Prosper (To)

"to succeed, prosper." This word is found in both ancient and modern Hebrew. Occurring some 65 times in the text of the Hebrew Old Testament, the word is first found in Gen 24:21: "…whether the Lord had made his journey prosperous [literally, "to prosper"] or not." This word generally expresses the idea of a successful venture, as contrasted with failure. The source of such success is God: "…as long as he sought the Lord, God made him to prosper" (2Chron 26:5). In spite of that, the circumstances of life often raise the question, "Wherefore doth the way of the wicked prosper?" (Jer 12:1).

S?alah? is sometimes used in such a way as to indicate "victory": "In your majesty ride forth victoriously" (Psa 45:4, rsv; the kjv rendering, "ride prosperously," is not nearly so appropriate).