הָיָה
to be
also: become, come to pass, exist, happen fuller range ↓
H1961
Strong's Hebrew
hâyâh
Transliteration
/haw-yaw/
Pronunciation
Usage in the Hebrew Bible
3,575
appearances
Full lexicon entry — Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
From Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
BDB Definition
to be, become, come to pass, exist, happen, fall out
- (Qal)
- -----
- to happen, fall out, occur, take place, come about, come to pass
- to come about, come to pass
- to come into being, become
- to arise, appear, come
- to become
- to become
- to become like
- to be instituted, be established
- to be
- to exist, be in existence
- to abide, remain, continue (with word of place or time)
- to stand, lie, be in, be at, be situated (with word of locality)
- to accompany, be with
- (Niphal)
- to occur, come to pass, be done, be brought about
- to be done, be finished, be gone
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 6 of 16 — showing verses 1,001–1,200 of 3,115 distinct verses where H1961 appears in the Qal stem, across 39 books. 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.
Joshua 125 verses
- Joshua 17:3 הָ֥יוּ Qal pf 3cp But Zelophehad, the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, had no sons, but daughters: and these are the names of his daughters: Mahlah, and Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah.
- Joshua 17:6 הָיְתָ֥ה Qal pf 3fs because the daughters of Manasseh had an inheritance among his sons. The land of Gilead belonged to the rest of the sons of Manasseh.
- Joshua 17:7 וַ/יְהִ֤י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms The border of Manasseh was from Asher to Michmethath, which is before Shechem; and the border went along to the right hand, to the inhabitants of En Tappuah.
- Joshua 17:8 הָיְתָ֖ה Qal pf 3fs The land of Tappuah belonged to Manasseh; but Tappuah on the border of Manasseh belonged to the children of Ephraim.
- Joshua 17:9 וַ/יְהִ֥י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms The border went down to the brook of Kanah, southward of the brook: these cities belonged to Ephraim among the cities of Manasseh: and the border of Manasseh was on the north side of the brook, and the goings out of it were at the sea:
- Joshua 17:10 וַ/יְהִ֥י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms southward it was Ephraim's, and northward it was Manasseh's, and the sea was his border; and they reached to Asher on the north, and to Issachar on the east.
- Joshua 17:11 וַ/יְהִ֨י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Manasseh had in Issachar and in Asher Beth-shean and its towns, and Ibleam and its towns, and the inhabitants of Dor and its towns, and the inhabitants of En-dor and its towns, and the inhabitants of Taanach and its towns, and the inhabitants of Megiddo and its towns, even the three heights.
- Joshua 17:13 וַֽ/יְהִ֗י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened, when the children of Israel had grown strong, that they put the Canaanites to forced labor, and didn't utterly drive them out.
- Joshua 17:17 יִהְיֶ֥ה Qal impf 3ms Joshua spoke to the house of Joseph, even to Ephraim and to Manasseh, saying, You are a great people, and have great power; you shall not have one lot only:
- Joshua 17:18 יִֽהְיֶה וְ/הָיָ֥ה Qal impf 3ms conj + Qal wpf 3ms but the hill-country shall be yours; for though it is a forest, you shall cut it down, and the goings out of it shall be yours; for you shall drive out the Canaanites, though they have chariots of iron, and though they are strong.
- Joshua 18:12 וַ/יְהִ֨י ו/היה וְ/הָיוּ֙ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms conj + Qal wpf 3ms conj + Qal wpf 3cp Their border on the north quarter was from the Jordan; and the border went up to the side of Jericho on the north, and went up through the hill-country westward; and the goings out of it were at the wilderness of Beth Aven.
- Joshua 18:14 ו/היה וְ/הָי֣וּ conj + Qal wpf 3ms conj + Qal wpf 3cp The border extended [there], and turned about on the west quarter southward, from the mountain that lies before Beth Horon southward; and the goings out of it were at Kiriath Baal (the same is Kiriath Jearim), a city of the children of Judah: this was the west quarter.
- Joshua 18:19 ו/היה וְ/הָי֣וּ conj + Qal wpf 3ms conj + Qal wpf 3cp and the border passed along to the side of Beth Hoglah northward; and the goings out of the border were at the north bay of the Salt Sea, at the south end of the Jordan: this was the south border.
- Joshua 18:21 וְ/הָי֣וּ conj + Qal pf 3cp Now the cities of the tribe of the children of Benjamin according to their families were Jericho, and Beth Hoglah, and Emek Keziz,
- Joshua 19:1 וַֽ/יְהִי֙ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms The second lot came out for Simeon, even for the tribe of the children of Simeon according to their families: and their inheritance was in the midst of the inheritance of the children of Judah.
- Joshua 19:2 וַ/יְהִ֥י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms They had for their inheritance Beersheba, or Sheba, and Moladah,
- Joshua 19:9 הָיָ֞ה Qal pf 3ms Out of the part of the children of Judah was the inheritance of the children of Simeon; for the portion of the children of Judah was too much for them: therefore the children of Simeon had inheritance in the midst of their inheritance.
- Joshua 19:10 וַ/יְהִ֛י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms The third lot came up for the children of Zebulun according to their families; and the border of their inheritance was to Sarid;
- Joshua 19:14 וְ/הָיוּ֙ conj + Qal pf 3cp and the border turned about it on the north to Hannathon; and the goings out of it were at the valley of Iphtah El;
- Joshua 19:18 וַ/יְהִ֖י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Their border was to Jezreel, and Chesulloth, and Shunem,
- Joshua 19:22 וְ/הָי֛וּ conj + Qal pf 3cp and the border reached to Tabor, and Shahazumah, and Beth-shemesh; and the goings out of their border were at the Jordan: sixteen cities with their villages.
- Joshua 19:25 וַ/יְהִ֖י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Their border was Helkath, and Hali, and Beten, and Achshaph,
- Joshua 19:29 ו/יהיו וְ/הָי֧וּ conj + Qal impf 3mp conj + Qal pf 3cp and the border turned to Ramah, and to the fortified city of Tyre; and the border turned to Hosah; and the goings out of it were at the sea by the region of Achzib;
- Joshua 19:33 וַ/יְהִ֣י וַ/יְהִ֥י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Their border was from Heleph, from the oak in Zaanannim, and Adaminekeb, and Jabneel, to Lakkum; and the goings out of it were at the Jordan;
- Joshua 19:41 וַ/יְהִ֖י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms The border of their inheritance was Zorah, and Eshtaol, and Irshemesh,
- Joshua 20:3 וְ/הָי֤וּ conj + Qal pf 3cp that the manslayer who kills any person unwittingly [and] unawares may flee there: and they shall be to you for a refuge from the avenger of blood.
- Joshua 20:6 יִהְיֶ֖ה Qal impf 3ms He shall dwell in that city, until he stand before the congregation for judgment, until the death of the high priest that shall be in those days: then shall the manslayer return, and come to his own city, and to his own house, to the city from whence he fled.
- Joshua 20:9 הָיוּ֩ Qal pf 3cp These were the appointed cities for all the children of Israel, and for the stranger who sojourns among them, that whoever kills any person unwittingly might flee there, and not die by the hand of the avenger of blood, until he stood before the congregation.
- Joshua 21:4 וַ/יְהִ֡י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms The lot came out for the families of the Kohathites: and the children of Aaron the priest, who were of the Levites, had by lot out of the tribe of Judah, and out of the tribe of the Simeonites, and out of the tribe of Benjamin, thirteen cities.
- Joshua 21:10 וַֽ/יְהִי֙ הָיָ֥ה conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Qal pf 3ms and they were for the children of Aaron, of the families of the Kohathites, who were of the children of Levi; for theirs was the first lot.
- Joshua 21:20 וַֽ/יְהִי֙ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms The families of the children of Kohath, the Levites, even the rest of the children of Kohath, they had the cities of their lot out of the tribe of Ephraim.
- Joshua 21:40 וַ/יְהִי֙ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms All [these were] the cities of the children of Merari according to their families, even the rest of the families of the Levites; and their lot was twelve cities.
- Joshua 21:42 תִּֽהְיֶ֨ינָה֙ Qal impf 3fp These cities were every one with their suburbs round about them: thus it was with all these cities.
- Joshua 22:17 וַ/יְהִ֥י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Is the iniquity of Peor too little for us, from which we have not cleansed ourselves to this day, although there came a plague on the congregation of Yahweh,
- Joshua 22:18 וְ/הָיָ֗ה conj + Qal wpf 3ms that you must turn away this day from following Yahweh? and it will be, seeing you rebel today against Yahweh, that tomorrow he will be angry with the whole congregation of Israel.
- Joshua 22:20 הָ֣יָה Qal pf 3ms Didn't Achan the son of Zerah commit a trespass in the devoted thing, and wrath fell on all the congregation of Israel? and that man didn't perish alone in his iniquity.
- Joshua 22:28 וְ/הָיָ֗ה conj + Qal pf 3ms Therefore said we, It shall be, when they so tell us or to our generations in time to come, that we shall say, Behold the pattern of the altar of Yahweh, which our fathers made, not for burnt offering, nor for sacrifice; but it is a witness between us and you.
- Joshua 23:1 וַֽ/יְהִי֙ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened after many days, when Yahweh had given rest to Israel from all their enemies round about, and Joshua was old and well stricken in years;
- Joshua 23:13 וְ/הָי֨וּ conj + Qal wpf 3cp know for a certainty that Yahweh your God will no more drive these nations from out of your sight; but they shall be a snare and a trap to you, and a scourge in your sides, and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from off this good land which Yahweh your God has given you.
- Joshua 23:15 וְ/הָיָ֗ה conj + Qal wpf 3ms It shall happen, that as all the good things are come on you of which Yahweh your God spoke to you, so will Yahweh bring on you all the evil things, until he have destroyed you from off this good land which Yahweh your God has given you.
- Joshua 24:27 תִּֽהְיֶה וְ/הָיְתָ֤ה Qal impf 3fs conj + Qal wpf 3fs Joshua said to all the people, Behold, this stone shall be a witness against us; for it has heard all the words of Yahweh which he spoke to us: it shall be therefore a witness against you, lest you deny your God.
- Joshua 24:29 וַ/יְהִ֗י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened after these things, that Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of Yahweh, died, being one hundred ten years old.
- Joshua 24:32 וַ/יִּֽהְי֥וּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp The bones of Joseph, which the children of Israel brought up out of Egypt, buried they in Shechem, in the parcel of ground which Jacob bought of the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem for a hundred pieces of money: and they became the inheritance of the children of Joseph.
Judges 105 verses
- Judges 1:1 וַ/יְהִ֗י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened after the death of Joshua, the children of Israel asked of Yahweh, saying, Who shall go up for us first against the Canaanites, to fight against them?
- Judges 1:7 הָי֤וּ Qal pf 3cp Adoni-bezek said, "Seventy kings, having their thumbs and their great toes cut off, gathered [their food] under my table: as I have done, so God has requited me." They brought him to Jerusalem, and he died there.
- Judges 1:14 וַ/יְהִ֣י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened, when she came [to him], that she moved him to ask of her father a field: and she alighted from off her donkey; and Caleb said to her, What would you?
- Judges 1:19 וַ/יְהִ֤י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Yahweh was with Judah; and drove out [the inhabitants of] the hill-country; for he could not drive out the inhabitants of the valley, because they had chariots of iron.
- Judges 1:28 וַֽ/יְהִי֙ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened, when Israel had grown strong, that they put the Canaanites to forced labor, and did not utterly drive them out.
- Judges 1:30 וַ/יִּֽהְי֖וּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp Zebulun didn't drive out the inhabitants of Kitron, nor the inhabitants of Nahalol; but the Canaanites lived among them, and became subject to forced labor.
- Judges 1:33 הָי֥וּ Qal pf 3cp Naphtali didn't drive out the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh, nor the inhabitants of Beth Anath; but he lived among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land: nevertheless the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh and of Beth Anath became subject to forced labor.
- Judges 1:35 וַ/יִּהְי֖וּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp but the Amorites would dwell in Mount Heres, in Aijalon, and in Shaalbim: yet the hand of the house of Joseph prevailed, so that they became subject to forced labor.
- Judges 2:3 וְ/הָי֤וּ יִהְי֥וּ conj + Qal wpf 3cp Qal impf 3mp Therefore I also said, I will not drive them out from before you; but they shall be [as thorns] in your sides, and their gods shall be a snare to you.
- Judges 2:4 וַ/יְהִ֗י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened, when the angel of Yahweh spoke these words to all the children of Israel, that the people lifted up their voice, and wept.
- Judges 2:15 הָיְתָה Qal pf 3fs Wherever they went out, the hand of Yahweh was against them for evil, as Yahweh had spoken, and as Yahweh had sworn to them: and they were sore distressed.
- Judges 2:18 וְ/הָיָ֤ה conj + Qal wpf 3ms When Yahweh raised them up judges, then Yahweh was with the judge, and saved them out of the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge: for it repented Yahweh because of their groaning by reason of those who oppressed them and vexed them.
- Judges 2:19 וְ/הָיָ֣ה conj + Qal wpf 3ms But it happened, when the judge was dead, that they turned back, and dealt more corruptly than their fathers, in following other gods to serve them, and to bow down to them; they didn't cease from their doings, nor from their stubborn way.
- Judges 3:4 וַֽ/יִּהְי֕וּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp They were [left], to prove Israel by them, to know whether they would listen to the commandments of Yahweh, which he commanded their fathers by Moses.
- Judges 3:10 וַ/תְּהִ֨י conj + Qal wimpf 3fs The Spirit of Yahweh came on him, and he judged Israel; and he went out to war, and Yahweh delivered Cushan Rishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand: and his hand prevailed against Cushan Rishathaim.
- Judges 3:18 וַֽ/יְהִי֙ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms When he had made an end of offering the tribute, he sent away the people who bore the tribute.
- Judges 3:27 וַ/יְהִ֣י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened, when he had come, that he blew a trumpet in the hill-country of Ephraim; and the children of Israel went down with him from the hill-country, and he before them.
- Judges 3:31 הָיָה֙ Qal pf 3ms After him was Shamgar the son of Anath, who struck of the Philistines six hundred men with an ox-goad: and he also saved Israel.
- Judges 4:9 תִֽהְיֶ֜ה Qal impf 3fs She said, I will surely go with you: notwithstanding, the journey that you take shall not be for your honor; for Yahweh will sell Sisera into the hand of a woman. Deborah arose, and went with Barak to Kedesh.
- Judges 4:20 וְ/הָיָה֩ conj + Qal wpf 3ms He said to her, Stand in the door of the tent, and it shall be, when any man does come and inquire of you, and say, Is there any man here? that you shall say, No.
- Judges 6:3 וְ/הָיָ֖ה conj + Qal wpf 3ms So it was, when Israel had sown, that the Midianites came up, and the Amalekites, and the children of the east; they came up against them;
- Judges 6:7 וַ/יְהִ֕י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened, when the children of Israel cried to Yahweh because of Midian,
- Judges 6:16 אֶהְיֶ֖ה Qal impf 1cs Yahweh said to him, Surely I will be with you, and you shall strike the Midianites as one man.
- Judges 6:25 וַ/יְהִי֮ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened the same night, that Yahweh said to him, Take your father's bull, even the second bull seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the Asherah that is by it;
- Judges 6:27 וַ/יְהִ֡י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Then Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as Yahweh had spoken to him: and it happened, because he feared his father's household and the men of the city, so that he could not do it by day, that he did it by night.
- Judges 6:37 יִהְיֶ֨ה Qal impf 3ms behold, I will put a fleece of wool on the threshing floor; if there be dew on the fleece only, and it be dry on all the ground, then shall I know that you will save Israel by my hand, as you have spoken.
- Judges 6:38 וַ/יְהִי conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It was so; for he rose up early on the next day, and pressed the fleece together, and wrung the dew out of the fleece, a bowl full of water.
- Judges 6:39 יְהִי יִֽהְיֶה Qal juss 3ms Qal impf 3ms Gideon said to God, Don't let your anger be kindled against me, and I will speak but this once: Please let me make a trial just this once with the fleece; let it now be dry only on the fleece, and on all the ground let there be dew.
- Judges 6:40 וַ/יְהִי הָ֥יָה conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Qal pf 3ms God did so that night: for it was dry on the fleece only, and there was dew on all the ground.
- Judges 7:1 הָיָה Qal pf 3ms Then Jerubbaal, who is Gideon, and all the people who were with him, rose up early, and encamped beside the spring of Harod: and the camp of Midian was on the north side of them, by the hill of Moreh, in the valley.
- Judges 7:4 וְ/הָיָ֡ה conj + Qal wpf 3ms Yahweh said to Gideon, The people are yet too many; bring them down to the water, and I will try them for you there: and it shall be, that of whom I tell you, This shall go with you, the same shall go with you; and of whoever I tell you, This shall not go with you, the same shall not go.
- Judges 7:6 וַ/יְהִ֗י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms The number of those who lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, was three hundred men: but all the rest of the people bowed down on their knees to drink water.
- Judges 7:8 הָ֥יָה Qal pf 3ms So the people took food in their hand, and their trumpets; and he sent all the men of Israel every man to his tent, but retained the three hundred men: and the camp of Midian was beneath him in the valley.
- Judges 7:9 וַֽ/יְהִי֙ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened the same night, that Yahweh said to him, Arise, get you down into the camp; for I have delivered it into your hand.
- Judges 7:15 וַ/יְהִי֩ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It was so, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream, and the interpretation of it, that he worshiped; and he returned into the camp of Israel, and said, Arise; for Yahweh has delivered into your hand the host of Midian.
- Judges 7:17 וְ/הָיָ֥ה conj + Qal wpf 3ms He said to them, Look on me, and do likewise: and, behold, when I come to the outermost part of the camp, it shall be that, as I do, so shall you do.
- Judges 8:11 הָ֥יָה Qal pf 3ms Gideon went up by the way of those who lived in tents on the east of Nobah and Jogbehah, and struck the host; for the host was secure.
- Judges 8:26 וַ/יְהִ֗י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms The weight of the golden ear-rings that he requested was one thousand and seven hundred [shekels] of gold, besides the crescents, and the pendants, and the purple clothing that was on the kings of Midian, and besides the chains that were about their camels' necks.
- Judges 8:27 וַ/יְהִ֛י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Gideon made an ephod of it, and put it in his city, even in Ophrah: and all Israel played the prostitute after it there; and it became a snare to Gideon, and to his house.
- Judges 8:30 הָיוּ֙ הָ֥יוּ Qal pf 3cp Qal pf 3cp Gideon had seventy sons conceived from his body; for he had many wives.
- Judges 8:33 וַ/יְהִ֗י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened, as soon as Gideon was dead, that the children of Israel turned again, and played the prostitute after the Baals, and made Baal Berith their god.
- Judges 9:33 וְ/הָיָ֤ה conj + Qal pf 3ms and it shall be, that in the morning, as soon as the sun is up, you shall rise early, and rush on the city; and, behold, when he and the people who are with him come out against you, then may you do to them as you shall find occasion.
- Judges 9:42 וַֽ/יְהִי֙ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened on the next day, that the people went out into the field; and they told Abimelech.
- Judges 9:51 הָיָ֣ה Qal pf 3ms But there was a strong tower within the city, and there fled all the men and women, and all they of the city, and shut themselves in, and got them up to the roof of the tower.
- Judges 10:4 וַֽ/יְהִי conj + Qal wimpf 3ms He had thirty sons who rode on thirty donkey colts, and they had thirty cities, which are called Havvoth Jair to this day, which are in the land of Gilead.
- Judges 10:18 יִֽהְיֶ֣ה Qal impf 3ms The people, the princes of Gilead, said one to another, What man is he who will begin to fight against the children of Ammon? he shall be head over all the inhabitants of Gilead.
- Judges 11:1 הָיָה֙ Qal pf 3ms Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valor, and he was the son of a prostitute: and Gilead became the father of Jephthah.
- Judges 11:4 וַ/יְהִ֖י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened after a while, that the children of Ammon made war against Israel.
- Judges 11:5 וַ/יְהִ֕י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It was so, that when the children of Ammon made war against Israel, the elders of Gilead went to get Jephthah out of the land of Tob;
- Judges 11:6 וְ/הָיִ֥יתָה conj + Qal wpf 2ms and they said to Jephthah, Come and be our chief, that we may fight with the children of Ammon.
- Judges 11:8 וְ/הָיִ֤יתָ conj + Qal wpf 2ms The elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, Therefore are we turned again to you now, that you may go with us, and fight with the children of Ammon; and you shall be our head over all the inhabitants of Gilead.
- Judges 11:9 אֶהְיֶ֥ה Qal impf 1cs Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, If you bring me home again to fight with the children of Ammon, and Yahweh deliver them before me, shall I be your head?
- Judges 11:10 יִהְיֶ֤ה Qal impf 3ms The elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, Yahweh shall be witness between us; surely according to your word so will we do.
- Judges 11:29 וַ/תְּהִ֤י conj + Qal wimpf 3fs Then the Spirit of Yahweh came on Jephthah, and he passed over Gilead and Manasseh, and passed over Mizpeh of Gilead, and from Mizpeh of Gilead he passed over to the children of Ammon.
- Judges 11:31 וְ/הָיָ֣ה וְ/הָיָה֙ conj + Qal wpf 3ms conj + Qal wpf 3ms then it shall be, that whatever comes forth from the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the children of Ammon, it shall be Yahweh's, and I will offer it up for a burnt offering.
- Judges 11:35 וַ/יְהִי֩ הָיִ֣יתְ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Qal pf 2fs It happened, when he saw her, that he tore his clothes, and said, Alas, my daughter! you have brought me very low, and you are one of those who trouble me; for I have opened my mouth to Yahweh, and I can't go back.
- Judges 11:39 וַ/יְהִ֞י וַ/תְּהִי conj + Qal wimpf 3ms conj + Qal wimpf 3fs It happened at the end of two months, that she returned to her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed: and she was a virgin. It was a custom in Israel,
- Judges 12:2 הָיִ֛יתִי Qal pf 1cs Jephthah said to them, I and my people were at great strife with the children of Ammon; and when I called you, you didn't save me out of their hand.
- Judges 12:5 וְֽ֠/הָיָה conj + Qal pf 3ms The Gileadites took the fords of the Jordan against the Ephraimites. It was so, that when [any of] the fugitives of Ephraim said, Let me go over, the men of Gilead said to him, Are you an Ephraimite? If he said, No;
- Judges 12:9 וַ/יְהִי conj + Qal wimpf 3ms He had thirty sons; and thirty daughters he sent abroad, and thirty daughters he brought in from abroad for his sons. He judged Israel seven years.
- Judges 12:14 וַ/יְהִי conj + Qal wimpf 3ms He had forty sons and thirty sons' sons, who rode on seventy donkey colts: and he judged Israel eight years.
- Judges 13:2 וַ/יְהִי֩ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms There was a certain man of Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was barren, and didn't bear.
- Judges 13:5 יִהְיֶ֥ה Qal impf 3ms for, behold, you shall conceive, and bear a son; and no razor shall come on his head; for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb: and he shall begin to save Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.
- Judges 13:7 יִהְיֶ֣ה Qal impf 3ms but he said to me, Behold, you shall conceive, and bear a son; and now drink no wine nor strong drink, and eat not any unclean thing; for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb to the day of his death.
- Judges 13:12 יִּֽהְיֶ֥ה Qal impf 3ms Manoah said, Now let your words happen: what shall be the ordering of the child, and [how] shall we do to him?
- Judges 13:20 וַ/יְהִי֩ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms For it happened, when the flame went up toward the sky from off the altar, that the angel of Yahweh ascended in the flame of the altar: and Manoah and his wife looked on; and they fell on their faces to the ground.
- Judges 14:11 וַ/יְהִ֖י וַ/יִּהְי֖וּ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms conj + Qal wimpf 3mp It happened, when they saw him, that they brought thirty companions to be with him.
- Judges 14:15 וַ/יְהִ֣י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened on the seventh day, that they said to Samson's wife, Entice your husband, that he may declare to us the riddle, lest we burn you and your father's house with fire: have you called us to impoverish us? is it not [so]?
- Judges 14:17 הָיָ֥ה וַ/יְהִ֣י Qal pf 3ms conj + Qal wimpf 3ms She wept before him the seven days, while their feast lasted: and it happened on the seventh day, that he told her, because she pressed him sore; and she told the riddle to the children of her people.
- Judges 14:20 וַ/תְּהִ֖י conj + Qal wimpf 3fs But Samson's wife was [given] to his companion, whom he had used as his friend.
- Judges 15:1 וַ/יְהִ֨י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms But it happened after a while, in the time of wheat harvest, that Samson visited his wife with a kid; and he said, I will go in to my wife into the chamber. But her father wouldn't allow him to go in.
- Judges 15:2 תְּהִי Qal juss 3fs Her father said, I most assuredly thought that you had utterly hated her; therefore I gave her to your companion: isn't her younger sister more beautiful than she? Please take her, instead.
- Judges 15:14 וַ/תִּהְיֶ֨ינָה conj + Qal wimpf 3fp When he came to Lehi, the Philistines shouted as they met him: and the Spirit of Yahweh came mightily on him, and the ropes that were on his arms became as flax that was burnt with fire, and his bands dropped from off his hands.
- Judges 15:17 וַֽ/יְהִי֙ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened, when he had made an end of speaking, that he cast away the jawbone out of his hand; and that place was called Ramath Lehi.
- Judges 16:4 וַֽ/יְהִי֙ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It came to pass afterward, that he loved a woman in the valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah.
- Judges 16:7 וְ/הָיִ֖יתִי conj + Qal pf 1cs Samson said to her, If they bind me with seven green cords that were never dried, then shall I become weak, and be as another man.
- Judges 16:11 וְ/הָיִ֖יתִי conj + Qal pf 1cs He said to her, If they only bind me with new ropes with which no work has been done, then shall I become weak, and be as another man.
- Judges 16:16 וַ֠/יְהִי conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened, when she pressed him daily with her words, and urged him, that his soul was vexed to death.
- Judges 16:17 וְ/הָיִ֖יתִי conj + Qal pf 1cs He told her all his heart, and said to her, "No razor has ever come on my head; for I have been a Nazirite to God from my mother's womb. If I am shaved, then my strength will go from me, and I will become weak, and be like any other man."
- Judges 16:21 וַ/יְהִ֥י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms The Philistines laid hold on him, and put out his eyes; and they brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters of brass; and he did grind in the prison-house.
- Judges 16:25 וַֽ/יְהִי֙ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened, when their hearts were merry, that they said, Call for Samson, that he may make us sport. They called for Samson out of the prison-house; and he made sport before them. They set him between the pillars:
- Judges 16:30 וַ/יִּהְי֤וּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp Samson said, Let me die with the Philistines. He bowed himself with all his might; and the house fell on the lords, and on all the people who were therein. So the dead that he killed at his death were more than those who he killed in his life.
- Judges 17:1 וַֽ/יְהִי conj + Qal wimpf 3ms There was a man of the hill-country of Ephraim, whose name was Micah.
- Judges 17:4 וַ/יְהִ֖י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms When he restored the money to his mother, his mother took two hundred [pieces] of silver, and gave them to the founder, who made of it an engraved image and a molten image: and it was in the house of Micah.
- Judges 17:5 וַ/יְהִי conj + Qal wimpf 3ms The man Micah had a house of gods, and he made an ephod, and teraphim, and consecrated one of his sons, who became his priest.
- Judges 17:7 וַ/יְהִי conj + Qal wimpf 3ms There was a young man out of Bethlehem Judah, of the family of Judah, who was a Levite; and he sojourned there.
- Judges 17:10 וֶֽ/הְיֵה conj + Qal impv 2ms Micah said to him, Dwell with me, and be to me a father and a priest, and I will give you ten [pieces] of silver by the year, and a suit of clothing, and your food. So the Levite went in.
- Judges 17:11 וַ/יְהִ֤י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms The Levite was content to dwell with the man; and the young man was to him as one of his sons.
- Judges 17:12 וַ/יְהִי וַ/יְהִ֖י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Micah consecrated the Levite, and the young man became his priest, and was in the house of Micah.
- Judges 17:13 הָיָה Qal pf 3ms Then said Micah, Now know I that Yahweh will do me good, seeing I have a Levite to my priest.
- Judges 18:4 וָ/אֱהִי conj + Qal wimpf 1cs He said to them, Thus and thus has Micah dealt with me, and he has hired me, and I am become his priest.
- Judges 18:19 וֶֽ/הְיֵה הֱיוֹתְ/ךָ֣ הֱיוֹתְ/ךָ֣ conj + Qal impv 2ms Qal inf.cs + sfx pers 2ms Qal inf.cs + sfx pers 2ms They said to him, Hold your peace, lay your hand on your mouth, and go with us, and be to us a father and a priest: is it better for you to be priest to the house of one man, or to be priest to a tribe and a family in Israel?
- Judges 18:27 הָיָה Qal pf 3ms They took that which Micah had made, and the priest whom he had, and came to Laish, to a people quiet and secure, and struck them with the edge of the sword; and they burnt the city with fire.
- Judges 18:30 הָי֤וּ Qal pf 3cp The children of Dan set up for themselves the engraved image: and Jonathan, the son of Gershom, the son of Moses, he and his sons were priests to the tribe of the Danites until the day of the captivity of the land.
- Judges 18:31 הֱי֥וֹת Qal inf.cs So they set them up Micah's engraved image which he made, all the time that the house of God was in Shiloh.
- Judges 19:1 וַ/יְהִי֙ וַ/יְהִ֣י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened in those days, when there was no king in Israel, that there was a certain Levite sojourning on the farther side of the hill-country of Ephraim, who took to him a concubine out of Bethlehem Judah.
- Judges 19:2 וַ/תְּהִי conj + Qal wimpf 3fs His concubine played the prostitute against him, and went away from him to her father's house to Bethlehem Judah, and was there the space of four months.
- Judges 19:5 וַֽ/יְהִי֙ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened on the fourth day, that they arose early in the morning, and he rose up to depart: and the young lady's father said to his son-in-law, Strengthen your heart with a morsel of bread, and afterward you shall go your way.
- Judges 19:30 וְ/הָיָ֣ה נִהְיְתָ֤ה conj + Qal wpf 3ms Niphal pf 3fs It was so, that all who saw it said, There was no such deed done nor seen from the day that the children of Israel came up out of the land of Egypt to this day: consider it, take counsel, and speak.
- Judges 20:38 הָיָ֛ה Qal pf 3ms Now the appointed sign between the men of Israel and the liers-in-wait was that they should make a great cloud of smoke rise up out of the city.
- Judges 20:46 וַ/יְהִי֩ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms So that all who fell that day of Benjamin were twenty-five thousand men who drew the sword; all these [were] men of valor.
- Judges 21:3 הָ֥יְתָה Qal pf 3fs They said, Yahweh, the God of Israel, why has this happened in Israel, that there should be today one tribe lacking in Israel?
- Judges 21:4 וַֽ/יְהִי֙ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened on the next day that the people rose early, and built there an altar, and offered burnt offerings and peace-offerings.
- Judges 21:5 הָיְתָ֗ה Qal pf 3fs The children of Israel said, Who is there among all the tribes of Israel who didn't come up in the assembly to Yahweh? For they had made a great oath concerning him who didn't come up to Yahweh to Mizpah, saying, He shall surely be put to death.
- Judges 21:22 וְ/הָיָ֡ה conj + Qal pf 3ms It shall be, when their fathers or their brothers come to complain to us, that we will say to them, Grant them graciously to us, because we didn't take for each man his wife in battle, neither did you give them to them, else would you now be guilty.
Ruth 19 verses
- Ruth 1:1 וַ/יְהִ֗י וַ/יְהִ֥י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened in the days when the judges judged, that there was a famine in the land. A certain man of Bethlehem Judah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he, and his wife, and his two sons.
- Ruth 1:2 וַ/יִּֽהְיוּ conj + Qal wimpf 3mp The name of the man was Elimelech, and the name of his wife Naomi, and the name of his two sons Mahlon and Chilion, Ephrathites of Bethlehem Judah. They came into the country of Moab, and continued there.
- Ruth 1:7 הָיְתָה Qal pf 3fs She went forth out of the place where she was, and her two daughters-in-law with her; and they went on the way to return to the land of Judah.
- Ruth 1:11 וְ/הָי֥וּ conj + Qal wpf 3cp Naomi said, Turn again, my daughters: why will you go with me? have I yet sons in my womb, that they may be your husbands?
- Ruth 1:12 מִ/הְי֣וֹת הָיִ֤יתִי prep + Qal inf.cs Qal pf 1cs Turn again, my daughters, go your way; for I am too old to have a husband. If I should say, I have hope, if I should even have a husband tonight, and should also bear sons;
- Ruth 1:13 הֱי֣וֹת Qal inf.cs would you therefore wait until they were grown? would you therefore stay from having husbands? nay, my daughters, for it grieves me much for your sakes, for the hand of Yahweh is gone forth against me.
- Ruth 1:19 וַ/יְהִ֗י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms So they two went until they came to Bethlehem. It happened, when they were come to Bethlehem, that all the city was moved about them, and [the women] said, Is this Naomi?
- Ruth 2:12 וּ/תְהִ֨י conj + Qal juss 3fs Yahweh recompense your work, and a full reward be given you of Yahweh, the God of Israel, under whose wings you are come to take refuge.
- Ruth 2:13 אֶֽהְיֶ֔ה Qal impf 1cs Then she said, Let me find favor in your sight, my lord, because you have comforted me, and because you have spoken kindly to your handmaid, though I am not as one of your handmaidens.
- Ruth 2:17 וַ/יְהִ֖י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms So she gleaned in the field until even; and she beat out that which she had gleaned, and it was about an ephah of barley.
- Ruth 2:19 יְהִ֥י Qal juss 3ms Her mother-in-law said to her, Where have you gleaned today? and where have you worked? blessed be he who did take knowledge of you. She shown her mother-in-law with whom she had worked, and said, The man's name with whom I worked today is Boaz.
- Ruth 3:2 הָיִ֖ית Qal pf 2fs Now isn't Boaz our kinsman, with whose maidens you were? Behold, he winnows barley tonight in the threshing floor.
- Ruth 3:4 וִ/יהִ֣י conj + Qal juss 3ms It shall be, when he lies down, that you shall mark the place where he shall lie, and you shall go in, and uncover his feet, and lay you down; and he will tell you what you shall do.
- Ruth 3:8 וַ/יְהִי֙ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened at midnight, that the man was afraid, and turned himself; and, behold, a woman lay at his feet.
- Ruth 3:13 וְ/הָיָ֤ה conj + Qal wpf 3ms Stay this night, and it shall be in the morning, that if he will perform to you the part of a kinsman, well; let him do the kinsman's part: but if he will not do the part of a kinsman to you, then will I do the part of a kinsman to you, as Yahweh lives: lie down until the morning.
- Ruth 4:12 וִ/יהִ֤י conj + Qal juss 3ms and let your house be like the house of Perez, whom Tamar bore to Judah, of the seed which Yahweh shall give you of this young woman.
- Ruth 4:13 וַ/תְּהִי conj + Qal wimpf 3fs So Boaz took Ruth, and she became his wife; and he went in to her, and Yahweh gave her conception, and she bore a son.
- Ruth 4:15 וְ/הָ֤יָה conj + Qal wpf 3ms He shall be to you a restorer of life, and sustain you in your old age, for your daughter-in-law, who loves you, who is better to you than seven sons, has borne him.
- Ruth 4:16 וַ/תְּהִי conj + Qal wimpf 3fs Naomi took the child, and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse to it.
1 Samuel 147 verses
- 1 Samuel 1:1 וַ/יְהִי֩ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms Now there was a certain man of Ramathaim Zophim, of the hill-country of Ephraim, and his name was Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite:
- 1 Samuel 1:2 וַ/יְהִ֤י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms and he had two wives; the name of the one was Hannah, and the name of other Peninnah: and Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children.
- 1 Samuel 1:4 וַ/יְהִ֣י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms When the day came that Elkanah sacrificed, he gave to Peninnah his wife, and to all her sons and her daughters, portions:
- 1 Samuel 1:12 וְ/הָיָה֙ conj + Qal pf 3ms It happened, as she continued praying before Yahweh, that Eli marked her mouth.
- 1 Samuel 1:18 הָיוּ Qal pf 3cp She said, Let your handmaid find favor in your sight. So the woman went her way, and ate; and her facial expression wasn't sad any more.
- 1 Samuel 1:20 וַ/יְהִי֙ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened, when the time was come about, that Hannah conceived, and bore a son; and she named him Samuel, [saying], Because I have asked him of Yahweh.
- 1 Samuel 1:28 הָיָ֔ה Qal pf 3ms therefore also I have granted him to Yahweh; as long as he lives he is granted to Yahweh. He worshiped Yahweh there.
- 1 Samuel 2:11 הָיָ֤ה Qal pf 3ms Elkanah went to Ramah to his house. The child did minister to Yahweh before Eli the priest.
- 1 Samuel 2:17 וַ/תְּהִ֨י conj + Qal wimpf 3fs The sin of the young men was very great before Yahweh; for the men despised the offering of Yahweh.
- 1 Samuel 2:27 בִּֽ/הְיוֹתָ֥/ם prep + Qal inf.cs + sfx pers 3mp There came a man of God to Eli, and said to him, Thus says Yahweh, Did I reveal myself to the house of your father, when they were in Egypt [in bondage] to Pharaoh's house?
- 1 Samuel 2:31 מִֽ/הְי֥וֹת prep + Qal inf.cs Behold, the days come, that I will cut off your arm, and the arm of your father's house, that there shall not be an old man in your house.
- 1 Samuel 2:32 יִהְיֶ֥ה Qal impf 3ms You shall see the affliction of [my] habitation, in all the wealth which [God] shall give Israel; and there shall not be an old man in your house forever.
- 1 Samuel 2:36 וְ/הָיָ֗ה conj + Qal wpf 3ms It shall happen, that everyone who is left in your house shall come and bow down to him for a piece of silver and a loaf of bread, and shall say, Please put me into one of the priests' offices, that I may eat a morsel of bread.
- 1 Samuel 3:1 הָיָ֤ה Qal pf 3ms The child Samuel ministered to Yahweh before Eli. The word of Yahweh was precious in those days; there was no frequent vision.
- 1 Samuel 3:2 וַֽ/יְהִי֙ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened at that time, when Eli was laid down in his place (now his eyes had begun to grow dim, so that he could not see),
- 1 Samuel 3:9 וְ/הָיָה֙ conj + Qal wpf 3ms Therefore Eli said to Samuel, Go, lie down: and it shall be, if he call you, that you shall say, Speak, Yahweh; for your servant hears. So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
- 1 Samuel 3:19 הָיָ֣ה Qal pf 3ms Samuel grew, and Yahweh was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground.
- 1 Samuel 4:1 וַ/יְהִ֥י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms The word of Samuel came to all Israel. Now Israel went out against the Philistines to battle, and encamped beside Ebenezer: and the Philistines encamped in Aphek.
- 1 Samuel 4:5 וַ/יְהִ֗י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms When the ark of the covenant of Yahweh came into the camp, all Israel shouted with a great shout, so that the earth rang again.
- 1 Samuel 4:7 הָיְתָ֛ה Qal pf 3fs The Philistines were afraid, for they said, God is come into the camp. They said, Woe to us! for there has not been such a thing heretofore.
- 1 Samuel 4:9 וִֽ/הְי֤וּ וִ/הְיִיתֶ֥ם conj + Qal impv 2mp conj + Qal wpf 2mp Be strong, and behave yourselves like men, O you Philistines, that you not be servants to the Hebrews, as they have been to you: quit yourselves like men, and fight.
- 1 Samuel 4:10 וַ/תְּהִ֥י conj + Qal wimpf 3fs The Philistines fought, and Israel was struck, and they fled every man to his tent: and there was a very great slaughter; for there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen.
- 1 Samuel 4:13 הָיָ֤ה Qal pf 3ms When he came, behold, Eli was sitting on his seat by the road watching; for his heart trembled for the ark of God. When the man came into the city, and told it, all the city cried out.
- 1 Samuel 4:16 הָיָ֥ה Qal pf 3ms The man said to Eli, I am he who came out of the army, and I fled today out of the army. He said, How went the matter, my son?
- 1 Samuel 4:17 הָיְתָ֣ה Qal pf 3fs He who brought the news answered, Israel is fled before the Philistines, and there has been also a great slaughter among the people, and your two sons also, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead, and the ark of God is taken.
- 1 Samuel 4:18 וַ/יְהִ֞י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms It happened, when he made mention of the ark of God, that [Eli] fell from off his seat backward by the side of the gate; and his neck broke, and he died: for he was an old man, and heavy. He had judged Israel forty years.
- 1 Samuel 5:9 וַ/יְהִ֞י וַ/תְּהִ֨י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms conj + Qal wimpf 3fs It was so, that after they had carried it about, the hand of Yahweh was against the city with a very great confusion: and he struck the men of the city, both small and great; and tumors broke out on them.
- 1 Samuel 5:10 וַ/יְהִ֗י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms So they sent the ark of God to Ekron. It happened, as the ark of God came to Ekron, that the Ekronites cried out, saying, They have brought about the ark of the God of Israel to us, to kill us and our people.
- 1 Samuel 5:11 הָיְתָ֤ה Qal pf 3fs They sent therefore and gathered together all the lords of the Philistines, and they said, Send away the ark of the God of Israel, and let it go again to its own place, that it not kill us and our people. For there was a deadly confusion throughout all the city; the hand of God was very heavy there.
- 1 Samuel 6:1 וַ/יְהִ֧י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms The ark of Yahweh was in the country of the Philistines seven months.
- 1 Samuel 6:9 הָ֥יָה Qal pf 3ms Behold; if it goes up by the way of its own border to Beth-shemesh, then he has done us this great evil: but if not, then we shall know that it is not his hand that struck us; it was a chance that happened to us."
- 1 Samuel 7:2 וַ/יְהִ֗י וַ/יִּֽהְי֖וּ conj + Qal wimpf 3ms conj + Qal wimpf 3mp It happened, from the day that the ark abode in Kiriath Jearim, that the time was long; for it was twenty years: and all the house of Israel lamented after Yahweh.
- 1 Samuel 7:10 וַ/יְהִ֤י conj + Qal wimpf 3ms As Samuel was offering up the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to battle against Israel; but Yahweh thundered with a great thunder on that day on the Philistines, and confused them; and they were struck down before Israel.
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
Strong's · 1890
beacon
Modern gloss
to be
Strong's 1890 sometimes compressed multiple senses — or homonymous roots — under one number, and used 19th-century English phrasing that no longer carries the same connotation. The modern gloss reflects current BDB scholarship; open the Lexicon Entry tab for the full sense breakdown.
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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.
