לֶתֶךְ
a measure for things dry
Definition
Lethek is a Hebrew unit of dry measure, specifically equivalent to half a homer. It was used for measuring grains and other dry commodities in ancient Israel. The term appears only once in the Old Testament, in Hosea 3:2, where the prophet purchases a woman for 'fifteen shekels of silver and a homer and a lethek of barley.' This single biblical reference provides the entire scriptural data for this measurement.
Biblical Usage
This word is used only one time in the entire Old Testament, in the book of Hosea. In Hosea 3:2, it is part of the payment—along with silver and a homer of barley—that the prophet Hosea is instructed to give to secure the woman, symbolizing God's relationship with unfaithful Israel. The context is a prophetic acted parable, using concrete economic and agricultural terms to convey a spiritual message.
Etymology
The etymology of 'lethek' is uncertain. It is derived from an unused Hebrew root of unknown meaning. It functions as a technical term for a specific capacity measure. There are no clear cognates in other Semitic languages that definitively clarify its origin, leaving it primarily defined by its biblical context and relationship to the homer.
Semantic Range
While 'lethek' itself is a mundane measurement, its sole use in Hosea 3:2 is theologically significant. The payment of silver and grain (including the lethek of barley) symbolizes the cost of redemption. It illustrates God's commitment to redeem His people despite their unfaithfulness, turning a common agricultural term into a powerful metaphor for grace and covenant love.
In its original setting, a lethek was a standard volume for dry goods like barley, a staple food. A homer is estimated at roughly 220 liters (6.5 bushels), making a lethek about 110 liters. This measurement was part of everyday economic life, used in trade, taxation, and religious offerings. Its appearance in Hosea grounds the prophetic message in the tangible reality of ancient Israel's agrarian economy.
homer (homer, H2563) — a larger dry measure, equivalent to two letheks; ephah (ephah, H374) — a smaller, more common dry measure, one-tenth of a homer; seah (seah, H5429) — a medium dry measure, one-third of an ephah.
Word Details
How this works
Hebrew definitions are from Brown-Driver-Briggs (1906) and Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (1890), both public domain. BDB was groundbreaking for its era but reflects 19th-century assumptions about Semitic etymology. Modern scholarship (HALOT, DCH) has revised many entries. Use these definitions as a starting point for exploration, not as the final word on a term's meaning in context.
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