What does כָּסָה (kasah) mean in the Bible?
כָּסָה (kasah) is a Hebrew verb for covering, concealing, hiding, clothing, or overwhelming. The local Hebrew index currently counts about 153 H3680 uses.
Hebrew · H3680
כָּסָה
Properly, to plump , i.e. fill up hollows; by implication, to cover (for clothing or secrecy)
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כָּסָה H3680
Pronunciation kasah
What does כָּסָה (kasah) mean in the Bible?
כָּסָה (kasah) is a Hebrew verb for covering, concealing, hiding, clothing, or overwhelming. The local Hebrew index currently counts about 153 H3680 uses.
Reader summary
Full entry for כָּסָה (H3680) · Open the biblical lexicon
Questions this entry answers
How does the BSB render H3680?
The BSB source-word alignment has 152 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include covering (9), and covered (7), cover (7), that covers (7), and cover (4).
Where does כָּסָה (kasah) appear in Scripture?
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Genesis 7:19. Its strongest book concentrations include Ezekiel (22), Psalms (17), Exodus (15), Isaiah (12).
Are there verse guides for כָּסָה (kasah)?
This entry includes 3 verse guides that explain exact original-language forms in context.
What This Word Actually Means
כָּסָה (kasah) is a Hebrew verb for covering, concealing, hiding, clothing, or overwhelming. The local Hebrew index currently counts about 153 H3680 uses. Physical subjects include floodwaters, garments, clouds, darkness, locusts, and wings; figurative uses include concealing information, covering shame, covering offenses, and sins being covered in forgiveness contexts.
Psalm 32:1 calls blessed the person whose transgression is forgiven and whose sin is covered. The parallel language presents covered sin as forgiven sin, but it does not explain the full sacrificial mechanism of atonement or say that God becomes unable to see it. Romans 4:7-8 quotes Psalm 32 while arguing about righteousness apart from works.
Psalm 85:2 says that God forgave the people's iniquity and covered all their sin. The surrounding verses recall restored favor and withdrawn wrath. The psalm's historical setting is debated, so the source should not label it post-exilic as a settled fact.
Proverbs 10:12 contrasts hatred that stirs up strife with love that covers all offenses. The proverb commends a love that does not multiply conflict, while it must not be used to conceal abuse, obstruct justice, or erase accountability. First Peter 4:8 uses closely related language about love covering many sins, whether by direct citation or proverbial reuse.
Exodus 40:34 says that the cloud covered the tent of meeting and that the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. H3680 governs the cloud's covering, not the glory's filling. The verse joins the two actions without making them interchangeable.
The broader Hebrew atonement verb H3722 kaphar overlaps thematically with covered-sin passages, but its etymology and ritual functions should not be reduced to H3680's ordinary covering sense.
For the preacher, כָּסָה (kasah) supplies contextual images of physical coverage, concealment, forgiveness, restraint of strife, and cloud over the sanctuary. The subject, object, and moral setting decide whether covering protects, forgives, overwhelms, or wrongly hides.
Lexical sourceCanonical parallelPassage contextPastoral application
How the Bible Uses It
כָּסָה (kasah) has about 153 occurrences in the local Hebrew index. It describes physical covering by water, garments, clouds, darkness, locusts, or wings, and figurative concealment or coverage. Key theological contexts include sins covered in Psalms 32 and 85, love covering offenses in Proverbs 10:12, and the cloud covering the tent while glory fills it in Exodus 40:34. Covering can protect, forgive, overwhelm, or conceal wrongly, so subject and object govern the moral force.
- Ps.32.1
Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.
Kasah as atonement-covering: 'blessed (ashrei) is he whose transgression (pesha) is forgiven (nesui, lifted), whose sin (chataah) is covered (kesui).' The two parallel atonement images — nasa (lift/forgive) and kasah (cover) — describe the same reality from different angles: the sin is removed (lifted off) and hidden from judgment-view (covered). Psalm 32's context is David's post-confession relief (v.
3-5): When he kept silent, his strength dried up; when he confessed, YHWH forgave (nasa) the iniquity of his sin. The kasah is the result of the confession: YHWH does the covering after the transgressor confesses. Paul quotes this in Romans 4:7-8 for justification by faith.
- Ps.85.2
You forgave the iniquity of Your people; You covered all their sin. Selah
Kasah of all sin: 'you covered (kissita) all their sin (kol-chattatam) — Selah.' The comprehensive kasah of Psalm 85:2 is the historical celebration of YHWH's post-exile restoration: the sins that sent Israel into exile have been covered. The kol (all) is total — no partial covering but complete atonement. The psalm moves from this past covering (v. 1-3) to a present prayer (v.
4-7: Restore us again) to a future promise (v. 10-13: steadfast love and faithfulness meet; righteousness and peace kiss). The kasah of the past is the foundation for hope in the present.
- Prov.10.12
Hatred stirs up dissension, but love covers all transgressions.
Love's kasah of offenses: 'love (ahavah) covers (tekasse) all offenses (kol pesha).' The proverb contrasts two responses to offense: hatred stirs up (teorer) strife by publicizing and exploiting the offense; love covers (kasah) by choosing not to expose. The kasah of love is not the suppression of justice (which Prov 17:15 condemns) but the covenant-loyalty that does not broadcast the failings of the beloved.
1 Peter 4:8 applies this directly: 'Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.' James 5:20 uses the same image: bringing a sinner back from error 'will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.'
- Exod.40.34
Then the cloud covered the Tent of Meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.
The glory-kasah over the tabernacle: 'the cloud covered (vayekhas) the tent of meeting (ohel moed) and the glory (kavod) of YHWH filled (vayimale) the tabernacle (mishkan).' The completion of the tabernacle construction (Exod 35-40) culminates in this double event: the cloud-kasah and the kavod-filling. The verb pair (kasah + male) is the paired description of YHWH's arrival: he covers the meeting-space with his cloud-presence and fills the physical structure with his glory.
The same event marks the completion of Solomon's temple (1 Kgs 8:10-11): 'the cloud filled the house of YHWH... the glory of YHWH filled the house.' The kasah of glory is the OT's model for divine inhabitation.
- Gen.7.19
Finally, the waters completely prevailed upon the earth, so that all the high mountains under all the heavens were covered.
The flood-kasah: 'the waters prevailed exceedingly on the earth, and all the high mountains under the whole heavens were covered (vayekasu).' The primordial kasah of judgment is the flood covering every mountain: no human refuge escapes the water's coverage. The same kasah-verb that covers sin in Psalm 32:1 covers the earth in judgment in Genesis 7:19 — the coverage of judgment and the coverage of forgiveness use the same word, pointing to the typological connection: the flood is judgment that passes over the ark-inhabitants, as the blood covers the Passover doorposts, as the atonement-covering of Psalm 32:1 hides the sinner from judgment.
Source Word Evidence
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders It covering 9× Exodus 29:22, Numbers 4:15, 1 Kings 7:41, 1 Kings 7:42
and covered 7× Genesis 7:20, Exodus 8:6, Exodus 14:28, Exodus 16:13
cover 7× Numbers 4:8, Numbers 4:11, Numbers 4:12, Job 16:18
that covers 7× Exodus 29:13, Leviticus 3:3, Leviticus 3:9, Leviticus 3:14
and cover 4× Leviticus 17:13, Numbers 4:5, Numbers 4:9, Jeremiah 46:8
covered 4× Exodus 40:34, Numbers 9:15, Psalms 106:11, Habakkuk 3:3
has covered 4× Leviticus 13:13, Psalms 44:15, Psalms 69:7, Jeremiah 51:51
they covered 4× Genesis 9:23, Exodus 10:15, Isaiah 6:2
and covers 3× Job 36:30, Ezekiel 18:7, Ezekiel 18:16
be covered 3× Psalms 140:9, Ezekiel 24:8, Jonah 3:8
covered it 3× Exodus 24:15, Exodus 24:16, Numbers 16:42
covers 3× Leviticus 13:12, Proverbs 10:12, Isaiah 60:2
to cover 3× Exodus 28:42, 1 Kings 7:18, Ezekiel 24:7
were covered 3× Genesis 7:19, Psalms 80:10, Ezekiel 41:16
all wearing 2× 2 Kings 19:2, Isaiah 37:2
and cover up 2× Genesis 37:26, Deuteronomy 23:13
conceals 2× Proverbs 10:6, Proverbs 10:11
cover us 2× Jeremiah 3:25, Hosea 10:8
covers you 2× Job 22:11, Job 38:34
hide 2× Genesis 18:17, Psalms 32:5
I will cover 2× Ezekiel 32:7
keeps 2× Proverbs 11:13, Proverbs 12:23
put on 2× 2 Kings 19:1, Isaiah 37:1
to cover it 2× Exodus 21:33, Exodus 26:13
You covered 2× Psalms 85:2, Psalms 104:6
. . . 1× Job 9:24
and covered herself 1× Genesis 24:65
and covered him again 1× Judges 4:19
and covered you 1× Isaiah 51:16
and engulfed them 1× Joshua 24:7
and keep him 1× Job 33:17
and overshadowed 1× 2 Chronicles 5:8
and she covered him 1× Judges 4:18
and they cover 1× Numbers 22:11
and though they covered him 1× 1 Kings 1:1
and will be covered 1× Micah 7:10
are covered 1× Psalms 32:1
closed 1× Numbers 16:33
clothed 1× 1 Chronicles 21:16
conceal 1× Isaiah 26:21
cover them 1× Job 21:26
cover themselves 1× Isaiah 59:6
cover up 1× Nehemiah 4:5
cover you 1× Ezekiel 26:19
covered [himself] 1× Jonah 3:6
covered them 1× Exodus 15:10
covered up 1× Psalms 40:10
engulfed 1× Psalms 78:53
for refuge 1× Psalms 143:9
had covered 1× Proverbs 24:31
had wrapped himself 1× 1 Kings 11:29
has overwhelmed me 1× Psalms 55:5
have covered them 1× Exodus 15:5
He [who divorces his wife] covers 1× Malachi 2:16
He fills 1× Job 36:32
He has covered 1× Isaiah 29:10
He who conceals 1× Proverbs 28:13
He will cover 1× Ezekiel 12:12
I covered 1× Ezekiel 31:15
I have covered 1× Job 31:33
is concealed 1× Proverbs 26:26
is covered 1× Job 15:27
is full 1× Isaiah 11:9
is shrouded 1× Ecclesiastes 6:4
it covered 1× Psalms 106:17
or shield 1× Deuteronomy 13:8
overlooks 1× Proverbs 12:16
she had covered 1× Genesis 38:15
she is covered 1× Jeremiah 51:42
The one who conceals 1× Proverbs 10:18
They cover 1× Numbers 22:5
They will cover 1× Exodus 10:5
to clothe 1× Isaiah 58:7
to cover them 1× Ezekiel 16:18
to disguise herself 1× Genesis 38:14
which were [given] to cover 1× Hosea 2:9
who covers 1× Psalms 147:8
Whoever conceals 1× Proverbs 17:9
will cover 1× Leviticus 16:13
will cover her 1× Ezekiel 30:18
will cover you 1× Ezekiel 26:10
will cover your land 1× Isaiah 60:6
will overwhelm them 1× Ezekiel 7:18
will overwhelm you 1× Habakkuk 2:17
wings covering 1× Ezekiel 1:11
would cover [the tabernacle] [by day] 1× Numbers 9:16
You cover 1× Malachi 2:13
You have covered us 1× Psalms 44:19
you wear 1× Deuteronomy 22:12
you will be covered 1× Obadiah 1:10
Show sample aligned rows
Genesis 7:19 וַיְכֻסּ֗וּ to were covered Conjunctive waw | Verb - Pual - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine plural Genesis 7:20 וַיְכֻסּ֖וּ to and covered Conjunctive waw | Verb - Pual - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine plural Genesis 9:23 וַיְכַסּ֕וּ to they covered Conjunctive waw | Verb - Piel - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine plural Genesis 18:17 הַֽמְכַסֶּ֤ה to hide Verb - Piel - Participle - masculine singular Genesis 24:65 וַתִּתְכָּֽס׃ to and covered herself Conjunctive waw | Verb - Hitpael - Consecutive imperfect - third person feminine singular Genesis 37:26 וְכִסִּ֖ינוּ to and cover up Conjunctive waw | Verb - Piel - Conjunctive perfect - first person common plural Genesis 38:14 וַתְּכַ֤ס to to disguise herself Conjunctive waw | Verb - Piel - Consecutive imperfect - third person feminine singular Genesis 38:15 כִסְּתָ֖ה to she had covered Verb - Piel - Perfect - third person feminine singular Exodus 8:6 וַתְּכַ֖ס to and covered Conjunctive waw | Verb - Piel - Consecutive imperfect - third person feminine singular Exodus 10:5 וְכִסָּה֙ to They will cover Conjunctive waw | Verb - Piel - Conjunctive perfect - third person masculine singular
Usage map
A compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
First aligned row Genesis 7:19
Aligned rows 152
Books represented 26
Genesis 8 Exodus 15 Leviticus 9 Numbers 12 Deuteronomy 3 Joshua 1 Judges 2 1 Samuel 1 1 Kings 5 2 Kings 2 1 Chronicles 1 2 Chronicles 3 Nehemiah 1 Job 11 Psalms 17 Proverbs 11 Ecclesiastes 1 Isaiah 12 Jeremiah 4 Ezekiel 22 Hosea 2 Obadiah 1 Jonah 2 Micah 1 Habakkuk 3 Malachi 2
Source forms
הַֽמְכַסֶּ֣ה 6x ham·ḵas·seh Exodus 29:13, Exodus 29:22, Leviticus 3:3, Leviticus 3:9
וַתְּכַ֖ס 4x wat·tə·ḵas Exodus 8:6, Exodus 16:13, 1 Samuel 19:13, Psalms 44:19
לְכַסּ֗וֹת 4x lə·ḵas·sō·wṯ 1 Kings 7:41, 1 Kings 7:42, 2 Chronicles 4:12, 2 Chronicles 4:13
וְכִסּ֣וּ 3x wə·ḵis·sū Numbers 4:8, Numbers 4:11, Numbers 4:12
יְכַסֶּ֥ה 3x yə·ḵas·seh Proverbs 10:6, Proverbs 10:11, Isaiah 6:2
כִּסָּה־ 3x kis·sāh- Job 23:17, Job 36:32, Ezekiel 18:16
לְכַסּ֥וֹת 3x lə·ḵas·sō·wṯ Psalms 104:9, Ezekiel 24:7, Ezekiel 38:9
וַיְכַ֥ס 2x way·ḵas Exodus 24:15, Exodus 40:34
Parsing patterns
Preposition-l | Verb - Piel - Infinitive construct 12x Exodus 28:42, Numbers 4:15, 1 Kings 7:18, 1 Kings 7:41
Verb - Piel - Perfect - third person masculine singular 10x Numbers 9:15, Numbers 22:5, Job 15:27, Job 23:17
Verb - Piel - Imperfect - third person masculine singular 9x Job 9:24, Job 33:17, Proverbs 10:6, Proverbs 10:11
Article | Verb - Piel - Participle - masculine singular 8x Exodus 29:13, Exodus 29:22, Leviticus 3:3, Leviticus 3:9
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Piel - Consecutive imperfect - third person feminine singular 6x Genesis 38:14, Exodus 8:6, Exodus 16:13, Numbers 16:33
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Piel - Conjunctive perfect - third person common plural 5x Numbers 4:5, Numbers 4:8, Numbers 4:9, Numbers 4:11
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Piel - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular 5x Exodus 10:15, Exodus 24:15, Exodus 40:34, Numbers 22:11
Verb - Piel - Participle - masculine singular 5x Genesis 18:17, Proverbs 10:18, Proverbs 11:13, Proverbs 17:9
Using This Word Well
Be careful not to...
- The blessed person in Psalm 32 whose sin is 'covered' by God has not had sin made invisible or glossed over — the covering is God's gracious act of not counting it in the account. The basis is divine forgiveness, not concealment.
- When Peter says 'love covers a multitude of sins' (1 Pet 4:8), the context is about forgiving and bearing with others in community — it is not a command to hide serious harm or abuse.
Avoid claiming...
- Do not use 'love covers sins' (1 Pet 4:8) to instruct abuse victims to stay silent about harm — this text is about mutual forgiveness in community, not about covering up serious sin or protecting wrongdoers from accountability.
- Do not conflate kasah (covering) with the kaphar/atonement vocabulary — they overlap thematically but the specific sacrificial logic of kippur belongs to its own semantic cluster.
Key Verse and Form Guides
Verse-level guides showing how this original-language form works in its specific context, including grammar, verse function, and guarded interpretation.
Isaiah 6:2 Verb - Piel - Imperfect - third person masculine singular
יְכַסֶּ֣ה yə·ḵas·seh properly, to plump , i.e. fill up hollows; by implication, to cover (for clothing or secrecy) The form supports the vision's reverent imagery: covering before the holy LORD. Read verse guide Jonah 3:6 Conjunctive waw | Verb - Piel - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
וַיְכַ֣ס way·ḵas properly, to plump , i.e. fill up hollows; by implication, to cover (for clothing or secrecy) The form clarifies another visible action in the king's response, while the chapter's larger movement shows the call to turn from evil. Read verse guide Jonah 3:8 Conjunctive waw | Verb - Hitpael - Conjunctive imperfect - third person masculine plural
וְיִתְכַּסּ֣וּ wə·yiṯ·kas·sū properly, to plump , i.e. fill up hollows; by implication, to cover (for clothing or secrecy) The form clarifies that the decree calls for a plural public response, but the grammar should not be made to prove inner repentance apart from the narrative. Read verse guide Evidence Summary
Hebrew word. To cover by filling hollows; concealment ranges from protective clothing to hidden shame or divine forgiveness.
Source Gloss
properly, to plump , i.e. fill up hollows; by implication, to cover (for clothing or secrecy)
Extended definition Source: Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon + Brown-Driver-Briggs
To cover by filling hollows; concealment ranges from protective clothing to hidden shame or divine forgiveness.
properly, to plump, i.e. fill up hollows; by implication, to cover (for clothing or secrecy) BDB: cover Usage: clad self, close, clothe, conceal, cover (self), (flee to) hide, overwhelm. Compare 3780.
Grammatical Forms
How the stem changes the meaning of this verb across the biblical text.
This verb appears through different tense, voice, mood, or stem patterns. Those forms help readers see how the action is presented in context.
Form groups 5 Aligned forms 62
Piel intensive active — emphasizes thoroughness or repeated action 48×
Perfect Ezek 18:16 · Hab 3:3 · Isa 29:10 · Job 15:27 · Job 23:17 · Job 36:30 · Job 36:32 · Num 9:15 · Num 22:5 · Ps 78:53 · Ezek 31:15 · Job 31:33 · Ps 32:5 · Ps 40:11 · Ps 143:9 · Gen 38:15 20×
Imperfect Ezek 12:12 · Ezek 18:7 · Isa 6:2 · Isa 60:2 · Job 9:24 · Job 33:17 · Prov 10:6 · Prov 10:11 · Deut 13:9 · Deut 22:12 · Ezek 12:6 · Isa 26:21 · Job 21:26 · Prov 10:12 · Hab 2:14 · Jer 46:8 17×
Participle active Ezek 1:11 · Ezek 1:23 · Isa 11:9 · Prov 10:18 · Prov 11:13 · Prov 17:9 · Prov 28:13 8×
Jussive Job 16:18 · Neh 3:37 2×
Infinitive construct Mal 2:13 1×
Hithpael reflexive or reciprocal — the subject acts on itself or mutually with others 4×
Participle active 1Kgs 11:29 · 2Kgs 19:2 · Isa 37:2 3×
Imperfect Isa 59:6 1×
Pual intensive passive — intensive action received by the subject 5×
Participle passive 1Chr 21:16 · Ezek 41:16 2×
Perfect Prov 24:31 · Ps 80:11 2×
Imperfect Eccl 6:4 1×
Niphal passive or reflexive — the subject receives or experiences the action 3×
Infinitive construct Ezek 24:8 1×
Perfect Jer 51:42 1×
Imperfect Prov 26:26 1×
Qal basic active stem — the word in its most common, direct sense 2×
Participle active Prov 12:23 1×
Participle passive Ps 32:1 1×
Selected Scripture Witness
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Old Testament Witnesses
to conceal, forgive, or overlook
Showing 1 selected witness from 153 lexical occurrence verses.
Word Origins
כָּסָה is a primitive root - no further derivation.
Why This Word Matters
The term highlights forgiveness and restraint in responding to offenses. Proverbs 10:12
Part of These Phrases
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
For the Preacher and Teacher
כָּסָה (kasah) is a broad covering verb whose theological value comes from distinct contexts. Genesis 7 uses it for floodwaters covering mountains; Exodus 40:34 for the cloud covering the tent while glory fills it; Psalm 32:1 and 85:2 for sin covered in parallel with forgiveness; and Proverbs 10:12 for love covering offenses rather than hatred multiplying strife.
Romans 4 quotes Psalm 32 in an argument about righteousness apart from works, while 1 Peter 4:8 uses the love-covers-sins saying in community exhortation. Those canonical reuses do not make divine forgiveness and interpersonal forbearance the same action. H3722 kaphar is the ritual atonement verb and should not be defined simply as a specialized form of kasah.
Faithful preaching identifies what covers what, whether the action is protective or harmful, and what the immediate passage says about forgiveness, justice, or presence.
Anchor passage
Ps.32.1
Doctrinal connections
- Ps 32:1 — sin covered in parallel with forgiveness and quoted in Rom 4:7-8
- Ps 85:2 — God covered all the people's sin in a restoration prayer
- Prov 10:12 — love covers all offenses; 1 Pet 4:8 application
- Exod 40:34 — the cloud covers the tent while glory fills the tabernacle
- Gen 7:19 — floodwaters physically covering the mountains
- H3722 Kaphar — a distinct atonement verb with thematic but not simple etymological overlap
כָּסָה (kasah, H3680) is the ordinary covering or concealing verb. Related nouns can denote a covering or garment, and passive or adjectival forms describe something covered. H3722 kaphar is a separate atonement verb whose historical etymology is debated; thematic overlap in forgiveness texts does not establish that both verbs share 'covering' as their active lexical mechanism.
Greek kalupto and compounds often translate or echo covering language, including Romans 4:7 and 1 Peter 4:8, but their NT contexts remain distinct.
From Old to New Testament
Romans 4:7-8 quotes Psalm 32:1-2 while Paul explains the blessing of righteousness apart from works. First Peter 4:8 says that earnest love covers many sins, closely recalling Proverbs 10:12, and James 5:20 uses similar covering language for turning a sinner back. These passages use covering in different arguments: divine forgiveness, communal love, and restoration of a wanderer.
Hebrews 9:5 mentions cherubim overshadowing the mercy seat, but that spatial image should not be made a direct H3680 theory of atonement without further textual argument.
Sources
MorphGNT Strong's Dictionary XML — CC0 1.0 Public Domain
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible (morphhb/OSHB) — CC BY 4.0
Open Scriptures Hebrew Lexicon — CC BY 4.0
Berean Standard Bible (BSB) source-word alignment - CC0 Public Domain