Corban

Simple explanation

Corban is a vow term for something dedicated to God, used in Mark 7 for a practice that could be misused to avoid caring for parents.

Academic explanation

Corban is a vow term for something dedicated to God, used in Mark 7 for a practice that could be misused to avoid caring for parents. In dictionary use, its primary value is contextual clarification rather than doctrinal authority.

Extended academic explanation

Corban is a vow term for something dedicated to God, used in Mark 7 for a practice that could be misused to avoid caring for parents. More fully, this entry belongs to the historical and contextual layer that can make biblical settings, customs, textual transmission, or interpretive habits more intelligible. It is most useful when it clarifies the world around Scripture without displacing the meaning carried by the biblical text itself.

Biblical context

Biblically, Corban matters because Jesus addresses it directly in Mark 7 when exposing a practice that could shield a person from honoring father and mother. The term therefore illuminates how tradition, vows, and moral responsibility interacted in Jewish life.

Historical context

Historically, Corban reflects a vow-related practice within Jewish life that could be manipulated in ways Jesus publicly challenged. It belongs to the social and religious setting in which legal customs carried real family and economic consequences.

Jewish and ancient context

In Jewish background study, Corban shows how vow language and dedicatory practices could become embedded in communal reasoning and legal discussion. It belongs to the wider matrix of halakhic interpretation and religious custom.

Key texts

• Lev. 27:1-2, 28
• Num. 30:2
• Mark 7:9-13
• Matt. 15:3-6
• Col. 2:20-23

Secondary texts

• Isa. 29:13
• Mic. 6:6-8
• Rom. 12:1
• Heb. 13:15-16

Original-language note

Corban reflects the Hebrew/Aramaic qorban, 'offering' or 'gift devoted to God,' which explains why the term can describe something dedicated in a way that affects ordinary family obligations.

• Greek: korban (korban) - dedicated gift — Mark preserves the Semitic loanword to describe the practice Jesus critiques.
• Hebrew: qorban (qorban) - offering or dedicated gift — The underlying Semitic term helps explain the dedicatory sense behind the Gospel wording.

Theological significance

Theologically, Corban matters because it exposes the danger of using religious systems to evade plain moral obedience to God.

Interpretive cautions

Do not treat Corban as proof that all tradition is corrupt or that Jewish piety was inherently hypocritical. The caution in Mark 7 is directed at the misuse of a practice, not at the mere existence of vows or dedications.

Doctrinal boundaries

A faithful use of Corban should preserve the priority of God’s revealed moral will over human tradition. The category helps explain a historical practice, but Jesus’ critique shows that religious dedication language can never excuse disobedience to the law’s true intent.

Practical significance

Practically, Corban warns readers that sincere religious language can still be weaponized against the weightier demands of God's commands.