Proverbs 30:24

אַרְבָּ֣עָה הֵ֭ם קְטַנֵּי אָ֑רֶץ וְ֝הֵ֗מָּה חֲכָמִ֥ים מְחֻכָּמִֽים
There be four things which are little upon the earth, but they are exceeding wise:
Connections

Job 12:7

וְֽאוּלָם שְׁאַל-נָא בְהֵמוֹת וְתֹרֶךָּ וְעוֹף הַשָּׁמַיִם וְיַגֶּד-לָֽךְ׃
7
But ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee:
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Proverbs 30:24
Masoretic Phrasing
This book is chanted to the poetic accent system (used only in Job, Psalms, and Proverbs). Each group below ends at one of its pausing accents — translate a group as one unit.
אַרְבָּ֣עָה הֵ֭ם Dechi — a lesser break קְטַנֵּי אָ֑רֶץ Atnach — the verse's main pause — take a breath here וְ֝הֵ֗מָּה Revia Mugrash — a lesser break חֲכָמִ֥ים מְחֻכָּמִֽים Silluq — end of the verse
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Word Parts
אַרְבָּ֣עָה
אַרְבָּ֣עָה
Root word four, fourteenth, fourteen, fourth, forty, …
Dictionary form: אַרְבַּע · ar-BA
Vowels & Accents
Hebrew Alephbet
Grammar Acmsa
Adjective — Cardinal Number, masculine singular, absolute state a number (one, two, three, …)
אַרְבָּעָה Speech Adjective Type Cardinal Number Gender Masculine Number Singular State Absolute
In English
In the KJV here: there be four
four ×81 and four ×65 the four ×23 fourteen ×9 were four ×7 and fourteen ×6 the fourteenth ×6 had four ×5
More options
four — Core cardinal number; universally applicable.
fourteen — Use when combined with ten in context.
fourteenth — Ordinal use; for dates or ranked sequences.
forty — Use when the text implies a rounded decade multiple.
fourth — Ordinal position; prefer in lists or sequences.
four each — Distributive sense; use for 'apiece' contexts.
Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)

BDB7718 H702 H706

BDB7717 | BIBLICAL HEBREW | BDB7719

I. אַרְבַּע, אַרְבָּעָה316 noun masculine and feminine four (Late Hebrew = Biblical Hebrew; MI8 ארבען = 40; Phoenician ארבע, Punic ארבעת, four; so Assyrian arba'u (rarely irba°), irbitti; Arabic , ; Sabean ארבעת CISiv, no. 232.2 HomChrest. 47; Ethiopic : : Aramaic אַרְבַּע, אַרְבְּעָה, , ; Nabataean ארבע, Palmyrene ארבע, ארבעא, Lzb367); —

masculine148 (c. noun feminine) אַרְבַּע (absolute or construct) Exod 21:37 +; also אַרְבַּ֑ע Lev 11:20 +; note (Baer Gi) Josh 21:18 +6 t. Josh 21 (van d. H. אַרְבָּ֑ל); in Prov 30:18 read feminine with Qr; feminine (c. noun masculine) absolute אַרְבָּעָה Gen 2:10 + 125 t. + Prov 30:18 (see above); construct אַרְבַּ֫עַת 1Sam 4:2 + 29 t., including Ezek 7:2 (but read masculine Kt); suffix אַרְבַּעְתָּם Ezek 1:8 + 5 t. Ezekiel, אַרְבַּעְתָּן Ezek 1:10 (twice in verse) (but read probably תָּם-, Krae), vEzek 1:16 vEzek 1:18 dual אַרְבַּעְתָּ֑יִם 2Sam 12:6, see 1 d; plural אַרְבָּעִים = 40, see below; — four (in Hexateuch 108 t., chiefly P, 98 t.; Ezek 52 t., Chronicles 47 t.): —
1. without other number:
  a. אַרְבַּע (1) before feminine plural noun Jer 15:3; Exod 25:12 (P) + 101 t., including אַמּוֺת ׳א Deut 3:11 + 5 t. (but also בָּאַמָּה ׳א four (in) cubit(s) Exod 26:2; Exod 26:8; Exod 36:9; 1Kgs 7:27 (twice in verse); 1Kgs 7:38), and מֵאוֺת ׳א = 400 Gen 11:13 + 55 t. (2) ׳א before dual רַנְלָ֑יִם Lev 11:23, רַגְלָיו Exod 25:26. (3) before collective, צאֹן ׳א Exod 21:37 (E); רִבּוֺא ׳א = 40,000 Ezra 2:64 = Neh 7:66. (4) rare and late, after feminine plural noun ׳עָרִים א Josh 19:7 (P); after feminine singular noun construct לְ ׳בִּשְׁנַת א 1Kgs 22:41; Zech 7:1; 2Chr 3:2. — ׳קִרְיַת א, see this, and II. אַרְבַּע below (5) noun omitted Ezek 43:15b Prov 30:15; Prov 30:18 (Kt, see above), vProv 30:21; Dan 8:8; Dan 8:22 עַלאַֿרְבַּ֑ל (that is רגלים = on all fours Lev 11:20; Lev 11:21; Lev 11:27; Lev 11:42.
  b. אַרְבָּעָה (1) before masculine plural noun Gen 2:10 (J), Gen 14:9; Exod 25:34 + 21 t., + חֳדָשִׁים ׳יָמִים (וְ)א Judg 19:2; 1Sam 27:7 also פָנִים ׳א ׳א distributive Ezek 10:21. (2) late, after masculine plural noun 1Chr 23:10. (3) noun omitted, Amos 1:3; Amos 1:6; Amos 1:9 + 15 t., .+ (as predicate of masculine plural noun) Exod 27:16 (twice in verse); Exod 38:19 (twice in verse); also ׳בְּא, (that is יוֺם) Zech 7:1 = ordinal, on the fourth (day).
  c. אַרְבַּ֫עַת (1) before masculine plural noun Judg 11:40; 1Kgs 7:32 + 11 t. (not Ezek 7:2, see above), + אֲלָפִים ׳א = 4000, 1Sam 4:2 + 14 t. (2) before collective הַבָּקָר Num 7:7. (3) noun omitted 2Sam 21:22. (4) with suffix, after plural noun, = the four of them, Ezek 1:8; Ezek 1:10 (3 t. in verse) + 6 t. Ezekiel; Dan 1:17 these boys, the four of them.
  d. dual אַרְבַּעְתָּ֑יִם 2Sam 12:6 = four-fold Ges«GKC:97h»§ 97h Kö11. l, 227, but read שִׁבְעָתָ֑יִם ᵐ5 Th We Klo Dr Kmp Bu HPS.
2. with other number:
  a. (1) אַרְבַּע עֶשְׂרֵה = 14, (a) before feminine singular noun, שָׁנָה ׳ע ׳א Gen 31:41, + (as ordinal, = 14th) Gen 14:5; 2Kgs 18:13v = Isa 36:1; Ezek 40:1. (β) after feminine plural noun ׳ע ׳עָרִים א Josh 15:36 + 8 t., ׳ע ׳נָשִׁים א 2Chr 13:21. (2) אַרְבָּעָה עָשָׂר = 14, (a) before masculine singular noun Num 17:14 (14 x 1000), Job 42:12 especially (as ordinal) יוֺם ׳ע ׳א 14th day Exod 12:6; Exod 12:18 + 7 t. (b) before masculine plural noun Num 29:15. (γ) after, masculine plural noun Num 29:13; Num 29:17 + 6 t. (δ) after masculine singular noun Esth 9:15; Esth 9:19; Esth 9:21, all = 14th (ε) ׳ע ׳א predicate of נֶפֶשׁ Gen 46:22. ζ ׳ע ׳א = 14th (that is, day) Lev 23:15; 2Chr 30:15 + 6 t.
  b. 20 + (וְׅ 4 + singular noun 1Kgs 15:33; 1Chr 23:4 + 13 t. 1Chr 27 + plural noun Num 7:88 noun omitted 2Sam 21:20 predicate || 1Chr 20:6; Neh 7:23 4 + 20 + singular noun Num 25:9 = 24th, ׳וְא ׳יוֺם ע Hag 1:15; Hag 1:18; Zech 1:7; Neh 9:1; Dan 10:4, יוֺם omitted Hag 2:10; Hag 2:20, and (׳וְע ׳א) 1Chr 24:18; 1Chr 25:31.
  c. other tens + 4, 1Chr 7:7; 1Chr 5:18 (+ singular noun), Ezra 2:15 + 7 t.; 4 + tens + שָׁנָה Gen 11:16, + אֶלֶף 1000 Num 1:27; Num 1:29; Num 2:4; Num 2:6; Num 26:25; Num 26:43. — See Köii. 1, § 106.

BDB9885 H702 H7243

BDB9884 | BIBLICAL ARAMAIC | BDB9886

רבע (see Biblical Hebrew אַרְבַּע, רְבִיעִי, √ רבע).

Strong's Definition H702
four, fourteenth, fourteen, fourth, forty, …
ʾarbaʿ
four
  • four
Variations 28 forms of this word
Translations 75 English renderings
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Word Parts
Breakdown unavailable for this word. Dictionary form: הֵם · hame
Vowels & Accents
Hebrew Alephbet
Grammar Pp3mp
Noun — masculine plural plural — usually add "-s"
Speech Noun Gender Masculine Number Plural
Speech Pronoun Type Personal Person Third Person Gender Masculine Number Plural
In English
In the KJV here: but they
they ×204 and they ×49 in those ×34 are they ×33 these ×15 but they ×12 them ×10 those ×8
More options
they — Default third-person plural pronoun; broadest usage.
them — Use when serving as object of verb or preposition.
those — Demonstrative use; points to a specific group or set.
these — Demonstrative, near reference; contrasts with distant group.
who — Relative pronoun use; links back to a preceding noun.
themselves — Reflexive or emphatic contexts stressing the subject.
Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)

BDB2087 H1931 H1992 H2007

BDB2086 | BIBLICAL HEBREW | BDB2088

הוּא masculine הִיא feminine (plural masculine הֵ֫מָּה, הֵם; feminine הֵ֫נָּה, הֵן [the latter only with prefixes]; see these words), pronoun of the 3rd person singular, he, she, used also (in both genders) for the neuter it, Latin is, ea, id. (The א is not orthographic merely, but radical, being written on Moabite and Phoenician inscriptions, though dropped in some of the later dialects. [In Hebrew only Jer 29:23 Kt, and in the proper name אֱלִיהוּ.] Moabite (MI6; 27) and Phoenician (often) הא; Aramaic of Zinjirli הא, once הו (DHMInschr. von Sendschirli 55); ᵑ7 הוּא, הִיא Syriac , ; Arabic , (for h¥°a, h£°a, WSG 104); Ethiopic we°§t¥, ye°§t£; perhaps also Assyrian šû, šî, himself, herself suffix šu, ši; compare demonstrative šuatu, šiati (see KraeBAS. i. 383 & references, WSG 98, 105 Dl§ 55b, 57). In the Pentateuch, הוא is of common gender, the feminine form הִיא occurring only 11 times, namely Gen 14:2; Gen 20:5; Gen 38:25 (see Masora here), Lev 11:39; Lev 13:10; Lev 13:21; Lev 16:31; Lev 20:17; Lev 21:9; Num 5:13; Num 5:14. The punctuators, however, sought to assimilate the usage of the Pentateuch to that of the rest of the OT, and accordingly wherever הוא was construed as a feminine pointed it הִוא (as a Qr perpetuum). Outside the Pentateuch the same Qr occurs 1Kgs 17:15; Isa 30:33; Job 31:11a — probably for the sake of removing gramm. anomalies: five instances of the converse change, namely of היא to be read as הוּא, occur for a similar reason, 1Kgs 17:15 (וַתּאֹכַל הוּאוָֿהִיא to be read as וַתּאֹכַל הִיאוָֿהוּא, on account of the feminine verb) Ps 73:16; Job 31:11b (כי הוא זמה והיא עָוֺן פלילים to be read as כי היא זמה והוא עון פלילים), Eccl 5:8; 1Chr 29:16. The origin of the peculiarity in the Pentateuch is uncertain. It can hardly be a real archaism : for the fact that arab., Aramaic, & Ethiopic have distinct forms for masculine & feminine shews that both must have formed part of the original Semitic stock, and consequently of Hebrew as well, from its earliest existence as an independent language. Nor is the peculiarity confined to the Pentateuch: in the Manuscript of the Later Prophets, of A.D. , now at St. Petersburg, published in facsimile by Strack (1876), the feminine occurs written הוא (see the passages cited in the Adnotationes Criticae, p. 026). In Phoenician both masculine and feminine are alike written הא (CIS i. 1Chr 1:9 מלך צדק הא, 1Chr 1:13 מלאכת הא, 1Chr 3:10 אדם הא, 1Chr 1:11 ממלכת הא, 1Chr 93:2; 1Chr 94:2), though naturally this would be read as hu° or hi° as occasion required. Hence, as ᵐ5 shews that in the older Hebrew MSS. the scriptio plena was not yet generally introduced, it is probably that originally הא was written for both genders in Hebrew likewise, and that the epicene הוא in the Pentateuch originated at a comparatively late epoch in the transmission of the text — perhaps in connection with the assumption, which is partly borne out by facts (compare DeZKWL 1880, pp. 393-399), that in the older language feminine forms were more sparingly used than subsequently.)

In usage הוּא (feminine הִיא; plural הֵ֫מָּה, הֵם, ׃ הֵ֫נָּה see הֵ֫מָּה) is

1. an emphatic he (she, it, they), sometimes equivalent to himself (herself, itself, themselves), or (especially with the article) that (those):
  a. Gen 3:15 הוא ישׁופך ראשׁ he (ᵐ5 αὐτὸς) shall bruise thee as to the head (opposed to the following אתה thou), vGen 3:20 for she (and no one else) was the mother of all living (so often in causal sentences, where some emphasis on the subject is desirable as Judg 14:3; Ps 24:2; Ps 25:15; Ps 33:9; Ps 91:3; Ps 103:14; Ps 148:5; Job 5:18; Job 11:11; Job 28:24; Jer 5:5; Jer 34:7b Hos 6:1; Hos 11:10 : Dr1Sam 14:18), 1Sam 4:20 Adah bare Jabal הוא היה אבי ישׁב אהלים he (ἐκεῖνος) was the father of tent-dwellers, v1Sam 4:21; 1Sam 10:8 he began to be a mighty one in the earth, 1Sam 20:5 (αὐτός), Judg 13:5; Isa 32:7; Isa 33:22; 2Kgs 14:7; 2Kgs 14:22; 2Kgs 14:25; Hos 10:2 he — the unseen observer of their thoughts and deeds (Che), Hos 13:15 b (he, the foe figured by the east wind). (For its use thus in circumstantial clauses see Dr§ 157, 160, 168, 169.) And where the predicate is a substantive or participle, Gen 2:11 הוּא הַסֹּבֵב ֗֗֗ that is the one which encompasseth etc., vGen 2:13 vGen 2:14; Gen 10:12 that is the great city. So in the explanatory notices, Gen 14:3 הוּא יָם הַמֶּלַת that is the salt sea, vGen 14:8 הוּאצֹֿעַר that is Zoar, Gen 36:1 + often
  b. pointing back to the subj. and contrasting it with something else : Gen 4:4 הבל גסהֿוא Abel, he also ... vGen 4:26; Gen 10:21; Gen 20:5 וְהִיאגַֿםהִֿוא and she, herself also said, Exod 1:10 + often
  c. appended alone to a verb (more rarely, but always with intentional emphasis), Exod 4:14 I know כי דבר ידבר הוא that he can speak, vExod 4:16; 1Sam 22:18 ויפגע הוא בכהנים and he (though none else would do it) smote the priests, 1Sam 23:22 for one hath told me, עָרֹם יַעְרִם הוּא He can deal subtilly, Ezek 12:12 (peculiarly), compare Dr§ 160 n.: very rarely indeed to a noun Num 18:23 הַלֵּוִי הוּא Isa 7:14 הוא ׳י, Esth 9:1 (הֵמָּה) being probably all the examples in the OT.
  d. Gen 13:1 and Abram came up out of Egypt, הוּא וְאִשְׁתּוֺ himself and his wife, and all that he had, Gen 14:15 הוּא וַעֲבָדָיו he and his servants, Gen 19:30 so very often
  e. prefixed to a noun (very rare, and mostly late), Exod 12:42b Ezek 3:8 & Ezek 33:8 הוּא רָשָׁע : to proper names Exod 6:27 הוא משׁה ואהרן, 1Chr 26:26 that Shelomoth, 1Chr 27:6; 2Chr 28:22; 2Chr 32:12 (different from 2Kgs 18:22), v2Kgs 18:30; 2Kgs 33:23; Ezra 7:6: compare הֵם Neh 10:38 (compare in Syriac , Nö§ 227): compare Ps 87:5; 1Sam 20:29.

2. It resumes the subject with emphasis:
  a. when the predicate is a verb (especially if it be separated from its subject by an intervening clause), Gen 15:4 but one that shall come forth out of thine own bowels, הוּא יִירָשֶׁ֑ךָ he shall be thy heir, Gen 3:12 the woman whom thou gavest to be with me, הוא נתנה לי she gave to me, Gen 24:7; Gen 44:17 etc. Judg 7:4; 2Sam 14:19 (throwing stress on יוֺאָב) 1Chr 11:20; Isa 33:15-16; Isa 34:16; Isa 38:19; Isa 47:10; Isa 59:16; Isa 63:5; Hos 7:8 often in Proverbs, as Hos 10:18; Hos 10:22; Hos 10:24; Hos 11:28; Hos 13:13; Hos 19:21; Hos 22:9; Hos 24:12; 1Sam 1:13 (see Dr), Ps 68:36.
  b. when the predicate is a noun, Gen 2:14 and the fourth river, הוּא פְרָת it was the Euphrates, vGen 2:19; Gen 9:18; Gen 15:2; Gen 42:6 הַשַּׁלִּיט וְיוֺסֵף הוּא and Joseph, he was the ruler etc.: in sentences of the type הוּא הָאֱלֹהִים ׳י, הוּא הַנִּלְחָם ׳י לָכֶם, הוּא נַחֲלָ˜תְךָ ׳י, Deut 3:22; Deut 4:35; Deut 7:9; Deut 10:9; Josh 13:14; Josh 13:33; Isa 9:14; Isa 33:6; (in these cases, to avoid stiffness, it is convenient often to drop the pronoun in translating, as 'And the fourth river was the Euphrates:' the pronoun, however, though it then corresponds to the substantive verb in English, does not really express it, the copula, as the examples shew, being in fact understood. Sts. in AV the pronoun is retained for emphasis, as Deuteronomy ll. cc.) So
  c. after אֲשֶׁר in an affirmative sentence, Gen 9:3 all creeping things אֲשֶׁר הוּאחַֿי which are living, Lev 11:39; Num 9:13; Num 14:8; Num 35:31 אֲשֶׁר הוּא רָשָׁע לָמוּת who is guilty of death, Deut 20:20; 1Sam 10:19; Hag 1:9 and elsewhere (On 2, compare Dr§ 199, with Obs.)

3. Where, however, the pron. follows the predicate, its position gives it the minimum of emphasis, and it expresses (or resumes) the subject as unobtrusively as possible: thus
  a. Gen 12:18 why didst thou not tell me כי אשׁתך הוא that she was thy wife ? Gen 20:13; Gen 21:13 כי זרעך הוא for he is thy seed, Gen 31:20 because he told him not כִּי בֹרֵחַ הוּא, Gen 37:3 + often (the opposite order rare and emphatic: Gen 24:65; Deut 4:6; Deut 30:20; Josh 10:2; 1Kgs 2:22; 1Kgs 3:4; 1Kgs 21:2; Hos 2:4; Ps 45:12).
  b. resuming the subject, Gen 31:16 all the wealth which God hath taken etc., לנו הוא ולבנינו it is ours and our children's, vGen 31:43 and all that thou seest, לי הוא it is mine (or, omitting the pronoun, as not required in our idiom, simply) is mine, Gen 41:26 חלום פרעה אחד הוא the dream of Pharaoh is one, Gen 48:5 (לי הם), Exod 3:5 for the place where on thou standest, אַדְמַת קֹדֶשׁ הוּא it is holy ground, Num 13:32; Num 21:26; Deut 1:17; Josh 5:15; Josh 6:19; Job 3:19 + often; Gen 23:15 ארץ ֗֗֗ מַההִֿוא, so Ps 39:5; Isa 41:22 (הֵנָּה); הֵמָּה .... אַתֶּם (unusual) Zeph 2:12. (In all such cases the predicate is not referred directly to the subject, but, the subject being made a casus pendens, it is resumed by the pronoun, and the predicate thus referred to it indirectly. By this means the sentence is lightened and relieved, especially if the subject consist of many words: in Gen 31:16 for instance, the direct form of predicate כִּי לָנוּ וּלְבָנֵינוּ כָּלהָֿעשֶׁר אֲשֶׁר הִצִּיל אֱלֹהִים מֵאָבִינוּ would have been heavy and inelegant.) So
  c. after אֲשֶׁר in a negative sentence, Gen 7:2; Gen 17:12 אֲשֶׁר לאֹ מִזַּרְעֲךָ הוּא which is not of thy seed, Num 17:5; Deut 17:5; 1Kgs 8:41 (compareהֵמָּה 3 c).
  d. peculiarly, as the subject of לֹא, Jer 5:12 לוֺא הוּא He is not; and as embracing its predicate in itself, Isa 18:2; Isa 18:7 a nation terrible מִןהֿוּא (= מַאֲשֶׁר הוּא) from (the time that) it was, Nah 2:9 מִימֵי הִיא from the days that (stative construct Ges«GKC:130»§ 130. 4) as it was, 2Kgs 7:7 they left the camp כַּאֲשֶׁר הִיא as it was (compare כַּאֲשֶׁר הֵמָּה v2Kgs 7:10). (On 3, compare Dr§ 198, with Obs.)

4. It anticipates (as it seems) the subject namely
  a. (rare) Song 6:9 אַהַת הִיא יוֺנָתִי תַמָּתִי one is she, my dove my perfect one, Lev 25:11; Ezek 11:15; Ezek 21:16; Lam 1:18 ׳צַדִּיק הוּא י (often so in Late Hebrew); EC Lam 6:10 וְנוֺדָע אֲשֶׁר הוּא אָדָם and that which he, even man, is, is known (De Now); compare 1Sam 6:19 מִקְרֶה הוּא הָיָה לָנוּ an accident is it, (that) hath befallen us. (compare הֵמָּה 4 a.)
  b. after pronouns — (α) 2Sam 7:28 אַתָּה הוּא הָאֱלֹהִים Thou art he — God, Ps 44:5 אתה הוא מלבי thou art he — my king, Isa 37:16; Isa 43:25 (אנכי), Isa 51:9; Isa 51:10; Isa 51:12; Isa 52:6; Jer 14:22; Jer 29:23 Kt +; compare Jer 49:12 וְאַתָּה הוּא נָקֹה תִנָּקֶה and art thou he (that) shall be unpunished ? (with change of person κατά σύνεσιν, compare Judg 13:11; 1Chr 21:17; Ezek 38:17.) So Ew§ 297 b Müll§ 499. But others, as GesThes Roo§ 563 DeIsa 37:16; Ps 44. 5, treat הוא as emphasizing the pronoun, 'Thou, he, art God' i.e. Thou and none else art God; 'Thou (emphatic) art my king.'. (β) מִי הוּא, followed by a participle or substantive Gen 27:33; Ps 24:10 מִי הוּא זֶה מֶלֶךְ הַכָּבוֺד who is he, then — the king of glory ? (according to others, as before, 'Who (emphatic), then, is the king of glory ?'); followed by a verb Isa 50:9 מִי הוּא יַרְשִׁיעֵנִי who is he (that) will condemn me ? (others 'Who (emphatic) will condemn me ?') Job 4:7; Job 13:19; Job 17:3; Job 41:2; Jer 30:21 (so with הֵנָּה Gen 21:29, הֵמָּה Zech 1:9; Zech 4:5). (γ) זֶההֿוּא 1Chr 22:1 EC 1Chr 1:17 (frequently in Late Hebrew, where the two words coalesce into one זֶהוּ) . On the analogous אֵלֶּה הֵם ֗֗֗ ), see הֵמָּה 4 b (γ). (compare Dr§ 200, 201)

5. As an emphatic predicate, of God, 'I am He,' i.e. I am He Who is (opposed to unreal gods, named in context, or to transitory world), the Unseen, yet Omni-present, and Self-consistent, Ruler of the world, Deut 32:39 אֲנִי אֲנִי הוּא I, I am he, and beside me there is no God, Isa 41:4 (see Che) Isa 43:10; Isa 43:13 even from to-day I am he, Isa 46:4; Isa 48:12; Ps 102:28 (see Che) thou art he, and thy years have no end (ᵐ5 usually ἐγώ εἰμι : in Psalms σὺ δὲ ὁ αὐτὸς εἶ). So also, according to many, Job 3:19, but is הוא a mere predicate of identity ? see rather 3b.

6. In a neuter sense, that, it (of an action, occurrence, matter, etc.) —
  a. Josh 2:21 כְּדִבְרֵיכֶם כֶּןהֿוּא according to your words, so be it; Gen 42:14 הוא אשׁר דברתי that is what I said, Exod 16:23; Lev 10:3; 2Kgs 9:36; Job 8:19 הן הוא משׂושׂ דרכו lo that (what has just been described) is the joy of his way, Job 13:16; Job 15:9; Job 31:28; Prov 7:23; Eccl 2:1; Eccl 3:22; Eccl 9:9; Esth 9:1b; similarly the feminine הִיא, Judg 14:4 they knew not היא ׳כי מי that it was from ׳י, Num 14:41; Josh 10:13; Isa 14:24; Ps 77:10 חַלּוֺתִי הִיא it (this perplexity) is my sickness, Job 9:22; Prov 18:13; Jer 22:16; 2Chr 25:20; Eccl 3:13 reference to זאת Amos 7:6; Ps 118:23; Job 5:27, זִּה Eccl 2:24. (Where there is a predicate, the gender of this usually regulates the choice of m. or f.: hence הִוא Gen 34:14; Exod 8:15; Num 15:25 (Eccl 5:5) Deut 4:6 +.)
  b. affirming the presence or existence of something (rare) : 2Kgs 18:36 = Isa 36:21 כִּי מִצְוַת הַמֶּלֶךְ הִיא for it was the king's command, saying etc., 1Sam 20:33 (text dubious), Jer 50:15; Jer 50:25; Jer 51:6; Jer 51:11; Mic 2:3, perhaps Job 32:8. p. 241.
7. With the art. הַהוּא, הַהִיא, הָהֵ֫מָּה, הָהֵם, הָהֵ֫נָּה: so regularly when joined to a substantive defined itself by the article: Gen 2:12 הָאָרֶץ הַהִוא that land, Gen 19:35 ובלילה ההוא and in that night, Gen 21:22 בָּעֵת הַהִוא at that time, Deut 1:19 המדבר הגדול והנורא ההוא. Only four times does there occur the anomalous construction בַּלַּיְלָה הוּא Gen 19:33; Gen 30:16; Gen 32:23; 1Sam 19:10.

BDB2188 H1992 H2004 H3860 H3861

BDB2187 | BIBLICAL HEBREW | BDB2189

הֵ֫מָּה and הֵם (without appreciable distinction in usage, except probably in so far as the longer or shorter from was better adapted to the rhythm of particular sentences: on the whole הֵמָּה (alone) is somewhat more frequently than הֵם, הָהֵם on the contrary is said regularly, הָהֵמָּה occurring only 12 t., namely Num 9:7 (P), Jer 14:15; Zech 14:15, and in the phrase בַּ(הַ)מִָים הָהֵמָּה 2Kgs 18:4; Jer 3:16; Jer 3:18; Jer 5:18; Jer 50:4; Joel 3:2; Joel 4:1; Zech 8:23; Neh 13:15, though בַּיָּמִים הָהֵם is much more common) pronoun 3 plural masculine (הֵמָּה used incorrectly for the feminine Zech 5:10; Ruth 1:22; Song 6:8), feminine הֵ֫נָּה [Late Hebrew also הֵן, which occurs however in Biblical Hebrew only after a prefix: see below 8], pronoun 3 plural they (Biblical Aramaic הִמּוֺ, q. v.; , ; Ethiopic (one form) 'em¥n-t¥, em¹n-t¥; compare also for the dissyllabic form, the suffix -œm¥ [feminine -œn]; perhaps also Assyrian suffix šunu, šina [ni], compare references below הוּא). In usage not different in genl. from הוּא, הִיא (which see, under the corresponding headings, for fuller explanations), thus: —

1. a. Gen 6:4; Exod 5:7 הֵם יֵָֽלְכוּ let them (emphatic) go and gather straw, Num 31:16; Isa 24:14; Hos 4:14; Hos 7:3 etc.; after כִּי Jer 5:5; Jer 34:7. (For the use in circumstantial clauses see Dr§ 160, 169.)
  b. Judg 1:22 ויעלו ֗֗֗ גַם הֵם, Deut 2:11 (אַף הֵם), Deut 3:20; Josh 9:4; Ezek 30:17.
  c. Exod 18:22 every small matter יִשְׁפְּטוּהֵֿם let them judge themselves, vExod 18:26; Jer 15:19; Jer 17:18; Ps 109:28; Esth 9:1.
  d. Gen 33:6; Gen 44:3; Judg 6:5 etc.
  e. compare Neh 10:38.

2. a. (Resuming the subject with emphasis) Gen 14:24 (note accents), Deut 1:39; Ps 23:4; Ps 27:2 (accents), Ps 37:9; Ps 107:24; Ezek 36:7; Ezek 44:15.
  b. Isa 30:7; Ezek 27:13; Ezek 27:17; Ezek 27:21 compare Isa 44:11.
  c. Num 14:27 a Jer 27:9; Ezek 43:19 אֲשֶׁר הֵם מִזֶּרַע צָדוֺק, Eccl 4:2; Neh 2:13.
**— הֵמָּה כִּדְוֵי לַחֻמִי Job 6:7 read perhaps ׳וַהֲמָה וגו (or זָָֽהֲמָה) it is loathesome (√ זהס).

3. a. Gen 3:7; Exod 5:8 כִּי נִרְפִּים הֵם for they are idle, Exod 14:3; Exod 15:23; Exod 29:33 etc. (the opposite order rare: Num 11:16; Isa 61:9, compare DePs 94:11).
  b. Gen 34:21; Gen 34:23; Gen 41:26; Gen 48:5 שׁני בניך ֗֗֗ לִי הֵם thy two sons . . ., they are mine, Exod 32:16 + often: Isa 41:22 הָרִאשֹׁנוֺת מָה הֵנָּה, Isa 49:21 אֵלֶּה אֵיפֹה הֵם these — where were they? Zeph 2:12 after אַתֶּם, peculiarly (compare Dr§ 198 Obs. 2).
  c. Deut 20:15 אֲשֶׁר לֹאמֵֿעָרֵי הַגֹּויִם הָאֵלֶּה הֵנָּה, Judg 19:12; 1Kgs 9:20.
  d. 2Kgs 7:10 כַּאֲשֶׁר הֵמָּה. (Prov 19:7 Kt לֹאהֵֿמָּה is probably corrupt: see Commentaries)

4. a. Prov 30:24 אַרְבָּעָה הֵם קְטַנֵּיאָֿ֑רֶץ four things are they, the little ones of the earth, vProv 30:29 (compare before a rel. clause vProv 30:15 vProv 30:18; Prov 6:16) Song 6:8; Isa 51:19 שְׁתַּיִם הֵנָּה קֹרְאֹתַיִךְ, 1Chr 9:26 (see הוא 4 a).
  b. (β) Gen 21:29 מָה הֵנָּה שֶׁבַע ֗֗֗ literally What are they — these seven sheep? Zech 1:9; Zech 4:5. (γ) אֵלֶּה ֗֗֗ הֵם Gen 25:16 (= 1Chr 1:36) Lev 23:2; Num 3:20; Num 3:21; Num 3:27; Num 3:33; 1Sam 4:8; 1Chr 8:6; 1Chr 12:15 (see Dr § 201, 3).

6. a. In a neuter sense (rare), Job 6:7 הֵמָּה כִּדְוֵי לַחמִי they (i.e. such sufferings as mine) are as loathsomeness in my meat, Jer 7:4 ׳הֵיכַל י הֵמָּה they (i.e. these buildings) are the temple of ׳י; and in the feminine, Lev 5:22 of all that a man doeth to sin בָּהֵנָּה therein, 1Chr 21:10 מֵהֵנָּה (|| 2Sam 24:12 מֵהֶם); 2Sam 12:8; Job 23:14 כָּהֵנָּה things such as these.

7. With art. הָהֵם, Gen 6:4; Exod 2:11; Num 14:38 + often; הָהֵמָּה 12 t. (see above); הָהֵנָּה 1Sam 17:28.

[Note]

N.B. — Ezek 8:6 Kt מָהֵם stands for מָה הֵם (so Qr), compare מַזֶּה for מַהזֶּֿה Exod 4:2; 2Kgs 9:18 עַדהֵֿם is irregular for עֲדֵיהֶם; 2Sam 4:6 ׳וְהֵנָּה וג is textual error for ׳וְהִנֵּה שֹׁעֶרֶת הַבַּיִת סֹקְלָה חִטִּים וג see We Dr (ᵐ5 & RVm).

8. With preps. (in lieu of the normal, and more usual, forms with suffixes בָּהֶם, לָהֶם, מֵהֶם etc. [כָּהֶם & כָּהֶן, however, each once only, כְּמוֺהֶם thrice: see כְּ]) —
  a.בָּהֵמָּה Exod 30:4; Exod 36:1 (both P), Hab 1:16 כָּהֵמָּה Jer 36:32 לְהֵמָּה Jer 14:16 מֵהֵמָּה Jer 10:2; Eccl 12:12.
  b. כָּהֵם 2Sam 24:3 Yahweh add to the people כָּהֵם וְכָהֵם מֵאָה פְעָמִים the like of themselves and the like of themselves 100 times, = 1Chr 21:3 (but כָּהֵם here only once, compare Deut 1:11 בָּכֶם), 2Chr 9:11; Eccl 9:12.
  c. בָּהֵנָּה Lev 5:22 (P) Num 13:19 (JE) Jer 5:17: כָּהֵנָּה Gen 41:19; 2Sam 12:8 וְאֹסִפָה לְךָ כָּהֵנָּה וְכָהֵנָּה, Job 23:14: לָהֵנָּה Ezek 1:5; Ezek 1:23 (twice in verse); Ezek 42:9; Zech 5:9: מֵהֵנָּה Lev 4:2 (P) Isa 34:16; Jer 5:6; Ezek 16:51; Ezek 42:5; Ps 34:21; 1Chr 21:10 (|| 2Sam 24:12 מֵהֶם).
  d. בָּהֵן Gen 19:29 (P) Gen 30:26; Gen 30:37; Exod 25:29; Exod 37:16 (both P) Lev 10:1; Lev 11:21; Lev 14:40; Num 10:3; Num 16:7 (all P) Deut 28:52; Jer 4:29; Jer 48:9; Jer 51:43 (twice in verse) (בָּהֶן thrice only); כָּהֵן Ezek 18:14 (editions; Baer כָּהֶן); לָהֵן ( = therefore) Ruth 1:13 (twice in verse) (also Biblical Aramaic); מֵהֵן Ezek 16:47; Ezek 16:52 (editions; Baer מֵהֶן). With the exception of כָּחֵנָּה, these forms are found mostly in P and writers not earlier than Jeremiah; b and d, however, depend solely on the punctuation.)

BDB9475 H1994 H1992

BDB9474 | BIBLICAL ARAMAIC | BDB9476

הִמּוֺ9 (Ezra), הִמּוֺן3 (Daniel), pronoun 3 plural they, them (= Biblical Hebrew הֵם, הֵמָּה, q. v., but the more original forms. Egyptian Aramaic המו CIS145 B 4 (Cooke207),149 A 1, S-CPap. C 7, 10 +; not ᵑ7 Syriac, which use אִנּוּן , , instead; Arabic , . The n in הִמּוֺן, as in דֵּין, אִלֵּין, by the side of זֶה, אֵלֶּה, ; NöM 86 WCG 106); — they, them:
  a. as nominative Ezra 5:11 אֲבַחְנָא הִמּוֺ עַבְדוֺהִי we are his servants (construction as in Syriac, Nö§ 312 D Matt 5:13, K§ 87. 3).
  b. as accusative (in Biblical Aramaic, as in Syriac, there being no verbal suffix of 3 plural; so Egyptian Aramaic Cooke76 B 4, S-CPap. E 5 +), En 2:34 והדקת הִמּוֺ and crushed them, v35; 3:22; Ezra 4:10; Ezra 4:23; Ezra 5:5; Ezra 5:12; Ezra 5:14 (twice in verse); Ezra 5:15; Ezra 7:17. — compare אִנּוּן.

Strong's Definition H1992
they, those, these, them, who, …
hēm
they (only used when emphatic)
  • they, these, the same, who
Variations 31 forms of this word
Translations 115 English renderings
Search every verse
Word Parts
קְטַנֵּי
קְטַנֵּי
Root word small, little, youngest, younger, least, …
Dictionary form: קָטָן · kaw-TAWN
Vowels & Accents
Hebrew Alephbet
Grammar Aampc
Adjective — masculine plural, construct state plural — usually add "-s"; "___ of …" — bound to the next word
קְטַנֵּי Speech Adjective Type Adjective Gender Masculine Number Plural State Construct
In English
In the KJV here: things which are little
small ×9 both small ×6 younger ×6 youngest ×6 from the least ×5 a little ×4 the youngest ×4 less ×3
More options
small — Most versatile; suits size, quantity, or importance.
young — Prefer when referring to age or birth order.
youngest — Use for superlative birth-order contexts.
least — Best for rank, status, or degree contexts.
minor — Formal; good for lesser officials or matters.
insignificant — Emphasizes low status or worth.
Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)

BDB7397 H6996

BDB7396 | BIBLICAL HEBREW | BDB7398

I. קָטָן adjective small, young, unimportant; — absolute ׳ק Gen 9:24 +; suffix קְטַנָּם (Köii.l,74) Jer 6:13 +; feminine singular קְטַנָּה Gen 29:16 +; masculine plural קְטַנִּים 2Kgs 18:24 +; construct קְטַנֵּי 1Sam 9:21 (see Dr; We conjectures נִּי-, old construct, cf, HPS), Prov 30:24 feminine plural קְטַנּוֺת Ezek 16:61 +; —

1. small; especially
  a. of children, youth = young, Gen 44:20 (J) 2Sam 9:12; 1Kgs 11:17; 2Kgs 2:23; 2Kgs 5:2, of sister Song 8:8 = younger, of two children (often opposed to גדול), Gen 9:24; Gen 27:15; Gen 27:42 (all J), Gen 29:16; Gen 29:18 (E), 1Sam 14:49 (feminine; opposed to הַבְּכִירָה); of younger sister Judg 15:2, so (figurative) Ezek 16:46 and (+ מִן compare) vEzek 16:61 brother 1Chr 24:31 ׳הַקּ youngest son (of several) 1Sam 16:11; 1Sam 17:14 גָּדוֺל = young and old (see קָטֹן 1) Jer 16:6 compare 2Chr 31:15; 2Chr 34:30.
  b. of things : utterance Num 22:18 (E), weight Deut 25:13; Deut 25:14, vessels 2Chr 36:18, animals Ps 104:25 (all opposed to גדול); compare also 2Sam 12:3; 1Kgs 2:20; 1Kgs 17:13; 1Kgs 18:44; 2Kgs 4:10; Ezek 43:14 (opposed to גדול), Prov 30:24; Song 2:15, + probably Ezek 46:22 (see II. [ קָטַר]); כְּלֵי הַקָּטָן Isa 22:24 the vessels of small size (figurative).
2. small;
  a. with added idea of weakness, person 2Kgs 18:24=Isa 36:9, city Eccl 9:14.
  b. = insignificant, (I) tribe 1Sam 9:21 (2) person (+גדול; = all persons) Jer 6:13; Jer 31:34; Jonah 3:5; Ps 115:13; Esth 1:5; Esth 1:20, cf . 1Chr 12:14 (van d. H. v.1Chr 12:13); (3) in general, יוֺם קְטַנּוֺת Zech 4:10 day of small things. — See also קָטֹן.

BDB7399 H6996

BDB7398 | BIBLICAL HEBREW | BDB7400

קָטֹן54 adjective small, insignificant; — absolute ׳ק 1Sam 2:19 +; construct קְטֹן 2Chr 21:17 — f., plural and suffix supplied by קָטָן; —

1. small: especially
  a. of youth = young, ׳נַעַר קּ 1Sam 20:35; 1Kgs 3:7; 2Kgs 5:14; Isa 11:6 = younger of two brothers, Gen 48:19 (E) Judg 1:13; Judg 3:9 (+ מִן compare); ׳הַקּ youngest brother Gen 42:13 + 10 t. Genesis (JE), son Judg 9:5; 2Chr 22:1, so קְטֹן בָּנָיו 2Chr 21:17 + גדול = young and old (see קָטָן 1), i.e. everybodty Gen 19:11 (J), 1Sam 5:9; 1Sam 30:2 + (of person and things) v1Sam 30:19.
  b. of things 1Sam 2:19; 1Kgs 8:64 (+ מִן compare), Amos 6:11; Isa 54:7 opposed to גָּדוֺל 1Sam 22:15; 1Sam 25:36; Gen 1:16 (P).
2. = unimportant, things, Exod 18:22; Exod 18:26 (E), 1Sam 20:2 (all opposed to גדול); person,=feeble Amos 7:2; Amos 7:5 = insignificant Jer 49:15; Obad 1:2 (both || בָּזוּי), Isa 60:22 (|| צָעִיר); בְּעֵינֶיךָ ׳ק 1Sam 15:17 especially + גָּדוֺל = low and high, + everybody, Deut 1:17; 1Kgs 22:31 = 2Chr 18:30; Jer 8:10; Job 3:19, +8 t. — See also קָטָן.

Strong's Definition H6996
small, little, youngest, younger, least, …
qāṭān
abbreviated, i.e., diminutive, literally (in quantity, size or number) or figuratively (in age or importance)
  • young, small, insignificant, unimportant
    • small
      • "insignificant"young"unimportant
Variations 29 forms of this word
Translations 53 English renderings
Search every verse
Word Parts
אָ֑רֶץ
אָ֑רֶץ
Root word land, earth, ground, country, countries, …
Dictionary form: אֶרֶץ · eh-RETS
Vowels & Accents
Hebrew Alephbet
Grammar Ncbsa
Noun — Common, both singular, absolute state
אָרֶץ Speech Noun Type Common Gender Both Number Singular State Absolute
In English
In the KJV here: upon the earth
the land ×425 the earth ×247 in the land ×246 of the earth ×197 of the land ×197 land ×130 out of the land ×66 in the earth ×43
More options
land — Best default; territory, region, or promised land.
earth — Prefer for cosmic or global scope (whole creation).
ground — Physical soil or surface; localized, tangible contexts.
country — Distinct nation-territory; political or ethnic emphasis.
region — Geographical area without strong political connotation.
world — Rare; only when universal scope is clearly intended.
Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)

BDB780 H776

BDB779 | BIBLICAL HEBREW | BDB781

אֶ֫רֶץ2407 noun feminineGen 10:11 & (seldom) masculineGen 13:16 earth, land (Phoenician, MI ארץ, Assyrian irƒitu COTGloss, Arabic , Sabean ארץֿ e.g. Os9 DHMZMG 1875, 594, 614; Semitic Sprachf. 12, compare PräBAS i. 374 n., Aramaic אֲרַע, ) — ׳א absolute Gen 1:24 +; construct Gen 2:11 +; אָ֑רֶץ Gen 1:10 +; with article always הָאָ֫רֶץ Gen 1:11 +; with ָ  ה locative אַ֫רְצָה Gen 11:31 +, (this form also in poetry = אֶרֶץ Job 34:13 +); suffix אַרְצִי Job 20:15 +; (אַרְצֶ֑ךָ) אַרְצְךָ Job 12:1 +, etc.; plural אֲרָצוֺת Jer 28:8 + 65 t.; construct אַרְצוֺת Ezek 39:27 + 6 t.; suffix אַרְצֹתָם Gen 10:5 + 2 t.; —

1. a. earth, whole earth (opposed to a part) Gen 18:18; Gen 18:25; Gen 22:18 (= הָאֲדָמָה Gen 12:3) Jer 25:26; Jer 25:29; Jer 25:30; Jer 26:6; Isa 37:16; Isa 37:20 = 2Kgs 19:15; 2Kgs 19:19; Zech 4:10; Zech 4:14 +.
  b. earth, opposed to heaven, sky Gen 1:2; Exod 20:4; Deut 5:8; Deut 30:19; Judg 5:4; Lam 2:1; Isa 37:16 = 2Kgs 19:15; Ps 146:6; 1Chr 21:16; 1Chr 29:11; 2Chr 2:11 +; as permanent Eccl 1:4 built on foundations, or pillars 1Sam 2:8; Ps 104:5; Job 38:4; Isa 48:13; Isa 51:13; Isa 51:16 compare also Isa 24:18; Ps 82:5 firm, so that its shaking is something terrible, & token of terrible power 1Sam 14:4; 2Sam 22:8 = Ps 18:8; Job 9:6 compare Ps 46:2 & vPs 46:6 so also Amos 8:8; Isa 2:19; Isa 2:21; Isa 24:18; Isa 24:19; Isa 24:20; Ps 60:4; Ps 77:19; Ps 99:1; Ps 114:7 as hung on nothing Job 26:7 with waters under it Exod 20:4 = Deut 5:8 compare Gen 7:11 personified, especially as addressed, called to witness, etc. Deut 32:1; Jer 6:19; Jer 22:29; Isa 1:2; Mic 1:2; Job 16:18.
  c. earth = inhabitants of earth Gen 6:11; 1Kgs 2:2; 1Kgs 10:24; Ps 33:8; Ps 66:4 + compare ׳תֵּבֵל א Prov 8:31; Job 37:12.
2. land =
  a. country, territory, שִׁנְעָר ׳א Gen 10:10, מִצְרַיִם ׳א Gen 21:21 compare also Gen 10:11; Gen 11:28; Gen 11:31; Gen 13:10; Gen 47:6; Gen 47:27; Gen 50:8; Isa 7:18; Isa 23:1; Isa 23:13; Isa 27:13; Ps 78:12; Jer 25:20; 1Chr 1:43 personified Isa 62:4; Eccl 10:16; Eccl 10:17.
  b. district, region Gen 19:28; Gen 22:2; Josh 11:3; Ps 42:7.
  c. tribal territory Deut 34:2; Judg 21:21; 1Sam 9:4; 1Sam 9:16; 1Sam 13:7; 1Kgs 15:20; Isa 8:23 and still smaller territories 1Sam 9:4; 1Sam 9:5.
  d. piece of ground Gen 23:15.
  e. specifically land of Canaan, or Israel Gen 11:31; Gen 12:1; Gen 12:5; Gen 12:6; Gen 12:7; Gen 31:3; Deut 17:14; Deut 18:9; 2Kgs 5:2; 2Kgs 5:4 +; especially object of יָרַשׁ possess Deut 3:20 + often Deuteronomy, Psalms and elsewhere; so after נָחַל Josh 19:49 +; נָתַן Deut 1:21 +. feminine = inhabitants land Lev 19:29; Ezek 14:13 + compare Deut 24:4; Zech 12:12 etc.
  g. used even of Sh®°ôl Job 10:21; Job 10:22 (compare Assyrian irƒit la târat, land without return, in Descent of Ishtar, see Jr10. 65); see also Ps 139:15; Isa 44:23.
3. a. ground, surface of ground = אֲדָמָה q. v. Gen 1:26; Gen 1:30; Gen 18:2; Gen 33:3; Gen 38:9; Exod 4:3; Exod 16:4; Ruth 2:10; 1Sam 5:4 + very often in Samuel.
  b. soil, as productive = אֲדָמָה Gen 1:11; Gen 1:12; Lev 19:9; Lev 25:9; Lev 26:4 compare Num 14:7; Num 14:8; Isa 36:7 = 2Kgs 18:32; Ps 72:6; Ps 72:16; Ps 107:34; Ps 107:35; Ezra 9:12; Neh 9:35.
4. אֶרֶץ in phrases:
  a. people of the land ׳עַםהָֿא of non-Israelites Gen 23:7; Gen 23:12; Gen 23:13 (P) Num 14:9 (JE); as well as Israel Lev 20:4 (H) 2Kgs 15:5; 2Kgs 16:15; 2Kgs 21:24 (twice in verse); especially common people, opposed to officials, princes Lev 4:27 (P) Ezek 7:27; 2Kgs 11:18; 2Kgs 11:19.
  b. in measurements of distance, ׳כִּבְרַת הָא the space or distance of country (see כּברה) Gen 35:16, so ׳כִּבְרַת א some distance Gen 48:7; 2Kgs 5:19.
  c. אֶרֶץ הַמִּישׁוֺר the country of the plain, level or plain country Deut 4:33; Jer 48:21 מִישׁוֺר ׳א figurative Ps 143:10 (but read אֹרַח ᵑ6 Bi Gr Che, compare Ps 27:11).
  d. חַיִּים ׳א land of the living Ps 27:13 הַחַיִּים ׳א Ps 142:6.
  e. ׳קְצֵה הָא end(s) of the earth Isa 42:10; Isa 43:6 (|| רָחוֺק) Ps 135:7; Prov 17:24, so ׳אַפְסֵי א Prov 30:4 +; ׳קְצוֺת הָא Isa 40:28; Isa 41:5; Isa 41:9.
5. plural אֲרָצוֺת is almost wholly late, Jer 16:15 + 6 t. Jeremiah; 23 t. Ezekiel; Isa 36:20; Isa 37:11 = 2Kgs 18:35; 2Kgs 19:11 (Isa 37:18 read הַגּוֺיִם see Che Di & compare 2Kgs 19:17); 22 t. Chronicles; Dan 9:7; Dan 11:40; Dan 11:42; Ps 105:44; Ps 106:27; Ps 107:3; Ps 116:9 besides these only P Gen 10:5; Gen 10:20; Gen 10:31; Lev 26:36; Lev 26:39, except Gen 26:3; Gen 26:4 (JR) Gen 41:54 (JE); it denotes lands, countries, often in contrast to Canaan, lands of the nations, etc., see especially absolute Ezek 20:32; Ezek 22:4 = the various petty divisions of Canaan afterward united under Israel's control Gen 26:3; Gen 26:4, compare 1Chr 13:2 אַרְצוֺת יִשְׂרָאֵל, 2Chr 11:23 אַרְצוֺת יְהוּדָה.

BDB9347 H772 H776

BDB9346 | BIBLICAL ARAMAIC | BDB9348

[אֲרַע]21 noun [feminine] earth (so ᵑ7 Syriac; = Biblical Hebrew אֶרֶץ, q. v.); — emphatic אַרְעָא Dan 2:35; Dan 2:39 + 16 t. Daniel; Ezra 5:11; Jer 10:11b; אַ֫רְעָא (D§§ 9, 5 a; 44, 1 n) = אֲרַע + ָ֯ of direction, earthward, i.e. downward, אַרְעָא מִנָּח Dan 2:39 Kt lower than thou, i.e. inferior to thee Qr אֲרַע (compare ᵑ7 אֲרַע מִן Ruth 4:4); — Jer 10:11a see [ אֲרַק].

Strong's Definition H776
land, earth, ground, country, countries, …
ʾereṣ
the earth (at large, or partitively a land)
  • land, earth
    • earth
      • whole earth (as opposed to a part)
        • "earth (as opposed to heaven)"earth (inhabitants)
      land
      • country, territory
        • "district, region"tribal territory"piece of ground"land of Canaan, Israel"inhabitants of land"Sheol, land without return, (under) world"city, city-state
      ground, surface of the earth
      • ground
        • "soil
      (in phrases)
      • people of the land
        • "space or distance of country (in measurements of distance)"level or plain country"land of the living"end(s) of the earth
      (almost wholly late in usage)
      • lands, countries
        • often in contrast to Canaan
Variations 112 forms of this word
Translations 302 English renderings
Earth
Search every verse
Word Parts
Breakdown unavailable for this word. Dictionary form: הֵם · hame
Vowels & Accents
Hebrew Alephbet
Grammar C/Pp3mp
Noun — masculine plural plural — usually add "-s"
Speech Conjunction
Speech Noun Gender Masculine Number Plural
Speech Pronoun Type Personal Person Third Person Gender Masculine Number Plural
In English
they ×204 and they ×49 in those ×34 are they ×33 these ×15 but they ×12 them ×10 those ×8
More options
they — Default third-person plural pronoun; broadest usage.
them — Use when serving as object of verb or preposition.
those — Demonstrative use; points to a specific group or set.
these — Demonstrative, near reference; contrasts with distant group.
who — Relative pronoun use; links back to a preceding noun.
themselves — Reflexive or emphatic contexts stressing the subject.
Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)

BDB2087 H1931 H1992 H2007

BDB2086 | BIBLICAL HEBREW | BDB2088

הוּא masculine הִיא feminine (plural masculine הֵ֫מָּה, הֵם; feminine הֵ֫נָּה, הֵן [the latter only with prefixes]; see these words), pronoun of the 3rd person singular, he, she, used also (in both genders) for the neuter it, Latin is, ea, id. (The א is not orthographic merely, but radical, being written on Moabite and Phoenician inscriptions, though dropped in some of the later dialects. [In Hebrew only Jer 29:23 Kt, and in the proper name אֱלִיהוּ.] Moabite (MI6; 27) and Phoenician (often) הא; Aramaic of Zinjirli הא, once הו (DHMInschr. von Sendschirli 55); ᵑ7 הוּא, הִיא Syriac , ; Arabic , (for h¥°a, h£°a, WSG 104); Ethiopic we°§t¥, ye°§t£; perhaps also Assyrian šû, šî, himself, herself suffix šu, ši; compare demonstrative šuatu, šiati (see KraeBAS. i. 383 & references, WSG 98, 105 Dl§ 55b, 57). In the Pentateuch, הוא is of common gender, the feminine form הִיא occurring only 11 times, namely Gen 14:2; Gen 20:5; Gen 38:25 (see Masora here), Lev 11:39; Lev 13:10; Lev 13:21; Lev 16:31; Lev 20:17; Lev 21:9; Num 5:13; Num 5:14. The punctuators, however, sought to assimilate the usage of the Pentateuch to that of the rest of the OT, and accordingly wherever הוא was construed as a feminine pointed it הִוא (as a Qr perpetuum). Outside the Pentateuch the same Qr occurs 1Kgs 17:15; Isa 30:33; Job 31:11a — probably for the sake of removing gramm. anomalies: five instances of the converse change, namely of היא to be read as הוּא, occur for a similar reason, 1Kgs 17:15 (וַתּאֹכַל הוּאוָֿהִיא to be read as וַתּאֹכַל הִיאוָֿהוּא, on account of the feminine verb) Ps 73:16; Job 31:11b (כי הוא זמה והיא עָוֺן פלילים to be read as כי היא זמה והוא עון פלילים), Eccl 5:8; 1Chr 29:16. The origin of the peculiarity in the Pentateuch is uncertain. It can hardly be a real archaism : for the fact that arab., Aramaic, & Ethiopic have distinct forms for masculine & feminine shews that both must have formed part of the original Semitic stock, and consequently of Hebrew as well, from its earliest existence as an independent language. Nor is the peculiarity confined to the Pentateuch: in the Manuscript of the Later Prophets, of A.D. , now at St. Petersburg, published in facsimile by Strack (1876), the feminine occurs written הוא (see the passages cited in the Adnotationes Criticae, p. 026). In Phoenician both masculine and feminine are alike written הא (CIS i. 1Chr 1:9 מלך צדק הא, 1Chr 1:13 מלאכת הא, 1Chr 3:10 אדם הא, 1Chr 1:11 ממלכת הא, 1Chr 93:2; 1Chr 94:2), though naturally this would be read as hu° or hi° as occasion required. Hence, as ᵐ5 shews that in the older Hebrew MSS. the scriptio plena was not yet generally introduced, it is probably that originally הא was written for both genders in Hebrew likewise, and that the epicene הוא in the Pentateuch originated at a comparatively late epoch in the transmission of the text — perhaps in connection with the assumption, which is partly borne out by facts (compare DeZKWL 1880, pp. 393-399), that in the older language feminine forms were more sparingly used than subsequently.)

In usage הוּא (feminine הִיא; plural הֵ֫מָּה, הֵם, ׃ הֵ֫נָּה see הֵ֫מָּה) is

1. an emphatic he (she, it, they), sometimes equivalent to himself (herself, itself, themselves), or (especially with the article) that (those):
  a. Gen 3:15 הוא ישׁופך ראשׁ he (ᵐ5 αὐτὸς) shall bruise thee as to the head (opposed to the following אתה thou), vGen 3:20 for she (and no one else) was the mother of all living (so often in causal sentences, where some emphasis on the subject is desirable as Judg 14:3; Ps 24:2; Ps 25:15; Ps 33:9; Ps 91:3; Ps 103:14; Ps 148:5; Job 5:18; Job 11:11; Job 28:24; Jer 5:5; Jer 34:7b Hos 6:1; Hos 11:10 : Dr1Sam 14:18), 1Sam 4:20 Adah bare Jabal הוא היה אבי ישׁב אהלים he (ἐκεῖνος) was the father of tent-dwellers, v1Sam 4:21; 1Sam 10:8 he began to be a mighty one in the earth, 1Sam 20:5 (αὐτός), Judg 13:5; Isa 32:7; Isa 33:22; 2Kgs 14:7; 2Kgs 14:22; 2Kgs 14:25; Hos 10:2 he — the unseen observer of their thoughts and deeds (Che), Hos 13:15 b (he, the foe figured by the east wind). (For its use thus in circumstantial clauses see Dr§ 157, 160, 168, 169.) And where the predicate is a substantive or participle, Gen 2:11 הוּא הַסֹּבֵב ֗֗֗ that is the one which encompasseth etc., vGen 2:13 vGen 2:14; Gen 10:12 that is the great city. So in the explanatory notices, Gen 14:3 הוּא יָם הַמֶּלַת that is the salt sea, vGen 14:8 הוּאצֹֿעַר that is Zoar, Gen 36:1 + often
  b. pointing back to the subj. and contrasting it with something else : Gen 4:4 הבל גסהֿוא Abel, he also ... vGen 4:26; Gen 10:21; Gen 20:5 וְהִיאגַֿםהִֿוא and she, herself also said, Exod 1:10 + often
  c. appended alone to a verb (more rarely, but always with intentional emphasis), Exod 4:14 I know כי דבר ידבר הוא that he can speak, vExod 4:16; 1Sam 22:18 ויפגע הוא בכהנים and he (though none else would do it) smote the priests, 1Sam 23:22 for one hath told me, עָרֹם יַעְרִם הוּא He can deal subtilly, Ezek 12:12 (peculiarly), compare Dr§ 160 n.: very rarely indeed to a noun Num 18:23 הַלֵּוִי הוּא Isa 7:14 הוא ׳י, Esth 9:1 (הֵמָּה) being probably all the examples in the OT.
  d. Gen 13:1 and Abram came up out of Egypt, הוּא וְאִשְׁתּוֺ himself and his wife, and all that he had, Gen 14:15 הוּא וַעֲבָדָיו he and his servants, Gen 19:30 so very often
  e. prefixed to a noun (very rare, and mostly late), Exod 12:42b Ezek 3:8 & Ezek 33:8 הוּא רָשָׁע : to proper names Exod 6:27 הוא משׁה ואהרן, 1Chr 26:26 that Shelomoth, 1Chr 27:6; 2Chr 28:22; 2Chr 32:12 (different from 2Kgs 18:22), v2Kgs 18:30; 2Kgs 33:23; Ezra 7:6: compare הֵם Neh 10:38 (compare in Syriac , Nö§ 227): compare Ps 87:5; 1Sam 20:29.

2. It resumes the subject with emphasis:
  a. when the predicate is a verb (especially if it be separated from its subject by an intervening clause), Gen 15:4 but one that shall come forth out of thine own bowels, הוּא יִירָשֶׁ֑ךָ he shall be thy heir, Gen 3:12 the woman whom thou gavest to be with me, הוא נתנה לי she gave to me, Gen 24:7; Gen 44:17 etc. Judg 7:4; 2Sam 14:19 (throwing stress on יוֺאָב) 1Chr 11:20; Isa 33:15-16; Isa 34:16; Isa 38:19; Isa 47:10; Isa 59:16; Isa 63:5; Hos 7:8 often in Proverbs, as Hos 10:18; Hos 10:22; Hos 10:24; Hos 11:28; Hos 13:13; Hos 19:21; Hos 22:9; Hos 24:12; 1Sam 1:13 (see Dr), Ps 68:36.
  b. when the predicate is a noun, Gen 2:14 and the fourth river, הוּא פְרָת it was the Euphrates, vGen 2:19; Gen 9:18; Gen 15:2; Gen 42:6 הַשַּׁלִּיט וְיוֺסֵף הוּא and Joseph, he was the ruler etc.: in sentences of the type הוּא הָאֱלֹהִים ׳י, הוּא הַנִּלְחָם ׳י לָכֶם, הוּא נַחֲלָ˜תְךָ ׳י, Deut 3:22; Deut 4:35; Deut 7:9; Deut 10:9; Josh 13:14; Josh 13:33; Isa 9:14; Isa 33:6; (in these cases, to avoid stiffness, it is convenient often to drop the pronoun in translating, as 'And the fourth river was the Euphrates:' the pronoun, however, though it then corresponds to the substantive verb in English, does not really express it, the copula, as the examples shew, being in fact understood. Sts. in AV the pronoun is retained for emphasis, as Deuteronomy ll. cc.) So
  c. after אֲשֶׁר in an affirmative sentence, Gen 9:3 all creeping things אֲשֶׁר הוּאחַֿי which are living, Lev 11:39; Num 9:13; Num 14:8; Num 35:31 אֲשֶׁר הוּא רָשָׁע לָמוּת who is guilty of death, Deut 20:20; 1Sam 10:19; Hag 1:9 and elsewhere (On 2, compare Dr§ 199, with Obs.)

3. Where, however, the pron. follows the predicate, its position gives it the minimum of emphasis, and it expresses (or resumes) the subject as unobtrusively as possible: thus
  a. Gen 12:18 why didst thou not tell me כי אשׁתך הוא that she was thy wife ? Gen 20:13; Gen 21:13 כי זרעך הוא for he is thy seed, Gen 31:20 because he told him not כִּי בֹרֵחַ הוּא, Gen 37:3 + often (the opposite order rare and emphatic: Gen 24:65; Deut 4:6; Deut 30:20; Josh 10:2; 1Kgs 2:22; 1Kgs 3:4; 1Kgs 21:2; Hos 2:4; Ps 45:12).
  b. resuming the subject, Gen 31:16 all the wealth which God hath taken etc., לנו הוא ולבנינו it is ours and our children's, vGen 31:43 and all that thou seest, לי הוא it is mine (or, omitting the pronoun, as not required in our idiom, simply) is mine, Gen 41:26 חלום פרעה אחד הוא the dream of Pharaoh is one, Gen 48:5 (לי הם), Exod 3:5 for the place where on thou standest, אַדְמַת קֹדֶשׁ הוּא it is holy ground, Num 13:32; Num 21:26; Deut 1:17; Josh 5:15; Josh 6:19; Job 3:19 + often; Gen 23:15 ארץ ֗֗֗ מַההִֿוא, so Ps 39:5; Isa 41:22 (הֵנָּה); הֵמָּה .... אַתֶּם (unusual) Zeph 2:12. (In all such cases the predicate is not referred directly to the subject, but, the subject being made a casus pendens, it is resumed by the pronoun, and the predicate thus referred to it indirectly. By this means the sentence is lightened and relieved, especially if the subject consist of many words: in Gen 31:16 for instance, the direct form of predicate כִּי לָנוּ וּלְבָנֵינוּ כָּלהָֿעשֶׁר אֲשֶׁר הִצִּיל אֱלֹהִים מֵאָבִינוּ would have been heavy and inelegant.) So
  c. after אֲשֶׁר in a negative sentence, Gen 7:2; Gen 17:12 אֲשֶׁר לאֹ מִזַּרְעֲךָ הוּא which is not of thy seed, Num 17:5; Deut 17:5; 1Kgs 8:41 (compareהֵמָּה 3 c).
  d. peculiarly, as the subject of לֹא, Jer 5:12 לוֺא הוּא He is not; and as embracing its predicate in itself, Isa 18:2; Isa 18:7 a nation terrible מִןהֿוּא (= מַאֲשֶׁר הוּא) from (the time that) it was, Nah 2:9 מִימֵי הִיא from the days that (stative construct Ges«GKC:130»§ 130. 4) as it was, 2Kgs 7:7 they left the camp כַּאֲשֶׁר הִיא as it was (compare כַּאֲשֶׁר הֵמָּה v2Kgs 7:10). (On 3, compare Dr§ 198, with Obs.)

4. It anticipates (as it seems) the subject namely
  a. (rare) Song 6:9 אַהַת הִיא יוֺנָתִי תַמָּתִי one is she, my dove my perfect one, Lev 25:11; Ezek 11:15; Ezek 21:16; Lam 1:18 ׳צַדִּיק הוּא י (often so in Late Hebrew); EC Lam 6:10 וְנוֺדָע אֲשֶׁר הוּא אָדָם and that which he, even man, is, is known (De Now); compare 1Sam 6:19 מִקְרֶה הוּא הָיָה לָנוּ an accident is it, (that) hath befallen us. (compare הֵמָּה 4 a.)
  b. after pronouns — (α) 2Sam 7:28 אַתָּה הוּא הָאֱלֹהִים Thou art he — God, Ps 44:5 אתה הוא מלבי thou art he — my king, Isa 37:16; Isa 43:25 (אנכי), Isa 51:9; Isa 51:10; Isa 51:12; Isa 52:6; Jer 14:22; Jer 29:23 Kt +; compare Jer 49:12 וְאַתָּה הוּא נָקֹה תִנָּקֶה and art thou he (that) shall be unpunished ? (with change of person κατά σύνεσιν, compare Judg 13:11; 1Chr 21:17; Ezek 38:17.) So Ew§ 297 b Müll§ 499. But others, as GesThes Roo§ 563 DeIsa 37:16; Ps 44. 5, treat הוא as emphasizing the pronoun, 'Thou, he, art God' i.e. Thou and none else art God; 'Thou (emphatic) art my king.'. (β) מִי הוּא, followed by a participle or substantive Gen 27:33; Ps 24:10 מִי הוּא זֶה מֶלֶךְ הַכָּבוֺד who is he, then — the king of glory ? (according to others, as before, 'Who (emphatic), then, is the king of glory ?'); followed by a verb Isa 50:9 מִי הוּא יַרְשִׁיעֵנִי who is he (that) will condemn me ? (others 'Who (emphatic) will condemn me ?') Job 4:7; Job 13:19; Job 17:3; Job 41:2; Jer 30:21 (so with הֵנָּה Gen 21:29, הֵמָּה Zech 1:9; Zech 4:5). (γ) זֶההֿוּא 1Chr 22:1 EC 1Chr 1:17 (frequently in Late Hebrew, where the two words coalesce into one זֶהוּ) . On the analogous אֵלֶּה הֵם ֗֗֗ ), see הֵמָּה 4 b (γ). (compare Dr§ 200, 201)

5. As an emphatic predicate, of God, 'I am He,' i.e. I am He Who is (opposed to unreal gods, named in context, or to transitory world), the Unseen, yet Omni-present, and Self-consistent, Ruler of the world, Deut 32:39 אֲנִי אֲנִי הוּא I, I am he, and beside me there is no God, Isa 41:4 (see Che) Isa 43:10; Isa 43:13 even from to-day I am he, Isa 46:4; Isa 48:12; Ps 102:28 (see Che) thou art he, and thy years have no end (ᵐ5 usually ἐγώ εἰμι : in Psalms σὺ δὲ ὁ αὐτὸς εἶ). So also, according to many, Job 3:19, but is הוא a mere predicate of identity ? see rather 3b.

6. In a neuter sense, that, it (of an action, occurrence, matter, etc.) —
  a. Josh 2:21 כְּדִבְרֵיכֶם כֶּןהֿוּא according to your words, so be it; Gen 42:14 הוא אשׁר דברתי that is what I said, Exod 16:23; Lev 10:3; 2Kgs 9:36; Job 8:19 הן הוא משׂושׂ דרכו lo that (what has just been described) is the joy of his way, Job 13:16; Job 15:9; Job 31:28; Prov 7:23; Eccl 2:1; Eccl 3:22; Eccl 9:9; Esth 9:1b; similarly the feminine הִיא, Judg 14:4 they knew not היא ׳כי מי that it was from ׳י, Num 14:41; Josh 10:13; Isa 14:24; Ps 77:10 חַלּוֺתִי הִיא it (this perplexity) is my sickness, Job 9:22; Prov 18:13; Jer 22:16; 2Chr 25:20; Eccl 3:13 reference to זאת Amos 7:6; Ps 118:23; Job 5:27, זִּה Eccl 2:24. (Where there is a predicate, the gender of this usually regulates the choice of m. or f.: hence הִוא Gen 34:14; Exod 8:15; Num 15:25 (Eccl 5:5) Deut 4:6 +.)
  b. affirming the presence or existence of something (rare) : 2Kgs 18:36 = Isa 36:21 כִּי מִצְוַת הַמֶּלֶךְ הִיא for it was the king's command, saying etc., 1Sam 20:33 (text dubious), Jer 50:15; Jer 50:25; Jer 51:6; Jer 51:11; Mic 2:3, perhaps Job 32:8. p. 241.
7. With the art. הַהוּא, הַהִיא, הָהֵ֫מָּה, הָהֵם, הָהֵ֫נָּה: so regularly when joined to a substantive defined itself by the article: Gen 2:12 הָאָרֶץ הַהִוא that land, Gen 19:35 ובלילה ההוא and in that night, Gen 21:22 בָּעֵת הַהִוא at that time, Deut 1:19 המדבר הגדול והנורא ההוא. Only four times does there occur the anomalous construction בַּלַּיְלָה הוּא Gen 19:33; Gen 30:16; Gen 32:23; 1Sam 19:10.

BDB2188 H1992 H2004 H3860 H3861

BDB2187 | BIBLICAL HEBREW | BDB2189

הֵ֫מָּה and הֵם (without appreciable distinction in usage, except probably in so far as the longer or shorter from was better adapted to the rhythm of particular sentences: on the whole הֵמָּה (alone) is somewhat more frequently than הֵם, הָהֵם on the contrary is said regularly, הָהֵמָּה occurring only 12 t., namely Num 9:7 (P), Jer 14:15; Zech 14:15, and in the phrase בַּ(הַ)מִָים הָהֵמָּה 2Kgs 18:4; Jer 3:16; Jer 3:18; Jer 5:18; Jer 50:4; Joel 3:2; Joel 4:1; Zech 8:23; Neh 13:15, though בַּיָּמִים הָהֵם is much more common) pronoun 3 plural masculine (הֵמָּה used incorrectly for the feminine Zech 5:10; Ruth 1:22; Song 6:8), feminine הֵ֫נָּה [Late Hebrew also הֵן, which occurs however in Biblical Hebrew only after a prefix: see below 8], pronoun 3 plural they (Biblical Aramaic הִמּוֺ, q. v.; , ; Ethiopic (one form) 'em¥n-t¥, em¹n-t¥; compare also for the dissyllabic form, the suffix -œm¥ [feminine -œn]; perhaps also Assyrian suffix šunu, šina [ni], compare references below הוּא). In usage not different in genl. from הוּא, הִיא (which see, under the corresponding headings, for fuller explanations), thus: —

1. a. Gen 6:4; Exod 5:7 הֵם יֵָֽלְכוּ let them (emphatic) go and gather straw, Num 31:16; Isa 24:14; Hos 4:14; Hos 7:3 etc.; after כִּי Jer 5:5; Jer 34:7. (For the use in circumstantial clauses see Dr§ 160, 169.)
  b. Judg 1:22 ויעלו ֗֗֗ גַם הֵם, Deut 2:11 (אַף הֵם), Deut 3:20; Josh 9:4; Ezek 30:17.
  c. Exod 18:22 every small matter יִשְׁפְּטוּהֵֿם let them judge themselves, vExod 18:26; Jer 15:19; Jer 17:18; Ps 109:28; Esth 9:1.
  d. Gen 33:6; Gen 44:3; Judg 6:5 etc.
  e. compare Neh 10:38.

2. a. (Resuming the subject with emphasis) Gen 14:24 (note accents), Deut 1:39; Ps 23:4; Ps 27:2 (accents), Ps 37:9; Ps 107:24; Ezek 36:7; Ezek 44:15.
  b. Isa 30:7; Ezek 27:13; Ezek 27:17; Ezek 27:21 compare Isa 44:11.
  c. Num 14:27 a Jer 27:9; Ezek 43:19 אֲשֶׁר הֵם מִזֶּרַע צָדוֺק, Eccl 4:2; Neh 2:13.
**— הֵמָּה כִּדְוֵי לַחֻמִי Job 6:7 read perhaps ׳וַהֲמָה וגו (or זָָֽהֲמָה) it is loathesome (√ זהס).

3. a. Gen 3:7; Exod 5:8 כִּי נִרְפִּים הֵם for they are idle, Exod 14:3; Exod 15:23; Exod 29:33 etc. (the opposite order rare: Num 11:16; Isa 61:9, compare DePs 94:11).
  b. Gen 34:21; Gen 34:23; Gen 41:26; Gen 48:5 שׁני בניך ֗֗֗ לִי הֵם thy two sons . . ., they are mine, Exod 32:16 + often: Isa 41:22 הָרִאשֹׁנוֺת מָה הֵנָּה, Isa 49:21 אֵלֶּה אֵיפֹה הֵם these — where were they? Zeph 2:12 after אַתֶּם, peculiarly (compare Dr§ 198 Obs. 2).
  c. Deut 20:15 אֲשֶׁר לֹאמֵֿעָרֵי הַגֹּויִם הָאֵלֶּה הֵנָּה, Judg 19:12; 1Kgs 9:20.
  d. 2Kgs 7:10 כַּאֲשֶׁר הֵמָּה. (Prov 19:7 Kt לֹאהֵֿמָּה is probably corrupt: see Commentaries)

4. a. Prov 30:24 אַרְבָּעָה הֵם קְטַנֵּיאָֿ֑רֶץ four things are they, the little ones of the earth, vProv 30:29 (compare before a rel. clause vProv 30:15 vProv 30:18; Prov 6:16) Song 6:8; Isa 51:19 שְׁתַּיִם הֵנָּה קֹרְאֹתַיִךְ, 1Chr 9:26 (see הוא 4 a).
  b. (β) Gen 21:29 מָה הֵנָּה שֶׁבַע ֗֗֗ literally What are they — these seven sheep? Zech 1:9; Zech 4:5. (γ) אֵלֶּה ֗֗֗ הֵם Gen 25:16 (= 1Chr 1:36) Lev 23:2; Num 3:20; Num 3:21; Num 3:27; Num 3:33; 1Sam 4:8; 1Chr 8:6; 1Chr 12:15 (see Dr § 201, 3).

6. a. In a neuter sense (rare), Job 6:7 הֵמָּה כִּדְוֵי לַחמִי they (i.e. such sufferings as mine) are as loathsomeness in my meat, Jer 7:4 ׳הֵיכַל י הֵמָּה they (i.e. these buildings) are the temple of ׳י; and in the feminine, Lev 5:22 of all that a man doeth to sin בָּהֵנָּה therein, 1Chr 21:10 מֵהֵנָּה (|| 2Sam 24:12 מֵהֶם); 2Sam 12:8; Job 23:14 כָּהֵנָּה things such as these.

7. With art. הָהֵם, Gen 6:4; Exod 2:11; Num 14:38 + often; הָהֵמָּה 12 t. (see above); הָהֵנָּה 1Sam 17:28.

[Note]

N.B. — Ezek 8:6 Kt מָהֵם stands for מָה הֵם (so Qr), compare מַזֶּה for מַהזֶּֿה Exod 4:2; 2Kgs 9:18 עַדהֵֿם is irregular for עֲדֵיהֶם; 2Sam 4:6 ׳וְהֵנָּה וג is textual error for ׳וְהִנֵּה שֹׁעֶרֶת הַבַּיִת סֹקְלָה חִטִּים וג see We Dr (ᵐ5 & RVm).

8. With preps. (in lieu of the normal, and more usual, forms with suffixes בָּהֶם, לָהֶם, מֵהֶם etc. [כָּהֶם & כָּהֶן, however, each once only, כְּמוֺהֶם thrice: see כְּ]) —
  a.בָּהֵמָּה Exod 30:4; Exod 36:1 (both P), Hab 1:16 כָּהֵמָּה Jer 36:32 לְהֵמָּה Jer 14:16 מֵהֵמָּה Jer 10:2; Eccl 12:12.
  b. כָּהֵם 2Sam 24:3 Yahweh add to the people כָּהֵם וְכָהֵם מֵאָה פְעָמִים the like of themselves and the like of themselves 100 times, = 1Chr 21:3 (but כָּהֵם here only once, compare Deut 1:11 בָּכֶם), 2Chr 9:11; Eccl 9:12.
  c. בָּהֵנָּה Lev 5:22 (P) Num 13:19 (JE) Jer 5:17: כָּהֵנָּה Gen 41:19; 2Sam 12:8 וְאֹסִפָה לְךָ כָּהֵנָּה וְכָהֵנָּה, Job 23:14: לָהֵנָּה Ezek 1:5; Ezek 1:23 (twice in verse); Ezek 42:9; Zech 5:9: מֵהֵנָּה Lev 4:2 (P) Isa 34:16; Jer 5:6; Ezek 16:51; Ezek 42:5; Ps 34:21; 1Chr 21:10 (|| 2Sam 24:12 מֵהֶם).
  d. בָּהֵן Gen 19:29 (P) Gen 30:26; Gen 30:37; Exod 25:29; Exod 37:16 (both P) Lev 10:1; Lev 11:21; Lev 14:40; Num 10:3; Num 16:7 (all P) Deut 28:52; Jer 4:29; Jer 48:9; Jer 51:43 (twice in verse) (בָּהֶן thrice only); כָּהֵן Ezek 18:14 (editions; Baer כָּהֶן); לָהֵן ( = therefore) Ruth 1:13 (twice in verse) (also Biblical Aramaic); מֵהֵן Ezek 16:47; Ezek 16:52 (editions; Baer מֵהֶן). With the exception of כָּחֵנָּה, these forms are found mostly in P and writers not earlier than Jeremiah; b and d, however, depend solely on the punctuation.)

BDB9475 H1994 H1992

BDB9474 | BIBLICAL ARAMAIC | BDB9476

הִמּוֺ9 (Ezra), הִמּוֺן3 (Daniel), pronoun 3 plural they, them (= Biblical Hebrew הֵם, הֵמָּה, q. v., but the more original forms. Egyptian Aramaic המו CIS145 B 4 (Cooke207),149 A 1, S-CPap. C 7, 10 +; not ᵑ7 Syriac, which use אִנּוּן , , instead; Arabic , . The n in הִמּוֺן, as in דֵּין, אִלֵּין, by the side of זֶה, אֵלֶּה, ; NöM 86 WCG 106); — they, them:
  a. as nominative Ezra 5:11 אֲבַחְנָא הִמּוֺ עַבְדוֺהִי we are his servants (construction as in Syriac, Nö§ 312 D Matt 5:13, K§ 87. 3).
  b. as accusative (in Biblical Aramaic, as in Syriac, there being no verbal suffix of 3 plural; so Egyptian Aramaic Cooke76 B 4, S-CPap. E 5 +), En 2:34 והדקת הִמּוֺ and crushed them, v35; 3:22; Ezra 4:10; Ezra 4:23; Ezra 5:5; Ezra 5:12; Ezra 5:14 (twice in verse); Ezra 5:15; Ezra 7:17. — compare אִנּוּן.

Strong's Definition H1992
they, those, these, them, who, …
hēm
they (only used when emphatic)
  • they, these, the same, who
Variations 31 forms of this word
Translations 115 English renderings
Search every verse
Word Parts
חֲכָמִ֥ים
חֲכָמִ֥ים
Root word wise, men, cunning, mans, man, …
Dictionary form: חָכָם · haw-KAWM
Vowels & Accents
Hebrew Alephbet
Grammar Aampa
Adjective — masculine plural, absolute state plural — usually add "-s"
חֲכָמִים Speech Adjective Type Adjective Gender Masculine Number Plural State Absolute
In English
In the KJV here: wise
wise ×17 of the wise ×16 a wise ×15 the wise ×13 is wise ×7 that are wise ×3 the wise men ×3 and the wise ×2
More options
wise — Modernized KJV core rendering; broadly applicable across contexts.
sage — Elevated register; suits royal courts or honored counselors.
shrewd — Emphasizes practical, street-smart wisdom over moral virtue.
discerning — Highlights perceptive judgment; good for wisdom-literature passages.
skilled — Use when חָכָם denotes technical expertise, e.g. craftsmen.
prudent — Stresses careful forethought; fits proverbial, ethical contexts.
Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)

BDB2735 H2450

BDB2734 | BIBLICAL HEBREW | BDB2736

חָכָם adjective wise, ׳ח Deut 4:6 + 67 t.; construct חֲכַם Isa 3:3 + 9 t.; plural חֲכָמִים Deut 1:13 + 39 t.; construct חַכְמֵי Exod 28:3 + 4 t.; suffix חֲכָמֶיךָ Isa 19:12 etc. + 8 t.; feminine חֲכָמָה 2Sam 14:2; 2Sam 20:16 construct חַכְמַת Exod 35:25 plural חֲכָמוֺת Jer 9:16 construct חַכְמוֺת Judg 5:29; Prov 14:1(but read חָכְמוֺת De) —

1. skilful in technical work; artificers Isa 3:3 sailors Ezek 27:8, so (probably) vEzek 27:9 mourning women Jer 9:16 artisans of tabernacle and temple and their furniture Exod 28:3; Exod 31:6; Exod 35:10; Exod 36:1; Exod 36:2; Exod 36:4; Exod 36:8 (P), 1Chr 22:15; 2Chr 2:6; 2Chr 2:12; 2Chr 2:13 (twice in verse); women in spinning Exod 35:25 (P); goldsmiths and other artisans Jer 10:9 makers of idol-images Isa 40:20.
2. wise in the administration of affairs: Joseph in Egypt Gen 41:33; Gen 41:39 (E); heads of tribes Deut 1:13; Deut 1:15; Judg 16:19 David 2Sam 14:20, of Solomon 1Kgs 2:9; 1Kgs 3:12; 1Kgs 5:21 = 2Chr 2:11 the prince of Tyre, in satire Ezek 28:3 of kings in general Prov 20:26 class of political advisers of Judah Isa 29:14; Jer 18:18, apparently also Isa 5:21 of Egypt Isa 19:11 (twice in verse); Isa 19:12, Edom Obad 1:8, the nations Jer 10:7 so of God Isa 31:2.
3. shrewd, crafty, cunning: Jonadab 2Sam 13:3 the princesses Judg 5:29 אשׁה חכמה wise woman 2Sam 14:2; 2Sam 20:16 generally, Jer 9:22 intelligent animals Prov 30:24 בערמם ׳לכד ח taking the cunning in their craft Job 5:13 חכם בעיני wise in one's own eyes Prov 3:7; Prov 26:5; Prov 26:12; Prov 26:16; Prov 28:11 חכמי לב wise of mind (in their own mind) Job 37:24.
4. plural class of learned and shrewd men, including astrologers, magicians and the like, of Egypt Gen 41:8 (E), Exod 7:11 (P; compare Isa 19:11 (twice in verse); Isa 19:12); Babylon Isa 44:25; Jer 50:35; Jer 51:57 Persia Esth 1:13; Esth 6:13.
5. prudent, towards king Prov 16:14 in controversies Prov 11:29; Prov 29:8; Prov 29:9; Prov 29:11 religious affairs Hos 13:13; Hos 14:10; Jer 4:22; Jer 8:8; Jer 8:9; Deut 4:6; Deut 32:6; Ps 107:43 אישׁ ׳ח Jer 9:11.
6. wise, ethically and religiously,. in Wisdom Literature:
  a. as adjective, חֲכַם לֵב wise of mind Prov 10:8; Prov 16:21 לֵב חָכָם Eccl 8:5 of the son Prov 10:1 = Prov 15:20; Prov 13:1; Prov 23:24; Eccl 2:19 ׳ילד ח Eccl 4:13 wise boy; ׳גבר ח Job 34:34 wise man; ׳מוכיח ח wise reprover Prov 25:12.
  b. = substantive: (1) as a wise learner in school of wisdom, he fears God and departs from evil Prov 14:16 is silent Prov 17:28 hearkens to counsel Prov 12:15 hears and increases in learning Prov 1:5 his ear seeketh knowledge Prov 18:15 he receives it Prov 21:11 and stores it up Prov 10:14 his ears hearken to the reproof which giveth life Prov 15:31 and he becomes wiser through it Prov 9:8; Prov 9:9. (2) as a wise teacher, a sage, he does not answer with windy knowledge Job 15:2 he tells the experience of the past Job 15:48 has knowledge Job 34:2 teaches it Eccl 12:9 disperses it Prov 15:7 his tongue is health Prov 12:18 it utters knowledge aright Prov 15:2 his mind instructs his mouth and adds learning to his lips Prov 16:23 his words are gracious Eccl 10:12 it is good to hear his rebuke Eccl 7:5 his instruction is a fountain of life Prov 13:14 one walking with him becomes wiser Prov 13:20. The חכמים recall the Greek σόφοι, having their schools, pupils (בֵן), discipline (מוּסָר), principles and collections of wisdom, דברי חכמים Prov 1:6; Prov 22:17 (compare Prov 24:23), Eccl 9:17; Eccl 12:11 God himself is חכם לבב Job 9:4. (3) the wise are prosperous: true, in sceptical view of Ecclesiastes, they have no advantage over the fool Eccl 6:8 but die as the fool Eccl 2:16 (twice in verse); Ps 49:11 they will not be able to find the works of God Eccl 8:17 like others are in the hands of God Eccl 9:1 they do not secure bread Eccl 9:11 but elsewhere reverse is true: precious treasure is in his dwelling Prov 21:20 his lips preserve him Prov 14:3 they inherit glory Prov 3:35 wealth is their crown Prov 14:24 the wise man is strong Prov 24:5; Eccl 7:19 his eyes are in his head Eccl 2:14 his mind is at his right hand Eccl 10:2 he interprets things Eccl 8:1 (4) the wise man is a blessing to others: he wins men Prov 11:30 scales the city of the mighty Prov 21:22 though poor he delivers the city Eccl 9:15 is a reproof to scorners Prov 15:12 his mind is in the house of mourning Eccl 7:4 injustice makes him foolish Eccl 7:7 Job finds no wise men among his cruel friends Job 17:10.

BDB9525 H2445 H2450

BDB9524 | BIBLICAL ARAMAIC | BDB9526

[חַכִּים]14 noun masculine wise man (see Biblical Hebrew חכם); — plural absolute חַכִּימִין Dan 2:21 elsewhere of the class possessed of occult learning in Babylonian V:27, emphatic מַיָא- vDan 2:13; Dan 5:15 construct מֵי- Dan 2:12. Dan 12:14 + 7 t. Daniel.

Strong's Definition H2450
wise, men, cunning, mans, man, …
ḥākām
wise, (i.e., intelligent, skilful or artful)
  • wise, wise (man)
    • skilful (in technical work)
      • "wise (in administration)"shrewd, crafty, cunning, wily, subtle"learned, shrewd (class of men)"prudent"wise (ethically and religiously)
Variations 31 forms of this word
Translations 63 English renderings
Search every verse
Word Parts
מְחֻכָּמִֽים
מְחֻכָּמִֽים
Root word wise, wiser, wisely, exceeding, wisdom
Dictionary form: חָכַם · haw-KAHM
Vowels & Accents
Hebrew Alephbet
Grammar VPsmpa
Verb — Pual, Participle Passive, masculine plural, absolute state intensive passive — "it was thoroughly done" a settled state — try "___ed"
מְחֻכָּמִֽים Speech Verb Stem Pual Type Participle Passive Gender Masculine Number Plural State Absolute
In English
In the KJV here: are exceeding
wise ×4 and be wise ×3 be wise ×2 always wise ×1 and maketh us wiser ×1 and wherein i have shewed myself wise ×1 are exceeding ×1 for he was wiser ×1
More options
be wise — Most direct rendering; fits commands and general statements.
grow wise — Emphasizes process or development of wisdom over time.
gain wisdom — Noun-based phrasing; natural in contemporary prose.
become wise — Highlights transformation; good for narrative or result clauses.
act wisely — Foregrounds conduct; suits practical or ethical contexts.
show wisdom — Relational nuance; wisdom demonstrated before others.
Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)

BDB2734 H2449

BDB2733 | BIBLICAL HEBREW | BDB2735

חָכַם verb be wise (Late Hebrew id.; Aramaic , חֲכַם id.; Zinjirli חכמה wisdom, DHMSendsch.57; Assyrian —akâmu, know (with exceptional חֿ see DlPr 178 f.); Arabic restrain from acting in an evil manner, judge, govern; IV.make firm, sound, free from defect by the exercise of skill) —

Qal Perfect ׳ח Prov 23:15 3 feminine singular חָֽכְמָה Zech 9:2 הָכַמְתָּ Prov 9:12 (twice in verse), etc. + 3 t. Perfect; Imperfect יֶחְכַּם Prov 9:9; Prov 21:11 וַיֶּחְכַּם 1Kgs 5:11 יֶחְכָּ֑ם Prov 20:1+; וֶ֯חְכָּ֑ם Prov 13:20 תֶּחְכַּם Prov 19:20 אֶחְכָּ֑מָה Eccl 7:23 plural יֶחְכָּ֑מוּ Job 32:9 Imperative חֲכַם Prov 27:11 חֲכָ֑ם Prov 6:6; Prov 23:19 + Prov 13:20 Kt; חֲכָ֑מוּ Prov 8:33 — be or become wise, act wisely Deut 32:29 (poetry) 1Kgs 5:11; Job 32:9; Prov 6:6; Prov 8:33; Prov 9:9; Prov 9:12 (twice in verse); Prov 13:20; Prov 19:20; Prov 20:1; Prov 21:11; Prov 23:19; Prov 27:11; Eccl 2:15; Eccl 7:23; Zech 9:2 אם חכם לבך if thy mind be wise Prov 23:15 with accusative שׁחכמתי Eccl 2:19 wherein I have acted wisely. Pi`el Imperfect יְחַכֵּם Ps 105:22 suffix יְחַכְּמֵנוּ Job 35:11 תְּחַכְּמֵנִי Ps 119:98 all make wise, teach wisdom, with acc Pu`al Participle made wise, intensive, as it were the embodiment of wisdom חוֺבֵר חֲבָרִים מְחֻכָּם Ps 58:6, plural הֵמָּה חֲכָמִים מְחֻכָּמִים Prov 30:24 (of intelligent animals). Hiph`il Participle construct מַחְכִּימַת פֶּ֑תִי Ps 19:8 making wise the simple. Hithpa`el Imperfect נִתְחַכְּמָה לוֺ Exod 1:10 (E) let us deal wisely (shrewdly) toward it (the people); 2 masculine singular תִּתְחַכַּם Eccl 7:16 make or shew thyself wise.

Strong's Definition H2449
wise, wiser, wisely, exceeding, wisdom
ḥākam
to be wise (in mind, word or act)
  • to be wise
    • (Qal) to be or become wise, act wisely
      • "(Piel) to make wise, teach wisdom, instruct"(Pual) to be made wise"(Hiphil) to make wise"(Hithpael) to show oneself wise, deceive, show one's wisdom
Variations 26 forms of this word
Translations 21 English renderings
Proverbs 30:23
Read Proverbs 30
Proverbs 30:25