הָיָה
to be
also: become, come to pass, exist, happen fuller range ↓
Full lexicon entry — Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
From Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
Where this word appears
See every Qal verb in the Hebrew Bible →
Grammar key — what these labels mean
Part of speech
- Verb
- An action or state-of-being word.
- Adverb
- A word that modifies a verb, adjective, or other adverb.
Stem
- Qal
- The basic, simple active stem — the plain form of the verb (“he wrote”). Here: ‘occur’
- Niphal
- Usually the simple passive or reflexive of the Qal (“he was written”). Here: ‘became c.’
Form
- Sequential Imperfect
- An imperfect with prefixed waw — the standard past-narrative form (waw-consecutive imperfect).
- Imperfect
- An incomplete, ongoing, or future action (“he will / would write”).
- Sequential Perfect
- A perfect with prefixed waw continuing a preceding imperfect or command (waw-consecutive perfect).
- Perfect
- A completed action or state — Hebrew marks aspect (completeness) more than strict tense (“he wrote”).
- Infinitive Construct
- A bound verbal noun, frequently with prepositions (“to write / in writing”).
- Jussive
- A third- or second-person volitional form expressing wish or command (“let him write”).
- Imperative
- A direct command (“write!”).
- Infinitive Absolute
- An unbound verbal noun, often intensifying or standing in for a finite verb.
- Participle Active
- A verbal adjective expressing ongoing or characteristic action (“writing / one who writes”).
State
- Absolute
- The independent form of a noun, not bound to a following word.
Person
- 3rd Person
- The one spoken about (“he / she / it / they”).
- 1st Person
- The speaker (“I / we”).
- 2nd Person
- The one addressed (“you”).
Gender
- Masculine
- Grammatically masculine.
- Common
- Either gender — not distinguished for this form.
- Feminine
- Grammatically feminine.
Number
- Singular
- One.
- Plural
- More than one (in Hebrew, generally three or more).
Page 2 of 2 — showing verses 201–282 of 282 distinct verses where H1961 appears in the Qal stem in the Book of Ezekiel. Filtered view — show all forms. Click any verse to open its interlinear word-by-word view. Verse text shown in the World English Bible for context — . Each verse’s Hebrew form is shown with its reference; the English is not keyword-highlighted, since the data carries no word-level English alignment. Use “Compare translations” on any verse to read it across multiple English versions. This concordance covers the Hebrew Bible; Septuagint (Greek Old Testament) occurrences are not indexed here.
Ezekiel
- Ezekiel 36:3 לִֽ/הְיוֹתְ/כֶ֤ם prep + Qal inf.cs + sfx pers 2mp therefore prophesy, and say, Thus says the Lord Yahweh: Because, even because they have made you desolate, and swallowed you up on every side, that you might be a possession to the residue of the nations, and you are taken up in the lips of talkers, and the evil report of the people;
- Ezekiel 36:4 הָי֤וּ Qal pf 3cp therefore, you mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord Yahweh: Thus says the Lord Yahweh to the mountains and to the hills, to the watercourses and to the valleys, to the desolate wastes and to the cities that are forsaken, which are become a prey and derision to the residue of the nations that are round about;
- Ezekiel 36:12 וְ/הָיִ֥יתָ conj + Qal wpf 2ms Yes, I will cause men to walk on you, even my people Israel; and they shall possess you, and you shall be their inheritance, and you shall no more henceforth bereave them of children.
- Ezekiel 36:13 הָיִֽית Qal pf 2fs Thus says the Lord Yahweh: Because they say to you, You [land] are a devourer of men, and have been a bereaver of your nation;
- Ezekiel 36:16 וַ/יְהִ֥י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Moreover the word of Yahweh came to me, saying,
- Ezekiel 36:17 הָיְתָ֥ה Qal pf 3fs Son of man, when the house of Israel lived in their own land, they defiled it by their way and by their doings: their way before me was as the uncleanness of a woman in her impurity.
- Ezekiel 36:28 וִ/הְיִ֤יתֶם אֶהְיֶ֥ה conj + Qal wpf 2mp Qal impf 1cs You shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and you shall be my people, and I will be your God.
- Ezekiel 36:34 הָיְתָ֣ה Qal pf 3fs The land that was desolate shall be tilled, whereas it was a desolation in the sight of all who passed by.
- Ezekiel 36:35 הָיְתָ֖ה Qal pf 3fs They shall say, This land that was desolate is become like the garden of Eden; and the waste and desolate and ruined cities are fortified and inhabited.
- Ezekiel 36:38 תִּהְיֶ֨ינָה֙ Qal impf 3fp As the flock for sacrifice, as the flock of Jerusalem in her appointed feasts, so shall the waste cities be filled with flocks of men; and they shall know that I am Yahweh.
- Ezekiel 37:1 הָיְתָ֣ה Qal pf 3fs The hand of Yahweh was on me, and he brought me out in the Spirit of Yahweh, and set me down in the midst of the valley; and it was full of bones.
- Ezekiel 37:7 וַֽ/יְהִי conj + Qal wimpf 3ms So I prophesied as I was commanded: and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and, behold, an earthquake; and the bones came together, bone to its bone.
- Ezekiel 37:15 וַ/יְהִ֥י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms The word of Yahweh came again to me, saying,
- Ezekiel 37:17 וְ/הָי֥וּ conj + Qal wpf 3cp and join them for you one to another into one stick, that they may become one in your hand.
- Ezekiel 37:19 וְ/הָי֥וּ conj + Qal wpf 3cp tell them, Thus says the Lord Yahweh: Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his companions; and I will put them with it, [even] with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in my hand.
- Ezekiel 37:20 וְ/הָי֨וּ conj + Qal wpf 3cp The sticks whereon you write shall be in your hand before their eyes.
- Ezekiel 37:22 יִֽהְיֶ֥ה יהיה יִֽהְיוּ עוֹד֙ Qal impf 3ms Qal impf 3ms Qal impf 3mp adv and I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all; and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all;
- Ezekiel 37:23 וְ/הָיוּ אֶהְיֶ֥ה conj + Qal wpf 3cp Qal impf 1cs neither shall they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions; but I will save them out of all their dwelling-places, in which they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their God.
- Ezekiel 37:24 יִהְיֶ֣ה Qal impf 3ms My servant David shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my ordinances, and observe my statutes, and do them.
- Ezekiel 37:26 יִהְיֶ֣ה Qal impf 3ms Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them; and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them forevermore.
- Ezekiel 37:27 וְ/הָיָ֤ה וְ/הָיִ֥יתִי יִֽהְיוּ conj + Qal wpf 3ms conj + Qal wpf 1cs Qal impf 3mp My tent also shall be with them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
- Ezekiel 37:28 בִּ/הְי֧וֹת prep + Qal inf.cs The nations shall know that I am Yahweh who sanctifies Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them forevermore.
- Ezekiel 38:1 וַ/יְהִ֥י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms The word of Yahweh came to me, saying,
- Ezekiel 38:7 וְ/הָיִ֥יתָ conj + Qal wpf 2ms Be prepared, yes, prepare yourself, you, and all your companies who are assembled to you, and be a guard to them.
- Ezekiel 38:8 הָי֥וּ Qal pf 3cp After many days you shall be visited: in the latter years you shall come into the land that is brought back from the sword, that is gathered out of many peoples, on the mountains of Israel, which have been a continual waste; but it is brought forth out of the peoples, and they shall dwell securely, all of them.
- Ezekiel 38:9 תִּֽהְיֶ֑ה Qal impf 2ms You shall ascend, you shall come like a storm, you shall be like a cloud to cover the land, you, and all your hordes, and many peoples with you.
- Ezekiel 38:10 וְ/הָיָ֣ה conj + Qal wpf 3ms Thus says the Lord Yahweh: It shall happen in that day, that things shall come into your mind, and you shall devise an evil device:
- Ezekiel 38:16 תִּֽהְיֶ֗ה Qal impf 3fs and you shall come up against my people Israel, as a cloud to cover the land: it shall happen in the latter days, that I will bring you against my land, that the nations may know me, when I shall be sanctified in you, Gog, before their eyes.
- Ezekiel 38:18 וְ/הָיָ֣ה conj + Qal wpf 3ms It shall happen in that day, when Gog shall come against the land of Israel, says the Lord Yahweh, that my wrath shall come up into my nostrils.
- Ezekiel 38:19 יִֽהְיֶה֙ Qal impf 3ms For in my jealousy and in the fire of my wrath have I spoken, Surely in that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel;
- Ezekiel 38:21 תִּֽהְיֶֽה Qal impf 3fs I will call for a sword against him to all my mountains, says the Lord Yahweh: every man's sword shall be against his brother.
- Ezekiel 39:11 וְ/הָיָ֣ה conj + Qal wpf 3ms It shall happen in that day, that I will give to Gog a place for burial in Israel, the valley of those who pass through on the east of the sea; and it shall stop those who pass through: and there shall they bury Gog and all his multitude; and they shall call it The valley of Hamon Gog.
- Ezekiel 39:13 וְ/הָיָ֥ה conj + Qal wpf 3ms Yes, all the people of the land shall bury them; and it shall be to them a renown in the day that I shall be glorified, says the Lord Yahweh.
- Ezekiel 40:1 הָיְתָ֤ה Qal pf 3fs In the five and twentieth year of our captivity, in the beginning of the year, in the tenth [day] of the month, in the fourteenth year after that the city was struck, in the same day, the hand of Yahweh was on me, and he brought me there.
- Ezekiel 40:21 הָיָ֔ה Qal pf 3ms The lodges of it were three on this side and three on that side; and the posts of it and the arches of it were after the measure of the first gate: the length of it was fifty cubits, and the breadth twenty-five cubits.
- Ezekiel 41:6 לִ/הְי֣וֹת יִהְי֥וּ prep + Qal inf.cs Qal impf 3mp The side-chambers were in three stories, one over another, and thirty in order; and they entered into the wall which belonged to the house for the side-chambers round about, that they might have hold [therein], and not have hold in the wall of the house.
- Ezekiel 43:6 הָיָ֥ה Qal pf 3ms I heard one speaking to me out of the house; and a man stood by me.
- Ezekiel 43:27 וְ/הָיָה֩ conj + Qal wpf 3ms When they have accomplished the days, it shall be that on the eighth day, and forward, the priests shall make your burnt offerings on the altar, and your peace-offerings; and I will accept you, says the Lord Yahweh.
- Ezekiel 44:2 יִהְיֶ֜ה וְ/הָיָ֖ה Qal impf 3ms conj + Qal wpf 3ms Yahweh said to me, This gate shall be shut; it shall not be opened, neither shall any man enter in by it; for Yahweh, the God of Israel, has entered in by it; therefore it shall be shut.
- Ezekiel 44:7 לִ/הְי֥וֹת prep + Qal inf.cs in that you have brought in foreigners, uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, to be in my sanctuary, to profane it, even my house, when you offer my bread, the fat and the blood, and they have broken my covenant, [to add] to all your abominations.
- Ezekiel 44:11 וְ/הָי֤וּ conj + Qal wpf 3cp Yet they shall be ministers in my sanctuary, having oversight at the gates of the house, and ministering in the house: they shall kill the burnt offering and the sacrifice for the people, and they shall stand before them to minister to them.
- Ezekiel 44:12 וְ/הָי֥וּ conj + Qal wpf 3cp Because they ministered to them before their idols, and became a stumbling block of iniquity to the house of Israel; therefore have I lifted up my hand against them, says the Lord Yahweh, and they shall bear their iniquity.
- Ezekiel 44:17 וְ/הָיָ֗ה conj + Qal wpf 3ms It shall be that, when they enter in at the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed with linen garments; and no wool shall come on them, while they minister in the gates of the inner court, and within.
- Ezekiel 44:18 יִהְי֣וּ יִהְי֖וּ Qal impf 3mp Qal impf 3mp They shall have linen tires on their heads, and shall have linen breeches on their loins; they shall not gird themselves with [anything that causes] sweat.
- Ezekiel 44:22 תִּֽהְיֶ֣ה Qal impf 3fs Neither shall they take for their wives a widow, nor her who is put away; but they shall take virgins of the seed of the house of Israel, or a widow who is the widow of a priest.
- Ezekiel 44:25 הָיְתָ֥ה Qal pf 3fs They shall go in to no dead person to defile themselves; but for father, or for mother, or for son, or for daughter, for brother, or for sister who has had no husband, they may defile themselves.
- Ezekiel 44:28 וְ/הָיְתָ֤ה conj + Qal wpf 3fs They shall have an inheritance: I am their inheritance; and you shall give them no possession in Israel; I am their possession.
- Ezekiel 44:29 יִהְיֶֽה Qal impf 3ms They shall eat the meal-offering, and the sin-offering, and the trespass-offering; and every devoted thing in Israel shall be theirs.
- Ezekiel 44:30 יִֽהְיֶ֑ה Qal impf 3ms The first of all the first fruits of every thing, and every offering of everything, of all your offerings, shall be for the priest: you shall also give to the priests the first of your dough, to cause a blessing to rest on your house.
- Ezekiel 45:2 יִהְיֶ֤ה Qal impf 3ms Of this there shall be for the holy place five hundred [in length] by five hundred [in breadth], square round about; and fifty cubits for the suburbs of it round about.
- Ezekiel 45:3 יִהְיֶ֥ה Qal impf 3ms Of this measure shall you measure a length of twenty-five thousand, and a breadth of ten thousand: and in it shall be the sanctuary, which is most holy.
- Ezekiel 45:4 יִֽהְיֶ֔ה וְ/הָיָ֨ה Qal impf 3ms conj + Qal wpf 3ms It is a holy portion of the land; it shall be for the priests, the ministers of the sanctuary, who come near to minister to Yahweh; and it shall be a place for their houses, and a holy place for the sanctuary.
- Ezekiel 45:5 יהיה וְֽ/הָיָ֡ה Qal impf 3ms conj + Qal wpf 3ms Twenty-five thousand in length, and ten thousand in breadth, shall be to the Levites, the ministers of the house, for a possession to themselves, [for] twenty chambers.
- Ezekiel 45:6 יִהְיֶֽה Qal impf 3ms You shall appoint the possession of the city five thousand broad, and twenty-five thousand long, side by side with the offering of the holy portion: it shall be for the whole house of Israel.
- Ezekiel 45:8 יִֽהְיֶה Qal impf 3ms In the land it shall be to him for a possession in Israel: and my princes shall no more oppress my people; but they shall give the land to the house of Israel according to their tribes.
- Ezekiel 45:10 יְהִ֥י Qal juss 3ms You shall have just balances, and a just ephah, and a just bath.
- Ezekiel 45:11 יִֽהְיֶ֔ה יִהְיֶ֥ה Qal impf 3ms Qal impf 3ms The ephah and the bath shall be of one measure, that the bath may contain the tenth part of a homer, and the ephah the tenth part of a homer: the measure of it shall be after the homer.
- Ezekiel 45:12 יִֽהְיֶ֥ה Qal impf 3ms The shekel shall be twenty gerahs. Twenty shekels plus twenty-five shekels plus fifteen shekels shall be your mina.
- Ezekiel 45:16 יִהְי֖וּ Qal impf 3mp All the people of the land shall give to this offering for the prince in Israel.
- Ezekiel 45:17 יִהְיֶ֗ה Qal impf 3ms It shall be the prince's part to give the burnt offerings, and the meal-offerings, and the drink-offerings, in the feasts, and on the new moons, and on the Sabbaths, in all the appointed feasts of the house of Israel: he shall prepare the sin-offering, and the meal-offering, and the burnt offering, and the peace-offerings, to make atonement for the house of Israel.
- Ezekiel 45:21 יִהְיֶ֥ה Qal impf 3ms In the first [month], in the fourteenth day of the month, you shall have the Passover, a feast of seven days; unleavened bread shall be eaten.
- Ezekiel 46:1 יִהְיֶ֣ה Qal impf 3ms Thus says the Lord Yahweh: The gate of the inner court that looks toward the east shall be shut the six working days; but on the Sabbath day it shall be opened, and on the day of the new moon it shall be opened.
- Ezekiel 46:6 יִהְיֽוּ Qal impf 3mp On the day of the new moon it shall be a young bull without blemish, and six lambs, and a ram; they shall be without blemish:
- Ezekiel 46:11 תִּהְיֶ֤ה Qal impf 3fs In the feasts and in the solemnities the meal-offering shall be an ephah for a bull, and an ephah for a ram, and for the lambs as he is able to give, and a hin of oil to an ephah.
- Ezekiel 46:16 תִּֽהְיֶ֑ה Qal impf 3fs Thus says the Lord Yahweh: If the prince give a gift to any of his sons, it is his inheritance, it shall belong to his sons; it is their possession by inheritance.
- Ezekiel 46:17 וְ/הָ֤יְתָה תִּהְיֶֽה conj + Qal wpf 3fs Qal impf 3fs But if he give of his inheritance a gift to one of his servants, it shall be his to the year of liberty; then it shall return to the prince; but as for his inheritance, it shall be for his sons.
- Ezekiel 47:9 וְ/הָיָ֣ה וְ/הָיָ֥ה conj + Qal wpf 3ms conj + Qal wpf 3ms It shall happen, that every living creature which swarms, in every place where the rivers come, shall live; and there shall be a very great multitude of fish; for these waters are come there, and [the waters of the sea] shall be healed, and everything shall live wherever the river comes.
- Ezekiel 47:10 וְ/הָיָה֩ יִהְי֑וּ תִּהְיֶ֣ה conj + Qal wpf 3ms Qal impf 3mp Qal impf 3fs It shall happen, that fishermen shall stand by it: from En Gedi even to En Eglaim shall be a place for the spreading of nets; their fish shall be after their kinds, as the fish of the great sea, exceeding many.
- Ezekiel 47:12 ו/היו וְ/הָיָ֤ה conj + Qal wpf 3cp conj + Qal wpf 3cp By the river on the bank of it, on this side and on that side, shall grow every tree for food, whose leaf shall not wither, neither shall the fruit of it fail: it shall bring forth new fruit every month, because the waters of it issue out of the sanctuary; and the fruit of it shall be for food, and the leaf of it for healing.
- Ezekiel 47:17 וְ/הָיָ֨ה conj + Qal wpf 3ms The border from the sea, shall be Hazar Enon at the border of Damascus; and on the north northward is the border of Hamath. This is the north side.
- Ezekiel 47:22 וְ/הָיָ֗ה וְ/הָי֣וּ conj + Qal wpf 3ms conj + Qal wpf 3cp It shall happen, that you shall divide it by lot for an inheritance to you and to the strangers who sojourn among you, who shall father children among you; and they shall be to you as the home-born among the children of Israel; they shall have inheritance with you among the tribes of Israel.
- Ezekiel 47:23 וְ/הָיָ֣ה conj + Qal wpf 3ms It shall happen, that in what tribe the stranger sojourns, there shall you give him his inheritance, says the Lord Yahweh.
- Ezekiel 48:1 וְ/הָיוּ conj + Qal wpf 3cp Now these are the names of the tribes: From the north end, beside the way of Hethlon to the entrance of Hamath, Hazar Enan at the border of Damascus, northward beside Hamath, (and they shall have their sides east [and] west), Dan, one [portion].
- Ezekiel 48:8 תִּהְיֶ֣ה וְ/הָיָ֥ה Qal impf 3fs conj + Qal wpf 3ms By the border of Judah, from the east side to the west side, shall be the offering which you shall offer, twenty-five thousand [reeds] in breadth, and in length as one of the portions, from the east side to the west side: and the sanctuary shall be in the midst of it.
- Ezekiel 48:10 תִּהְיֶ֣ה וְ/הָיָ֥ה Qal impf 3fs conj + Qal wpf 3ms For these, even for the priests, shall be the holy offering: toward the north twenty-five thousand [in length], and toward the west ten thousand in breadth, and toward the east ten thousand in breadth, and toward the south twenty-five thousand in length: and the sanctuary of Yahweh shall be in the midst of it.
- Ezekiel 48:12 וְ/הָיְתָ֨ה conj + Qal wpf 3fs It shall be to them an offering from the offering of the land, a thing most holy, by the border of the Levites.
- Ezekiel 48:15 וְ/הָיְתָ֥ה conj + Qal wpf 3fs The five thousand that are left in the breadth, in front of the twenty-five thousand, shall be for common use, for the city, for dwelling and for suburbs; and the city shall be in the midst of it.
- Ezekiel 48:17 וְ/הָיָ֣ה conj + Qal wpf 3ms The city shall have suburbs: toward the north two hundred fifty, and toward the south two hundred fifty, and toward the east two hundred fifty, and toward the west two hundred fifty.
- Ezekiel 48:18 וְ/הָיָ֕ה וְ/הָיְתָ֤ה conj + Qal wpf 3ms conj + Qal wpf 3fs The remainder in the length, answerable to the holy offering, shall be ten thousand eastward, and ten thousand westward; and it shall be answerable to the holy offering; and the increase of it shall be for food to those who labor in the city.
- Ezekiel 48:21 וְ/הָֽיְתָה֙ conj + Qal wpf 3fs The residue shall be for the prince, on the one side and on the other of the holy offering and of the possession of the city; in front of the twenty-five thousand of the offering toward the east border, and westward in front of the twenty-five thousand toward the west border, answerable to the portions, it shall be for the prince: and the holy offering and the sanctuary of the house shall be in the midst of it.
- Ezekiel 48:22 יִֽהְיֶ֑ה יִהְיֶֽה Qal impf 3ms Qal impf 3ms Moreover from the possession of the Levites, and from the possession of the city, being in the midst of that which is the prince's, between the border of Judah and the border of Benjamin, it shall be for the prince.
- Ezekiel 48:28 וְ/הָיָ֨ה conj + Qal wpf 3ms By the border of Gad, at the south side southward, the border shall be even from Tamar to the waters of Meribath Kadesh, to the brook [of Egypt], to the great sea.
About this entry
At a glance — auto-summarized from this page’s data, not written by a person. Every figure links to its source below. This summary describes the numbers; it doesn’t interpret them.
היה (hâyâh) is a Hebrew verb most often rendered “to be.” Older and newer Bibles part ways — “shall be” in the King James Version, “will be” (Berean Standard Bible) and “was” (unfoldingWord Literal Text) in modern versions. See the renderings breakdown. It turns up in 3,130 verses across 39 books, one of the most common footprint. Scripture first uses it in Genesis 1:2. Read the stem: it spans 2 stems, including Qal and Niphal. The sections below give every sense, occurrence, and version rendering.
Gloss history
Strong's 1890 vs modern scholarship
About this word
Strong's H1961 catalogs a Hebrew word from the Hebrew Old Testament.
These counts are not copied from any lexicon or concordance. They are computed here, from the morphology-tagged Hebrew Old Testament. What Lemma adds →
- 3,130
- distinct verses
- The word appears in 3,130 distinct verses.
- 39 / 39
- OT books
- The word appears in 39 of 39 Old Testament books.
- #11
- by frequency
- Top 25 most frequent Hebrew words (rank 11 of 8,640 Hebrew words by occurrence).
View all 3,130 occurrences in the concordance →
By section of the Old Testament
By traditional corpus
Conventional, traditional groupings — biblical authorship is debated, so this is a traditional corpus grouping, not an authorship claim. Each share is this word’s portion of its verses in that division of the Hebrew canon. Each figure is a share of the word’s 3,130 distinct verses.
- Prophets (Nevi'im) 1,662 verses · 53%
- Torah (Pentateuch) 919 verses · 29%
- Writings (Ketuvim) 549 verses · 18%
How translations render this word
Counts come from each version’s own published word-to-Strong’s tagging or interlinear alignment — an approximate guide to how each version renders this word, not a word-level alignment the data otherwise carries. Because each total is that version’s own tagged count, the per-version totals vary from one another and need not match the appearance or distinct-verse counts above. These counts may also differ from a printed concordance because Lemma counts each distinctly tagged rendering and does not collapse phrase taggings into a single head-word total. This is a fixed set of word-tagged versions (KJV, ASV, BSB, ULT) and does not change with the reading translation you choose elsewhere. Each version’s license is shown beside its name below (and on Sources).
- King James Version: Shall be 8×, Be 5×, Was 4×
- American Standard Version: Be 7×, Shall be 4×, Was 4×
- Berean Standard Bible: Will be 265×, Was 236×, Came 159×
- unfoldingWord Literal Text: Was 497×, Will be 433×, And 354×
King James Version Public Domain
Renders H1961 across 76 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus 44 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
American Standard Version Public Domain
Renders H1961 across 76 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus 45 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
Berean Standard Bible Public Domain
Renders H1961 across 2,843 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 474 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings. Not rendered by a distinct English word in 693 further occurrences.
unfoldingWord Literal Text CC BY-SA 4.0
Renders H1961 across 4,104 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus other, less common renderings. Plus 160 renderings that appear only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
34 senses and sub-senses in the full BDB
Hebrew verbs can shift meaning by stem (binyan): Qal is the basic action, Niphal is often passive or reflexive, Piel often intensifies or makes it factitive, and Hiphil is typically causative. The senses below are grouped under the stem BDB assigns to each.
What do BDB’s symbols mean?
BDB uses these scholarly abbreviations:
| Symbol | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 𝔊 | the Septuagint (the ancient Greek translation, LXX) |
| 𝔙 | the Vulgate (the Latin translation) |
| 𝔖 | the Syriac version (the Peshitta) |
| 𝔗 | the Targum (the Aramaic translation) |
| ψ | the Psalms |
| √ | root (the underlying root or stem) |
| ‖ | parallel passage (a synonymous or contrasted parallel) |
| † | the dagger: every passage where the word occurs is cited |
The 34 senses and sub-senses the full Brown-Driver-Briggs lexicon distinguishes for this word, in lexicon order (not ranked by frequency), with BDB’s own verbatim wording and sub-sense lettering. Shown in Hebrew script with BDB’s own scholarly abbreviations. The condensed entry is in the Lexicon Entry tab. See also the Forms in the corpus table below.
Qal
- Pf. 3 ms. הָיָה Gn 3:1 +; וְהָיָה consec. Gn 4:14 +; 3 fs. הָֽיְתָה Gn 1:2 +; הָיָתָ֑ה Is 14:24 + 3 times; וְהָֽיְתָה consec. Gn 9:13 +; והית 2 K 9:37 Kt (Qr וְהָיְתָה); 2 ms. הָיִיתָ Dt 5:15 +; 1 s. הָיִיתִי Gn 31:40; 3 pl. הָיוּ Gn 6:4 +; 2 mpl. הֱיִיתֶם Ex 22:20 +; וִהְיִיתֶם consec. Gn 3:5 +; 1 pl. הָיִינוּ Is 1:9 +; etc.; Impf. 3 ms. יִהְיֶה Gn 1:29 +; juss. יְהִי Gn 1:3 +; יֶהִ֑י Ez 16:15; וִיהִי Gn 1:6 +; וַיְהִי Gn 1:3 +; וַיֶּהִ֑י ψ 33:9 Ez 16:19; 3 fs. תִּהְיֶה Gn 21:30 +; 1 s. אֶהְיֶה Ex 3:12 +; וָאֶהְיֶה 2 S 7:6 + 9 times; וָאֱהִי Ju 18:4 + 12 times; 3 mpl. יִהְיוּ Gn 6:19 +; 3 fpl. תִּהְיֶינָה Is 16:2 + 19 times; תִּהְיֶיןָ Gn 41:36 + 11 times; וְתִהְיֶנָה Je 18:21; 48:6; וַתִּהְיֶינָה 2 S 20:3 + 6 times; וַתִּהְיֶיןָ Gn 26:35; 1 S 25:43; וַתִּהְיֶנָה 1 Ch 7:15; 2 mpl. תִּהְיוּ Gn 34:15 +; תִּהְיוּן Ex 22:20; 1 pl. נִהְיֶה Gn 38:23 +; וַנִּהְיֶה 2 S 11:23; Je 44:17; וַנְּהִי Nu 13:33; Is 64:5, etc.; Imv. ms. הֱיֵה Ex 18:19 +; fs. הֲיִי Gn 24:60; mpl. הֱיוּ Ex 19:15; Nu 16:16, וִהְיוּ 1 S 4:9 + 6 times; Inf. abs. הָיוֹ Gn 18:18 + 3 times; הָיֹה 1 K 13:32 Ez 1:3; cstr. הֱיוֹת Gn 2:18 +, so read prob. also for הֱיֵה Ez 21:15 cf. Sm Köi p. 600 f. (Co em. היה־לה to הָהֵל shine, glitter); with pref. בִּהְיוֹת Ex 5:13 +, בִּהְיֹת Ex 19:16 +; לִהְיוֹת Gn 10:8 +, לִהְיֹת Ex 23:1 +; sf. הֱיוֹתִי Jon 4:2; הֱיוֹתְךָ Ju 18:19(×2); לִהְיֹתְךָ Dt 26:19, etc.; Pt. f. הוֹיָה Ex 9:3. e.g. Genesis 3:1
- I.
- 1.
- a. Fall out, happen מֶה־הָיָה הַדָּבָר 1 S 4:16 how has the matter fallen out, (gone, turned out)? so 2 S 1:4; מֶה־הָיָה לוֹ Ex 32:1, 23 (both JE) what has happened to him? cf. 1 S 10:12; מִקְרֶה הוּא הָיָה לָנוּ 1 S 6:9 a chance it is that has befallen us; also וַיְהִי־לוֹ כֵּן 2 K 7:20 and so it happened to him, cf. וַיְהִי־כֵן infr. e.g. 1 Samuel 4:16
- b. occur, take place, come about, come to pass:—מַגֵּפָה גְדוֹלָה הָֽיְתָה בָּעָם 1 S 4:17 a great slaughter has taken place among the people, cf. 2 S 17:9; הַמִּלְחָמָה בְּיַעַר אֶפְרַיִם וַתְּהִי 2 S 18:6 and the battle took place in the wood of Ephraim (on אפרים cf. Klo Dr); Jos 22:17 (P; of plague); תְּהִי נָא אָלָה Gn 26:28 (J) let an oath take place (be taken) so Ju 21:5; cf. 2 K 17:7 (si vera l.), Ez 16:34; especially late, 2 Ch 29:36; 32:31; Ec 1:9, 10; 3:22; 8:7; 10:14 etc.; often of fulfilment of prediction, command, expectation, etc.:—כֵּן הָיָה Gn 41:3 (E) so it came to pass, 2 S 13:25, וַיְהִי־כֵן Ju 6:38 2 K 15:12 Is 29:5, & especially וַיְהִי־כֵן Gn 1:7, 9, 11, 15, 24, 30 (all P) +; יְהִי כִדְבָרֶ֑ךָ Gn 30:34 let it be as thou sayest, Zc 6:15, v. also לֹא תָקוּם וְלֹא יִהְיֶה Is 7:7 it shall not arise (be realized) & shall not come about, 14:24; (so often בּוֹא q.v. 2 c, p. 98 supr.) e.g. 1 Samuel 4:17
- 2. especially & very often, come about, come to pass sq. substantive (subj.) cl. almost always + modifying (usually temporal) cl. or phr.:
- a. (1) וַיְהִי and it came to pass that, most often (c. 292 times) foll. by (a) Impf. consec.: α. with Inf. c. כְּ temp. Gn 12:14; 19:17 (both J) + 75 times + Est 3:4 Qr (Hex chiefly J,—so always Gn,—& JE; P only Ex 16:10, D only Dt 5:20; 31:24 Jos 5:1; 9:1; 27 times in K),—somewhat diff. is 2 K 7:18; β. with Inf. c. בְּ Gn 4:8; 11:2 (both J) + 29 times + Est 3:4 Kt (in Hex 10 times JE; 3 times P, Gn 19:29; Ex 34:29; Nu 17:7; not in D); γ. with בְּ sq. nom. temp. (יוֹם, בֹּקֶר, etc.) Gn 21:22 (E) 26:32 (J) + 45 times (Hex 14 times JE; 3 times P, Ex 6:28; 16:13 Nu 7:1; not D); δ. לְ temp. 1 S 1:20; 2 S 13:23; 1 K 20:26; 1 Ch 20:1; ε. כְּ temp. Gn 39:11 1 S 25:38; ζ. מִן temp. viz.: מֵאָז Gn 39:5, מִיּוֹם 1 S 7:2 cf. 30:25, מִיָּמִים Ju 11:4; 15:1, מִקֵּץ Gn 4:3; 8:6 + 6 times, מִקְצֵה Jos 3:2 2 K 8:3 Ez 3:16, especially מִמָּחֳרָת Gn 19:34 Ex 18:13 + 11 times; η. כַּאֲשֶׁר temp. Gn 12:11 (J) 20:13 (E) + 31 times (Hex 13 times JE, Dt 2:16, not P), characteristic of Neh.’s memoirs, †Ne 3:33; 4:1, 6, 9; 6:1, 16; 7:1; 13:19; θ. with כִּי temp. Gn 6:1 (J) Ex 3:21 (E) + 14 times + Ju 16:25 Kt; ι. אַחֲרֵי temp. Gn 22:20 (J) + 13 times, אַחַר Gn 39:7 Jb 42:7, אַחֲרֵי־כֵן Ju 16:4 + 6 times; κ. sq. עַד temp. 1 S 14:19 (on which cf. Dr); comp. עַד־כֹּה וְעַד־כֹּה 1 K 18:45; λ. with combinations; as בְּ c. nom. temp. + בְּ Inf. Gn 34:25 Ex 19:16 1 S 25:37; בְּ Inf. + כְּ Inf. Jos 3:14; double prep. כְּמִשְּׁלשׁ חֳדָשִׁים Gn 38:24; מִקְצֵה + אַחֲרֵי אֲשֶׁר Jos 9:16; מִיָּמִים + id. 23:1; μ. other unusual constructions under this head are: those where temporal idea is expr. by a circumst. cl. Is 22:7 1 K 13:20 2 K 8:21 (Dr§ 165, & Obs.) = 2 Ch 21:9; those with indef. כֹּל 1 S 10:11; 2 S 2:23; 15:2, or with pt. = rel. cl. 1 S 11:1 (on all v. Dr§ 78 n. & Sm); quite unique is 1 K 16:31, with הֲנָקֵל לֶכְתּוֹ וגו׳ in place of temp. cl. (b) וַיְהִי sometimes sq. simple Pf., with a negative Gn 39:10 (c. כְּ Inf.), Ex 13:17 (c. בְּ Inf.) 2 K 12:7; 17:25 (both c. בְּ temp.); & without neg., Gn 8:13 (P) 14:1 +, usually c. בְּ temp. (38 times), Hex chiefly P; rarely c. other prep. & adv. as above; note especially מִדֵּי sq. Inf. 1 S 18:20 2 Ch 12:11; sometimes the subj. of foll. Pf. precedes it c. וְ, as Gn 22:1; 41:1; 1 S 18:19; 30:1; 2 K 2:9; 4:40 +; note especially 2 S 17:27 where several subj. & also several objects precede the Pf. (cf. Dr); in these cases the temporal modifier is occasionally a circumst. cl. 2 S 13:30; 1 K 8:10; 2 K 19:37 = Is 37:38; rarely subj. precedes Pf. without וְ 1 K 11:4; 21:1, comp. subj. preceding Pt. without וְ Ne 4:10; in 2 Ch 8:1 the obj. (with וְ) precedes what is appar. the principal vb. (c) וַיְהִי sq. וְהִנֵּה Gn 24:15 (J; טֶרֶם in temp. cl.), 29:25 (E), 38:27 (J, both בְּ temp.) v 29 (כְּ Pt.), 1 S 13:10 (כְּ Inf.); also 2 S 1:2; 13:36; 15:32 (circumst. cl.) 2 K 2:11 (id.), 3:20, 13:21 (circumst. cl.). (d) rarely וַיְהִי (in this sense) sq. other constructions: אָז יִתֵּן 1 K 9:10 (c. מִקְצֵה); Impf. frequentat. 14:28 (c. מִדֵּי־בֹּא, 2 K 4:8 (c. מִדֵּי עָבְרוֹ) Je 36:23 (c. כְּ Inf.); Pf. consec. frequentat. 2 Ch 24:11 (c. בְּ temp.). (2) really also Pf. c. וְ conj. וְהָיָה (cf. Dr§ 133) sq. Impf. consec. as subj. cl.: 1 S 1:12 (c. several circumst. cl.), 10:9 (c. כְּ Inf.) 2 K 3:15 (id.), 1 S 17:48 (c. כִּי), Je 37:11 (c. בְּ Inf.), Am 7:2 (c. אִם temp.); also Je 3:9 (appar. c. מִן causat., but obscure); 1 S 13:22 (c. בְּ temp.) is foll. by וְלֹא & Pf. as well as Impf. consec. e.g. Genesis 12:14
- b. less often וְהָיָה Pf. consec. and it shall come to pass, or frequentat., came to pass (repeatedly, etc.) usually (a) sq. simple Impf. (c. 100 times): α. c. בְּ temp. Dt 21:16; 25:19 + 37 times, (especially בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא Ho 2:18, 23 Is 7:18, 21, 23 + 21 times); β. c. בְּ loc. Ez 47:23 Zc 13:8 cf. also Ho 2:1 (בִּמְקוֹם אֲשֶׁר, but perhaps = instead of, cf. VB); γ. c. indef. rel. cl., or its equiv. (כֹּל indef., etc.), cf. Dr§ 121, Obs. 1: Gn 4:14; Nu 17:20; Dt 12:11; 18:19; Jos 7:14, 15; Ju 7:4; 1 S 2:36; 17:25; 2 S 15:35; 1 K 19:17; 20:6; Is 4:3; 24:18; Na 3:7; Je 27:8; 42:4; Ez 47:9; Zc 14:17; Jo 3:5; δ. c. כַּאֲשֶׁר Nu 33:56; Dt 28:63; Jos 23:15; Ju 7:17; Is 29:8; Je 31:28; Zc 8:13; ε. less often with other modif. phr.: כְּ Inf. Ex 33:8, 9 (both frequentat.), Jos 3:13; 8:8; Je 25:12; 51:63; בְּ Inf. Gn 9:14 (P) 2 K 4:10; Ez 44:17; אִם condit. Dt 20:11 (+ v 11 Dr§ 118 n.), also Jos 22:18, where the arrangement is peculiar, & the condit. is expressed without אִם (cf. Dr§ 155); לְ temp. Dt 23:12; מִקֵּץ Is 23:17; טֶרֶם Is 65:24; מִדֵּי חֹדֶשׁ בְּחָדְשׁוֹ Is 66:23, etc. (b) וְהָיָה sq. Pf. consec. (c. 85 times): α. most often + cl. c. כִּי temp. Gn 12:12; 46:33 (both J) Ex 1:10 (E) Dt 11:29; Is 8:21 + 25 times; β. c. אִם Ex 4:8, 9 Nu 15:24; Dt 11:13 + 14 times; also Gn 38:9; Nu 21:9 (both frequentat.); γ. c. בְּ temp. Gn 30:41 (frequentat.) 47:24 (but cf. Ol Di) Ex 16:5 + 11 times; δ. c. indef. rel. cl. or equivalent (Dr§ 121 Obs. 1): Gn 24:14; Nu 10:32 (Dr§ 118 n.) 21:18; Dt 21:3 Ju 11:31; 19:30; Zc 14:16; ε. occas. with other modif. phr.: כַּאֲשֶׁר Gn 27:40 +; כְּ Inf. Gn 44:31 +; בְּ Inf. Ex 33:22 +; מִקֵּץ 2 S 14:26; עֵקֶב causat. Dt 7:12; also (c) sq. וְלֹא + simple Impf. Ex 3:21 (c. כִּי temp.). (d) וְהָיָה sq. Imv. (very rare) Dt 6:10 (c. כִּי temp.), 1 S 10:7 (c. כִּי), cf. 29:10, cf. Pf. consec. in command 1 S 3:9 (c. אִם). (e) וְהָיָה sq. simple Pf. (also very rare) Dt 8:19 (c. אִם). (f) וְהָיָה sq. cl. without vb.: Gn 24:43 Jos 2:19 1 K 18:24 (all c. indef. rel. modifier, or equiv., v. (a) γ, (b) δ, supr.). (g) וְהָיָה (ו conj.) sq. Impf. consec. v. a. (e) supr. e.g. Deuteronomy 21:16
- 1.
- II. Come into being, become:—
- 1.
- a. abs., in lively narrative, arise, appear, come וַתְּהִי צְעָקָה גְדֹלָה Ex 12:30 (J) and there arose a great cry in Egypt; וַיְהִי־קוֹל Ez 1:25 (del. Co cf. Da), 37:7 (del. קוֹל 𝔊 Co); כִּי הָֽיְתָה הָֽרְוָחָה Ex 8:11 (J) Pharaoh saw that respite had come; Mi 7:4 now shall come their confusion (‖ בוא); also of concrete objects וְהָֽיְתָה הַקֶּשֶׁת בֶּעָנָן Gn 9:16 (P) and the bow shall appear in the clouds (‖ וְנִרְאֲתָה); וְרִמָּה לֹא הָֽיְתָה בּוֹ Ex 16:24 (P) and worms did not appear in it; of condition or action begun & continuing, as: famine Gn 12:10; 26:1, 1 (all J), 41:54 (E), Ru 1:1; 2 S 21:1; 2 K 6:25; strife Gn 13:7, 8 (J), Hb 1:3 (‖ מָדוֹן יִשָּׂא); often of action of the elements, as the coming of hail Ex 9:18, 24, 26 (all J), thunder & lightning, etc., Ex 19:16 (E), rain 1 K 18:45, storm Jon 1:4; especially of creative fiats יְהִי אוֹר וַיְהִי אוֹר Gn 1:3 let light appear, and light appeared, cf. v 5, 8, 13, 19, 23, 31 (all P); also arise, come on the stage or scene, וְאַחֲרָיו הָיָה שַׁמְגַּר Ju 3:31 and after him arose Shamgar (= וַיָּקָם 10:1); further וַעֲלָטָה הָיָה Gn 15:17 (JE) and darkness came on; הַבֹּקֶר הָיָה Ex 10:13 (J) the morning came, 19:16 (E); וַיְהִי הַיּוֹם †1 S 1:4 and the day came, when (v. Dr), 14:1 2 K 4:8, 11, 18 Jb 1:6, 13; 2:1. e.g. Exodus 12:30
- b. sq. prep.: בְּ, וְיָדֵנוּ אַל־תְּהִי־בוֹ (Gn 37:27 (J) but out hand, let it not come upon him, of hand of י׳ 1 S 5:9; 7:13; 12:15 + (all in hostile sense); וַיְהִי בִּרְכַּת י׳ בְּכָל־אֲשֶׁר יֶשׁ־לוֹ Gn 39:5 (J) and the blessing of י׳ came into (on) all that he had; but also of plague Ex 12:13 (P); sq. עַל, וּמֵי הַמַּבּוּל הָיוּ עַל־הָאָרֶץ Gn 7:10 (J) that the waters of the flood came upon the earth; עָלַי הָיוּ כֻלָּ֑נָה Gn 42:36 (E) Gn 9:2 (P) fear shall come upon, cf. 35:5 (P) 2 Ch 14:13; 17:10; 20:29 +; of wrath Jos 22:20 1 K 3:27; so of Saul’s evil spirit from God 1 S 16:16, 23; 19:9 (אֶל); but sq. עַל also in good sense וַתְּהִי עָלָיו רוּחַ י׳ conferring strength & efficiency Ju 3:10; 11:29 (היה = צלח Ju 14:6 + often), cf. Nu 24:2 (JE) of prophetic power; (on וַתְּהִי עָלָיו יַד י׳ 2 K 3:15 Ez 3:22 and the like, vid. יָד); יַד אֱלֹהֵינוּ הָֽיְתָה עָלֵינוּ Ezr 8:31, so ψ 80:18; even וַתְּהִי עַל־רֹאשׁ דָּוִד 2 S 12:30 and it (the crown, עֲטֶרֶת) came (i.e. was put, set) on David’s head; with a diff. meaning וַנִּהְיֶה עֲלֵיהֶם עַד־פֶּתַח הַשָּׁ֑עַר 2 S 11:23 and we were close upon them even to the gateway (cf. We Dr); come, go, follow (sq. אַחֲרֵי) i.e. take the side of, adhere to, Ex 23:2 (JE) 1 S 12:14 2 S 2:10 1 K 12:20; 16:21; sq. לְ, of blessings Gn 49:26 (poem); of judgment, punishment Je 40:3; especially ויהי דבר … אֶל and the word of … came unto: word of Samuel 1 S 4:1; usually word of God (or י׳) Gn 15:1 1 S 15:10 +; constantly in prophets: Ho 1:1 Mi 1:1 etc.; especially Je & Ez: Je 1:4, 11, 13; 2:1; 13:8 +; Ez 3:16; 6:1; 7:1; 11:14, 17, 21, 26, 12:1, 8;+; so also abs. הָיָה הַמַּשָּׂא הַזֶּה Is 14:28 in the death-year of king Ahaz came this utterance; also sq. מִן; מַלְכֵי עַמִּים מִמֶּנָּה יִהְיוּ Gn 17:16 (P), וּקְהַל גּוֹיִם יִהְיֶה מִמֶּ֑ךָּ 35:11 (P), וְהָיָה אַדִּירוֹ מִמֶּנּוּ Je 30:21 (‖ מִקִּרְבּוֹ יֵצֵא); הַכֹּל הָיָה מִן־הֶעָפָר וְהַכֹּל שָׁב אֶל הֶעָפָר Ec 3:20 all came from the dust, & all return unto the dust; וַיְהִי קֶצֶף גָּדוֹל מֵאֵת י׳ צְבָאוֹת Zc 7:12. e.g. Genesis 37:27
- 2. become:
- a. sq. pred. noun (to be viewed as implicit accus. Dr§ 161, 3 n. according to the Arabic usage WAG ii, § 41.44.74): הִוא הָֽיְתָה אֵם כָּל־חָ֑י Gn 3:20 (J) it was she that became the mother of all living; וַיְהִי הֶבֶל רֹעֵה צֹאן וְקַיִן הָיָה עֹבֵד אֲדָמָה 4:2 (J) and Abel became a shepherd of flocks, while Cain became a tiller of ground; 2 S 8:14 Mi 2:11 + often e.g. Genesis 3:20
- b. sq. pred. adj. Gn 38:7; Ex 36:13 +; cf. Gn 37:20 let us see what his dream will become (turn out to be, signify); e.g. Genesis 38:7
- c. become like (כְּ), וִהְיִיתֶם כֵּאלֹהִים Gn 3:5 and ye shall become like gods cf. v 22, Nu 11:1 (JE), Ho 2:1; 7:11; Is 9:18; 1 K 7:8; Zc 9:7 +; cf. Gn 15:5 so (כֹּה) shall thy seed become; specif. of likeness in punishment Is 1:9 1 S 17:36 +; also with כְּ repeated וְהָיָה כָעָם כַּכֹּהֵן Ho 4:9 and the people shall become like the priest (lit., and the like of the people shall become the like of the priest), so especially Is 24:2 (6 pairs of words as above); וְהָיָה כַצַּדִּיק כָּרָשָׁע Gn 18:25 (J), v. כְּ. b + c Gn 27:23 his hands had become like the hands of Esau his brother, hairy. e.g. Genesis 3:5
- d. sq. pred. + לְ pers. וּתְהִי אִשָּׁה לְבֶן־אֲדֹנֶיךָ Gn 24:51 (J) and let her become wife to the son of thy lord, 1 S 16:21; 1 K 11:25 ψ 89:42; 1 Ch 18:6 +; = be instituted, established, וְהָיָה לָהֶם חָק־עוֹלָם Ex 30:21 (P) and it shall be established for them as a perpetual ordinance (cf. f infr.). e.g. Genesis 24:51
- e. sq. לְ pred.: וַיְהִי הָאָדָם לְנֶפֶשׁ חַיָּה Gn 2:7 (J) and the man became a living soul; וְהָיָה לְאַרְבָּעָה רָאשִׁים Gn 2:10 (J) and it became four heads; גַּם־הוּא יִהְיֶה־לְעָם Gn 48:19 (J) he too shall become a people; וִהְיוּ לַאֲנָשִׁים 1 S 4:9 and become (shew yourselves to be) men (‖ הִתְחַזְּקוּ; cf. with double לְ, f infr.); Zp 1:13; Ez 17:6; 47:12; Jb 16:8; וְהָיָה י׳ לְמֶלֶךְ עַל־כָּל־הָאָרֶץ Zc 14:9; וַיְהִי לְמַס עֹבֵד †Gn 49:15; Jos 16:10; so often; also in sense of turn into, be changed so as to become, וַיְהִי לְנָחָשׁ Ex 4:3 and it became a serpent, v 4; 7:10; Is 1:22; Dt 26:5 +; fig. וַיְהִי לְמָ֑יִם Jos 7:5 and it (their heart) turned to water, so וְהוּא הָיָה לְאֶבֶן 1 S 25:37; or, serve as וְהָיוּ לִמְאוֹרֹת Gn 1:15 (P) and they shall become (fulfil the function of, serve as) luminaries, cf. v 14; וְהָיָה לְאוֹת בְּרִית Gn 9:13; 17:11 (both P). e.g. Genesis 2:7
- f. often c. לְ pred. + לְ pers.: וַתְּהִי לָהֶם הַלְּבֵנָה לְאָ֑בֶן Gn 11:3 (J) and the bricks became (served as) stone for them; וַתְּהִי לִי לְאִשָּׁה Gn 20:12 (E) cf. 24:67 (J) +, וַתִּהְיֶינָה מַחְלָה וְחָגְלָה … לַבְנֵי דֹדֵיהֶן לְנָשִׁים Nu 36:11; וְהָיָה לְךָ וְלָהֶם לְאָכְלָה 6:21 (P), Ex 2:10; 15:2 Ju 8:27; וְהָיָה י׳ לִי לֵאלֹהִים Gn 28:21 (E); אֲנִי אֶהְיֶה לוֹ לְאָב וְהוּא יִהְיֶה־לִי לְבֵן 1 Ch 17:3 +; = shew or prove oneself as הֱיֵה־לִי לְבֶן־חַיִל 1 S 18:17 shew thyself for me a valiant man (cf. 1 S 4:9 e supr.); = be instituted, established (cf. e supr.) וְהָיָה לְאַהֲרֹן וּלְבָנָיו לְחָק־עוֹלָם Ex 29:28 and it shall be instituted for Aaron and his sons as a perpetual ordinance; cf. v 9 Lv 10:15; וְהָֽיְתָה לִהְיֹת לָהֶם מָשְׁחָתָם לִכְהֻנַּת עוֹלָם לְדֹרֹתָם Ex 40:15 (all P). e.g. Genesis 11:3
- g. with עַל and לְ 1 S 22:2 וַיְהִי עֲלֵיהֶם לְשָׂר and he became over them prince. e.g. 1 Samuel 22:2
- h. sometimes c. לְ pers. only = become the property of, come into the possession of וַיְהִי־לוֹ צֹאן־וּבָקָר וְגו׳ Gn 12:16 (J), and he came to have flocks and herds etc., 26:14; 30:43; לֹא לוֹ יִהְיֶה הַזָּ֑רַע Gn 38:9 not his should the seed become; וְהָיָה לי׳ Ju 11:31 it shall become Yahweh’s; Dt 10:9; Jos 13:29; 1 K 10:26; 11:3 + often; so of a woman, as wife תְּהִי־נָא לְךָ Ju 15:2 pray let her become thine, cf. also וַתְּהִי אֵשֶׁת שִׁמְשׁוֹן לְמֵרֵעֵהוּ 14:20, Ho 3:3 Ru 1:13 Lv 21:3; Dt 24:2; Je 3:1; Ez 16:8 (and also + לְאִשָּׁה, לְנָשִׁים v. f supr.) e.g. Genesis 12:16
- 1.
- III. Be (often with subordinate idea of becoming);—
- 1. exist, be in existence (i.e. orig. have come into existence), כָּל־הַיָּמִים אֲשֶׁר הָיָה 1 S 1:28 all the days which he shall have been (lived, = חַי Gn 5:5 etc., cf. DrSm), Jb 3:16, Is 23:13; often c. בְּ loc. וְכֹל שִׂיחַ הַשָּׂדֶה טֶרֶם יִהְיֶה בָאָרֶץ Gn 2:5 (J) and there was not yet in the earth any shrub of the field; וּבְאֵלֶּה לֹא הָיָה אִישׁ וגו׳ Nu 26:64 (P) and among them there was not a man to be found, etc.; also וְלֹא הָיָה כַּיּוֹם הַהוּא לְפָנָיו וְאַחֲרָיו Jos 10:14 (JE) & there hath not been a day like that before it nor since, cf. 2 S 14:25; 1 K 18:5; 21:25; 2 K 23:25; Ne 13:26 +; somewhat weaker, in the freq. introductory clause וַיְהִי אִישׁ now there was a man Ju 13:2; 1 S 1:1; 9:1; Nu 9:6 (P), Jb 1:1 +; on אֶהְיֶה אֲשֶׁר אֶהְיֶה Ex 3:14 v. יהוֹה. e.g. 1 Samuel 1:28
- 2. abide, remain, continue (with word of place or time) וַיְהִי מֹשֶׁה בָּהָר Ex 24:18 and Moses remained in the mount forty days, etc., so 34:28 (both JE), Ju 17:4, 12 1 S 6:1 1 K 11:20 2 K 11:3 = 2 Ch 22:12 +; also Lv 22:27; 25:28 (both H), etc.; sq. עַד temp. remain until Dt 22:2 1 K 11:40; 2 K 15:5; 2 Ch 5:9; 26:21; Dn 1:21 etc.; cf. הוּא יִהְיֶה לְעוֹלָם Ec 3:14; so also of space sq. עַד extend unto, as far as, Jos 19:10: of net beneath altar, Ex 27:5 shall reach as far as (עַד) the middle of the altar. e.g. Exodus 24:18
- 3. with word of locality, be in or at a place, be situated, stand, lie; בִּהְיוֹתָם בַּשָּׂדֶה Gn 4:8 (J) when they were in the field, הַמָּקוֹם אֲשֶׁר־הָיָה שָׁם אָהֳלֹה בַּתְּחִלָּה 13:3 (J) the place where his tent had stood at first; וְהָאָרֶץ תִּהְיֶה לִפְנֵיכֶם 34:10 and the land, it lieth before you; cf. Jos 19:1; Ju 7:1, 8; Mi 5:6, 7; sq. עַל be, be found or situated upon Is 30:25 and there shall be upon every high mountain etc., streams, water-courses; Ez 37:27 and my dwelling-place shall be over them; fig. of guilt וְהָיָה עָלָיךָ דָּמִים Dt 19:10 and blood (-guilt) be upon thee. e.g. Genesis 4:8
- 4. as copula, joining subj. & pred.:—
- a. sq. pred. adj. וַיִּהְיוּ שְׁנֵיהֶם עֲרוּמִּים Gn 2:25, וְהַנָּחָשׁ הָיָה עָרוּם 3:1, בִּהְיוֹתָם כֹּאֲבִים 34:25, וַיְהִי יוֹסֵף יְפֵה־תֹאַר 39:6; Dt 23:15; Jos 19:9; Ju 11:1; Jb 1:1, 3b 2 Ch 7:21. e.g. Genesis 2:25
- b. sq. pred. noun Gn 1:2; 9:18; 25:3; 36:14; 40:13; 1 S 17:34, 42 2 S 8:10; 20:26; 1 K 10:6; 2 K 3:4; 5:1(×2) 1 Ch 9:20; 11:20; 18:10; 26:10; 2 Ch 13:7; כִּי לֹא־הָיָה מֶלֶךְ יִשְׂרָאֵל 2 Ch 18:32 (‖ 1 K 22:33 כִּי־לֹא־מֶלֶךְ ישׂראל הוּא) +; often of age: וַיְהִי אַבְרָם בֶּן־תִּשְׁעִים שָׁנָה וְתֵשַׁע שָׁנִים Gn 17:1 (P) 2 K 8:17; 14:2; 15:2, 33; 18:2; 2 Ch 21:20; 27:8 +; sq. pred. Inf. abs. (very anomal.) וְהַמַּיִם הָיוּ הָלוֹךְ וְחָסוֹר Gn 8:5; = amount to, come to, in enum. of days of life, number of people, amounts of money, etc.: Gn 5:4, 5, 8, 11, 14; 9:29; 11:32; 23:1 +; Ex 38:24 Nu 1:46, etc. e.g. Genesis 1:2
- c. sq. adv. & adverbial phr.: לֹא־טוֹב הֱיוֹת הָאָדָם לְבַדּוֹ Gn 2:18 (J) it is not good that the man be alone; חָדַל לִהְיוֹת לְשָׂרָה אֹרַח כַּנָּשִׁים 18:11 (J). e.g. Genesis 2:18
- d. sq. prep.: (a) be with, accompany c. עִם, subj. most often י׳ or אלהים with added idea of protection, aid Gn 26:3; 31:3; 39:10; 48:21 Jos 1:3; 6:27; Ju 1:19; 2:18; 1 S 3:19; 18:12; 20:13; 1 K 1:37; 1 Ch 11:13; 2 Ch 17:3; sq. עִמָּדִי Gn 28:20; 31:5; 35:3; sq. עִם, human subj., of accompaniment וְהָיָה הַכֹּהֵן בֶּן־אַהֲרֹן עִם־הַלְוִיִּם Ne 10:39; 1 Ch 11:12, read also in ‖ 2 S 23:9 (Th We Dr); = be on the side of 1 K 1:8; c. עִם also = be near וּמַלְאַךְ י׳ הָיָה עִם־גֹּרֶן האורנה 2 S 24:16 (cf. Dr); also 2 S 13:20 implying sexual intercourse, so Gn 39:10 (perhaps gloss, cf. Di); peculiar uses with עִם are: וּדְבַר־אַבְנֵר הָיָה עִם־זִקְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל 2 S 3:17 and the speech of A. had been with the elders of Isr., cf. 1 K 1:7; וַיְהִי עִם־לְבַב דָּוִד אָבִי לִבְנוֹת 1 K 8:17 and it was with (i.e. in) the heart of David my father to build, = 2 Ch 6:7 cf. 1 K 8:18(×2) 1 Ch 22:7; 2 Ch 6:8(×2); 24:4; also 1 K 10:2 = 2 Ch 9:1; (b) be with, sq. אֶת, subj. י׳, אלהים, Gn 21:20; 39:2, 21 but also c. human subj. וּבָנָיו הָיוּ אֶת־מִקְנֵהוּ Gn 34:5, cf. 1 S 29:3 +; (c) sq. לְ of possessor כֶּרֶם הָיָה לִידִדִי Is 5:1 a vineyard had my beloved, Gn 30:30 cf. Ex 20:3 = Dt 5:7, Ju 18:27; 1 S 9:2; 1 K 5:6 + often (cf. I. 2 d, f, h); (d) sq. לְ + other prep.: of boundary וַיְהִי לָהֶם הַגְּבוּל מֵעֲרוֹעֵר Jos 13:16, cf. וַיְהִי גְבוּלָם מִמַּחֲנַיִם v 30; וַיְהִי לָהֶם הַגְּבוּל לִפְאַת צָפוֹנָה מִיַּרְדֵּן 18:12, etc.; (e) sq. בְּ be among, or of, Am 1:1 who was one of the herdsmen, 1 K 2:7 let them be among those eating, Pr 22:26; 23:20. e.g. Genesis 26:3
- 5. periphrastic conjug.:
- a. היה + pt., of continuous state, or condition, sometimes, especially late (cf. NH), of habit, c. וַיְהִי also of beginning and continuance (cf. Dr§ 135, (5)): pt. act. Gn 39:22 (J), Ex 3:1 (E), 1 S 2:11; 7:10; 18:9 (cf. Dr) v 14, 29 2 S 8:15 = 1 Ch 18:14, Dt 28:29; Is 30:20; 1 K 5:1, 15, 24 2 K 6:5; 9:14; 2 Ch 9:26; Ezr 4:4; Ne 1:4, 2:13; Dn 1:16 +; Gn 1:6 (P); הָיָה יָרֵא אֶת־י׳ 1 K 18:3; 2 K 4:1; 2 Ch 26:1; pt. pass. Jos 10:26; 1 K 13:24; 22:35 וְהַמֶּלֶךְ הָיָה מָעֳמָד בַּמֶּרְכָּבָה (‖ 2 Ch 18:34 הָיָה מַעֲמִיד), Is 2:2 = Mi 4:1, וְהָיָה סָגוּר Ez 44:2, ה׳ נַעֲשֶׂה Ne 5:18, וְאָהוּב לֵאלֹהָיו ה׳ 13:26;—on 2 S 13:32 cf. Dr e.g. Genesis 39:22
- b. sq. Inf. c. לְ (Dr§ 203, 204): וְהָיָה לְבָעֵר Is 5:5 and it shall be to burn (is to be, is destined to be burned) etc.; וַיְהִי הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ לָבוֹא Gn 15:12 and the sun was about to set; וַיְהִי הַשַּׁעַר לִסְגּוֹר Jos 2:5 and the gate was about to be shut; but also וַיְהִי לִדְרשׁ אֱלֹהִים 2 Ch 26:5 (nearly = וַיְהִי + Pt.) e.g. Isaiah 5:5
Niphal
- Pf. נִהְיָה 1 K 1:27 + 6 times + Mi 2:4 (cf. infr. ad fin.); 3 fs. נִהְיְתָה Ju 19:30 + 5 times, נִהְיָ֑תָה Ex 11:6 Je 48:19, וְנִהְיָ֑תָה consec. Ez 39:8 + 21:12 (del. B Codd 𝔊 Co); 2 ms. נִהְיֵיתָ Dt 27:9; 1 s. נִהְיֵיתִי Dn 8:27; Pt. fs. נִהְיָה Pr 13:19;— e.g. 1 Kings 1:27
- 1. became c. ל Dt 27:9. e.g. Deuteronomy 27:9
- 2. either, be done, or, come to pass: in the strong expressions אֲשֶׁר כָּמֹהוּ לֹא נ׳ וְכָמֹהוּ לֹא תֹסִף Ex 11:6 (J) a cry such as hath not occurred (been raised), and will not be again, cf. Dt 4:32 (be done; ‖ נִשְׁמַע), & Ju 19:30 (‖ נִרְאֲתָה);—but simply intrans. Jo 2:2; Dn 12:1 & appar. Ez 21:12 (‖ בָּאָ֫ה; on text, however, v. supr.) 39:8 (‖ id.);—also אֵיכָה נִהְיְתָה הָרָעָה הַזֹּאת Ju 20:3 how hath this wickedness been done? cf. v 12 Je 5:30; 48:19 also Ne 6:8; c. לֹא, existence denied לֹא נ׳ Zc 8:10 (‖ אֵינֶ֑נָּה); in all the above (except Jo 2:2; Dn 12:1 & Ez 21:12; 39:8) personal agency is clearly implied; it is expressed מֵאֵת אֲדֹנִי הַמֶּלֶךְ נ׳ הַדָּבָר הַזֶּה 1 K 1:27, so of divine agency (מֵאִתִּי) 1 K 12:24 = 2 Ch 11:4; further be attained, secured, of wages Zc 8:10 (c. לֹא, ‖ אֵינֶ֑נָּה); תַּאֲוָה נִהְיָה Pr 13:19 a desire come to pass, realized. e.g. Exodus 11:6
- 3. be done, finished, gone, only Dn וּשְׁנָתוֹ נִהְיְתָה עָלָיו Dn 2:1 and his sleep was finished upon him, i.e. left him (cf. Aramaic Dn 6:19); נִהְיֵיתִי 8:27 I came to an end, was exhausted (si vera l., del. 𝔊; ‖ נֶחֱלֵיתִי); נִהְיָה, in וְנָהָה נְהִי נִהְיָה Mi 2:4, is dub.; it is done, over, the ruin is come RobGes Ew Hi Ca Che RVm;? ZAW 1866, 122 f. cf. JBL1890, 74.77. e.g. Daniel 2:1
Senses from the full Brown-Driver-Briggs lexicon (Brown, Driver, Briggs; Oxford 1906 — public domain), digitized via Sefaria, supplemented by the OpenScriptures HebrewLexicon (CC BY 4.0). Full attribution on Sources.
Word origin
vb. fall out, come to pass, become, be (SI 1.6 היה, ib.3 הית; parallel form of הוה, Arabic هَوَى, Aramaic הֲוָא, ܗܘܳܐ; v. הָוָה supr.)—
— Brown-Driver-Briggs (Oxford 1906, public domain), digitized via Sefaria, supplemented by the OpenScriptures HebrewLexicon (CC BY 4.0). See Sources.
Derived from הוא (hâvâʼ) (H1933) — to be.
Jastrow Dictionary
A second Hebrew/Aramaic lexicon for comparison, covering Aramaic and post-biblical (Talmudic, Targumic, Midrashic) usage that the biblical-Hebrew BDB does not. Matched by lemma rather than by Strong’s number, so a lemma may carry more than one Jastrow headword (shown separately below), and the entries cover usage well beyond the Bible.
הוי
- (b. h.) to exist; to be, become; to occur, come to pass.—With part. ה׳ מביט he looked; ה׳ אומר he said, freq. used to say. Gen. R. s. 1, beg. אני הָיִיתִי וכ׳ I was the implement &c. Ib. ה׳ הקב"ה מביט וכ׳ the Lord looked into the Law (as often as a thing was to be created). Ab. I, 13 הוא ה׳ אומר the same used to say. Gen. R. s. 2 ה׳ ללמה ולא כלום became a nothing; a. v. fr.—Apocopate forms: אֱהִי, אֱהֵא, תְּהִי, תְּהֵא, יְהִי, יְהֵא; תְּהוּ (= תִּהְיוּ), יְהוּ (= יִהְיוּ). Yoma 66ᵇ אהא בשלום אני נכ׳ (Tosef. ib. IV (III), 14 נִהְיֶה) may I and you be as well; Y. ib. VI, 43ᶜ bot. כן תהו וכ׳ so may ye be well. B. Mets. 35ᵃ תהא במאמינו let this be (speak of a case) when he accepts his opponent’s statement; a. v. fr.—Part. הוֶֹה, הוֶֹוה
- 1. frequent, usual. Sabb. VI, 6 דברו חכמים בה׳ the scholars (in using the words ‘Arabian women’) speak of the ordinary custom (not to the exclusion of other people); a. fr.
- 2. existing, enduring. Pesik. R. s. 11, end הם הווִֹים ודומים [להקב"ה] they shall be existing for themselves (not merely as an attachment) and resembling [the Lord]; ib. אף הם הווים אש וכ׳ they, too, shall endure as a consuming fire.—Cant. R. to II, 13 עניות ירבה ויוקר הווה (read תרבה) poverty shall increase, and prices remain high (different in Snh. 97ᵃ a. Sot. 49ᵇ, v. אָמַר II). Imper. הֱוֵי, הֱוֵא; pl. הֱווּ. Ab. I, 4. Ib. II, 3; a. fr.—הֱוֵי אוֹמֵר, also elliptically הֱוֵי say, i.e. you must admit, this proves, that is meant by saying. Taan. 2ᵃ which is the service of the heart? ה׳ אומר זו תפלה you must admit, it is prayer. Tosef. Nidd. I, 6 ה׳ לא אמרום וכ׳ that is to say, the scholars have spoken &c. Cant. R. to I, 6 ה׳ כרמי שלי וכ׳ this is meant by ‘my vineyard &c.’—Y. Shebu. VII, 38ᶜ top הווי לא צורכה וכ׳ it is evident that it would not have been necessary &c.; a. fr.
- (v. הְוָיָה
- 1. to change one’s legal status, to dispose of. Keth. 40ᵇ (ref. to תהיה Deut. XXII, 19) במְהַוָּה עצמה וכ׳ the text speaks of a woman who can dispose of herself. e.g. Deuteronomy 22:19
- 2. to produce, make. Kidd. 58ᵃ (ref. to והיית, Deut. VII, 26) כל שאתה מְהַיֶּיה הימנה whatever thou makest out of it; Tem. 30ᵇ מְהַיֶּה ממנה; a. e. e.g. Deuteronomy 7:26
A Dictionary of the Targumim, the Talmud Babli and Yerushalmi, and the Midrashic Literature (Marcus Jastrow; London, Luzac, 1903) — Public Domain. Digitized via Sefaria. Digitized via Sefaria. Full attribution on Sources.
Forms in the corpus
The 681 distinct written forms H1961 takes in the Hebrew Bible, most frequent first — each parse links to that stem’s occurrences in the concordance. Hebrew forms include their vowel points and cantillation, so a single lemma takes many written forms.
The 60 most common forms are shown; 621 rarer forms follow in the full concordance.
Same root — word family
Other BDB entries built from the same root as H1961, grouped by Strong’s listed origin. These share a root / origin per the lexicon — not necessarily a shared meaning. Each links to that word’s own entry.
Derives from
Shares the same root
Proper names from this root
People and places named from this root — a name, not an additional meaning of the word.
Compare all same-root words → Showing 4 of 5 — not the complete family. 1 of the same-root words is a proper name (a person or place). They share a root, not necessarily a meaning.
Septuagint verse parallels
Most of the 3,130 Hebrew verses this word occurs in also exist in the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint), so the same passages can be read in Greek by switching the Old Testament edition to the Septuagint.
Read these verses in the Septuagint
- Genesis 1:2
- Exodus 1:5
- Leviticus 2:1
- Numbers 1:4
- Deuteronomy 1:3
- Joshua 1:1
- Judges 1:1
- Ruth 1:1
- 1 Samuel 1:1
- 2 Samuel 1:1
- 1 Kings 1:2
- 2 Kings 1:17
This is a verse-level parallel only — the same verses exist in both the Hebrew and Greek Old Testaments. No word-level Hebrew↔Greek correspondence is claimed: the data carries no such alignment, so no Greek word is shown as this Hebrew word’s translation. Coverage is not total — the Septuagint omits the deuterocanon and renumbers the Psalms, so some Hebrew verses have no direct Greek parallel.
