devoted thing

Something irredeemably dedicated to God (Lev 27:28; Mark 7:11). Such items could be dedicated by an individual (Lev 27:28), but more commonly they were items proscribed in war. People and cities under the status of a devoted thing were destroyed lest they be profaned by human use or contact (Lev 27:29; Deut 2:34), while war spoils could become the property of the sanctuary (Josh 6:24).