'Dear' in the Bible

And we said to my lord, We have an old father and a young child, whom he had when he was old; his brother is dead and he is the only son of his mother, and is very dear to his father.

And the time of his death came near, and he sent for his son Joseph and said to him, If now I am dear to you, put your hand under my leg and take an oath that you will not put me to rest in Egypt;

But if the servant says clearly, My master and my wife and children are dear to me; I have no desire to be free:

If your brother, the son of your mother, or your son or your daughter or the wife of your heart, or the friend who is as dear to you as your life, working on you secretly says to you, Let us go and give worship to other gods, strange to you and to your fathers;

But if he says to you, I have no desire to go away from you; because you and your family are dear to him and he is happy with you;

That man among you who is soft and used to comfort will be hard and cruel to his brother, and to his dear wife, and to of those his children who are still living;

So Boaz said to Ruth, "Listen carefully, my dear! Do not leave to gather grain in another field. You need not go beyond the limits of this field. You may go along beside my female workers.

He said, "May you be rewarded by the Lord, my dear! This act of devotion is greater than what you did before. For you have not sought to marry one of the young men, whether rich or poor.

Now, my dear, don't worry! I intend to do for you everything you propose, for everyone in the village knows that you are a worthy woman.

But to Hannah he gave one part, though Hannah was very dear to him, but the Lord had not let her have children.

And David came to Saul, waiting before him: and he became very dear to Saul, who made him his servant, giving him the care of his arms.

Now after David's talk with Saul was ended, the soul of Jonathan was joined with the soul of David, and David became as dear to him as his very life.

Then the Philistine commanders (princes) came out to battle, and it happened as often as they did, that David acted more wisely and had more success than all Saul’s servants. So his name was highly esteemed.

But David took his oath again and said, Your father sees that I am dear to you; so he says to himself, Let Jonathan have no idea of this, for it will be a grief to him; but as the Lord is living, and as your soul is living, there is only a step between me and death.

And Jonathan again took an oath to David, because of his love for him: for David was as dear to him as his very soul.

Then Saul said, I have done wrong: come back to me, David my son: I will do you no more wrong, because my life was dear to you today truly, I have been foolish and my error is very great.

And so, as your life was dear to me today, may my life be dear to the Lord, and may he make me free from all my troubles.

I grieve over you, my brother Jonathan! You were very dear to me. Your love was more special to me than the love of women.

And David gave comfort to his wife Bath-sheba, and he went in to her and had connection with her: and she had a son to whom she gave the name Solomon. And he was dear to the Lord.

But when King David had news of all these things he was very angry; but he did not make trouble for Amnon his son, for he was dear to David, being his oldest son.

For your haters, it seems, are dear to you, and your friends are hated. For you have made it clear that captains and servants are nothing to you: and now I see that if Absalom was living and we had all been dead today, it would have been right in your eyes.

Then he called out to the LORD and asked him, "LORD my God, have you also brought evil to this dear widow with whom I am living as her guest? Have you caused the death of her son?"

All this, said David, the design for all these things, has been made dear to me in writing by the hand of the Lord.

And because this house of God is dear to me, I give my private store of gold and silver to the house of my God, in addition to all I have got ready for the holy house;

Was it not in these things that Solomon, king of Israel, did wrong? among a number of nations there was no king like him, and he was dear to his God, and God made him king over all Israel: but even he was made to do evil by strange women.

My days have slipped by;my plans have been ruined,even the things dear to my heart.

All the men of my circle keep away from me; and those dear to me are turned against me.

Rescue my life from the sword,My only life from the paw of the dog (the executioner).

Lord, your house has been dear to me, and the resting-place of your glory.

Lord, how long will You look on [without action]?Rescue my life from their destructions,My only life from the young lions.

“With rebukes You discipline man for sin;You consume like a moth what is precious to him;Surely every man is a mere breath [a wisp of smoke, a vapor that vanishes]. Selah.

He will give us our heritage, the glory of Jacob who is dear to him. (Selah.)

How dear are your tents, O Lord of armies!

O Lord, God of my salvation, I have been crying to you for help by day and by night:

Dear in the eyes of the Lord is the death of his saints.

Your word is of tested value; and it is dear to your servant.

How dear are your thoughts to me, O God! how great is the number of them!

How long, you simple ones, will foolish things be dear to you? and pride a delight to the haters of authority? how long will the foolish go on hating knowledge?

For to those who are dear to him the Lord says sharp words, and makes the son in whom he has delight undergo pain.

Do not say sharp words to a man of pride, or he will have hate for you; make them clear to a wise man, and you will be dear to him.

The way of the evil-doer is disgusting to the Lord, but he who goes after righteousness is dear to him.

Lips of righteousness are the delight of kings; and he who says what is upright is dear to him.

Death and life are in the power of the tongue; and those to whom it is dear will have its fruit for their food.

He whose heart is clean is dear to the Lord; for the grace of his lips the king will be his friend.

And by knowledge its rooms are full of all dear and pleasing things.

Therefore I said,“Look away from me! Let me weep bitterly!Do not try to comfort meabout the destruction of my dear people.”

Our holy and beautiful temple,where our fathers praised You,has been burned with fire,and all that was dear to us lies in ruins.

“At that time it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem, ‘A searing wind blows from the barren heights in the wilderness on the way to My dear people. It comes not to winnow or to sift;

My dear people, dress yourselves in sackclothand roll in the dust.Mourn as you would for an only son,a bitter lament,for suddenly the destroyer will come on us.

They have treated superficially the brokennessof My dear people,claiming, ‘Peace, peace,’when there is no peace.

Listen—the cry of my dear peoplefrom a far away land,“Is the Lord no longer in Zion,her King not within her?”Why have they provoked me to angerwith their carved images,with their worthless foreign idols?

I am broken by the brokennessof my dear people.I mourn; horror has taken hold of me.

Is there no balm in Gilead?Is there no physician there?So why has the healing of my dear peoplenot come about? >

If my head were a spring of water,my eyes a fountain of tears,I would weep day and nightover the slain of my dear people.

Therefore, this is what the Lord of Hosts says:I am about to refine them and test them,for what else can I dobecause of My dear people?

"Tell these people this, Jeremiah: 'My eyes overflow with tears day and night without ceasing. For my people, my dear children, have suffered a crushing blow. They have suffered a serious wound.

I will rebuild you, my dear children Israel, so that you will once again be built up. Once again you will take up the tambourine and join in the happy throng of dancers.

Is Ephraim my dear son? is he a pleasant child? for since I spake against him, I do earnestly remember him still: therefore my bowels are troubled for him; I will surely have mercy upon him, saith the LORD.

I will say, 'My dear children of Israel, keep in mind the road you took when you were carried off. Mark off in your minds the landmarks. Make a mental note of telltale signs marking the way back. Return, my dear children of Israel. Return to these cities of yours.

Go up to Gilead and get medicinal ointment, you dear poor people of Egypt. But it will prove useless no matter how much medicine you use; there will be no healing for you.

Pack your bags for exile, you inhabitants of poor dear Egypt. For Memphis will be laid waste. It will lie in ruins and be uninhabited.

Poor dear Egypt will be put to shame. She will be handed over to the people from the north."

כ KafMy eyes are worn out from weeping;I am churning within.My heart is poured out in griefbecause of the destruction of my dear people,because children and infants faintin the streets of the city.

My eyes flow with streams of tearsbecause of the destruction of my dear people.

ג GimelEven jackals offer their breaststo nurse their young,but my dear people have become cruellike ostriches in the wilderness.

ו VavThe punishment of my dear peopleis greater than that of Sodom,which was overthrown in an instantwithout a hand laid on it.

י YodThe hands of compassionate womenhave cooked their own children;they became their foodduring the destruction of my dear people.

All their evil-doing is in Gilgal; there I had hate for them; because of their evil-doing I will send them out of my house; they will no longer be dear to me; all their rulers are uncontrolled.

When Israel was a child he was dear to me; and I took my son out of Egypt.

For this is what the Lord of armies has said: In the way of glory he has sent me to the nations which have taken your goods: for anyone touching you is touching what is most dear to him.

Judah has been acting falsely, and a disgusting thing has been done in Jerusalem; for Judah has made unclean the holy place of the Lord which is dear to him, and has taken as his wife the daughter of a strange god.

And a voice from heaven said, "This is my one dear Son; in him I take great delight."

While he was still speaking, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, "This is my one dear Son, in whom I take great delight. Listen to him!"

And a voice came from heaven: "You are my one dear Son; in you I take great delight."

Then a cloud overshadowed them, and a voice came from the cloud, "This is my one dear Son. Listen to him!"

He had one left, his one dear son. Finally he sent him to them, saying, 'They will respect my son.'

and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, "You are my one dear Son; in you I take great delight."

And a certain centurion's servant, who was dear unto him, was sick, and ready to die.

"'You my dear son,' said the father, 'are always with me, and all that is mine is also yours.

Then the owner of the vineyard said, 'What should I do? I will send my one dear son; perhaps they will respect him.'

"How does that concern us, dear lady?" Jesus asked her. "My time hasn't come yet."

Jesus told her, "Believe me, dear lady, the hour is coming when you Samaritans will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.

Then Jesus stood up and asked her, "Dear lady, where are your accusers? Hasn't anyone condemned you?"

So the sisters sent to him, saying, Lord, your dear friend is ill.

Now Jesus loved and was concerned about Martha and her sister and Lazarus [and considered them dear friends].

So the Jews said, See how dear he was to him!

He who holds his life dear, is destroying it; and he who makes his life of no account in this world shall keep it to the Life of the Ages.

There was at table one of his disciples, the one dear to Jesus, resting his head on Jesus' breast.

Little children, I am with you [only] a little longer. You will look for Me and, as I told the Jews, so I tell you now, ‘Where I am going, you are not able to come.’

Jesus said to him in answer, If anyone has love for me, he will keep my words: and he will be dear to my Father; and we will come to him and make our living-place with him.

for the Father Himself holds you dear, because you have held me dear and have believed that I came from the Father's presence.

When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he kept loving standing there, he told his mother, "Dear lady, here is your son."

So she ran, as fast as she could, to find Simon Peter and the other disciple--the one who was dear to Jesus--and to tell them, "They have taken the Master out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have put Him."

Jesus asked her, "Dear lady, why are you crying? Who are you looking for?" Thinking he was the gardener, she told him, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will take him away."

So the disciple who was dear to Jesus said to Peter, It is the Lord! Hearing that it was the Lord, Peter put his coat round him (because he was not clothed) and went into the sea.

When they had finished breakfast, Jesus asked Simon Peter, "Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these others do?" "Yes, Master," was his answer; "you know that you are dear to me." "Then feed my lambs," replied Jesus.

Again a second time He asked him, "Simon, son of John, do you love me?" "Yes, Master," he said, "you know that you are dear to me." "Then be a shepherd to my sheep," He said.

He said to him a third time, Simon, son of John, am I dear to you? Now Peter was troubled in his heart because he put the question a third time, Am I dear to you? And he said to him, Lord, you have knowledge of all things; you see that you are dear to me. Jesus said to him, Then give my sheep food.

Then Peter, turning round, saw the disciple who was dear to Jesus coming after them--the disciple who was resting on his breast at the last meal, and said, Lord, who is it who will be false to you?

And having put him on one side, he made David their king, to whom he gave witness, saying, I have taken David, the son of Jesse, a man dear to my heart, who will do all my pleasure.