'Held' in the Bible

The Lord said, “Do not reach out [with the knife in] your hand against the boy, and do nothing to [harm] him; for now I know that you fear God [with reverence and profound respect], since you have not withheld from Me your son, your only son [of promise].”

Now Jacob heard that Shechem had defiled (violated) Dinah his daughter; but his sons were in the field with his livestock, so Jacob said nothing until they came in.

When Joseph saw that his father laid his right hand on Ephraim’s head, it displeased him [because he was not the firstborn]; and he grasped his father’s hand to move it from Ephraim’s head to Manasseh’s head.

Now when Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed, and when he lowered his hand [due to fatigue], Amalek prevailed.

But Moses’ hands were heavy and he grew tired. So they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it. Then Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side and one on the other side; so it was that his hands were steady until the sun set.

It is to have two shoulder pieces joined to its two [back and front] ends, so that it may be joined together.

Out of all your gifts, you shall present every offering due to the Lord, from all the best of it, even the sacred part from them.’

Therefore you shall say to them, ‘When you have offered the best from it, then the rest shall be credited to the Levites as the product of the threshing floor, and as the product of the wine vat.

You will bear no sin because of it when you have offered the best of it; but you shall not profane the sacred gifts of the children of Israel, or you will die [because of it].’”

Therefore now flee to your place! I had intended to honor you greatly, but behold, the Lord has held you back from honor.”

For I was afraid of the anger and absolute fury which the Lord held against you, [enough divine fury] to destroy you, but the Lord listened to me that time also.

They went out into the field, gathered the grapes of their vineyard and trod them, and held a festival; and they entered the house of their god, and they ate and drank, and cursed Abimelech.

Then Samson said to the boy who held him by the hand, “Let me feel the pillars on which the [roof of the] house rests, so that I may lean against them.”

He also said, “Give me the shawl you are wearing and hold it out.” So Ruth held it and he measured out six measures of barley [into it] and placed it on her. And she went into the city.

The servant said to him, “Look here, in this city there is a man of God, and the man is held in honor; everything that he says comes true. Now let us go there; perhaps he can advise us about our journey [and tell us where we should go].”

But some worthless men said, “How can this man save and rescue us?” And they regarded Saul with contempt and did not bring him a gift. But he ignored the insult and kept silent.

Yet I will demean myself even more than this, and will be humbled (abased) in my own sight [and yours, as I please], but by the maids whom you mentioned, by them I shall be held in honor.”

It was a hand width thick, and its brim was made like the brim of a cup, like a lily blossom. It held two thousand baths.

Then he made ten basins of bronze; each basin held forty baths and was four cubits, and there was one basin on each of the ten stands.

So at that time Solomon held the feast, and all Israel with him, a great assembly, from the entrance of Hamath [on the northern border of Israel] to the Brook of Egypt [at Israel’s southern border], before the Lord our God, for seven days and seven more days [beyond the prescribed period for the Feast of Booths], fourteen days in all.

For he clung to the Lord; he did not turn away from [faithfully] following Him, but he kept His commandments, which the Lord had commanded Moses.

Indeed, such a Passover as this had not been held since the days of the judges who judged Israel, nor in all the days of the kings of Israel and the kings of Judah.

He killed an Egyptian also, a man of great stature, five cubits tall. In the Egyptian’s hand was a spear like a weaver’s beam, and Benaiah went down to him with [only] a staff (rod) and grabbed the spear from the Egyptian’s hand and killed him with his own spear.

It was a handbreadth (the width of the four fingers) thick; its brim was made like the brim of a cup, like a lily blossom. It could hold 3,000 baths (measures).

At that time Solomon observed the feast for seven days, and all Israel with him, a very large assembly, from the entrance of Hamath to the Brook of Egypt.

And in each city he put [large] shields and spears, and made them very strong. So he held Judah and Benjamin.

From that day on, half of my servants carried on the work while the other half held the spears, shields, bows, and breastplates; and the captains were behind the whole house of Judah.

Those who were rebuilding the wall and those who carried burdens loaded themselves so that everyone worked with one hand and held a weapon with the other.

So we carried on with the work with half of them holding spears from dawn until the stars came out.

I thought it over and then challenged the nobles and the rulers. I said to them, “You are exacting usury (excessive interest) from your own brother (relative).” So I held a great assembly to confront them.

I also applied myself to the work on this wall; we did not buy any land, and all my servants were gathered together there for the work.

and who were close to him [as advisors]: Carshena, Shethar, Admatha, Tarshish, Meres, Marsena, and Memucan, the seven officials of Persia and Media who had access to the king and were ranked highest in the kingdom.

When the king saw Esther the queen standing in the court, she found favor in his sight; and the king extended to her the golden scepter which was in his hand. So Esther approached and touched the top of the scepter.

for we have been sold, I and my people, to be destroyed, killed and wiped out of existence. Now if we had only been sold as slaves, men and women, I would have remained silent, for our hardship would not be sufficient to burden the king [by even mentioning it].”

Then the king held out to Esther the golden scepter. So Esther arose and stood before the king.

“Your words have helped the one who was stumbling to stand,And you have strengthened feeble knees.

“I am accounted wicked and held guilty;Why then should I labor in vain [to appear innocent]?

“My feet have carefully followed His steps;I have kept His ways and not turned aside.

“And if they are bound in bonds [of adversity],And held by cords of affliction,

My steps have held closely to Your paths;My feet have not staggered.

You have also given me the shield of Your salvation,And Your right hand upholds and sustains me;Your gentleness [Your gracious response when I pray] makes me great.

Do not be like the horse or like the mule which have no understanding,Whose trappings include bridle and rein to hold them in check,Otherwise they will not come near to you.

Evil will cause the death of the wicked,And those who hate the righteous will be held guilty and will be condemned.

The Lord redeems the soul of His servants,And none of those who take refuge in Him will be condemned.

I was mute and silent [before my enemies],I refrained even from good,And my distress grew worse.

A man [who is held] in honor,Yet who lacks [spiritual] understanding and a teachable heart, is like the beasts that perish.

If I say, “My foot has slipped,”Your compassion and lovingkindness, O Lord, will hold me up.

He brought them out of darkness and the deep (deathly) darknessAnd broke their bonds apart.

The iniquities done by a wicked man will trap him,And he will be held with the cords of his sin.

Whoever mocks the poor taunts his Maker,And he who rejoices at [another’s] disaster will not go unpunished.

Do not rob the poor because he is poor [and defenseless],Nor crush the afflicted [by legal proceedings] at the gate [where the city court is held],

Do not slander or malign a servant before his master [stay out of another’s personal life],Or he will curse you [for your interference], and you will be found guilty.

“Scarcely had I passed themWhen I found him whom my soul loves.I held on to him and would not let him goUntil I had brought him to my mother’s house,And into the chamber of her who conceived me.”

“Your head crowns you like Mount Carmel,And the flowing hair of your head like purple threads;I, the king, am held captive by your tresses.

“I [the Lord] have been silent for a long time,I have been still and restrained Myself.Now I will moan like a woman in labor,I will both gasp and pant.

This is what the Lord says to His anointed, to Cyrus [king of Persia],Whose right hand I have heldTo subdue nations before him,And I will ungird the loins of kings [disarming them];To open doors before him so that gates will not be shut:

“Make him drunk, for he has become arrogant and magnified himself against the Lord [by denying Reuben’s occupation of the land the Lord had assigned him]. Moab also will wallow in his vomit, and he too shall become a laughingstock.

Thus says the Lord of hosts,“The children of Israel are oppressed,And the children of Judah as well;And all who took them captive have held them tightly,They have refused to let them go.

Thus says the Lord God,‘You will drink your sister’s cup,Which is deep and wide [and filled to the brim].You shall be laughed at and derided;It contains much [too much to endure].

And I heard the man dressed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, as he held up his right hand and his left hand toward heaven, and swore by Him who lives forever that it would be for a time, times, and a half a time (three and a half years); and as soon as they finish shattering and crushing the power of the holy people, all these things will be finished.

And I shall avenge their blood which I have not avenged,For the Lord dwells in Zion.

But the Pharisees went out and conspired against Him, discussing how they could destroy Him.

Immediately Jesus extended His hand and caught him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”

Those servants went out into the streets and gathered together all the people they could find, both bad and good; so the wedding hall was filled with dinner guests [sitting at the banquet table].

When it was morning, all the chief priests and the elders of the people (Sanhedrin, Jewish High Court) conferred together against Jesus, [plotting how] to put Him to death [since under Roman rule they had no power to execute anyone];

After looking around at them with anger, grieved at the hardness and arrogance of their hearts, He told the man, “Hold out your hand.” And he held it out, and his hand was [completely] restored.

Then the Pharisees went out and immediately began conspiring with the Herodians [to plot] against Him, as to how they might [fabricate some legal grounds to] put Him to death.

Herodias had a grudge against John and wanted to kill him, but she could not,

But shall we say, ‘From men?’” —they were afraid [to answer because] of the crowd, for everyone considered John to have been a real prophet.

Early in the morning the chief priests, with the elders and scribes and the whole Council (Sanhedrin, Jewish High Court), immediately consulted together; and they bound Jesus, they took Him away [violently] and handed Him over to Pilate.

They went out and fled from the tomb, for they were seized with trembling and astonishment; and they said nothing [about it] to anyone, because they were afraid.

Now a [Roman] centurion’s slave, who was highly regarded by him, was sick and on the verge of death.

Now He was [already] commanding the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For it had seized him [violently] many times; and he was kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, but he would break the bonds and be driven by the demon into the desert.

He said to them,“When you pray, say:‘Father, hallowed be Your name.Your kingdom come.

But their eyes were [miraculously] prevented from recognizing Him.

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

A jar full of sour wine was placed there; so they put a sponge soaked in the sour wine on [a branch of] hyssop and held it to His mouth.

But none of the rest [of the people, the non-believers] dared to associate with them; however, the people were holding them in high esteem and were speaking highly of them.

But when her owners saw that their hope of profit was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them before the authorities in the market place [where trials were held],

So he had discussions in the synagogue with the Jews and the God-fearing Gentiles, and in the market place day after day with any who happened to be there.

Then the soldiers cut away the ropes that held the skiff and let it fall and drift away.

So they cut the cables and severed the anchors and left them in the sea while at the same time unlashing the ropes of the rudders; and after hoisting the foresail to the wind, they headed steadily for the beach.

For it is not those who merely hear the Law [as it is read aloud] who are just or righteous before God, but it is those who [actually] obey the Law who will be justified [pronounced free of the guilt of sin and declared acceptable to Him].

Well then, are we [Jews] better off than they? Not at all; for we have already charged that both Jews and Greeks (Gentiles) are under the control of sin and subject to its power.

Now we know that whatever the Law [of Moses] says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, so that [the excuses of] every mouth may be silenced [from protesting] and that all the world may be held accountable to God [and subject to His judgment].

Yet death ruled [over mankind] from Adam to Moses [the Lawgiver], even over those who had not sinned as Adam did. Adam is a type of Him (Christ) who was to come [but in reverse—Adam brought destruction, Christ brought salvation].

Accordingly, she will be designated as an adulteress if she unites herself to another man while her husband is alive. But if her husband dies, she is free from the law [regarding marriage], so that she is not an adulteress if she marries another man.

But now we have been released from the Law and its penalty, having died [through Christ] to that by which we were held captive, so that we serve [God] in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter [of the Law].

As it is written and forever remains written, “Jacob I loved (chose, protected, blessed), but Esau I hated (held in disregard compared to Jacob).”

Greet Andronicus and Junias, my kinsmen and [once] my fellow prisoners, who are held in high esteem in the estimation of the apostles, and who were [believers] in Christ before me.

Before certain men came from James, he used to eat [his meals] with the Gentiles; but when the men [from Jerusalem] arrived, he began to withdraw and separate himself [from the Gentile believers], because he was afraid of those from the circumcision.

It was for this freedom that Christ set us free [completely liberating us]; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery [which you once removed].

And He Himself existed and is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. [His is the controlling, cohesive force of the universe.]

and [pray] that we will be rescued from perverse and evil men; for not everyone has the faith.

and that they may come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.

I have fought the good and worthy and noble fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith [firmly guarding the gospel against error].

and [that He] might free all those who through [the haunting] fear of death were held in slavery throughout their lives.

having the golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered entirely with gold. This contained a golden jar which held the manna, and the rod of Aaron that sprouted, and the [two stone] tablets of the covenant [inscribed with the Ten Commandments];

By faith he left Egypt, being unafraid of the wrath of the king; for he endured [steadfastly], as seeing Him who is unseen.

Marriage is to be held in honor among all [that is, regarded as something of great value], and the marriage bed undefiled [by immorality or by any sexual sin]; for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous.