this day.

and toward her afterbirth that comes from between her legs and toward the children whom she bears; for she will eat them secretly for lack of anything else, during the siege and the misery by which your enemy will oppress you in your cities.

You shall command the priests who carry the ark of the covenant, saying, ‘When you come to the edge of the waters of the Jordan, you shall stand still in the Jordan.’”

When the soles of the feet of the priests who carry the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, [come to] rest in the waters of the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan flowing down from above will be cut off, and they will stand in one mass [of water].”

Also, seven priests shall carry seven trumpets [made] of rams’ horns ahead of the ark; then on the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets.

So Joshua the son of Nun called for the priests and said to them, “Take up the ark of the covenant, and have seven priests carry seven trumpets made of rams’ horns ahead of the ark of the Lord.”

And the Angel of the Lord appeared to the woman and said to her, “Behold, you are infertile and have no children, but you shall conceive and give birth to a son.

For behold, you shall conceive and give birth to a son. No razor shall come upon his head, for the boy shall be a Nazirite [dedicated] to God from birth; and he shall begin to rescue Israel from the hands of the Philistines.”

But He said to me, ‘Behold, you shall conceive and give birth to a son, and now you shall not drink wine or [any other] intoxicating drink, nor eat anything [ceremonially] unclean, for the boy shall be a Nazirite to God from birth to the day of his death.’”

Go back, my daughters, go, for I am too old to have a husband. If I said I have hope, and if I actually had a husband tonight and even gave birth to sons,

But David said to Saul, “Your servant was tending his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and took a lamb out of the flock,

Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, since he has taunted and defied the armies of the living God.”

David said, “The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “Go, and may the Lord be with you.”

And Hushai said, “You know your father and his men, that they are brave men, and they are enraged and fierce, like a bear deprived of her cubs in the field. Your father is a [shrewd] man of war, and will not spend the night with the people [knowing that you seek his life].

Then Ahimaaz the son of Zadok, said, “Let me run and bring the king news that the Lord has vindicated him by rescuing him from [the power of] his enemies.”

But Joab told him, “You are not the man to carry news [to King David] today, but you shall carry news another day. On this day you shall carry no news, because the king’s son is dead.”

and seat two worthless and unprincipled men opposite him, and have them testify against him, saying, ‘You cursed God and the king.’ Then take him out and stone him to death.”

Then Hezekiah king of Judah sent word to the king of Assyria at Lachish, saying, “I have done wrong. Withdraw from me; whatever you impose on me I will bear.” So the king of Assyria imposed on Hezekiah king of Judah [a tribute tax of] three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold.

The survivors who remain of the house of Judah will again take root downward and bear fruit upward.

The sons of Reuben, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh—valiant men able to bear shield and sword, and to shoot with the bow, and skillful in war—were 44,760 who went to war.

So Solomon assigned 70,000 men to carry loads, 80,000 men to quarry stone in the mountains, and 3,600 to supervise them.

Who made [the constellations] the Bear, Orion, and the Pleiades,And the [vast starry] spaces of the south;

“Surely I would [proudly] bear it on my shoulder,And bind the scroll around my head like a crown.

“Bear with me a little longer, and I will show you,That there is yet more to say on God’s behalf.

“Can you lead forth a constellation in its season,And guide [the stars of] the Bear with her sons?

O my God, my soul is in despair within me [the burden more than I can bear];Therefore I will [fervently] remember You from the land of the JordanAnd the peaks of [Mount] Hermon, from Mount Mizar.

For it is not an enemy who taunts me—Then I could bear it;Nor is it one who has hated me who insolently exalts himself against me—Then I could hide from him.

The Lord gives the command [to take Canaan];The women who proclaim the good news are a great host (army);

Remember, O Lord, the reproach of Your servants [scorned, insulted, and disgraced];How I bear in my heart the reproach of all the many peoples,

They will lift you up in their hands,So that you do not [even] strike your foot against a stone.

If you are wise, you are wise for yourself [for your own benefit];If you scoff [thoughtlessly ridicule and disdain], you alone will pay the penalty.

Let a man meet a [ferocious] bear robbed of her cubsRather than the [angry, narcissistic] fool in his folly.

The spirit of a man sustains him in sickness,But as for a broken spirit, who can bear it?

Like a roaring lion and a charging bearIs a wicked ruler over a poor people.

Under three things the earth is disquieted and quakes,And under four it cannot bear up:

Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Listen carefully, the virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and she will call his name Immanuel (God with us).

Then a Shoot (the Messiah) will spring from the stock of Jesse [David’s father],And a Branch from his roots will bear fruit.

And the cow and the bear will graze [together],Their young will lie down together,And the lion shall eat straw like the ox.

The surviving remnant of the house of Judah will again take root downward and bear fruit upward.

Even to your old age I am He,And even to your advanced old age I will carry you!I have made you, and I will carry you;Be assured I will carry you and I will save you.

“They lift it on their shoulders [in religious processions or into battle] and carry it;They set it in its place and there it remains standing.It cannot move from its place.Even if one cries to it [for help], the idol cannot answer;It cannot save him from his distress.

“You have heard [these things foretold]; look at all this [that has been fulfilled].And you, will you not declare it?I proclaim to you [specific] new things from this time,Even hidden things which you have not known.

Depart, depart, go out from there (the lands of exile),Touch no unclean thing;Go out of the midst of her (Babylon), purify yourselves,You who carry the articles of the Lord [on your journey from there].

As a result of the anguish of His soul,He shall see it and be satisfied;By His knowledge [of what He has accomplished] the Righteous One,My Servant, shall justify the many [making them righteous—upright before God, in right standing with Him],For He shall bear [the responsibility for] their sins.

“Shout for joy, O barren one, she who has not given birth;Break forth into joyful shouting and rejoice, she who has not gone into labor [with child]!For the [spiritual] sons of the desolate one will be more numerousThan the sons of the married woman,” says the Lord.

But the Lord is the true God and the God who is Truth;He is the living God and the everlasting King.The earth quakes and shudders at His wrath,And the nations are not able to endure His indignation.

“Woe to me because of my [spiritual] brokenness!” [says Jeremiah, speaking for the nation.]“My wound is incurable.”But I said, “Surely this sickness and suffering and grief are mine,And I must bear it.”

O Lord, You know and understand;Remember me [thoughtfully], take notice of me,take vengeance for me on my persecutors.Do not, in view of Your patience, take me away;Know that for Your sake I endure [continual] rebuke and dishonor.

Thus says the Lord, “Pay attention for your own good, [and for the sake of your future] do not carry any load on the Sabbath day or bring anything in through the gates of Jerusalem.

But if you will not listen to Me and keep the Sabbath day holy by not carrying a load as you come in the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day, then I will kindle a fire in her gates that cannot be extinguished, and it will devour the palaces of Jerusalem.”’”

Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there and do not decrease [in number].

He is to me like a bear lying in wait,And like a lion [hiding] in secret places.

It is good for a man that he should bearThe yoke [of godly discipline] in his youth.

“Then lie down on your left side (toward the north) to bear [symbolically] the wickedness and punishment of the house of Israel. You shall bear their wickedness and punishment for the number of days that you lie on your side.

For I have assigned you the years of their wickedness and punishment, according to the number of the days, three hundred and ninety days [representing three hundred and ninety years]; in this way you shall bear [symbolically] the wickedness and punishment of the house of Israel.

When you have completed these [days for Israel], lie down again, but on your right side (toward the south), and you shall bear the wickedness and punishment of the house of Judah forty days. I have assigned you one day for each year.

Everywhere you live, the cities will become waste and the high places will become deserted, so that your altars may bear their guilt and become deserted, your idols may be broken and destroyed, your incense altars [for sun-worship] may be cut down, and your works may be blotted out.

As they look on, load the provisions and supplies on your shoulder and carry it out in the dark. You shall cover your face so that you cannot see the land, for I have set you as a sign to the house of Israel.”

They [both] will bear the punishment of their wickedness; the sin of the [counterfeit] prophet will be the same as the sin of the [hypocritical] inquirer,