זַכַּי
Zaccai
BDB lists 2 entries for ‘Zaccai’ fuller range ↓
Full lexicon entry — Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
From Brown-Driver-Briggs (BDB)
Where this word appears
Grammar key — what these labels mean
Part of speech
- Noun
- A naming word — a person, place, thing, or idea.
Noun type
- Proper
- A name of a specific person, place, or people (e.g. Abraham, Zion, Israel).
Every verse where H2140 appears — 3 distinct verses across 2 books. 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.
Ezra 1 verse
Nehemiah 2 verses
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.
“Zaccai” is the headline sense of the Hebrew name זכי (Zakkay). The Hebrew Bible uses it only 3 verses. It clusters heavily in Nehemiah, which alone accounts for 67% of its uses. First canonically at Ezra 2:9, it enters the text early. The sections below give every occurrence and version rendering.
Gloss history
Strong's 1890 vs modern scholarship
About this word
Strong's H2140 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
- distinct verses
- The word appears in 3 distinct verses.
- 2 / 39
- OT books
- The word appears in 2 of 39 Old Testament books.
- #4,179
- by frequency
- Top 5000 most frequent Hebrew words (rank 4,179 of 8,640 Hebrew words by occurrence).
View all 3 occurrences in the concordance →
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 distinct verses.
- Writings (Ketuvim) 3 verses · 100%
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: Zaccai 2×
- American Standard Version: Zaccai 2×
- Berean Standard Bible: Zaccai 2×
- unfoldingWord Literal Text: Zakkai 2×
King James Version Public Domain
Renders H2140 across 3 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus 1 rendering that appears only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
American Standard Version Public Domain
Renders H2140 across 3 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Plus 1 rendering that appears only once — usually multi-word phrases or single function words the recovered tagging swept in, not distinct renderings.
Berean Standard Bible Public Domain
Renders H2140 across 2 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
unfoldingWord Literal Text CC BY-SA 4.0
Renders H2140 across 2 tagged occurrences — most commonly:
Senses in BDB
The 2 senses BDB distinguishes for this word, in lexicon order (not ranked by frequency or importance). The full entry — with sub-senses — is in the Lexicon Entry tab.
- Zaccai = "pure"
- the head of a family of 760 exiles returning with Zerubbabel
Word origin
n.pr.m. head of a family of returned exiles, זַכָּ֔י Ezr 2:9 (𝔊 Ζακχου, 𝔊L Ζακχαιου) = Ne 7:14 (𝔊 Ζαθου, A Ζακχουρ, 𝔊L Ζακχαιου); perhaps = זַכַּי Ne 3:20 q.v.; 𝔊 Ζαβ(ρ)ου, 𝔊L Ραββαι. Nes (privately) suggests that this might be abbrev. from זכריה.
— Brown-Driver-Briggs (Oxford 1906, public domain), digitized via Sefaria, supplemented by the OpenScriptures HebrewLexicon (CC BY 4.0). See Sources.
Derived from זכך (zâkak) (H2141) — to be bright.
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.
זכי
- [to be pure, clear,]
- 1. to be acquitted, be right. B. Mets. 107ᵇ זוֹכֶה בדין he will be successful in his plea before court. Ber. 7ᵇ זוכה בדין (v. Rabb. D. S. a. l. note) he will be found righteous in Divine judgment; a. fr.
- 2. to be found worthy of, to be privileged, to succeed. Ib. I, 5 ולא זָכִיתִי וכ׳ I did not succeed (in proving) that &c. Ib. 5ᵇ לא … זוכה לשתי וכ׳ not every one is privileged to enjoy two tables (this world and the hereafter). Ḥag. 5ᵇ תִּזְכּוּ להקביל וכ׳ you will be privileged to receive &c. Pes. 19ᵃ זָכִינוּ שאין וכ׳ it was a good thing for us that &c. Erub. 54ᵃ ז׳ תאוות וכ׳ if one is favored, ‘thou givest him the desire of his heart’ (without prayer), if less favored &c. Yeb. 63ᵃ, v. נֶגֶד; a. fr.
- 3. to take possession, have authority; to own (cmp. קָנָה); to gain, obtain a privilege. B. Mets. I, 3 אני זָכִיתִי בה I took possession of it for myself; ז׳ בה it is his. Ib. 4 זה שהחזיק בה ז׳ בה the one that took a hold of it, is the legitimate owner. Ib. זָכְתָה לי שדי my field (in which the object lies) has taken possession for me. Y. Kidd. I, 60ᵃ top הראוי לִזְכּוֹת ע"י עצמו וכ׳ he who is legally qualified to acquire ownership through his own act, can obtain ownership through another person.—Erub. VII, 11 (81ᵇ), a. fr. זָכִין לאדם שלא בפניו you may obtain a privilege in behalf of a person in his absence, but you cannot act in his behalf to his disadvantage; a. fr.
- 4. (v. Pi.) to benefit another person by one’s own merit, to transfer blessing &c. Eduy. II, 9 האב זוֹכֶה לבן וכ׳ a (good) father transmits to his son the benefits of beauty &c. Tosef. ib. I, 14 עד הפרק זוכה לו up to the age of majority the father’s merit stands by him, מכאן ואילך זוכה לעצמו after that he lives on his own merits.
- 5. to deserve well of, be of service to. Lev. R. s. 34 (ref. to Ps. XLI, 2) הוי … היאך לִזְכּוֹת עמו reflect well how to be of real service to him. Ib. לזכות בו to deserve divine reward through him. Ib. שיהו זָכִין אלו לאלו that they may deserve well of each other (the poor being the instrumentality of bliss to the giver); a. fr. e.g. Psalms 41:2
- 1. to acquit, to argue or vote for acquittal. Erub. 19ᵃ יפה זִכִּיתָ וכ׳ thou wast right in acquitting, in condemning. Snh. III, 5 שנים מְזַכִּין if two vote for acquittal; a. fr.
- 2. to obtain a privilege for, take possession in behalf of; to transfer, make an assignment to. Y. Kidd. l. c. זה זי׳ לבן דעת the one obtained a privilege for a rational being. B. Bath. VIII, 6 זי׳ בה לאחר if in his will (found on his body) he made an assignment to somebody else (as executor); a. fr.
- 3. to transfer divine favor, to exercise a protecting influence on. Snh. 111ᵃ מְזַכֶּה את כל וכ׳ protects the entire town. Yoma 87ᵃ לא דיין שזוכין לעצמן אלא שמְזַכִּין וכ׳ Ms. M. not only do they obtain divine grace for themselves, but they also transfer the same on their children &c.; a. fr.
- 4. to lead to righteousness, to convert, make better, purer. Ib.; Ab. V, 18, a. e. כל המזכה את וכ׳ whoever causes a community to do good. Macc. III, 16 רצה הקב"ה לזַכּוֹת וכ׳, the Lord desired to make Israel pure; a. fr.
- , Nithpa. נִזְדַּכֶּה
- 1. to be acquitted, to be found not guilty. Snh. 30ᵃ מדבריהם נז׳ פלוני the defendant has been acquitted by their (the court’s) verdict. Y. ib. V, 22ᵈ top ובאיזו מִזְדַּכֶּה פוטרין אותו and on which-soever (of the two counts) he is found not guilty, he is acquitted; a. fr.
- 2. to have favorable evidence or argument offered. Ib. 23ᵃ נ׳ מפי עצמו if the defendant himself offers &c. Ib. הרי שנ׳ מפי עצמו (read מפי עדו).
זְכֵי
- 1. to be clear, pure. Targ. Job IX, 15. Ib. X, 15 זְכִיתִי (some ed. זִכִּי׳, corr. acc.); a. e.
- 2. to go unpunished (h. נקה).). Targ. Jer. XXV, 29; a. e.
- 3. to deserve welt, do good, to obtain a claim on divine favor. Lev. R. s. 34 [read:] אדם … זְכִי בי או דְכִי בי the beggar says … ‘obtain a claim &c. through me’, or ‘become pure through me’, (which means) זַכֵּי גרמך בי benefit thyself through me. Ib. אנן זַכְיִין בך we shall give thee something. Ib. ז׳ בהאי אתתא give this woman (me) something. Y. Ḥag. I, 76ᶜ bot. שלח … מִזְכֵּי וכ׳ sent his son to Tiberias for his improvement (through study); Y. Pes. III, 30ᵇ bot. יזכי (corr. acc.); a. fr.
- 4. to become worthy of divine grace, to be privileged to enjoy, to live to see. Targ. Job XX, 17; a. e.—Ber. 17ᵃ נשים במאי זַכְיָין wherewith do women (who do not study the Law) deserve divine grace?—Sabb. 21ᵇ אי זְכָאִי if I had been worthy (if the Lord had permitted me). Lev. R. s. 25 אי זָכִית אכלית if the Lord permit, I may eat thereof. Ib. אם זַכְיַת (תיכול) אכול if thou shalt live long enough to eat thereof. Ḥull. 50ᵃ; Bets. 27ᵃ, a. e. אִזְכֵּי ואסיק וכ׳ the Lord permitting I will go &c.; a. fr.—4) to take possession, acquire a title. B. Mets. 8ᵃ מיגו דזָכֵי לנפשיה since he has a right to take possession for himself, v. מִיגּוֹ, s. v. גּוֹ.—B. Kam. 12ᵇ; a. fr.
- 1. to clear (from rubbish). M. Kat. 10ᵇ; B. Bath. 54ᵃ, v. זִיכֵּי.
- 2. to clear, acquit, justify; to leave unpunished. Targ. O. Ex. XX, 7 (Y. מִזְכֵי, read: מְזַכֵּי). Targ. Cant. VII, 3; a. fr.
- 3. to cleanse. Targ. Ps. LXXIII, 13 זַכָּאִית Ms. (ed. זַכִּית, ed. Wil. זַכְוַת, corr. acc.); a. e.—Lev. R. s. 34, v. supra.
- 4. to win, defeat. Ab. Zar. 10ᵇ; Snh. 39ᵃ כל דז׳ מלכא Ms. M. (ed. למלכא) whosoever defeats the king in argument. Ib. 107ᵃ עבדא ז׳ למריה (old ed. כפייה) the servant conquered his master. Bekh. 8ᵇ אי זַכִּיתוּ לי if you defeat me; ואי זַכִּינָא בכו (read לכו) and if we defeat you. Ḥull. 31ᵇ זַכַּנְהוּ וכ׳ R. N. defeated the Rabbis; a. e.
- 5. to entitle, give possession to. Pes. 78ᵃ שטרא מְזַכֵּי לבי תרי a document giving a title to both contestants, i.e. one agreeing with two opposite opinions.
- to be cleared, to go unpunished; to clear one’s self, to defend one’s self. Targ. Y. Gen. XXIV, 8. Ib. XLIV, 16; a. e.
זַכַּי
- = זַכַּאי, innocent, righteous. Targ. O. Num. XXXV, 33 ed. Berl. (ed. Amst. זכאי). Targ. O. Deut. XIX, 10; a. e.—Fem. זַכְיָא. Targ. Y. I Gen. XXXVIII, 26 (Y. II זכאי).—Pl. זַכָּאִין, v. זַכַּאי; זַכְיָין. Targ. Y. II l. c.; Targ. Ez. XVI, 52 (some ed. זַכְוָן).
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 2 distinct written forms H2140 takes in the Hebrew Bible, most frequent first — each parse links to that state’s occurrences in the concordance. Hebrew forms include their vowel points and cantillation, so a single lemma takes many written forms.
| Form | Parsing | Example | Uses |
|---|---|---|---|
| זַכָּ֔י | Noun, Proper | Ezra 2:9 | 2 |
| זַכַּ֖י | Noun, Proper | Nehemiah 3:20 | 1 |
Same root — word family
Other BDB entries built from the same root as H2140, 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.
Bible dictionary
Public-domain dictionary articles matched to this entry by name (Zaccai). A biblical name can be shared by more than one person or place, so an article may treat several.
Easton's Bible Dictionary · M. G. Easton, 1897
Pure, one whose "sons" returned with Zerubbabel to Jerusalem (Ezra 2:9; Neh. 7:14). (See ZABBAI.)
Smith's Bible Dictionary · William Smith, 1863
(pure). The sons of Zaccai to the number of 760, returned with Zerrubbabel. (Ezra 2:9; Nehemiah 7:14) (B.C. before 536.)
Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary · Roswell D. Hitchcock, 1869
pure meat; just
Classic public-domain reference works; full attribution on Sources.
Septuagint verse parallels
This word appears in 1 verse that also exists in the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint), out of the 3 Hebrew verses it occurs in. You can read those verses in Greek by switching the Old Testament edition to the Septuagint.
Read these verses in the Septuagint
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.
