What does corban mean?
Corban denotes an offering or gift solemnly set apart for God, a practice rooted in ancient Jewish worship where sacrifices and dedications were presented at the Temple. The word enters English primarily through the Greek of the New Testament, most famously in Mark 7:11, where Jesus rebukes the Pharisees for permitting a man to declare his resources 'corban'—devoted to God—and thereby excused himself from using them to support his parents. In this episode the term acquires a critical edge: piety weaponized against duty. Today corban survives almost exclusively in biblical scholarship, sermons, and writing on ancient Near Eastern religion, where it signals a formal act of consecration. Its enduring interest lies less in everyday use than in what it reveals about the ethics of vow-making and the tension between religious observance and human obligation.
nounAn offering or gift consecrated to God, especially one devoted to the Temple in ancient Jewish practice; in New Testament usage, a possession declared sacred so that it could not be used for ordinary purposes such as supporting one's parents.
- A gift or sacrifice formally dedicated or consecrated to God, especially in ancient Jewish Temple worship.
- (New Testament context) Property declared 'corban' and thereby withdrawn from secular use, notably used to avoid filial obligations.
"The scribes ruled that once a man had pronounced his estate corban, he was released from any obligation to relieve his aged parents."
"Under Mosaic law, every corban brought to the altar had to be without blemish."
"Critics argued that the tradition of corban allowed the wealthy to appear pious while neglecting their families."
Both 'corbans' and the uninflected 'corban' are acceptable; because the word is usually treated as a foreign borrowing, many writers keep it invariant.
"The Mishnah catalogues numerous corbans, distinguishing those vowed voluntarily from those owed by obligation."
In Mark 7:11, Jesus condemns a legal loophole whereby declaring wealth 'corban' let people sidestep caring for their own parents.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of corban
Corban derives from Hebrew qorbān, meaning 'that which is brought near' or 'an offering,' from the root q-r-b signifying approach or nearness. It passed into English through Koine Greek korban (or korbanas), used by the evangelists in the first century CE. Closely related forms persist across the Semitic-speaking world, including the Arabic qurbān and its derivatives in Turkish and Persian, which likewise denote sacrificial offerings.
How corban is actually used
Corban is a learned, chiefly biblical term; outside discussions of scripture, ancient Judaism, or comparative religion it would strike most readers as obscure. It carries a formal, scholarly register and often appears italicized as a foreign borrowing.
Easily confused with corban
Carbon is the chemical element central to all organic chemistry, whereas corban is a religious offering consecrated to God in ancient Jewish law.